1066 Photographic Art

Grand Teton

The Grand Teton mountain range is actually quite short, less than 40 miles from south to north ends.  Three peaks, Grand, Middle and South Teton, give their name to the range and associated National Park immediately south of Yellowstone. The tallest peak rises to just under 14,000 feet and when viewed from about 10 miles north of where this picture was captured, closely resembles Switzerland's Matterhorn.  What is striking about Grand Teton is that there are no foothills as in the Sierras.  It's similar to the Front Range just outside Boulder, CO.  The peak rises roughly 7,000 feet directly from the valley floor.  Stunning.

This day, Grand Teton was an elusive subject; gaps in the fast moving clouds rarely revealed much at one time.  Waiting it out and taking advantage of occasional gaps in the late afternoon clouds, I captured this shot of the rugged tracery of  rock faces and energy of the clearing storm.

Shortly before, I had left our trailer in a hurry, not wanting to miss what looked like a developing photo opportunity; I forgot my coat and wireless shutter release.  However, when I arrived at the vantage point and realized what was left behind, I didn't dare return to camp and miss the perfect shot.  The fast moving clouds were too unpredictable.  No choice but to set up my tripod, point my camera westward and suck it up for a cold couple hours standing in the wind.  It was worth it, this picture hangs in our living room....