Yellowstone Bison Gores Woman

Above, a herd of bison in a Yellowstone riverside meadow. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

People tend to forget or ignore warnings that bison are wild animals and are unpredictable. They will charge people, causing injuries or death.

A woman was gored today near Lake Lodge in Yellowstone National Park. She was seriously injured and airlifted to a hospital.

The Jackson Hole News & Guide reported:

A bison gored a 47-year-old woman Monday morning in Yellowstone National Park — the first time this year that a visitor has encountered the large ungulates' horns in America's first national park. 

The woman sustained "significant injuries to her chest and abdomen" and was transported by helicopter to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls, according to Yellowstone officials in a Monday afternoon press release.

Gorings are an unfortunate but almost annual affair in the park. 

The incident is under investigation. It is currently rutting season and bison are easily agitated during this period.

To read more, go here.

Snake River Cabins and RV Village

Above, the main office building when it was a KOA. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

This morning, I received an email from Snake River Cabins & RV Village.

It was the first time I've heard of this place. But looking at their website photos, it did look awfully familiar.

It was the Snake River KOA. Mitch Geriminsky and I stayed there in 2019 while we were in the Jackson Hole/Grand Teton National Park area.

Above, the campsite in 2019. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Doing a little more digging, I found this June 2021 article in the Jackson Hole News and Guide (a snippet):

More than 20 RV parks used to be scattered around Jackson but in recent years the number has dwindled to a handful.

Blame the changing nature of the American vacation, and also the soaring value of land in the Hole, says Bud Chatham.

But Chatham is bucking the trend, opening a new RV park this week. It’s 30 miles from Jackson but it’s going to fill a need for people who can’t find a place to park their vacation rig any closer.

Chatham and his wife, Kelly, own the Snake River Cabins and RV Village south of town, a place commonly called Snake River KOA, though it’s ended its KOA association this year. They also own Dave Hansen Whitewater, one of the area’s oldest river ride companies. They’re opening Alpine Valley RV Resort on Highway 89 north of Alpine, next to the new Broulim’s supermarket.

So, they ended its association with KOA Kampgrounds last year. Same owners, though.  

Above, yours truly rafting the Snake River in 2019. Dave Hansen River Trips photo.

It was a nice place, but there were more cabins there than RV campsites, we noticed at the time of our stay. During our stay, I took a whitewater raft trip down the Snake River with Dave Hansen River Trips. According the the park's website and the above article, Dave Hansen River Trips is "under the Chatham family of businesses." I had a good time on the raft trip and would recommend them.

Their website can be accessed here.

Grand Teton Walks Back Wedding Photographer Permits

Above, a couple enjoying the Grand Tetons at Jackson Lake. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Getting married in Grand Teton National Park seems to be a dream come true to many. Except the regulators wanted to lay down permit rules on wedding photographers.

This caused a bit of a stir. However, the park has "walked back" the permit requirement. 

According to the Jackson Hole News & Guide:

Facing an onslaught of criticism over its plans to require portrait photographers to acquire a permit for the upcoming season, Grand Teton National Park has walked back the requirement.

“It’s essentially reverting to the way it was,” Chief of Staff Jeremy Barnum said of park policy.

Amid the scuffle, Barnum said the National Park Service also has decided to launch a review of how it handles portrait photography generally in its 423 units spanning the 50 states and territories.

Jenny Anzelmo-Sarles, the service’s chief of public affairs, confirmed that in a Tuesday afternoon email.

For local wedding photographers like Erin Wheat, who earlier raised concerns about the park’s push to further regulate weddings and wedding photographers, the change is a relief.

“We’re way too close to the season to be trying to figure this out,” Wheat said.

But the change also puts a slight kink in the changes Teton Park was trying to make this summer, aiming to mitigate the impact of increased visitation, particularly weddings.

Requests for wedding permits more than doubled in the past two years, increasing from 150 in 2020 to 325 in 2021. As that happened, park officials told the News&Guide they’d received a number of complaints about wedding parties who had allegedly not been complying with the conditions of their permits, bringing in non-native flowers and asking other visitors to leave the area so they could have their ceremony. Grand Teton made a suite of changes to how weddings would be permitted to try and bring some of that under control.

To read the full article, go here.

Grand Teton Sees 2nd Busiest November Ever

Above, Grand Teton's Signal Mountain Lodge with a Teton peak in the background. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Grand Teton National Park is Yellowstone National Park's next-door neighbor to the south. It generally doesn't have as many visitors as Yellowstone, but it is seeing its own increases in visitation.

November was a good month for Grand Teton National Park according to the Jackson Hole News & Guide.

They wrote:

Grand Teton National Park reported its second-busiest November ever.

The park hosted 61,674 visits last month, up 8% from a year earlier and up 28% from November 2019.

The press release from the park touting November's total did not say what its busiest-ever total for the month was. But the release linked to a chart showing 63,873 recreation visits in November 1999.

To read more, go here. 

Patagonia Pulls Products From Jackson Hole Mountain Resort

Above, the Jackson Hole Aerial Tram. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Patagonia, the left-wing sportswear company, is pulling products out of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort for the "crime" of holding a fundraiser for the conservative House Freedom Fund. 

Gasp! The horror! Oh, my!

From the Jackson Hole News & Guide:

Patagonia, the iconic sportswear company that has built a worldwide reputation on outdoor athleticism and environmental activism, will no longer supply Jackson Hole Mountain Resort with its products after a resort owner hosted a fundraiser for the right-wing House Freedom Fund.

Patagonia confirmed Tuesday that it would no longer sell to the resort, its largest single customer in the Jackson Hole area. The resort company operates retail stores in Teton Village at the base of the ski area, as well as Hoback Sports and the Jackson Hole Resort Store in Jackson.

The move came after Jay Kemmerer, one of the resort’s owners, co-hosted a fundraiser Aug. 5 at a posh Jackson hotel for the House Freedom Fund. U.S. Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga.; former Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows; and U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, headlined the event. Admission cost a minimum of $2,000 per couple.

It's okay for lefties to hold fundraisers and be politically active, but it's not okay for conservatives to do the same. 

This isn't the first time Patagonia got involved in politics.

Four years ago:

From Weasel Zippers via Breitbart: 

The CEO of outdoor clothing giant Patagonia is burnishing her anti-Republican bona fides again, this time saying she intends to pledge her entire company to the “resistance” of President Donald Trump. 

Patagonia CEO Rose Marcario recently attacked President Trump for his statements about rolling back President Obama’s unusually aggressive campaign of confiscating millions of acres of state lands and claiming them as “national monuments.”

Hopefully, the "go woke, go broke" mantra will apply to Patagonia.

To read more, go here. 

Yellowstone Saw 1 Million Visitors In July

Above, an osprey nest at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The Jackson Hole News & Guide reported that over one million visitors flocked to Yellowstone National Park in July.

This was first reported by Yellowstone National Park Superintendent Cam Sholly at a press conference with U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland last Friday.

To read more, go here.

Grand Teton Air Tour Company Rebuked, But Gets Permit Anyway

Above, the Grand Tetons in Wyoming. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Helicopter and fixed wing air tours of national parks have always been a touchy subject with people.

I have flown in air tours twice, the first being in 1984 over Grand Canyon National Park in a DeHavilland Twin Otter and in 2016 over Hawaii Volcanoes National Park by helicopter.

In Wyoming, Wind River Air, an air tour company, violated its agreement with the Jackson Hole Airport Board by not sticking to the agreed-upon flight paths over Grand Teton National Park. It was rebuked, but still was granted a permit to continue operations.

According to the Jackson Hole News & Guide:

Jackson Hole Airport Board President John Eastman showed Tony Chambers a map of where he said he’d fly his helicopter alongside overlain lines that displayed where he actually flew.

Clear as can be, the web of promised and actual flight tracks differed dramatically, with lines from a GPS device mounted onto Chamber’s red Robinson R-44 helicopter painted all over eastern skies of Grand Teton National Park.

Eastman wasn’t happy about it.

The haranguing took place at a Jackson Hole Airport meeting where board members later voted 4-to-1 to give Chambers another one-year permit to continue his scenic flights while basing out of the commercial airport in southern Teton park. Bob McLaurin voted against the permit renewal in an exceedingly rare split vote about an airport board affair.

To read more, go here. 

Masks Mandatory At Grand Teton Visitor Centers

Above, Grand Teton's Colter Bay Visitor Center. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

One nice thing about visiting national parks is going outdoors and enjoying the fresh air.

Indoors in national parks, however, is a different story.

Masks are required in national park visitor centers, that includes those in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.

According to Jackson Hole News & Guide:

The public will be required to wear masks inside Grand Teton National Park visitor centers and other buildings in 2021, a policy shift ushered in by the change in presidential administration.

Wearing face coverings indoors to reduce transmission of COVID-19 was strongly encouraged by Teton park in the summer of 2020, but local federal employees lacked the authority to enact a mask mandate.

“We could not enforce it,” park spokeswoman Denise Germann said.

As a result, mask rules in federal buildings at Moose, Jenny Lake and elsewhere did not square with a countywide mask mandate that took effect in July, going above the statewide rules.

That’s changing under President Joe Biden’s administration. Last week the Department of the Interior announced in a statement a blanket indoor mask mandate for visitors and employees — and some additional requirements when conditions are crowded outdoors.

“Wearing a mask around others, physical distancing, and washing your hands are the simplest and most effective public health measures to help stop the spread of COVID-19,” Sara Newman, the National Park Service’s public health director captain, said in a news release. “Getting outside and enjoying our public lands is essential to improving mental and physical health, but we all need to work together to recreate responsibly.”

Outdoors, face coverings will be required when physical distancing isn’t possible, such as along narrow and busy trails, at overlooks or outside historic homes.  

No visitor centers are open in Teton park, but the policy change took effect immediately across the Park Service’s 423 properties when it was announced last Tuesday. 

Now that masks are required, maybe now the visitor centers can be reopened.

To read more, go here.

Campground Reservation-Only System Started Today At Grand Teton National Park

Above, Jackson Lake at Grand Teton National Park. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The days of waiting in long lines early in the morning for a campsite at Grand Teton National Park are over.

Today, the park went on a reservations-only system.

According to Jackson Hole News & Guide:

Visitors no longer need to worry about lines during the upcoming camping season at Grand Teton National Park. For the first time, the park will only be accepting reservations — so make sure to get a campsite while you can.

Campground reservations became available at 8 a.m. this morning. Those hoping to snag a spot for the summer must create an account on Recreation.gov and then reserve a site accordingly.

To read more, go here. 

Fire South of Old Faithful Closes Grand Loop Road

Above, Yellowstone's Old Faithful Inn. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Wildfires have been breaking out throughout the western United States, many of them have been caused by lightning igniting dry brush.

One such fire is about 3 miles from Old Faithful Geyser in Yellowstone National Park.

According to the Jackson Hole News & Guide:

Smoke from the Lone Star Fire, ignited this weekend by lightning in Yellowstone National Park, has closed the Grand Loop Road to traffic. 

The fire was reported around 5:15 p.m. Saturday about 3 miles south of Old Faithful geyser. It’s estimated at 300 acres and at this time is not burning directly toward the complex of buildings at Old Faithful.

Park Service staffers are implementing protection measures for the Old Faithful area in case the fire moves that way, and resources have been ordered, according to a release sent Sunday morning by the park’s public communications department. 

The Grand Loop Road is closed between Kepler Cascades and West Thumb. The Lone Star Geyser trail is closed as well, along with backcountry campsites OA1, OA2 and OA3. The road between Canyon and Tower Junction is also closed this season. 

Lightning has been prevalent throughout the park this week, and fire danger is very high. Campfires are not allowed in the backcountry.

To read more, go here. 

Social Distancing On A River Raft

Above, yours truly (right) rafting last summer on the Snake River. Photo by Float-o-Graphs.

Last summer, I did something that I hadn't done since the late 1980s: white water river rafting.

The occasion was when a friend and I went to Jackson, Wyoming for camping and visiting Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. I went with the Dave Hansen Whitewater company for some rafting on Wyoming's Snake River. I had a great time. During the raft trip, we saw two bald eagles.

This year is a little different with social distancing, but the rafting companies are adapting.

According to the Jackson Hole News & Guide:

In any year not as strange and off-putting from the jump as 2020, David Cernicek would see a steady stream of large groups rafting the Snake River in 20-minute intervals during the busiest days of the season. 

That’s not the case this year, and it won’t be. Still, the Bridger-Teton National Forest river manager is overseeing an industry finding ways to paddle through the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“Coming out of the gate it was, ‘How can we do this?’” he said, “because there were people who believed we couldn’t do it.”

Chief among the limitations on rafting this season is the amount of people who can occupy one craft. This summer the Bridger-Teton is not issuing its traditional group permits for parties of more than 15 people. 

Cernicek said restrictions like that have been managed well on the commercial side by whitewater outfitters. For private parties from outside Wyoming, though, there’s been pushback. 

“There’s a lot of unhappy people, mainly from out of state, that would like to be bringing their usual groups like they do every year,” he said. “It’s very understandable, and they do want to know if commercial outfitters are being restricted as well. 

“The folks that don’t really believe in COVID being a real virus, they seem to be much angrier.” 

Reports of substantially less angry river-users came from Dave Hansen Whitewater and Scenic River Trips’ Bud Chatham. After months of uncertainly about the future of the business in 2020, Chatham said his team is just happy to be back. And the customers, too, are keeping their distancing but in the same boat.

Above, a final photo at the end of the raft trip last summer. Photo by Float-o-Graphs.

To read more, go here. 

Grand Teton National Park Reopening 3 Visitor Centers

Above, Colter Bay Visitor Center last summer. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Things are slowly creeping back to some semblance of normalcy at Grand Teton National Park as three visitor centers are being reopened.

The Jackson Hole News & Guide reported:

Nearly a month after Grand Teton National Park reopened its gates to the public, three park visitor centers will unlock their doors Tuesday for the first time this year. 

On Monday, park officials announced the Tuesday openings of the Moose-area Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center, the Colter Bay Visitor Center on Jackson Lake, and the ranger station and “welcome center” at Jenny Lake. There will be no cap on numbers of people admitted into the buildings at any one time, but park spokeswoman Denise Germann said that the centers’ operations will be different and that she’s telling people “to come with their patience.” 

“We are using stanchions within the visitor centers,” Germann told the Jackson Hole Daily. “There may be a line of people waiting to talk to someone. We’re not limiting the people, we’re just organizing and structuring the people in a way that’s both safe for visitors and employees.”

To read more, go here. 

Grand Teton Boat Season Starts

Above, the marina at the Colter Bay Visitor Center. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

From what I saw last summer, Grand Teton National Park looks like a great place for boating. Provided that one has a boat.

Finally, at long last, boating season began last week in the national park.

According to Jackson Hole News & Guide:

Although Jackson Lake ice-off fishing trips and pre-runoff Snake River floats were wiped out by COVID-19 related closures, the water season in Grand Teton National Park has officially arrived. 

Lacking staff for aquatic invasive species checks, park officials opted to keep the floating and boating off-limits in the first couple weeks Teton park was open. The weekslong disruption ends Friday, when the AIS check stations at Moose and Moran boot back up and vessels are again allowed on the water. 

“Boaters are reminded that both a park boat permit and a state of Wyoming aquatic invasive species decal are required before launching on any park waters,” park officials said in a statement.

To read more, go here. 

Some Facilities At Grand Teton National Park To Remain Closed

Above, the lobby of Jenny Lake Lodge at Grand Teton National Park. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The coronavirus is playing havoc with out national parks. The pandemic is forcing partial openings of facilities as many of them.

One is Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.

From Jackson Hole News & Guide:

Historic lodges in view of the Tetons and lakes nestled beneath the jagged range are among Grand Teton National Park offerings that will not open for the 2020 summer season. 

Grand Teton Lodge Company announced Tuesday that Jenny Lake Lodge and Jackson Lake Lodge are not expected to open this year. Some of the concessionaires’ services in the park will start to boot up the second half of May, but many facilities’ opening dates have been pushed back or put off altogether. 

“Unfortunately this summer will look very different than in years past, and we share the disappointment of our guests and employees, but prioritizing their health and safety remains our top priority,” Grand Teton Lodge Company Vice President Alex Klein wrote the News&Guide in an email. “For those who are not able to join us this year we hope to welcome you to the Tetons next summer.” 

Teton park itself remains off-limits for now, joining most national parks that have closed entry gates temporarily to discourage travel and tourism amid the global pandemic. So far, park officials aren’t giving any hints about when the Moran, Moose and Granite Canyon gates might open.

Readers of this blog will recall that I visited Grand Teton National Park last summer and that the dining room at Jenny Lake Lodge serves breakfast that costs $34.00 per person. We ended up having breakfast at Signal Mountain Lodge. The prices were much more reasonable there and we had a great view of the lake.

To read more, go here.

Public Input Sought For Grand Teton National Park Improvements

Above, the Colter Bay Visitor Center in Grand Teton National Park. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming is proposing some infrastructure improvements to public facilities in the park and the public is invited to provide comments.

According to the Jackson Hole News & Guide:

Employee housing, infrastructure improvements and other changes are being proposed for Colter Bay, Jackson Lake Lodge, Jenny Lake Lodge and other visitor service areas in Grand Teton National Park.  

The park service is developing an environmental assessment to address proposed improvements to a concessions contract, which provides visitor services. Public comment on the proposals is due by March 5.  

According to a press release this week, the National Park Service has identified several proposed changes to a new concession contract, including accessibility enhancements, infrastructure improvements, structural fire protection and additional employee housing.

To read more, go here. 

Grand Teton Stays Busy, Yellowstone Slows A Bit

Above, Mitch Geriminsky and I at Grand Teton National Park last July.

Even though the two national parks are only 30 miles apart from each other, there is a big difference in tourist visit numbers between Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park.

2019 was a good year for Grand Teton in attendance while the numbers dipped a bit for Yellowstone.

I visited Grand Teton National Park last July, which is the busiest month for the park.

Above, the Grand Teton range is reflected on Jackson Lake. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The Jackson Hole News & Guide Reported:

Grand Teton National Park stayed near its highest-ever visitation levels in 2019, trailing only 2018 for numbers of tourists passing through. 

That’s a trend that somewhat bucks that of its National Park Service sibling to the north, Yellowstone National Park, which had its slowest tourism year since 2014. 

Teton park’s spokeswoman chalks up the continued busy times to more people coming during the historically slow shoulder seasons.

“I don’t know what to make of the difference between the two parks,” Denise Germann said, “but I do believe our shoulder seasons are expanding a little bit. In 2019, we saw record visitation in both March and August.” 

For the year, Grand Teton National Park attracted 3.41 million “recreational visitors” — a category that excludes some passers-through, such as commercial truckers on Highway 26/89/191. 

July, as is the custom, was the busiest month of the year, with 776,000 visitors. The nadir fell in February, followed by November and December — months that attracted fewer than 50,000 recreational visits each. 

While the flow of Yellowstone tourists has fallen off slightly more, the declines have been marginal. The world’s first national park attracted a touch over 4 million recreational visitors last year, a 2.3% slip since 2018 and 5.6% down from 2016, when the National Park Service saw an all-time peak during its centennial year.

To read more, go here. 

Yellowstone and Grand Teton Parks Closing Entrances

Above, Yellowstone's South Entrance last July. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Winter is fast approaching (December 21), and Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park are already closing some roads and entrances in preparation.

According to the Jackson Hole News & Guide:

Yellowstone’s West, South and East entrances will close to vehicle traffic at 8 a.m. Monday. 

The North Entrance road, which connects Gardiner and Mammoth to Cooke City and Silver Gate, Montana, via Lamar Valley, remains open year-round. 

In the 11 days following the closure of Yellowstone interior roads, crews will be grooming the routes to prepare them for snowmobile and snow coach travel. The winter season starts Dec. 15 and will run through early March. 

Several road closures took effect in Grand Teton National Park on Friday. Teton Park Road is now closed between the Taggart Lake trailhead and Signal Mountain Lodge.

To read more, go here. 

Grand Teton National Park To Get Better Cell Service

Above, a view of the Grand Teton mountain range. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Visitors will be getting better cell service while visiting Grand Teton National Park, it was announced this past week.

According to the Jackson Hole News & Guide:

A year from now, Grand Teton National Park visitors and employees should have drastically improved cell coverage in places ranging from Beaver Creek to the remote west shore of Jackson Lake. 

The improved connectivity will come courtesy of 63 miles of new fiber-optic line and nine cell towers between Flagg Ranch, Moose and Kelly. 

The plans, driven by telecommunication companies, have been on the drawing board for years, but they were finally authorized Aug. 15 by the National Park Service, and park officials spread the word this week.

To read more, go here. 

Snow At Some Grand Teton Hiking Trails

Above, Mount Moran from Jackson Lake a few days ago. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The following story isn't much of a surprise to me since I was just in Grand Teton National Park only a few days ago and saw that some of the peaks still had some snow.

According to the Jackson Hole News & Guide, some hikers may encounter snow on trails and should be equipped accordingly.

They wrote:

Grand Teton National Park rangers are cautioning visitors who plan to gain elevation in the famous mountain range to be aware of a diversity of trail conditions. 

The Teton Crest Trail is primarily snow-free. Areas like Hurricane Pass are passable without special equipment. 

However, Paintbrush Divide remains an area of high consequence for those without an ice axe and the proper knowledge of its use. Park officials ask visitors to be safe and know their limits.

To read more, go here. 

If Only I Had A Spare Half A Million Dollars

Above, Norman Rockwell's portrait of John Wayne. 

Two favorites of mine came together in 1973. It was for a portrait sitting. The National Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Museum commissioned a painting of John Wayne by Norman Rockwell.

The painting by the legendary American artist Norman Rockwell is coming up for auction. It is estimated to fetch anywhere between $1,000,000 to $1,500,000.

According to the Jackson Hole News & Guide:

The Jackson Hole Art Auction announced that an iconic Norman Rockwell painting of John Wayne will headline the auction’s addendum. 

“They’re two American icons and legends,” auction coordinator Madison Webb said. “What Norman Rockwell did for Americana and illustration, Wayne did for the American West in film. To see two titans of industry come together is really amazing, and both left an indelible mark on the American landscape and culture.” 

The painting, a 38- by 31-inch oil on canvas, is estimated to worth between $1 and $1.5 million dollars. Fresh to the auction market, the painting was brought to the auction from a private collection. 

The auction, a signature event of September’s Fall Art Festival put on by Trailside Galleries and Gerald Peters Gallery, will take place Sept. 14 and Sept. 15. The year will feature the auction’s largest sale.

Above, John Wayne and Norman Rockwell during the time of the portrait sitting.

 Ah, if only I had a spare half million dollars to spare.

To read more, go here.