Springtime in Grand Teton National Park (part 2)

Sunrise over Jackson Lake

This view is from the picnic area that serves both the cabins and the campground at Colter Bay on Jackson Lake, and is located only about 100 yards from the Visitor Center.  For those planning a future trip to the Tetons, this is our favorite spot to stay- certainly more convenient than staying at a motel in Jackson.  This spot is literally within easy walking distance from either the campground or the cabins.

Colter Bay Panorama

In a previous post, I mentioned that I'd photographed the entire bay as a panorama one morning.  I'm not sure that the resolution on this blog will show off a panorama format to very good effect, but we'll give it a try, I guess.  (I think I might try making a large print of this one for a church auction this fall, if it generates any interest.)

Tetons & Wildflowers

I found this good stand of wildflowers right beside a park viewpoint area along the inner road near Jenny Lake on the first morning of our stay in the park.

Lupine Meadows

Just to show that not all of the flowers blooming in the park this spring were yellow balsam root, this nice stand of lupines was found along the road that goes to the hiking trail called- you guessed it- Lupine Meadows.  On the morning that I photographed these, a large herd of elk were grazing at a distance in the meadow behind me.

Mr. Cunningham's View

Cunningham's Cabin is a historic spot in the park named for an early settler to the region.  Visitors are able to step inside his cabin, where I took the above photo showing the view that he had from his back window in the springtime.  I'm pretty sure that a winter in this cabin would be harsh!

Springtime in Grand Teton National Park

Sunrise Over Colter Bay

I've always found that sunrise is the best time to photograph in the Tetons, and the morning that I took the photo above treated me with generally clear skies in the east, along with a bank of clouds over the Teton Range.  On this trip, we stayed in a log cabin inside the park at Colter Bay on Jackson Lake.  This photo was taken from a pebble-lined beach that serves as the picnic area for the campground and cabins.  (I also took additional photos of the remainder of the range to allow me to produce a panoramic image of the spot above.  Perhaps I'll post an additional panorama view later.)

Tech info:  Canon 5D Mk II, 50mm lens

Wildflowers #1

While I had previously photographed Grand Teton National Park in the Summer and the Fall seasons, this was my first trip to the Tetons during the Spring.  We were there from June 10 to June 14, and I was pleased to find that wildflowers were blooming profusely in the park at lower elevations.  This was a lucky break for doing photography, because the skies were generally overcast for most of our visit this year, and some color in the foreground was helpful to avoid boring compositions.  While I'm no expert on identifying wildflowers, my spouse informs me that these yellow flowers are called balsam root.  They were the most widely found variety in the valley during our mid-June stay in the park.

Wildflowers #2

Another reason that I'm glad the wildflowers were blooming in the park during our stay was that my previous favorite spot for doing photography in the park, Schwabacher Landing, was closed due to the budget cuts associated with sequestration.  When I first read about this closure in the park newspaper, I was definitely not a happy camper, and spent a few hours considering sending a nasty letter to my congressman blaming him for messing up my vacation.  My anger over the politics of this situation gradually subsided with each successive find of good patches of wildflowers.  I found this patch was along the inner park road that goes past Jenny Lake.

I have a great many additional photos to sort through from this visit, so stay tuned for some additional posts over the next few days.  I hope you enjoy viewing these shots of this fine park!

Bill