24. Mornin’ Tetons

The story of my trip so far has been - plan to be at a location for one day and leave five days later. Jackson Hole was no different. 

When you drive in from the east up hwy 26 and then turn south on 191 the Tetons welcome you when you are still 30 miles out. They loom in the distance as if guarding some great treasure hidden behind them. They command admiration as the sun rises from behind casting its first light on the peak of Grand Teton as it reaches 1.3 miles into the air from the plains at its base. It pulls your eyes to its peak as a magnet draws a nail. Its little brothers and sisters standing at its side only adds to the magnificence of the scene. Several of whom also loom over a mile into the sky scratching the clouds as they pass by. Their sheer size and violent ridge lines bring your car to a stop so that you can give them the attention they deserve. 

Jumping back in the car I FaceTimed with Matt (my brother) showing him the Teton Range in the distance. The only thing better than experiencing such beauty and magnificence is to share it with someone. The snake river flowed fast as it made a mote in front of the Teton Range. I couldn’t help but think about the toads that lay in those deep pools. And when I say “toads” you must understand that I don’t mean literal big mouth, bumpy skin, long legged, jumping toad. I mean a monster trout. A toad! A rainbow that would bend a 5 wt fly rod to it’s breaking point. A “slime rocket” as my Granddaddy called them. A slime rocket that resembled a football in its mid section and over twenty inches long. Maybe over thirty inches! A toad. 

Driving into Jackson I still wondered if I was driving into Jackson Hole, or Jackson. The map said Jackson. But if you searched “Jackson Hole” It brought you to the same place. Unclear I made my way into the city. It was still early but the city was already bustling about with the early morning tourists getting coffee, grabbing a bagel, meandering into the fly shop. I pulled over and stopped next to the coffee shop where I was meeting Madison Gardner a close friend from my time in Dallas. He and his family were vacationing in Jackson the next week and it just happened our trip overlapped. Walking up to the coffee shop I made it all the way to the door before realizing I had forgot my face mask. “Frick!” I audibly shared with the front door as I turned around to go get my mask. I had grown accustomed to walking into any grocery store, bar, restaurant, and gas station in southern Wyoming with no mask. Wyoming, where masks are not essential. Or at least in the smaller less touristy towns. I had appreciated the normalcy of it and now was back to the masked world. “Ughh! I hate this.” I think as I grab my mask and head back to the coffee shop. I bet masks have added miles to my step count over the last month just from forgetting my mask in the car.

Bypassing the hand shake and going in for the hug it was great to see someone who knows me. Someone who I could reference past times with and laugh at certain things without having to explain the reference. A breath of fresh air. Go without seeing someone you know for a few weeks and a familiar face is major blessing. Also, the fact that I haven’t caught up with Madison in a while. After coffee I drove downtown stopping in a little shop where I asked the ladies in the salon inside, “Hey where can I go to get away from the massive crowd of tourists and have a drink on a patio?” Laughing they answered, “Good luck.” Then they pointed me towards a couple suggested places. I found myself sitting and writing soaking up the breeze in the shade. 

Looking up a place to spend the night I found a suggested area east of town twenty minutes on the other side of the Elk Refuge. I started that way down the gravel road leading out of town. I pull up passing a school bus and a few other camper vans. No more had I stepped out of my van and made it three steps when I heard it. “Woo pig!” I stopped in my tracks and turned around. A long haired blonde guy with a little bit of a crazy grin was looking at me from a hundred yards across the way. I started walking his way just knowing this is about to be a hilarious conversation. When you run into someone from Arkansas the chances are that you know some of the same people. And when he said he went to harding you just throw your head back and laugh. Some of his favorite people are some of my favorite people. The first few names he mentions are guys I’ve known since I was seven years old. Zach Gill, Tyler Tipton, Peyton Weeks, Payton Hurst, and the list continued. We were instant friends. He and his wife Lauren had bought a converted school bus a few months prior and had been living in Denver until the week before that and they started their travels out west. It’s amazing who you’ll run into outside of the Elk Refuge east of Jackson Hole, WY.