Welcome to September 2022!
September 25, 2022 – Sunday
Early Morning Bull Moose: I’ll be starting my trek back to Colorado tomorrow, but went out this morning in hopes of finding one or more nice sized Bull Moose. I found this one along the Gros Ventre.
Cow Moose: If you find a large bull, there’s probably going to be at least one cow nearby. Sometimes, there will also be a couple of smaller bulls. They are hoping to get a chance to mate with one of the cows, but the larger bull will keep them away.
Bull Moose: The sun has to clear the eastern mountains and the cottonwoods in order to light the valley floor. Moose are usually up and active long before that, so many shots are taken with little sparse, ambient light.
Bull Moose: Not long after the sun hit the bull, he bedded down. Soon afterwards, so did the cow.
Bull Moose:
Gros Ventre River Bottom: Once a Moose beds down, they can stay down for a couple of hours to four or five hours. The bull will get up if a smaller bull gets too close, so it is good to have one around. I left the Moose and headed on back to the cabin, but stopped along the Gros Ventre for a “record shot” showing the willows, cottonwoods, and aspens along the river.
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I plan on taking Fall photos on my drive back to Loveland, and if I can find a safe Internet connection, should post a few of them on my new site. Hopefully, readers here will begin following me on my new site. Just click the links above and look for the Subscribe buttons. See you there! MJ
September 24, 2022
Instead of going back into the park this morning, I headed south towards Bondourant. I saw quite a bit of yellow in the leaves as we were coming north from Loveland to Jackson and wanted to return to the area.
While I’ve seen a few pockets of yellow in the Jackson Hole valley, there were more in prime condition in the zone between Bondourant and “The Rim”.
Aspens:
Hillside Color: By now, the Mountain Maple in the Snake River Canyon should be ablaze, or even past prime. Reports tell me they are not going off this year. I am not sure what kind of trees I saw here, but they were definitely yellow and bright.
Pronghorn Buck: With the exception of Pronghorns, I never expect to see a lot of big game in the Bondourant area. That’s especially so during the hunting periods.
Red-tailed Hawk: Raptors are more common.
Power Lines: Besides the “normal” subjects, I like to watch for other unique opportunities like this. The black and white variant of this shot seemed more powerful.
Burn Zone: Several years ago, a large fire swept through some portions of the zone. Much of it still looks charred and lifeless.
Tractor: It is common to see vehicles and farm equipment rusting away near the roadways.
Rustic Barn:
Rustic Barn:
September 23, 2022 – Back in the Tetons
Darla and I made a trip from Loveland to Jackson Hole to go to a wedding on Saturday. That gives me a few days in the Tetons before I head south.
Schwabacher Landing: Actually, I took this photo yesterday, but I already had a lot of photos to post for the day. This should give you an idea of the foliage changes. Most of the cottonwoods in the river bottoms are still green, while some of the willows and underbrush is beginning to turn. The Gros Ventre River area also has yellow”ish” willows, but not much in the prime stage.
This is another shot from the parking lot at Schwabacher Landing. I was sitting in my car waiting for the bull moose to reappear and took this as a band of light hit some of the willows.
Black Bear: I got up early, drove south from Teton Village, through town, and then back north towards the Gros Ventre roundabout. (Remember, the southern section and southern entrance of the Moose-Wilson Road is closed for the rest of the year) I saw a small bull Moose east of the roundabout, but passed on him in hopes of seeing a larger one.
Note: Since I have been away, crews completed the asphalt road at the north end of Spring Gulch. Interestingly, a Teton County Sheriff was parked near the Gros Ventre bridge waiting to catch speeders using the new road.
Mostly a Dud: I checked out the Kelly area for bison, then went to Schwabacher’s Landing. There were large amounts of vehicles at both Mormon Row barn areas. I guess it is “that time of the year” with tours and workshops piled on top of the fall viewers and photographers. Both parking areas at Schwabacher’s Landing were overflowing. I did a quick look over the ridge, but didn’t see a bull Moose. It was windy, so the water was rippled and the Tetons had clouds covering the top half of each. I figured I could go to the northern zone of the Moose-Wilson road to get out of the wind. I spotted this sow and cub, but the Wildlife Management team wouldn’t let my get shots. I figured is “wasn’t my day” and headed back towards town.
Swainson’s Hawk: It was “Feathered Friday” at the JH Visitor’s Center, featuring birds from the Raptor Center. The event is held between noon and 2:00 pm on Fridays.
Golden Eagle: You have to work with available light since they don’t want flashes on the birds. I was hand holding the camera with the aperture wide open.
Eastern Screech Owl: This little gal was in one of the darkest areas of the Visitor’s Center, so the ISO was extremely high. Western Screech Owls are known to be in the region, but seldom seen in the JH Valley.
September 22, 2022 – Back in the Tetons
I headed out early and spotted this nice buck, just as the fog was clearing.
Pronghorn Buck: In the morning fog along Antelope Flats Road.
Pronghorn Buck:
I had a pretty good day…so I’ll add quite a few photos.
Pronghorn Buck:
TA Moulton Barn: Lifting fog along Mormon Row.
TA Moulton Barn: First light on the old barn.
Peach House: I think a lot of people call this the Pink House, but it always looked peach to me. Last year, the Park Service picked the house and moved it to the side while replacing its foundation. This year, they are giving it a new face.
Teton Peaks: Clouds were thick over the Tetons, but opened for a couple of shots of the Grand.
Schwabacher Moose: From a distance, I was thinking the bull is one I always called Hoback. For the past couple of years, Hoback had a down tine on his left antler, but he doesn’t have one this year. The odds are pretty good this is Hoback but he was too far away for me to say. Either way, this is a nice, large bull.
Schwabacher Bull Moose:
Schwabacher’s Landing:
Black Bear: Seen along the Moose-Wilson Road.
Berries and Rain Drops:
Jackson Peak: I took this one on my way down Mormon Row. The road was muddy and extremely bumpy.
September 20, 2022
I’ve recently spoken with a couple of people in Jackson Hole that say the foliage status is still “mostly green”. I should be in the Tetons over the weekend and should be able to supply first hand reports. The reports also suggest it has been “slim pickin’s” so far this year for many of the most dependable subjects, including elk, moose, and bears.
As most people know, Elk in Grand Teton National Park and the surrounding areas are hunted each fall as they migrate to the National Elk Refuge. As a result, they are leery of humans and are difficult to photograph. Elk in Rocky Mountain National Park are generally not hunted and are actually quite tolerant of humans. They can be seen in town in Estes Park, often on the golf course, in parks, and in neighborhoods. I drove up to RMNP yesterday and was able to take a lot of photos of them, then built a new Feature Subject page on my new site. Click the link above to view them!
As the image says, I have been building a new site for my future here in Colorado. Quite a few of my Best of the Tetons readers have already subscribed there, and I’d love to get all of you there eventually.
You can always find the new panel and link in the Navigation Bar on this site.
September 11, 2022 Notes
GTNP Notes
I am getting a few reports from friends in Jackson Hole, mostly about the Moose there. Hoback, the larger bull along the Gros Ventre, stripped his velvet over the past couple of days. Several of the other bulls still have velvet, which is very late in September. I hear there are around 9 different bulls around. As far as I know, Shoshone hasn’t shown up this year. Hopefully, he found some new areas along the Snake and will appear at some point.
I went to Rocky Mountain National Park this morning and took a few shots of Elk in the early morning light. It got quite a bit colder on Friday and was rainy on Saturday. With the warm weather, the Elk Rut is later than some years.
September 7, 2022 Notes
Fire Danger Has Increased to High – Practice Good Outdoor Recreation Ethics and Be Fire Safe
That message came to me via emails they send to guides.
After the new post here on the 5th, a lot of Best of the Tetons subscribers received their emailed version. Quite a few of them visited my new site, but at the time, the Subscribe Now! button was still being worked out and fine tuned. I believe the button works now, so if you want to visit the site and click the Subscribe Now button, it should work. As I mentioned earlier, the site resembles this one, but is probably a bit more stylish and will certainly cover a wider array of topics and photos.
I am coming back to the Tetons sometime around Sept. 22nd to go to a wedding, so I will try to get a few “fresh” photos to post here and I will likely make a similar Featured Page on the new site. Paul Gore sent a check to keep this site up and running through the end of the year, so I’ll try to add a few posts and pages.
Heron in Gold and Rust: This photo was taken about a week ago, very early in the morning here in Loveland. Loveland sits at the base of the Rockies on the east side, often called the “Front Range”. To he east, the zone would be primarily prairie if not for the houses and trees that sprung up over the past 100 years. Unlike Jackson, there are no mountains in the east, so the first rays of the sun simply have to clear the horizon That light is often bright orange. It then bounces off everything, including trees, houses, and exposed banks. The reflected light found in the lakes is absolutely beautiful.
New Featured Subject on Mike Jackson Photography! Birds of Sunrise
September Notes (Posted on Labor Day, September 5)
Normally, I make this first entry on the 1st of the month. I know I’m late, but here are a few notes from the area.
GTNP Closures and Delays
- If you are reading this post, you should know that the southern section of the Moose-Wilson Road is closed for the rest of the year. You will be able to access the Laurance S. Rockefeller Preserve from the north.
- One note I received from the Park Service suggests that Spring Gulch Road is open again.
- The Gros Ventre Campground was full or close to full. Downtown Jackson traffic was hectic over the Labor Day Weekend.
- The Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival will be beginning soon. Check with the Chamber of Commerce for events, dates, and times.
Moose and Other Wildlife
Hoback 2021 with Ear Hole: A few people have seen a large bull in the Gros Ventre River area that resembles Hoback. If it is Hoback, he didn’t grow his drop tine this year. Last year, I took this photo of him and it shows a hole in his right ear. When his summer fur filled in, it was more difficult to see, but I often saw a dark spot in his fur where the hole was. A photographer sent a photo from this year, showing a similar hole in the large bull, so I can say almost certainly it’s Hoback.
- The large bull moose, Hoback has been seen along the Gros Ventre.
- Shoshone (the other large Gros Ventre bull moose), hasn’t been seen.
- By September 5, I would expect most of the bulls to start stripping their velvet.
- The Bison rut should be mostly over, but you might still see a little late season rut activity.
- Watch and listen for Elk along the Teton Park Road. Go early and hope for some Elk rut action!
- Reports suggest that Black Bears are showing up along the upper section of the Moose-Wilson Road. I hear some people are getting shots, while others report “controlled drive-by shooting”.
By definition, Best of the Tetons, focused primarily on Grand Teton National Park and the Jackson Hole. Now that Darla and I are in Loveland, CO, I brought back Mike Jackson Photography where I am presenting a much wider scope of subjects and topics. I equate it to being limited on this site to only a box of 12 Crayons, where the new site has a generous new supply of 64 colors. The Subscribe button is not working at the moment, but should be soon. Hopefully, I can get Teton Images fully working soon, too! The new site has many features that resemble this site including a monthly Blog page and set of Featured Subjects.
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September 2022 Daily Journal For GTNP & JH first appeared on
Best of the Tetons, Area Info & Photography.
