I can't believe I didn't bother to take a picture of the snowstorm on that mountain in Utah. It wouldn't have been particularly good. . . the visuals simply weren't there. . . but the hole in the story bugs me. Well, as my Uncle Kirksey would say, "On to bigger and better things."
I harbored no expectations for sunrise pictures the morning of the third day. That said, I was excited about being back in Teton country and anxious to do the best I could will within the constraints of uncooperative weather. I wanted to stick around long enough this morning to give the clouds a chance to lift before moving on north to Yellowstone.
Fatigued from yesterday's drive and sure my sunrise pictures weren't going to happen, I set the alarm to give me an extra hour and, surprisingly enough, I got an extra hour's sleep. I checked out of the motel and headed north out of Jackson. I pulled off the highway at this turnout overlooking the elk refuge just north of town only to find the elk had slept in this morning as well. But the break in the clouds suggested the sun had, indeed, risen and gave me hope for the rest of the day. And, besides, nobody ever turns their back to the Tetons and shoots this side of the valley. Luckily, when I got back in the Sierra, I noticed the gas gauge. Good save, Parker.
This shot tells me that if the mountains are visible at all, it's going to be a good day in the Tetons. I had thought that perhaps finding abundant wildlife might make up for the low clouds early in the day. It didn't take long to disabuse me of that notion. But, when you're working to schedule, you take what you're given as I said above and do the best you can with it.
I wonder if there's a collection of Jackson/Grand Teton pictures anywhere that doesn't include a picture of this barn on Mormon Row. The image of this iconic barn, with the Tetons as a backdrop and, shall we say, "less interesting" skies, illustrates perfectly the definition of "grandeur". That's how something gets to be iconic, I suppose. Cheated of the "full Monty", I took the picture from the driver's seat anyway to remind myself of what might have been, then moved on. If I'd been thinking, I would've taken my time setting up the shot and perhaps used it on some rainy day months from now to create a composite. Yeah, if life gives you lemons, make lemonade. That's the ticket.
As soon as I knew sunrise was going to be a bust, pictures from the Oxbow were going to be the best pictures I'd get in the Tetons and possibly the best pictures I'd get in both Grand Teton and Yellowstone. I was here before, in July 1999. My mother and I were on our way to Coeur d'Alene so she could do some genealogy. The day was absolutely glorious, and this view magnificent. And the only picture I came away with was a very lo-res screen grab from my Hi-8 camcorder, the only camera I'd brought with me. The difference between what I saw that morning and the picture I had to remind me of that morning is, I think, what drives my obsession with digital photography to this day. Whether you like this picture or not, I know my mother would have loved it.
In keeping with my habit of checking for other opportunities before moving on, this picture would be the obverse of the iconic Oxbow image. This is what you get when you turn the Oxbow around and see what's on the backside. Not too shabby. . .
During my pre-trip preparation I had identified with the help of Google Maps lots of places where I expected to find good photo ops. I'm still surprised at how well that works. It's especially helpful to have identified those spots ahead of time when, for one reason or another, you have to modify your plan and skip half the locations. This shot (above), showing the breaking up of the morning clouds and the promise of afternoon's opportunities, is at the north end of Jackson Lake at the dam. This second shot (below), also Jackson Lake, was taken a mile or two south of the first.
Another four or five miles south I made my final stop in Grand Teton. It was hard to pick up and go with patches of blue sky and promise of more, but there is that schedule thing and the concomitant quest for efficiency that drives certain personalities. It's about 10am and I've still got to do Yellowstone and drive 350 miles to Boise.
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