Reclaiming Innocence
Sometime in late August, 2021, Gabby Petito was killed, presumably by her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie, while travelling the country in their van. Their journey is in some ways a strange mirror of the one my wife and I are undertaking. In fact, the entire model for our cross country trip was formed from my wife's interest in vanlife and nomading media akin to what Petito and Laundrie were creating prior to her death. That facet of the story was absolutely bizarre to us and we have found it increasingly disturbing as more details emerge.
By all means, it should be disturbing. No one should make light of the situation and the gravity of it should be kept in mind. It's for this reason that I chose to forge onward in writing this article. People need to seek out the Tetons because of what they are, not because of what happened in their shadow. The park's legacy needs to remain the glory of its natural wonder and not a true crime tourist destination for the morbidly inclined.
Gabby Petito went to Grand Teton to see the beauty there. She knew it was a destination worth seeing and enjoying for its own sake. I know this because very few people are even aware that it exists. She sought it out as anyone should and I ask that you keep that in mind. Respect her tragic loss and do not disrespect her by treating the park as her grave.
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"You must search for the loveliness of America; it is not obvious; it is scattered; but when you find it, it touches you and binds you to it like a secret oath taken in silence."
Struthers Burt, Jackson Hole Dude Rancher, 1934
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John D. Rockefeller Jr., left, with his wife, Abby Rockefeller, at Jackson Hole in the Grand Teton National Park in 1931. (Rockefeller Archive Center)
Historically Beloved
The Grand Tetons have been seen by relatively few, but remains beloved by many. It was a well kept secret of the Shoshone people until John Colter became the first white man to see it around 1807. His discovery was of great enough importance that William Clark (yes, that Clark) included it in his maps of his famous expedition. From there, notable explorers came from across the world to see the mountains and nearby Jackson Hole grew as settlers flocked to the region.
Over 100 years later, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. visited the established park. Finding the region of utmost importance, he spent massive amounts of his own money to personally purchase and donate surrounding land to the government for preservation. The result of this was the 221,000-acre Jackson Hole National Monument. When that land finally merged with Grand Teton National Park, it made up over 2/3rds of its final 331,000 acres.
This astonishing act of conservationism has allowed the Teton range and its outlying territory to remain almost pristinely untouched to this day. Within the park, only a small number of structures have been erected and a great deal of care has been taken to ensure the construction doesn't disturb the surrounding forests. Only the creation of Jackson Lake Dam, predating Rockefeller's donation, truly effects the landscape in any meaningful way.
Tourist hubs at the Jackson Lake Lodge and Colter Bay Village seem at home within the forests. An effort was clearly made to create a rustic aesthetic that blended into the surroundings. Our RV spot in the village was amidst the trees and absolutely gorgeous. Even in the height of the season with most spots filled, it was quiet to boot. It was always pleasant to just sit outside and enjoy the sounds of nature and the cool weather.
It's amazing how people acted differently there, as well. There was this palpable respect people seemed to have for Grand Teton and their fellow guests. For some strange reason, visitors seemed to treat the park like it was their home - like it was their responsibility to care for it. People actually threw away their trash instead of leaving it on trails. The creed of "leave no trace" was almost implicit.
Oh, and the roads are actually well maintained, a decent size, well marked, and are comfortable to drive on.
It was such a joy every time we went out for a drive to a new destination. The drive from Colter Bay Village to Jackson Hole was particularly charming and offered some of the best views of the Tetons. We found other drivers to be surprisingly courteous on the road as well. It became relaxing to just cruise through the landscape and take in the scenery, often stopping at turnouts just to find a better views.
By all accounts, this is why Grand Teton was protected from its founding. The people who see this place find in it something phenomenal. Along our journey, only one place has filled me with a deeper sense of wonder and nothing stands out more to my wife. Mister Struthers Burt espoused a special truth in his quote above and Grand Teton is certainly one of those places he spoke of.
A Cause for Wonder
So, you may be asking why exactly Grand Teton is so much more respected and beloved than other parks. What makes it so special? Why would a multi-billionaire spend so much money to protect it? Why do so few people visit it if it's so amazing?
All I can say is that no picture or words can do it justice. Since leaving, I've occasionally looked through my camera roll and found that the sheer scale of everything is lost behind the lens. When you first see the Teton range, it strikes you in a way that nothing else can. The way it rises from the landscape in great jagged spires is reminiscent of the fantastical minds behind the worlds of Middle Earth or Westeros.
When you travel to the shores of the lakes and see these towering monoliths reflected in the calm waters, it becomes even more surreal. To say it's otherworldly would not be an understatement. Those mountains are the things of Thoreau or Emerson's writings. They're the ephemeral beauty you always read about America but never expect to see until confronted with it. It's humbling to the very core of your soul.
However, all of the flowery words in the English language only serve vaguery that poorly inclines people to actually visit. Instead, I'll share some of the things we saw and give a real tangible reason to visit. After all, unless you're the sort of literature geek that's no fun at parties, you'll probably not be setting up on the shores of Snake River to read Kant and take in the ambience.
To begin with, there's the lakes and rivers with crystal clear waters that allow you to see the rounded rocks at the bottom and the huge fish swimming about. Anglers will have a blast out here, let alone anyone with a boat. The water level was quite low when we visited, but not enough that some folks weren't out there having a good time. Even just walking down to the river and sticking your feet into the cool water is great. The natural ambience and general calm and quiet is about as relaxing as you can get.
Jenny Lake, in particular, is absolutely incredible. Right at the base of the mountains, you will not find a better view from ground level. The winds race down from the peaks and across the water to keep it cool even on a hot August day. Trails wind through forested shores and offer solitude as you find stop after stop of picturesque scenes to savor. This is absolutely the best place for an afternoon picnic, whether on the rocky beaches or in a number of well hidden clearings amidst the woods.
I'm told the mountain climbing is positively amazing and the sheer number of hiking trails that lead into the mountains is staggering. One could take weeks just trekking the lowland options within the valley's forests and not see them all. These wind all along the rivers, around the lakes, and up into the range. What we did see of these trails was fantastic - very well maintained and kept clear of brush and debris to make them safe and stress free to travel.
With the nearby Elk Refuge outside of Jackson, there are tons of the animals roaming the landscape. Pronghorn, Bison, and Moose are also regular sights to be found grazing the tall grass. Hawks and Eagles soar overhead, riding the mountain winds in great swooping arcs. If fortunate, one might even find a black or brown bear which are so common that rangers heavily enforce food and trash security. Even more critters can and will be seen, but I'll spare the extra dozen paragraphs.
Lastly, I want to mention some outlying attractions. The first of which is the town of Jackson which has some seriously cool antler arches, a wild west shootout every day in the center of town, and some really great wild game steakhouses to check out. It's probably one of the neatest tourist towns near these parks with plenty of shops, resturants, and historical sights to fill out a day. Though pretty well trafficked in peak season, we enjoyed our visit and would absolutely return though I don't know that I'd recommend it for a long term stay.
The second thing to mention is that Yellowstone is literally right there. The day we spent at the geyser basins that I mentioned in that article was done while we were staying in Grand Teton. We drove for roughly 40 minutes from Colter Bay to Old Faithful and had no trouble staying in Yellowstone until dusk. It was a very easy drive and even the trip across Yellowstone to Gardiner was only about an hour and thirty minutes in total.
Minor Inconveniences and Considerations
I have remarkably little to speak ill of in regards to Grand Teton. Everything is entirely minor in comparison to how great the park is. Most complaints are simply quality of life issues you'll find in any national park, but they do warrant mentioning. If nothing else, they're just small details to keep in mind if you plan a trip there for yourself.
First, while there are gas stations inside the park, they're all located at the major hubs (Colter Bay and the two lodges). The prices inside the park are quite a bit higher than outside the park as well and diesel is not available at all of them. There can be some congestion at them as well due to campers and boats getting fuel there as well. Keep this in mind and take my advice that a forty minute drive into Jackson can be worth it if you're coming up on empty.
Second, there is actually a full blown grocery store in Colter Bay. It's not a Walmart, so don't get too excited, but it does exist. Prices are higher than outside the park as should be expected, but selection is limited. If you forgot to stock up on something, you're going to regret it. We were fortunate enough to overstock, so we didn't need anything, but we were shocked to see a pound of ground beef going for twelve bucks.
Lastly, there is virtually no internet in the park - both from hotspots and cell phones. You can make calls in a lot of places despite this, and I had no trouble calling family during our week there. However, even our well populated RV camping area was a deadzone less than five hundred feet from the grocery store. So any hope you have of winding your night down by binge watching TikToks is dead in the water.
The good news is that you can get wifi at the grocery store, at most resturants, and at the lodges. The Jackson Lake Lodge was perfectly happy to let us use their business center since we were staying in Colter Bay, but anyone not paying for lodging may not be afforded the same courtesy. The wifi in these places is actually pretty decent, as well, which was surprising in such a remote location.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully, I'm getting across my point well enough. It's actually quite difficult to explain plainly why Grand Teton should be a top destination for people seeking out National Parks. I spent quite a lot of time trying to get my thoughts typed out and I've scrapped a lot of what I've done because I found my words meandering and altogether useless. It's a consequence of the Tetons being too incredible for words, but I really hope some of you find that out for yourselves because of this.
Like I said above, there's only one place I've ever been that I fell more in love with and it's a close race between them. This is a 10/10 for me and I would go back in a heartbeat. Don't let my words or the pictures here compel you. Let the words of Mister Burt do so. Your search led you here, now you just have to go there, see that loveliness, and let it bind you.
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