Towering Tetons
Mike Yardley rides into a land made for rugged adventures
Cinto Wyoming from Idaho, the vertigoinducing, 2500m-high Teton Pass, offered my first tantalising glimpse of Jackson Hole.
It’s a mesmerising perspective and reminder that this is a land of rugged adventurers and towering natural glories. Whether you’re magnetised by ski slopes, hiking trails or serendipitous wildlife encounters, nature underpins Jackson Hole’s year-round pulling power.
The tourist hot-spot of Jackson is a charismatic, exuberant and irrepressibly characterful town, with its covered wooden walkways and saloons on every corner.
It may be cliche´ , but a quintessential Jackson experience is to stroll through Town Square and get your pixel-fill under the iconic antler arches, strung across the four entry points.
Each eye-catching arch was made by hand, using 2000 elk antlers shed on the nearby National Elk Refuge.
Just outside town, this is arguably the best place in the world to watch elk. The refuge's 7000-strong resident elk herd roam the 10,000ha of grasslands, forest and wetlands that have been reserved for them as a winter habitat, between November to May.
When the autumn chill sets in, Jackson’s resident bull elks fill the air with their shrill bugle calls.
Jackson is still a cowboy town, but there’s a flourishing cultural scene here too, with a glittering array of art studios, galleries and top-notch giftware stores that also tout authentic indigenous works.
My brother-in-law bought some gorgeous jewellery here for my sister, crafted by Navajo artists.
Saddle up! The Million Dollar Cowboy Bar is a Jackson staple, a classic slice of Americana, with its roots dating back to 1937.
Crowned by a rotating rooftop neon cowboy on a bucking bronco, the Wild West theme continues with the cowboy de´ cor in this honky-tonk bar.
History is at the heart of The Wort Hotel, which first opened its doors in 1941.
A staple in downtown Jackson, the 55-room property encompasses the idea of timeless hospitality.
On entering the lobby, you’re greeted by a grand timbered staircase, roaring fireplaces, and an assortment of Western art and photographs. The rooms are spacious and appropriately outfitted with Western charm. I had a gorgeous grizzly bear soft toy draped across my bed post. The hotel’s Silver Dollar Bar is a Jackson institution, named for the 2032 uncirculated silver dollars from the Denver Mint, inlaid in the bar.
Wild game abounds in Jackson, with restaurants seducing the experimental palate.
Breakfast with a difference? Try the buttermilk biscuits and wild game gravy at the Wort Hotel's Silver Dollar Grill. Shaved and diced bison, elk and boar float atop a thick, salty gravy, obscuring two very large biscuits.
Strong, but not at all gamey, the meats mix with accompanying flavours to create a sharp, tangy taste experience.
Just across the hall, have a dabble with the elk sliders and buffalo meatballs at the Silver Dollar Bar.
Part of what makes Jackson Hole so special is its direct access to some of the nation's best national parks. Grand Teton National Park, home to the magnificent Teton Range, sits just north of town. Within the park, you'll find beautiful alpine lakes, hundreds of miles of trails, and plentiful wildlife, including bears, moose, and elk.
Tucked off the Antelope Flats Rd is Mormon Row, a collection of abandoned structures like the photogenic Moulton Barn that date back to the 1890s, when Mormon settlers first traversed the area. Continue on to Moose-wilson Rd which is often where you will see moose and bears down in the willow flats.
Hiking trails lace the park like spaghetti. One of the most popular spots within Grand Teton National Park is Jenny Lake. Dubbed the park’s centrepiece, this dazzling turquoise lake is easily accessible from the eastern shore, with a dreamy lakeside loop trail serving up a dress circle perspective on the serrated peaks of the Tetons, including the Cathedral Group, which are the tallest bunch of peaks in the Tetons.
I was transfixed by this mountain range, spanning the full length of the national park.
Huge glaciers sculpted the range into the rugged rocky spires you see today. What accentuates the Tetons’ stature is their soaring height, with a long necklace of peaks all thrusting 4000m above sea level, which is the elevation of Aoraki/mt. Cook.