After a week-long tour through Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, about which I’ll post later, I had the opportunity to meet some Dartmouth friends to go backcountry skiing in the beautiful foothills of the Teton mountain range. One of my friends, Scotty, is a professional guide and ski instructor based here in Jackson, Wyoming – check out his business, Peak Performance, if you are ever in the area and want to experience backcountry ski touring, telemarking, kayaking, or paddleboarding!
Scotty fitted us out with the latest in backcountry-touring gear and drove us to one of his favorite locations, where we could ski gentle slopes of rolling hills with views of icy Jackson Lake and the jagged peaks of the Teton mountains. After a 2016 wildfire, these hills are now open terrain dotted with dead snags and tiny saplings peeking above the powder snow. This tour gave me the opportunity to examine, up close, the snags of lodgepole pine, their stubby branches decorated with serotinous pine cones that pop open only when exposed to fire. Indeed, lodgepole pine can only reproduce through wildfire; earlier in the week I saw many examples of lodgepole forests, in various stages of natural regeneration, in southern Yellowstone National Park.
We skied over and around several hills, learning more about backcountry ski technique and a bit about how to read slopes for avalanche risk. Eventually, we topped out on a hilltop (elevation 7,886 ft, 2404m). We had nice views of the Teton mountains, though they were largely shrouded in thick clouds. Then a beautiful run down the slopes, partly forested, back to the road. What a lovely day! My 19th consecutive weekend out hiking – but likely my only nordic skiing of this winter season.
We capped off the day with a delightful Indian/Nepali dinner, followed by a chance to watch the start of the dogsled races that began in downtown Jackson. Thanks to Scotty and Dartmouth friends for a wonderful day. More photos and videos in the gallery!
Hike stats:
Distance: 4.60 miles (7.4km)
Time: 4 hours, including stops
Gain: 613 feet (187m)
David Kotz 