Day: June 14, 2017

Pic: Your fur is red, so beautiful. Red fox, Bridger-Teton NF, WY

Just before I turned onto a jeep track that lead to what I’m pretty sure was legal camping, I came across a fox doing that thing where it ducked down, shook its haunches, and leapt into the air attempting to pounce on a bird. It missed, but came over to check out the noisy, smelly, silver thing in the road for a moment before casually disappearing into the tall grass.

Pic: “…the hell is this thing?” Red fox, Bridger-Teton NF, WY

Pic: Five boobs. Jackson Lake, Grand Teton NP, WY

I awoke to sunrise and “Bark! Bark! Barkhoooooooooooowl!” A pause. Then: “Bark! Bark! Barkhoooooooooooowl!”

“Control your dog, sir,” I thought, but as the ruckus persisted I decided it sounded a little howl-y for a dog. I walked around the corner to investigate, also scouting the muddy stretch that threatened to keep Isa and me from returning to the main road. A lone coyote sat in the meadow 150 yards away, bark bark barkholwing into the wide-open valley and getting no response. It was clearly aware of me as I came into view, ears perked and gaze locked on the weird bipedal interloper. Eventually it stopped howling and wandered off.

Driving back toward Jackson through the National Elk Refuge, I met up with a pronghorn jogging next to the road. I slowed down. “Are you going to be smart and stay on your side?” I asked. Nope! It zagged directly in front of me, crossed the road, and continued running in the same direction at the same speed on the other side. Prey animals!

After a quick brunch to satisfy my latent addiction to eggs benedict, I stopped at JD High Country Outfitters to pick up some gear I would need for backpacking in grizzly country. I chatted with the saleswoman about bear cans and bear spray and learned that for twenty years she had run the affordable housing program in the town where I was born and raised. We talked about being a socialist in red country. She said being a liberal gun nut helped and told me how much she liked her AR-15.

I spent the afternoon driving through the park with short stops to explore String Lake, Jenny Lake, and Jackson Lake Dam. The Tetons formed a picturesque backdrop for everything in the valley, rising up seemingly out of nothing.

Pic: Everyone’s a building burning. Teewinot Mountain, Grand Teton, and Mt. Owen. Jenny Lake Rd, Grand Teton NP, WY