After driving through southeastern Oregon, we entered Idaho and found a beautiful drive going toward Wyoming. We kept crossing over the Snake River and realized that it was so much longer than we realized when we saw it join up with the Columbia River when we were following the Lewis & Clark expedition. If you want to review this information, go to part 55 about the three rivers.
Do you know the difference between Jackson and Jackson Hole? I found myself really confused until I finally looked it up and then it made perfect sense.
According to SI, “Jackson Hole refers to a valley in Wyoming, surrounded by the Gros Ventre and Teton mountain ranges, and is known for its stunning natural beauty and outdoor recreational activities. The term ‘hole’ historically describes a broad, flat valley in the American West.”
entering the national park
This glacier lies sheltered on the northeast flank of the Grand Teton. More than any other erosional force, powerful glaciers sculpted the Teton Range peaks and carved the U-shaped canyons.
Beginning two million years ago, at least two periods of glaciation swept across this landscape. The ice last retreated around 14,000 years ago, unveiling an ornate tapestry of cirques, aretes, and horns. Today’s glaciers are remnants of a cool period called “The Little Ice Age” lasting from 1400 to 1850 AD. [Can’t believe it ended in the mid-1800s!]
Glaciers in the Teton Range and across much of the world are retreating in response to changing climate. Since 1967, the Teton Glacier has lost 15 percent of its surface area. Melting water helps support rich communities along valley streams, but today’s glaciers are producing up to ten percent less run-off. If current trends continue, the glaciers of the Teton Range will disappear. Their passing will be one of many transformations this landscape will experience in the face of climate always changing.
visitor center
Glaciers chiseled the peaks and carved the U-shaped canyons that we see today. Beginning nearly two million years ago, at least three periods of glaciation swept across this valley. Each pulse of ice erased evidence of previous glacial advances.
Today, several lakes glisten in glacial basins at the foot of the range, while glacier-polished walls, knife-edge ridges, and jagged pinnacles adorn the rugged skyline. New glaciers formed in the upper elevations of the mountains less than 1000 years ago and are disappearing in today’s changing climate.
Rivers of ice more than 1000 feet thick flowed down canyons like giant conveyor belts, plucking rocks and carrying debris to the valley floor.
When the glaciers receded, they left basins dammed by terminal and lateral moraines. Other evidence of glacial activity can be found throughout the park, including polished rocks, potholes, out-wash plains, terraces along the Snake River, and erratics—isolated boulders left in unexpected places.
The greater Yellowstone ecosystem includes Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park. Isn’t the difference in the size amazing between the two parks?
In 1972, Congress named the highway from the south boundary of Grant Teton to West Thumb in Yellowstone as the John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway, to recognize Rockefeller’s many significant contributions to the cause of conservation in the United States.
In addition to the highway, the parkway includes a 24,000-acre parcel of land connecting the two parks.
Dornans
The Dornans complex has a long history of providing services to park visitors. This family-owned business dates back to the 1920s.
Jenny Lake
The path around Jenny Lake follows in the footsteps of many who came earlier. The first evidence of human activity here dates to more than 10,000 years ago.
The first people here hunted, fished, and gathered plants as part of their regular, seasonal migration route.
Jackson Hole was once a destination for fur trappers. Few records were kept among the diverse bands of trappers that included recent immigrants from Europe, former slaves, native Hawaiians, and American Indians from eastern and western tribes.
During the Great Depression, many young men found work in national parks through the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).
Mormon Row
Mormon settlers farmed and lived here from 1908 to the 1950s.
On July 26, 1923, business owners, local ranchers, and Yellowstone Superintendent Horace Albright gathered in Maud Noble’s cabin and created the Jackson Hole Plan to protect the valley from further development. Albright hoped to “turn the entire Jackson Hole back to nature as the greatest scenic and wildlife preserve on the face of the Earth.”
In 1929, Congress set aside 96,000 acres as the original Grand Teton National Park that included the Teton Range and the scenic lakes along the base of the mountains—a significant victory for preservation.
In 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt used the Antiquities Act to designate Jackson Hole National Monument, protecting 221,000 acres of federal lands in the valley. The monument’s boundary surrounded land John D. Rockefeller, Jr. purchased to enlarge the park.
On September 13, 1950, President Harry S. Truman signed the law combining the original 1929 park, Jackson Hole National Monument, and Rockefeller’s gift of over 32,000 acres.
In 1972, the John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway connects Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks, commemorating Mr. Rockefeller’s many significant contributions to the cause of conservation in the United States.
the land
Snake River overlook
In an earlier post about the 3 rivers the expedition navigated, we talked about the Snake River that was so important to the Corps of Discovery.
The Snake River twists and turns as it flows over 1000 miles from Yellowstone National Park through Grand Teton National Park and ultimately to the Pacific Ocean. From Jackson Hole, the Snake turns west into Idaho [where we saw it on our drive to the Grand Tetons] and eventually joins the Columbia River that then flows into the Pacific. This river attracts river otters, bald eagles, osprey, moose—and human anglers and rafters.
animals
Early in the morning and later in the afternoon tourists would park alongside the road close to our campground and walk to the Gros Ventre River to look for animals.
Next we’ll be driving through Wyoming for a week in Sheridan.
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