Grand Teton National Park

We are now back home. Laura’s father Joe has recovered from his setback and is doing well at his home in Kentucky. I think our yard is disappointed that we are back; after two months of being under our neighbor’s care, it has never looked better.

As I have previously written, I am behind on my blogging.  This is a catch up post:

Following our 12 nights in Yellowstone National Park we moved on to the Grand Teton National Park which is directly south of Yellowstone. We spent six nights there in mid-September.

I thought I was familiar with the Tetons.  They are just two hours from Idaho Falls, Idaho, the town where my father grew up and my grandparents lived. I visited Idaho most summers of my childhood, and we went over to the Tetons on occasion. What do I remember from those trips? I suppose I should remember the dramatic beauty of the Tetons which rise sharply up from the sagebrush plain of the Snake River; it is an iconic American landscape. Or perhaps I should remember the beautiful lakes at the base of the Teton range such as Jenny Lake and Jackson Lake which reflect the peaks. I suppose I do remember those things at least a little. However what I really remember about the Tetons as a child was the poem I read on the inside of a bathroom stall in the National Park. It’s been more than 50 years but I recall it precisely:

Some men come here to think,
Others come to shit and stink,
But I came here to scratch my balls,
And read the writing on the walls.

I know my mother read me poetry as a child and I suppose she would  be disappointed to learn that this is the first poem I recall as making an impression on me. As a poem, it is really not bad.  It is memorable and effectively conveys a mood. I think the National Park Service is now better at graffiti removal.  In any event, I have not seen anything of comparable quality in a public bathroom since.

This trip however, the Tetons themselves did make an impression on me. At least from the east side the mountain range is just stunning. There are no foothills, the range rises abruptly from the flat Snake River valley. The canyons between the mountains, the lakes at the base of the range and the Snake River valley are all breathtakingly beautiful. I was still gasping on our sixth day when the sunlight would fall in certain ways. We took nice hikes, some bike rides on the plains, and we saw moose and elk and deer.  Laura enjoyed spending time in the town of Jackson while Craig cringed in the camper van, he being allergic to expensive tourist towns. One of the many nice things about the van is it allows one person to stay home while the other is out. 

Here are pictures from Grand Teton National Park:

There are lots of rules in our national parks. I suppose the park service is fulfilling their mission of protecting precious natural resources and should be applauded.  There sure are lots of signs though!  Here are some of my favorites:

just don’t bother them