Staggering Beauty, Mountain Men, Roadkill and Killer Roads

Into the Hole

Jun 07, 2025

Another day, another state. Yes, it’s Wyoming Time!

This got me thinking that if “wyoming” was a verb, what action would it represent? Would it be an American version of yodelling? Perhaps a more manly, cowboy version : a whoop of joy when awestruck by the majesty of nature? Although wyoming sounds a bit melancholy to me. Perhaps it would be a keening of grief and regret at having gotten stupidly lost in the woods and currently having your leg gnawed off by a bear? Answers on a postcard … or in the comments for those so inclined.

Anyway, it was a chilly start to the day for a change, and I expect it will get chillier as I head into the mountains. I’m heading to Jackson Hole today, which is basically the gateway to the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone. I’m going to spend a few days on this side of Yellowstone and then a few days on the other side, for no readily apparent reason. And of course, it means a major tourist hotspot on a weekend once again. Really must have a word with myself.

Obviously I will not be going directly to Jackson Hole, that is not my way. I am going via the Mesa Falls Scenic Byway. I can confirm that it is indeed quite scenic

I pass a sign for the “Mountain Man Rendezvous”. I’m intrigued. Is this a meetup where people come down from the hills once a year to mingle with other rugged types so that they don’t lose the power of speech? Maybe it is a speed dating event. I’m envisaging Grizzly Adams types putting on their best pelts, combing months worth of gunk out of their beards and heading to the gathering to try their luck…

There are lots of warnings for moose everywhere. I gather it is not uncommon for them to wander on to the road. Obviously I wouldn’t want to hit one (I expect the car would come off worse!) but I have never seen one in the wild, so it would be cool to catch a glimpse.

I have seen about 4 dead deer at the side of the road so far on this trip and had one close encounter (I managed to stop, but the family of deer just stood in the road and stared at me - these are not the brightest of beasts!). I have wondered what the etiquette is should you hit an animal. Are you supposed to finish it off? Could I? How would I if I could? I imagine I would just call the emergency services and make it someone else’s problem. Let’s hope I don’t find out.

On to Jackson and the sat nav is giving me a hard time today. I have downloaded the route in advance, but it seems to be having difficulty getting an accurate fix on location. Always worth having an awareness of which roads you expect to be travelling even with the sat nav. I will be taking this advice myself in future!

Jackson turns out to be a tourist nightmare and the traffic is horrendous. There is also more aggressive driving here than I have seen in most places in the US. Not sure whether it is frustrated tourists or the locals getting fed up with not being able to get around. Luckily none of this was directed at me as I had ditched the car and walked the 2 miles into the centre, feeling very smug as I watched the traffic jam build.

Obviously not too smug as I fully expect to be caught in this sort of traffic before the weekend is over, but gratified that I was able to pop into a restaurant for a cold beer and Korean feast rather than sit in that!

Jackson hole is a fairly typical tourist mountain town, albeit a little more upmarket than some, with lots of very pricey boutiques and art galleries. I don’t imagine that I will be needing to drop much cash here. I was vaguely tempted by the idea of a custom made Stetson, but will stick with my trusty Tilley.

In case you are wondering, the antler arches are made from antlers shed on the Elk Refuge nearby, rather than being harvested directly!

Tomorrow into the Tetons.

Tomorrow it is! I set out earlyish, but have to wait for the local REI store to open to try and source some bear spray. Apparently they don’t currently have any following an “incident”. They didn’t give details. The search goes on.

Into Grand Teton National Park and I am almost instantly caught in a car parking nightmare at Jenny Lake. This seems to be one of the most popular spots in the park for walking trails and boat trips. It seems unlikely that I am going to win the car parking lottery so I just move on, figuring that there will be plenty to see on the other 40 miles of the loop road. And so it turns out.

I'm not sure what was going on with the group of people, but it looked like a wedding with the spectacular backdrop of the mountains. Worse spots for it!

In the car park I had to stop for a snap of the most honest personalised registration plate I have seen. If you have ever seen one of the Tesla Cyber Trucks, I’m sure you would agree.

They really shouldn't be allowed in areas of outstanding natural beauty!

Carrying on around the loop, I stop at Jackson Dam and take a few photographs of the dam before I catch a glimpse of the lake. Absolutely stunning.

Then, thinking I was done with the Tetons for the day, I head back towards Jackson, only to stumble across the unexpected treat of a herd of bison.

Outstanding.

And bizarrely, it turns out that I can get bear spray at a store a 2 minute walk from the hotel. Tooled up and ready for some trails should the mood take me!