Why Wyoming?
Why Wyoming? Allow me to speculate.
Some people come for the Chen(ey) Gang. You know the type – the power hungry, oil drilling, Halliburton leading, no-rules-apply-to-me renegades that just want wide open spaces so they don’t have to listen to the needs and wants of other people.
Some come for Kanye. I hear the guy throws a fun, if not completely bonkers, wild west sort of party.
The rest of us come for the breathtaking, completely stunning, jaw-dropping meadows to mountains extravaganza that only a place with a 1 to 5 elk to person ratio can offer. (Yes, I looked up the elk population of Wyoming. Journalism at its finest.)
Grand Tetons was our first National Park on the trip (Happy 104th Birthday National Parks!) and it came with a highly recommended, five star rated, superhost, private tour guide – Lisa! With Lisa leading the way and Jack as the hype-man, B and I followed blindly down aspen and pine laden paths, into crystal clear glacier lakes, and up oxygen-free peaks.
I can see why Kanye is into this place.
The highlight reel of our 8 days around Jackson and in the Park is a loooong one. What’s your flavor? We’ve got idyllic hikes with views of the Tetons around every corner. We’ve got day long floats down the Snake River with a heavy side of thunderstorms and a dollop of Lisa takes a flying dunk off the SUP!
But if you’re looking for the money shot – if you’re really hungry for the off menu special (wait, what metaphor are we working with here?) you’re gonna want to ask for the Alaskan Basin backpacking trip. Here’s what you’ll need (let’s stick with the food-ish metaphor):
One (1) quick trip over the pass to Idaho;
A stop in Victor, ID for the best burgers at Brakeman American Grill and freshy fresh huckleberry milkshakes at the Victor Emporium;
An hour of stretching with an incredibly competitive game of forest bocce;
Stir in a piping hot blend of pastoral alpine streams, copious wildflowers, towering mountain peaks and infinite blue skies;
And add several ounces of hot water into your vegan backpacking meals (shout out to Food for the Sole gifted by Max and Kent – they were actually pretty good!) and also some canned salmon and Chalula so they weren’t quite so vegan.
Introduce a day hike to the summit of Static Peak towards the end for an extra dose of epic-ness
Make sure to toss in a few rounds of the bear-bag hanging game throughout the process.
Cool down the whole thing with several dips into the alpine lakes.
Then take a stroll all the way down those 3,200 feet of elevation you gained and drive back to Brakeman’s for another burger.
Enjoy!
So Why Wyoming? Why Not?
