The Tetons are much farther from IPW than I naively thought: they are farther north in Wyoming than I realized, and Wyoming extends much farther west than Colorado. Also, being a basin-and-range state like Nevada, it has lousy radio coverage and broad, endless valleys. About the only type of radio you can count on consistently is some flavor of Christian dreck, either brimstone preaching or mock popular music. I quickly learned to press “seek” at the first mention of “your light,” or “grace” in an unfamiliar song.
Much to my surprise, Grand Teton is run more like Death Valley than the Grand Canyon, despite the crowds (I pity the moose, who dare not show their heads without attracting 20+ cameras). There are no entrance stations on the park borders, so much of the park is freely accessible. Further, they seem more tolerant of car-sleep than other popular parks, and even the super-managed Lake Isabelle region.
There is still a lot of snow up high, so I’m not sure whether I will be able to summit the Grand, but the snow is nicely consolidated, much improving the scree.
