Teton Valley Magazine Summer 2022

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As I write this letter on a late April Saturday morning, snow is building up, covering my tiny rhubarb sprouts and budding grass. For a majority of mud season, I started each day with an internal monologue of, “We need the moisture,” while I sipped my coffee and gazed at the falling snow.

Water—when it comes, how much arrives, and how we use it—is a constant, important conversation that seems to intensify year after year. We talk with our neighbors about how much or how little we have, as we collectively hold our breath, hoping for fewer wildfires and more powder days.

The water talk has a new angle bubbling to the surface: usage. In this edition of the magazine, our features explore two different parts of this conversation: Plans for addressing Teton River’s capacity for a healthy future and a look back at past mistakes and lessons learned from Teton Creek.

In Molly Absolon’s A Fork in the River (page 62), Teton County is searching for an answer to managing traffic and overuse with the passage of a new Waterways Recreation Ordinance, while balancing access to public lands. In Going with the Flow (page 72), Jeannette Boner shares how the lessons of misuse and overdevelopment became a launchpad for a restoration and conservation success story years in the making. Both examine the question of balancing growth with respecting and preserving our vital resources. (Smith Maddrey asks readers to consider this, too, as we celebrate Yellowstone National Park’s sesquicentennial. Read more on page 88.)

It’s a worthy question: How do we balance preserving natural resources in the midst of continued growth? Being good stewards of the river and land is a great place to begin. The conversation continues in this issue of the magazine and beyond.

Bookending our river tales, you’ll also find stories celebrating the people, places, and experiences that make the summer season all the more vibrant, like horse camps, epic century gravel rides, and a look at what’s on the menu at Teton Valley’s newest Italian spot, Pizzeria Alpino. Oh, and there are goats! Winter Winds Farm’s happy goats, to be exact (page 48). When in doubt, go snuggle a goat or two or twenty. You might just find yourself inspired to pursue a new life as a goat farmer like Jessica Konrath and Mark Farmer. Either way, you’ll leave with a smile. Here’s to another summer in all its glory … rivers, gravel grinders, goats, and all.

Publishers Kate Hull (top) and Sage Hibberd (bottom) enjoy time on the water.

publisher + editor in chief

Kate Hull kate@powdermountainpress.com

publisher + art director

Sage Hibberd sage@powdermountainpress.com

sales manager

Jessica Pozzi

jessica@powdermountainpress.com

publisher emeritus

Nancy McCullough-McCoy

editor at large

Michael McCoy

design advisor

Linda Grimm

contributors

Molly Absolon

Lara Agnew

Judy Allen

Jeannette Boner

Shannon Corsi

Aaron Couch

Camrin Dengel

P.M. Fadden

Tom Hallberg

Smith Maddrey

Michael McCoy

Christina Shepherd McGuire

Kristen Pope

David Stubbs

Linda Swope

Julia Tellman

Cy Whitling

Lara Agnew

As a visual storyteller, Lara (Winter Winds Farm, page 48, and Pizzeria Alpino, page 106) is drawn to stories of people and places. Her work is deeply influenced by her curiosity of the natural world, the human spirit, and connection. When not behind the lens, you can find Lara tending her garden, curling up with a good book, recreating with loved ones, or seeking out a new recipe or song. If you’re wondering whether or not you should share your favorite joke with her—you definitely should. She lives in Teton Valley with her husband, two kids, and their pets.

Tom Hallberg

As the associate editor of Backcountry Magazine, Tom Hallberg (A Place to be Proud of, page 98) spends much of his time going backcountry skiing and splitboarding or writing about other people’s adventures in the mountains. When he writes about the people and places of Teton Valley and the surrounding region, he likes to highlight stories of resilience and transformation.

Michael McCoy

After earning degrees in Anthropology at the University of Wyoming and Zoology at the University of Montana, Michael McCoy (The Hawks of Teton Valley, page 36) made the obvious choice and utilized his A-to-Z education to carve out a career in freelance writing and adventure travel (he conceived and mapped the Canada-to-Mexico Great Divide Mountain Bike Route). Mac and his wife, Nancy, met in 1974 as employees at Grand Targhee Resort and moved back to the valley full-time in 1995. Today, he is semi-feverishly working on Secret of the Wind, the sequel to his debut novel Sleeping Dogs Don’t Lie, available on Amazon.

Christina Shepherd McGuire

One moment Christina’s boots are covered in chicken poop and the next she’s playing taxi driver for soccer practice; while somewhere in between she’s striving for her version of “balance.” As the managing editor of Teton Family Magazine and Grand Wedding Magazine, Christina (Saddle Up, Campers! page 54) aims to help women and families pursue a slower, healthier, and more fulfilling lifestyle. To her, this often means hitting the trails in the high country or taking a mid-day siesta on her front porch in Tetonia.

Julia Tellman

Julia Tellman is a paper pusher at the Teton Valley News, and occasionally dabbles in writing. She owns seven domesticated turkey vultures and spends most of her free time harvesting a never-ending supply of small and medium-sized rocks from her backyard. Julia (Farm Woman of the Year, page 94) is more than happy to provide book recommendations or gossip about local government. Her favorite thing to do is go uphill.

Eleanor Anderson

Ned Axthelm

Lauren Birch

Taryn Boals

Kieran Collins

Sevi Hagen

Katy Ann Fox

Aaron Cordell Johnson

Jessi West Lundeen

Katie Steele

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Ways to Play

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

Sit outside and savor the season with a latte and slice of quiche at Rise Coffee House

Enjoy an Americano and muffin from Victor’s new coffee spot, French Press Coffee House

Practice your cast on the South Fork or the Teton River during a guided fly-fishing trip

Hike or mountain bike the South Horseshoe trails in the Big Hole Range west of Driggs

Take in incredible talent on display inside Teton Valley’s new art galleries (more on page 22)

Savor brunch at Butter Cafe in Victor (or sample nearby sister restaurant Wanderlust Bistro)

Spoil a good walk (as Mark Twain would say) by golfing at one of our three public courses

Find your center and float the Teton River on a SUP rental from Yöstmark Mountain Equipment

Take home fresh cut florals from the farmers market on Fridays, June through early October

Stop by Mugler Plaza in Driggs for the weekly artisan fair held Fridays from 9am to 1pm

Take an afternoon trip to Grand Teton National Park and soak up the stellar views at Jenny Lake

Rent a mountain bike and brush up on your skills with a lesson from Grand Targhee Bike School

Pop into The Velvet Moose in Driggs for mountaininspired apparel, jewelry, gifts, and more

Munch on fajitas and sip a wine margarita at Mexican food favorite Agave on Main Street in Driggs

Delve into the character of the valley at the Teton Geo Center in Driggs

Pack a lunch of Victor Valley Market’s fresh deli sandwiches, then explore Darby Canyon

Cool off with a huckleberry shake from the Victor Emporium or lime freeze at Corner Drug in Driggs

Stroll through the art fair held Saturdays at the Driggs City Center and find a must-have piece

Groove on a smoothie from Barrels & Bins Natural Market in Driggs

Soak up the sun with an ice cold brew outside at Victor’s Grand Teton Brewery

Dine alfresco at Forage in Driggs, savoring a charcuterie board and seasonal fare

Get expert advice from the crews at Yöstmark, Peaked, or Habitat on favorite local trails

Opt for pizza night from any of the top-notch spots for a slice found in Victor, Driggs, and Tetonia

Share a special dinner with family and friends at Linn Canyon Ranch

Enjoy live music over cocktails at the Tetonia Club or Victor’s Knotty Pine Supper Club

Hoot and holler for the cowboys and cowgirls at the Friday evening Teton Valley Rodeo

Save the date for the Wydaho Adventure Film Festival held in Victor City Park this August

Sip a sample at Victor’s craft cidery, Highpoint Cider, then stick around for bingo or trivia night

Toast the day’s adventures with a cold brew and delicious meal at Citizen 33 in Driggs

Celebrate the season and dance the night away on Thursdays at Music on Main in Victor

A Space for Art

Teton Valley inspires talent across mediums: written words, music, visual arts, and more … the local creative brilliance is vast. Now, three artists of the visual variety are sharing their talents with the community, inviting residents and visitors to experience art for themselves, inside their studios and gallery spaces dotting the valley.

Nationally renowned artist and Victor resident Jason Borbet, known as Borbay in the art world, has set up shop in a second-story space inside the Work Farm building on Victor’s Main Street with Borbay Studios & Gallery. “This space is about celebrating art, creation, and community,” he says. Known for his vibrant neon-hued paintings, Borbay’s work is conceptual realism, featuring photo realistic images with a bit of funky creative license thrown into

the mix. “I love neon… understatement of the century,” he says.

His new space is more than just a studio. It’s a space for him to create—currently, that means working with his NFT company, NFToftheART; co-writing a TV pilot; and creating a shoe line.

Down the road in Driggs, local celebrated artist Katy Ann Fox opened the doors to Foxtrot Fine Art this past Feburary on Little Avenue. De-

scribing the gallery as light, spacious, and beautiful, Katy’s vision is to “showcase a collection of artists who are devoted to their practice, vibrant, and alive—not to mention talented.”

“I envision gathering people together to celebrate art and beauty, but also to build relationships and think,” Katy says.

Every month, Foxtrot Fine Art will feature a different artist, as well as host solo exhibitions from contemporary artists, including Katy’s own work, which she describes as evoking a feeling of peace and appreciation. Stay tuned for a summer series two Mondays every month from 6pm–8pm that will evoke the senses and celebrate amazing Teton

Valley people like massage therapists and photographers, agriculture specialists, and culinary experts.

In Tetonia, Michele Walters’ Tribe Artist Collective is a home to artists and a haven for art-lovers wishing to explore handmade works and goods. Featuring her own celebrated art, and works from more than twenty-five other artisans and makers in all mediums, the gallery and store has a little bit of everything. This summer, Michele is partnering with other galleries to host a “3rd Friday” artwalk.

In summary, Teton Valley is becoming a destination for art. “Forget being a bedroom community—Teton Valley is becoming the Mountain West destination for art,” Borbay says. “With Katy Ann Fox’s Foxtrot Gallery in Driggs; Mike Piggott and Dave McNally working from the Togwotee Center outside Victor; Michele Walters’ Tribe Artist Collective in Tetonia; and, literally, dozens of other incredible artists—Teton Valley is now a must-visit art-world location.”

French Press Coffee House

Victor’s new French Press Coffee House wants to be your “third best place.” Owners Timothée Guilbart and Johnnie Ethington describe the place as a spot as comfortable as your home and as routine and dependable as your office, just with much better coffee. “It has an atmosphere modern enough to work from, cozy enough to lounge in, and welcoming enough to meet friends and coworkers,” Johnnie says.

Stop by the Togwotee Center north of Victor for coffee, fresh-pressed juices, and delicious French and German-inspired baked treats. Sit, savor, and stay a spell. Learn more: thepresscoffeehouse.com.

Huckleberries

Late summer in Teton Valley is synonymous with sweet and tart huckleberries. In milkshakes, baked in a tangy pie, or gobbled up on their own by the handfuls, huckleberries are a seasonal treat.

If you’re wanting to know secret spots where you can find these mountain treats, we aren’t spilling the berries. Huckleberry patch whereabouts are secrets held close to the chest for many, but if you think you have happened upon your own summer bounty, here are a few signs you’ve spotted the sought-after fruit:

• Unlike their domesticated relatives, blueberries, huckleberries grow individually on the leaf axil— no clusters here! They do, however, resemble blueberries.

• Their hue can range from deep purple to a duller, purply blue or red hue.

• If you spot pink bell-shaped blooms, you’re too early! But the huckleberries won’t be too far away.

Happy Birthday, Yellowstone!

This year, 2022, marks one hundred and fifty years of Yellowstone National Park, the nation’s first national park. This summer, take a moment to reflect on the vitality of this remarkable geological and natural wonder and how you can be a steward for its future. Learn more about the history of Yellowstone on page 88, and mark your calendar for any or all of the virtual anniversary celebrations. Details available at nps.gov/yell

Trail Etiquette

Before you hit the trails this summer, brush up on your trail etiquette to ensure that you are respectful of the land and your fellow adventurers. The National Park Service shares these rules of the trail:

• Hikers coming uphill have the right of way. If you’re descending, step aside and let them pass.

• Stay on the trail.

• Do not disturb wildlife.

• Be mindful of conditions. Is the trail so muddy you are leaving footprints? Save the hike or bike ride for another day.

• Be aware of your surroundings. Find more tips and etiquette rules at nps.gov

GEARUPAND GETOUT

Valley Voices

Tim Gruber, a second and third grade teacher at Mountain Academy, loves a good story. So much so, he decided to give residents a way to share their own stories with the creation of Valley Voices, an event series that celebrates the work of individuals and organizations in Teton Valley through live storytelling events. “We strive to spread a message of optimism and self-love and want you to know that you are amazing simply for being you,” Tim says.

Held at Highpoint Cider in Victor, each event has a $5 entry fee that is donated to a local nonprofit. The purpose? To foster community. “We believe in the power of stories and believe that everyone has a story to tell,” Tim says. “We believe bringing our community together to share stories is an empathetic practice that helps create a more vibrant and inclusive community.” Valley Voices events are scheduled for June 9, July 8, and August 18. Stop by to hear incredible stories told by Teton Valley residents. Follow @ValleyVoices_33 on Instagram for details.

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inviting patrons to gather and sip their fresh pressed, unfiltered brews. all in a day’s work

NEW ENGLAND NATIVES , brothers Andrew (right) and Alex Perez opened Victor’s craft cidery Highpoint Cider in 2021,

BY KRISTEN POPE PHOTOGRAPHY BY CAMRIN DENGEL

Brewery of the apple variety takes off in Teton Valley Core Values

As kids, Andrew and Alex Perez chased each other around their family’s New Hampshire apple orchard, October Farm, tossing rotten apples, gorging on the fresh fruit, and pressing raw cider with their family.

Today, the brothers have transformed their early apple hijinks into a booming business as co-founders of Victor’s Highpoint Cider.

Alex and Andrew were living in separate cities in the Northeast when they dreamt up the plan to collaborate and bring their cider to the Tetons. The duo describes their journey as a three-step plan: “Step 1: Quit your job. Step 2: Convince your brother to quit his job. Step 3: Together, craft the best hard cider in the Tetons.”

Alex was working in Boston, developing industrial lighting solutions for General Electric, when he visited some old ski racing buddies in Jackson Hole and fell in love with the area. He moved out to the Tetons in 2017, but kept working remotely, thinking he would stay for a year, maybe two. But, as many would-be short-term transplants find, that brief stop was just the beginning. He had spent time coaching start-ups back on the East Coast and used that knowledge to conduct market analysis in the region, investigating if a cider business could be viable in Teton Valley or Jackson.

At the time, brother Andrew was living in Burlington, Vermont, working at

a boutique management consulting firm that focused on healthcare. A year later, he joined Alex out West. Armed with a biochemistry background, Andrew started experimenting with cider. The vision for Highpoint Cider blossomed. The brothers began by testing in their home kitchen, reading up on cider making, studying the art and science, and refining their techniques. Gavin Fine, co-owner of the Fine Dining Restaurant Group in Jackson, heard about their endeavors and loaned them an unused space to experiment on a larger scale. As they honed their craft, they searched for production spaces, opting for a Victor location. They embraced being part of the communities on both sides of Teton Pass. The brothers credit many local businesses for helping them get started, from sharing advice to dropping everything to help them fix an issue with their canning line.

“Literally every single organization that’s in the beverage space in the area has helped us out with something,” Alex says.

With much local support and encouragement, they opened their doors on April 9, 2021. Their cider is celebrated for a low sugar content with big flavor. Each

HIGHPOINT CIDER brews five varieties, each with unique flavor profiles, like the dry-hopped Tram-Line, the ginger-infused Spur, and the tried and true semi-dry New England style Transplant cider.

Highpoint

ber

Chasing Paradise

Small batch, handcrafted, locally produced cider is Rob Dupré’s specialty. He founded Chasing Paradise in 2012, and creates boutique ciders and meads, as well as an array of pestos, hummus, jams, energy bars, and even carrothabanero hot sauce.

A regular at the Teton Valley Farmers Market, Rob sells his products there during the summer, moving to online sales during the colder months. Chasing Paradise cider is also available in stores and restaurants in Teton Valley and Jackson.

Rob first dabbled with fermentation in his early twenties when he started brewing beer, later working as a brewer for Otto Brothers’ Brewing Company (which became Grand Teton Brewing Company).

Focusing on small batches and organic ingredients, Rob grows the raspberries for his jam, picks plums locally, and sources ingredients for things like pesto from local farms. He has even dabbled in beekeeping to create honey, a key ingredient in mead. Since Teton Valley isn’t a huge apple producer, he travels to Utah to an orchard that doesn’t use sprays or chemicals, returning home with a few hundred gallons of freshpressed juice to transform into cider.

The distinctive, colorful artwork on the Chasing Paradise packaging, featuring images like flower-laden bees and apples, is created by Rob’s wife, artist Shauna Crandall. Just as creating beautiful images to decorate the outside of a bottle is an art, Rob finds crafting the beverages within to be its own form of art.

“With fermented beverages, it’s a good balance between science and art,” Rob says. “There are so many different things that you could tweak a little bit, and for me it’s just that perfect balance between science and art, trying to get the flavors that you’re striving for.” Find cider and more at tvfm.localfoodmarketplace.com

cocoranchevents@gmail.com @CoCoRanchEvents

Innovation in your backyard

more. The addition of a projector and large screen will allow for film premieres, live animation, and other offerings.

As their business grows rapidly, the brothers are looking to fulfill another of their goals by working toward hiring more employees. In February 2022, they obtained new equipment, doubling their production capacity. Highpoint

“It’s also really, really humbling to see people at Music on Main with your can, smiling and having a good time...”

Andrew Perez, Co-owner

Cider is available in Idaho, Utah, and parts of Wyoming—including Jackson— and they are working on expanding to elsewhere in the region.

Alex says it’s exciting to see people enjoying the product they’ve worked so hard to create. “There have been these surreal moments of walking into the Cowboy Bar and seeing a bunch of people drinking our cider or going up to Targhee at the Trap [Bar] and hearing people ordering a Highpoint on draft,” he says.

Andrew says they wanted to create a culture that resonates with people, and that wouldn’t be possible without such a supportive community.

“The support from the community has been fantastic,” Andrew says. “It’s also really, really humbling to see people at Music on Main with your can, smiling and having a good time, or offering that space in the taproom where people can come, feel safe, have a good time, and enjoy themselves in the evening. That’s really cool to see as well.”

HIGHPOINT CIDER can be found in Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming. Around town, look for the Perez brothers’ cider on menus and at Victor’s Music on Main.

YOU’LL LIKELY SPY a red-tailed hawk soaring above fields, seeking out prey scurrying below. While in flight, look for its nearly horizontal wings, a note of distinction from the Swainson’s hawk, whose more slender wings take on a shallow “V” shape.

BY MICHAEL MCCOY PHOTOGRAPHY BY COLIN BOEH AND ROB CAVALLARO

The Hawks of Teton Valley

Our region is a haven for these winged things

“We

recorded thirteen raptors on the 2021 Teton Valley Christmas Bird Count,” reports naturalist Colin Boeh, who, along with his wife, Mary Chris Boeh, organizes the annual event and administers the Teton Area Birding Society’s Facebook page.

“Some of these were true hawks.”

True hawks?

“When it comes to hawks in our valley,” Colin explains, “there are accipiters and buteos. Accipiters are fast-moving bird hunters that stay here year-round. Buteos are the hawks that people are more familiar with—they generally hunt rodents and reptiles and are migratory.”

Digging a bit deeper, I learned that in many parts of the world outside of North America, members of the buteo group are referred to as buzzards rather than hawks; in those places, accipiters are considered the “true hawks.” But here we regard both buteos and accipiters as hawks. Taxonomically speaking, both groups are subfamilies of the family Accipitridae. (Regardless, I simply cannot tell you readers that a red-tailed hawk is really a buzzard.)

Buteonine hawks are the large, broad-winged, broad-tailed hawks you often see soaring high over open spaces and perching on the fenceposts

and telephone poles lining our roads. If they are the cruising Cadillacs of hawk species, accipitrine hawks are the nimble Porsche 911s. Their short, rounded wings and long, rudder-like tails enable them to dart around forests and brushlands, on the hunt for their primary prey of smaller birds. They also feature long legs and toes that aid them in grabbing birds in flight. They tend to fly low, alternately beating their wings in a rapid sequence and then coasting.

Here’s a bit more about each of Teton Valley’s hawks, which represent roughly half of the hawk species found in North America. Note that individuals of the same species can exhibit substantial differences in color, known as morphological variations or “morphs.”

“There are more races of red-tailed hawk than races of people in North America,” says Colin. “Most bird watchers identify hawks by structure and movement rather than color.”

Accipiters

You might get lucky and see one of these zipping through dense forest, aiming to get the jump on a songbird or other critter. A small hawk, around twelve inches in length, the sharp-shinned has a long tail and relatively small head. They’re a forest bird when it comes to feeding and breeding, nesting in both conifers and aspens.

These birds are highly adaptable, with habitat ranging from deep forests to wooded subdivisions—where they often attack other birds at feeders, making them the bane of many a backyard birder. Their

Sharp-shinned hawk

Accipiter striatus

Cooper’s hawk

Accipiter cooperii

coloring and size can make it difficult to distinguish one from a sharp-shinned hawk. The Cooper’s is slightly larger and has a pronounced hooked beak.

Northern goshawk

Accipiter gentilis

This sly predator keeps an eye out for prey perched on high branches in our coniferous forests of lodgepole pine and Douglas fir, then attacks with a rapid flight. The largest of Teton Valley’s trio of accipiters, goshawks grow to as long as twenty-four inches. Try to spot their lighter-colored eyebrow stripes lying above strikingly yellow eyes.

Buteos

Swainson’s hawk

Buteo swainsoni

Named after the nineteenth century British naturalist William Swainson, this hawk is smaller and slimmer than the other buteos, yet longer winged in relation to its size.

“I feel like the Swainson’s is our signature summer hawk,” says Colin. “It’s likely to be seen every day in Teton Valley from May through September. They migrate farther than any other animal in our region. Some individuals go as far south as Argentina in search of the endless summer. They are also more insectivorous than the others. They will eat grasshoppers and Mormon crickets and can be seen grabbing large stoneflies and eating in flight during the seasonal emergence of these insects.”

Ferruginous hawk

Buteo regalis

“Every September when the farmers cut the grain and the sandhill cranes arrive, we get a pulse of a few ferruginous hawks,” notes Teton Valley resident Rob Cavallaro, a supervisory regional wildlife biologist with Idaho Fish and Game. “A good place to view them is in the farm fields and on the fence posts on the west side of the valley. You can see them while you’re driving the roads.” The ferruginous is the largest of the buteos, with a wingspan approaching five feet. Their upper parts are rusty brown—the name ferruginous derives from the Latin term for iron-rust colored—while their underparts are white.

“I feel like the Swainson’s is our signature summer hawk.”

Colin Boeh, Naturalist

Red-tailed hawk

Buteo jamaicensis

You’ll see these birds soaring in broad circles over our agricultural lands, sometimes attacking prey in a slow dive with legs outstretched. They’ll also occasionally face into the wind and hover as they hunt. Slightly smaller than the ferruginous, the redtailed hawk features broad, rounded wings and light-colored underbodies that give way to short, wide tails that

are cinnamon colored on top. They are best distinguished from Swainson’s hawks in flight: Red-tailed hawks fly with nearly horizontal wings, while a Swainson’s will hold its more slender wings in a shallow “V” shape.

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“Winter in high, snowy basins like Teton Valley is a tough time for redtailed hawks,” says Rob. “Most of them move to lower elevations at that time of year.”

“If you see a buteo in Teton Valley in mid-winter, it’s probably a rough-legged hawk,” says Rob. “They have smaller feet and beaks than the others, which helps them retain body heat. And unlike the others, they’ll feed on carrion.”

Slightly smaller than the red-tailed hawk, the rough-legged features broad wings that are long and narrow. They exhibit flapping flight more than the other buteos and depend less on updrafts and thermals for soaring. Their name alludes to their shaggily feathered legs, another adaptation to their preference for cold-weather places: Rough-legged hawks breed in the Arctic and spend winters in the open habitats of Canada and the northern United States.

“Rough-legged hawks are diurnals [active during the day] that have a strong dark-roosting instinct,” adds Rob. “They want to be where it’s safe when it’s dark. Their biggest worry is probably the great horned owl,” a proficient predator that can take other birds as large as osprey.

“You’ll see rough-leggeds on fenceposts and out chasing voles. Like some other raptors, they can see the ultraviolet light reflecting off urine trails small rodents leave in the snow. But watch them and just before dark they’ll start flying toward the forests ringing the valley. There are documented observations of ‘communal roosts’ of these birds on our national forest lands.”

Rough-legged hawk

Buteo lagopus

When a hawk is not a hawk

A trio of non-buteo and non-accipiter raptors that nevertheless have the word “hawk” in their nicknames include the osprey, or “fish hawk”; the northern harrier, aka the “marsh hawk”; and the American kestrel, or “sparrow hawk.”

You’ve no doubt seen osprey, the only member of the family Pandionidae , sitting high in their immense nests atop power poles; the northern harrier you may have spotted swooping low on the wing in the spring across meadows or wetlands, searching for rodents, reptiles, and insects.

While hawks hunt primarily using their acute vision, thought to be eight times sharper than humans’, harriers, like owls, also depend on their sharp hearing. This helps explain the northern harrier’s owl-like face, which features discs composed of stiff feathers that can be maneuvered to direct sounds toward the bird’s ears.

And, according to Colin Boeh, while “most people will never see a goshawk, or correctly identify a sharp-shinned hawk flying at seventy-five miles per hour, they will likely see an American kestrel on a Teton Valley power line. They are our smallest and most familiar falcon. Drive Hastings Road in August and you’re sure to see both adult and hatch-year kestrels feeding on the rodents and insects that live in the borrow pits and hayfields.”

TETON VALLEY COMMUNITY RECYCLING gave free compost bins to residents like Chelsea Baum (and her dog, Winnie)—one of many TVCR community-minded programs.

BY JEANNETTE BONER PHOTOGRAPHY BY SHANNON CORSI

Teton Valley Community Recycling

Putting the power of waste reduction into your hands

Let’s be honest, sometimes ‘Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle’ can feel just a little bit out of reach in the trenches of everyday life. School, work, laundry… rinse and repeat.

And while our recycling bins can only take us so far in the quest for greener living, it’s in the space between industrial waste reduction and milling your own soap that Teton Valley Community Recycling (TVCR) has created accessible and real means to pursue greener pastures, even as you race between soccer practice drop-offs and dentist appointments.

Now celebrating its twenty-fifth year as a Teton Valley nonprofit, TVCR has remained flexible, bending and shifting with our own attitudes toward waste management in this remote Rocky Mountain outpost. Over the years they’ve gotten down and dirty with some of the best in the business, including Teton County, Idaho Solid Waste and RAD Curbside.

But perhaps TVCR’s most powerful partnerships are those forged with everyday citizens like you and me.

The programs have run the recycling gamut, from providing us with outlets to recycle our toothbrushes, contact lenses, burned out Christmas lights, and used batteries to collecting fly-away plastic pieces that avoided the trash bins and instead were transformed into public benches. TVCR took a new step last summer and secured a grant that would be a first toward reimagining and

reducing the largest contributor to our solid waste stream: food waste.

With the support of a grant from the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, TVCR passed out five hundred wire compost bins with the promise of supporting new “composters” with the educational know-how to be successful. Armed with facts that on average each American throws out close to three hundred pounds of food every year and that composting is an almost effort-free means of reducing that waste, the bins were quickly scooped up by willing and curious community members.

“It was definitely intimidating to me at first,” says Driggs resident Chelsea Baum, who dove into the world of composting with TVCR’s program. “From the very beginning, the staff at TVCR said, ‘Keep it simple. Green waste doesn’t have to be complicated.’”

And that’s a critical first step in reducing your overall eco-footprint, says Iris Saxer, former TVCR executive director. “As an organization, we looked at the people we wanted to reach,” she says of her five years at the helm of the organization. “There are people who already understand why [waste reduction and recycling] is important, but there are so many who think this is too hard, too time consuming, or too out of reach

FORMER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Iris Saxer, along with board members and volunteers, holding plastic that will soon become a bench, thanks to the Bags to Benches program.

LOCALLY MADE KNIFE ART

The Teton-Edge Santoku “Next Level.” - Bloomberg

Folder "Best of the West."

Sunset Magazine

to incorporate into everyday life. Those are the people we want to reach.

“And we wanted to demystify composting,” Iris continues. “We weren’t aiming for gardeners and green thumbs. We wanted the average Joe to look at his trash and ask himself how he can cut his garbage bill in half.”

G-Fusion Steak Knives

“Glides through steaks as if they’re butter.” - Wall Street Journal

Chelsea is a long-time recycler, but a first-time composter. She took TVCR up on their challenge that anyone can compost and reduce waste.

“It doesn’t have to be as complicated as people may think it is,” she says. “When I took my shovel out and turned the mix, I could see the composting happening. It was all very simple. I reduced my trash by half over the summer. If you can reduce your waste by just a tiny amount, I think it’s worth it. It means something and it feels good to know that you are doing something good for the environment.”

Iris says that while waste is diverted from the landfill with projects such as the composting initiative, it’s the philosophical changes we make as consumers that have lasting effects. She explains that, when people start separating their trash—whether it’s plastics, food, or even batteries—they start to become more aware of what kind of waste they are producing. Habits can change, as they did for the Baum household.

“It was good for me to recognize what kind of food waste I was producing,” Chelsea says. “I started thinking,

I could buy fruit and vegetables that weren’t in a container or a bag. Or, I can buy vegetables that weren’t pre-cut, like a head of lettuce. I can cut up the lettuce myself and compost the stems and pieces I’m not going to use. Composting helped me wrap my head around what I was buying and how much I was using.”

Iris acknowledges that the size of the organization caps how much the group can accomplish as a single entity. With a seven-member volunteer board and one part-time staffer, TVCR has leveraged its mission through partnerships with other organizations, businesses, and individual members such as Chelsea. By working to peel back the mystery of how to reduce and recycle through the steady hum of daily demands, TVCR has made it possible

LEFT TVCR executive director Angela Saggiomo poses with bikes given a new life thanks to the Pierre’s Pedal Project that salvages and repairs used bikes.

“When people start separating their trash... they start to become more aware of what kind of waste they are producing.”

Iris Saxer, Former TVCR Executive Director

for our community to create smaller impacts not only on the environment, but also our pocketbooks.

Consider TVCR’s work with the nonprofit Teton Valley Foundation, which in 2017 began replacing plastic cups used at the popular Victor summer concert series Music on Main with reusable cups. Since the switch, the program has diverted around 15,000 plastic cups from the landfill each summer, or six hundred pounds of plastic waste.

Working with community members and students in local schools, the Bags to Benches program sponsored through the national company NexTrex has recycled 2,600 pounds of plastic waste in Teton County, Idaho, since its inception in March 2020. This is plastic that cannot be recycled at the local transfer station and includes plastic film, bread bags, and sandwich bags.

Through partnerships with MD Nursery in Driggs, retired Halloween

Find Your Treasure

July

Composting in Bear Country

In many parts of Teton Valley, composting is coupled with working to not attract unwanted neighbors: bears! This sustainable practice is doable with bear safety in mind; it just takes extra precautions to deter curious critters. According to national bear safety nonprofit Bear Smart, a key step to properly composting is to make sure your compost bin isn’t emitting odors that could attract a nearby neighbor. The key? Add equal parts green and brown composting material. Start with greens—fruits and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, and grass clippings— and top with carbon-rich brown material like newspaper clippings and sawdust. Ensure the brown materials completely cover the layer below, tamping any smells that might be tempting to a bear. For more tips on safe composting in bear country, visit bearsmart.com or reach out to Teton Valley Community Recycling for local resources.

pumpkins and used Christmas trees have found their final resting places. (Read about another way to recycle your holiday decor by means of hungry goats on page 48.). Used bikes have been resurrected through the Pierre’s Pedal Project, a program that salvages and repairs used bikes. And most recently, TVCR has worked to replace styrofoam containers with reusable food containers used for Seniors West of the Tetons’ home-delivered meals program.

With every step, every plastic cup, battery, and toothbrush, Teton Valley Community Recycling continues to recruit its most vital partners to Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle, and more.

“Just start out easy and see how that goes,” Chelsea says.

Learn more about Teton Valley Community Recycling and programming at tetonrecycling.org. (At the time of publication, TVCR announced Angela Saggiomo was stepping into the executive director role. Iris will continue her work as a part-time volunteer.)

LINN CANYON RANCH A Classic

BELOW, LEFT TO RIGHT Jessica takes her turn giving the goats a squeeze. Cheesemaker Lacey McNeff gets a peck and a tug from happy goats. A kid likely in search of the next excited visitor to snuggle.

JESSICA KONRATH AND MARK FARMER , owners of Winter Winds Farm, took a leap of faith and moved to Teton Valley in 2020 to try their hand at cheese making.

BY JUDY ALLEN PHOTOGRAPHY BY LARA AGNEW

Winter Winds Farm

Couple connects to community by way of goat snuggling

There is no question baby goats are cute. Social media is replete with images of baby goats, or kids, frolicking through pastures; baby goats bounding on obstacles; and even baby goats in pajamas.

So cute, in fact, that Winter Winds Farm in Victor has hosted baby goat snuggle sessions for two consecutive springs. At an admission price of fifteen dollars, sessions are wildly popular with school groups, seniors, and the general public. (In fact, TVM editor Kate Hull declares it, “The best fifteen bucks I ever spent.”)

Owners Jessica Konrath and Mark Farmer introduced the snuggle sessions on their farm to help socialize spring kids to human contact and to expose Teton Valley residents to the wonderful world of goats. Encompassing twenty acres between Victor and Driggs, the farm is home to seventy-six goats, as well as to Mark, Jessica, and their dog, Blossom. Since purchasing the farm in the spring of 2020 from the original owners and developers, Nate Ray and Ginny Robbins, Jessica and Mark have taken the leap into a lifestyle centered around goats and goat-milk products.

But to get the full story of the farm, we need to rewind to 2015 when Jessica and Mark were living in the Washington, D.C., metro area, where Jessica’s romance with goats began. As Mark tells the story, Jessica had endured a rough week at work and saw an ad for

goat snuggling at a regional farm. The farm was a three-hour drive one way, so she spent an entire day traveling to snuggle the goats and make the return trip home. The excursion became an annual tradition and, as Mark recalls, “She always came home happy.”

Fast forward a few years, when Mark and Jessica discussed their future and realized they needed a big change. They wanted to move west and have goats! Growing up in Cottonwood, Idaho, not far from Grangeville, Mark was no stranger to the region or to small town life. And Jessica honed the vision further, expressing her desire to get married on a goat farm. Cue her Google search: “goat farm wedding Idaho.” As fate would have it, Winter Winds Farm popped up online, for sale by Nate and Ginny. Mark and Jessica decided to make it happen.

The sale specifics were especially attractive, since Nate and Ginny were offering to train whomever purchased the farm. “It couldn’t have been a better opportunity,” Mark says. “They were as hands-on as we needed them to be. Their generosity was crucial.” Also key to the transition has been Lacey McNeff, an American Cheese Society certified

WINTER WINDS FARM holds goat snuggling days each spring after the kids are born to socialize the goats and connect with the local community.

For Jessica, it’s still all about the animals. She looks forward to building new and deeper relationships with the goats.

cheese professional and “senior cheese maker,” as Mark and Jessica call her. An employee of the original farm, Jessica describes Lacey’s cheese-making skills and expertise as “critical and essential” to the mix.

Two years later, Jessica and Mark are fully immersed in the farm, working beyond full-time when kidding begins in April. Then, in May, milking and cheesemaking commence and last until November. That’s when the milking goats are “dried up” until next year’s selections are bred, and kidding resumes the following spring.

To make it all happen, Jessica maintains her day job, working remotely for

two nonprofit clients in Virginia. She also milks the goats twice daily for two and a half hours each session. Lacey makes cheese five days a week, while Jessica pitches in for one additional day. Mark is the self-described CFO, “chief farming officer”—marketing year-round to stores and restaurants, including weekly attendance from June to October at three farmers’ markets, one in Driggs and two in Jackson. Completing the team is Jessica’s brother, Michael Konrath, who moved from Wisconsin to join the farm in August 2021. Titled “junior farm hand,” his superpower is a keen ability to get timely repairs done on farm machinery.

The result of this intensive collaboration is an array of celebrated goatmilk products, including seven cheeses and two soaps. Restaurants in Teton Valley and Jackson feature Winter Winds cheeses on their menus. Stores as far away as Boise Co-op stock their farm products, as do numerous local merchants. The most popular cheese variety is Teton Tomme, a sharp, nutty cheese that, according to Mark, requires “six months of patience” for the flavor and texture to age. Most unusual are the smoked chevre and robiola, a buttery and melt-in-your-mouth variety that is Jessica’s first addition to the lineup.

“The same recipe can be used by two creameries and the results will be different,” says Mark, “because the cheeses will take on the unique flavor and characteristics of the farm where they were made. The goat’s diet, the type of forage available, the temperature, climate, and season of the year all affect the milk and the cheese that is produced.”

The grander vision of the farm extends beyond tending goats and marketing products. As Mark explains, it’s all about building community relationships. For unique product ingredients, the farm seeks out local sources from small producers like Chasing Paradise (more on page 33), Jackpine Lavender, and Alpine Air Coffee Roasting. High protein whey, a by-product of the cheese-making process, is distributed free to local individuals for animal feed. After Halloween and Thanksgiving, the farm accepts donations of pumpkins for feed; and, after Christmas, forestharvested trees—which the goats relish. In the spring, when the goat enclosures

THE WINTER WINDS FARM TEAM says the vision for the farm goes beyond tending goats. Mark and Jessica hope to continue to build community relationships through on-farm programs, working with local producers, and offering community-minded sustainable practices like accepting pumpkins for goat feed.

Emptied & Rinsed Out Cans Only

are cleaned out, the farm offers youhaul manure gratis. For Mark, these exchanges represent opportunities to give back and educate. His previous career in international education policy in D.C. entailed “big picture” themes lacking in tangible satisfaction. In contrast, he says, on the farm every single day has real-world impact.

Looking to the future, Lacey sees a great deal of opportunity for growth and plans to continue adding new cheeses, like the recent additions of feta and cheddar. With a background in education, she’s also excited about classes

Mark’s previous career lacked in tangible satisfaction. In contrast, he says, on the farm every single day has real-world impact.

the farm began hosting in 2021, including an adult workshop and elementary school field trips with nonprofit Mountain Roots Education.

As for Jessica, it’s still all about the animals. She looks forward to building new and deeper relationships with the goats, including the spring’s new kids and the retired milkers who’ve moved to a “dry herd,” honoring their service and years of productivity.

Turning back to the inception of their journey, Jessica’s original goal was fulfilled last summer when she and Mark were married—to each other and now to the farm.

WINTER WINDS FARM produces a variety of celebrated goat-milk products, including seven cheeses and two soaps.

teens & tweens

LINN CANYON RANCH offers a Locals-Only Kid’s Camp, and Fun on the Ranch Camp, that teach horsemanship, grooming, and saddling to beginner and more advanced riders.

BY CHRISTINA SHEPHERD MCGUIRE PHOTOGRAPHY BY LARA AGNEW

Saddle Up, Campers!

Local horse camps celebrate Teton Valley’s equine culture

Tucked into a nook in the foothills of the western slope of the Tetons sits a perfect oasis. On a warm summer morning in June, a group of young girls and boys learn how to carefully groom and tack their horses for a day in the saddle.

Linn Canyon Ranch, northeast of Victor, envelops all who visit in a type of familial hug. It’s here, among the fields of bunchgrasses and groves of aspen trees, that magic happens, and you can see it on the faces of the sixto twelve-year-olds immersed in their horsey activities.

Each June, Linn Canyon Ranch invites participation in their Locals-Only Kid’s Camp, where beginner horse enthusiasts learn the basics of trail and corral riding, as well as proper horse grooming, saddling, and care of tack. More advanced riders dive deeper into horsemanship, learning how to perfect both their walk and their trot, and gleaning information on various horserelated careers.

The camp operates Monday through Friday, culminating with an arenabased horse show where the young campers show off the skills they’ve learned. Older campers round out their week with an all-day trail ride into the hills surrounding the ranch. Other camp activities include bathing horses, sprinkler play, group bonding activities, and horse crafts. Afterward, Trudy Linn usually graces the kids with a fun and delicious afternoon snack from her kitchen.

Head wrangler Melanie DeWitt emphasizes the popularity of the camps. “The Locals-Only Kid’s Camp fills up really fast,” she says, noting that, year after year, past campers and their siblings fill the registration books. This makes the camp a place for kids to grow up, as they form special bonds with the ranch’s horses, some of which have been around there for years. Non-locals and older teens can enjoy the ranch’s three-day Fun on the Ranch Camp, too, offered all summer long and addressing the same skills.

On the first day of camp, Melanie talks a lot about safety. On the second day, junior wranglers help the campers catch and tack their horses. The team focuses the rest of the week on walking, trotting, and trail riding, intuitively matching horses to each kid’s personality.

“I always tell the kids they might not keep the same horse [all week],” says Melanie. This can happen when a horse and child don’t mesh. “And sometimes the tiniest kids are on the biggest horses. The biggest horses at the ranch tend to also be the gentlest.”

Having the one-on-one experience with a large animal really helps kids learn

TETON VALLEY’S ranch-focused camps are helping to preserve the valley’s deep Western roots for future generations of horse enthusiasts.

self-sufficiency during the one-week camp, a fact that Melanie emphasizes.

“You have to have power and independence if you’re going to boss around a thousand-pound animal, and it’s not easy work,” she says. “[Campers] are taught how to dig deep, get their horse to listen and steer, and to do what it’s told to do.”

Similarly, Teton Outdoor Adventures (TOA, also known as Teton Performance Horses), also in Victor, helps kids connect with themselves by teaching nonverbal communication, a skill very much needed to manage a horse on their own. Together with the horses, camp owner Sierra Scott guides kids through their emotional reactions, to land at a place of self-confidence.

LINN CANYON RANCH head wrangler Melanie DeWitt (not pictured) credits the one-on-one experience with a large animal as a great way for kids to learn selfsufficiency. During the week, kids

TOA offers a summer camp specializing in Western performance riding, which includes heritage arts like reigning, barrel racing, and pole bending. Children ages five to fifteen can participate in five-day camps, offered throughout the summer, that focus on gaining confidence and knowledge by working with horses, exploring nature, accepting responsibility, and contributing to their community.

A week at TOA includes activities like ground training—yoga and breathwork—along with standing instruction and safety practices. Next, campers learn how to groom, saddle, lead, and ride their horses using various disciplines. The week of fun also includes gardening, ranch chores, hiking, and an art project designed to give back to local horse-centric organizations, like the horse-rescue nonprofit HAPI Trails. The session culminates with a horse show for parents and an art auction. (Sierra offers seasonal lessons in Western performance and English riding, as well.)

Sierra says that safety and fun are number one and number two, respectively, in her book, but the personal growth she fosters among campers is a huge number three.

Scenic Flights

Airplane Scenic Flights

Learn to Fly in the Tetons

Your visit to Teton Valley is not complete until you have experienced the surroundings from the air. Teton Aviation offers scenic flights that cater to the customer’s interests.

“It’s not like learning in school, where kids are focused on the mental aspect of learning,” she says. “[With horses] kids learn an emotional language and grow on a spiritual level, as well.”

Sierra uses her teachings to revive the “lost arts” of Western culture, which include rodeos, cow herding, outfitting, honoring Native American traditions, and dude ranches.

TETON OUTDOOR ADVENTURES helps kids connect with themselves by teaching nonverbal communication, an important skill when working with a horse.

Sierra says the heritage of horse work is strong in this valley, and she aims to offer an entry point that is doable and affordable.

“One hundred years ago everybody knew how to work with horses, and now very few [people] do,” she says. “It’s turned from less of a necessity into more of a pleasure activity. This is a hard transition, as now, all of sudden, [horseback riding] has become an expensive sport.”

Still, Sierra adds that the heritage of horse work is strong in this valley, and she aims to keep the culture alive by offering an entry point that is both doable and affordable.

This sentiment holds true for the crew at Linn Canyon Ranch, as well. “It’s a special feeling to see somebody who has never ridden before take in both the beauty of where we ride, as well as the beauty of the animal,” says Melanie DeWitt. “They are experiencing and seeing things for the first time, and it’s a constant reminder of how remarkable the practice really is.”

Find more information about camp offerings at Linn Canyon Ranch by visiting linncanyonranch.com/riding-camps For Teton Outdoor Adventures, visit tetonoutdooradventures.com/camp.

Teton Valley Rewards the Curious

There is so much to explore and enjoy in Teton Valley this summer.

Our remote, rural valley may take a little extra effort to navigate, but the rewards are great.

Summer is a celebrated and popular time of year in Teton Valley. Here are a few tips for navigating peak season, while being a great visitor:

• Be early, for everything. Whether it’s hitting the trail or park or going out to eat, get there early and you’ll be amply rewarded.

• Be self-sufficient. Carry water, snacks, extra clothing, and first aid supplies on your adventures.

• Be prepared. Start at the Geo Center, Forest Service office, and local outdoor shops and load up on maps, guidebooks, and local intel.

• Be patient, kind, and respectful of the people, animals, and ecosystem.

• Drive slowly. As we like to say, you didn’t come here to be in a hurry.

• Seek out local goods and be generous to the hardworking staff.

Cody Downard

A Fork

In the River A Fork the River

BY MOLLY ABSOLON PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAVID STUBBS

Managing the ebb and flow of Teton River usage

n evening float down the Teton River is a classic Teton Valley experience. By mid-summer, the river is slow and lazy. Boaters can sit back and watch the world drift by as the river twists its way through thickets of willow and past open farmland. Often, if you’re lucky, you’ll spot wildlife—moose, eagles, sandhill cranes, warblers, or maybe a beaver or swan—as you meander downstream.

The Big Hole Mountains and the Teton Range, washed pink and gold with late afternoon alpenglow, frame the view as you move along with the current. The only sounds are the birds, the gurgle of the river, and the splash of your paddle dipping into the water.

Except lately. Lately another sound has begun to encroach upon this tranquil scene: the sound of people.

In 2021, between Memorial Day and Labor Day, the upper Teton River had 66,000 user visits, or the estimated number of different people visiting the river each year, a 28 percent increase from 2018 numbers. That’s a lot of people on a river that is not very wide and only a foot or so deep in most places. These users created parking problems, caused overcrowding at boat ramps, and resulted in an increase in litter, noise, and congestion on the river. A ripple effect of the current growth, the need for a conversation about river usage and capacity, has come to the surface: How much is too much? And who gets to say? On May 9, to help answer these looming questions, the county passed a Waterways Recreation Ordinance to help decrease river overuse and protect its resources, thanks to public input and participation.

“The Teton is very easy,” says Rob Marin, Teton County, Idaho’s GIS manager and community projects coordinator. “So, a lot of people can enjoy it safely. The problem is that overcrowding on the upper Teton River poses impacts to wildlife, to the environment, and to users’ recreational experience.”

Overcrowding on waterways is not unique to Teton Valley, nor is it a new problem. In 2019, pre-pandemic, more than 87 million adults partook in recreational boating, according to Statista, a German company specializing in marketing and consumer data. Lotteries for permits on popular rivers across the United States have been in place for decades to manage access and en-

sure equitable participation. Anecdotal evidence indicates this popularity has grown during the COVID-19 pandemic, with outfitters and manufacturers reporting they’ve struggled to meet demand for boating equipment and recreational opportunities.

We’ve seen those effects in Teton County, Idaho, as well. The valley’s population has doubled since 2010, and lodging sales went from just under $23 million in 2020 to over $41 million in 2021. That means more people, more money, more cars, more demand. It’s a double-edged sword. Increased sales tax revenue and more spending stimulate the economy. But they also strain the resources that draw people to the valley in the first place. Resources like the Teton River.

Rivers facing similar pressures can be found all over the country; however, the upper Teton is somewhat unusual because most of the property along its banks is private. There’s no land management agency like the U.S. Forest Service or the National Park Service tasked with devising a management plan for the Teton. Idaho Fish and Game owns some of the access points along the river, and the Idaho Outfitters and Guides Licensing Board oversees the fishing outfitters operating on it, but there is no single agency with oversight, which leaves the county—almost by default—in charge.

“The only things Fish and Game can affect are the behaviors associated with fishing, hunting, and trapping,” says Brett High, the regional fisheries manager for Idaho Fish and Game. “Every-

TETON COUNTY, with support from Friends of the Teton River and Idaho Fish and Game, collected data and held public outreach meetings to create the Waterways Recreation Ordinance addressing usage pressures on the Teton River.

Bates Bridge

is surrounded mostly by private land, making the question of who is responsible for its management complicated.

South Bates Bridge

THE TETON RIVER

OPT TO EXPLORE different stretches of the river, ensuring that you have suitable vessels and river experience. And, make sure to always use proper river etiquette like giving wildlife and other users space, and leaving the river cleaner than you found it.

thing else is outside our scope and falls to the county.”

Unfortunately, there aren’t many other counties with river management plans in place to serve as role models, so Teton County is wading in unknown waters. The mandate, however, is clear: People want to preserve and protect the Teton River and its values of solitude, nature, peace, and serenity.

“Our effort is driven by public demand,” Marin says. “This isn’t necessarily a task the county was dying to take on. We have a full plate. But we are hearing from the public, so we felt we had to take some kind of action to get [this conversation] going. Otherwise, nothing is going to happen. But it’s tough because we don’t have any resources—no recreation program, no staff, no funding.”

Big Eddy

Bates Bridge

How we got here

Mike Dawkins, president of WorldCast Anglers in Victor, has been floating the Teton since he moved to the region in 2004. He says the river used to be off most visitors’ radar.

“The Teton never received any attention from anglers or general recreationists,” Dawkins says. “We [seemed to] always have the place to ourselves.

“No doubt the word is out now that the place I call home is an awesome place to live,” he adds. “I can’t blame anybody for wanting to go out on the river and enjoy it. I try to keep that perspective.”

Part of the reason the Teton was quiet in the early 2000s can be traced to the condition of the river at that time. Friends of the Teton River was founded in 2001 because of community concern about its health.

“The Teton was listed as an impaired river in the late 1990s,” says Amy Verbeten, Friends of the Teton River’s executive director. “The Yellowstone cutthroat trout population crashed about that time, and the entire fishery was in decline. … There was a lot of concern among farmers and ranchers who were noticing a change in hydrology. Springs were drying up. Farmland was being replaced by developed land, and there had been a shift from flood to sprinkler irrigation in the valley.”

Verbeten remembers stepping into the Teton to fish in 2001 and losing her shoe in the muck on the river bottom.

“Trout cannot spawn in that mud,” she says. “They need clear, well-oxygenated gravels in order for eggs to survive. … Now, you can fish the Teton. People say all the time how much the bottom of the stream has improved. That spot near Packsaddle where I lost my shoe is now clear gravel.”

“2003 was kind of a low point,” says Fish and Game’s Brett High. “Since then, there has been quite a lot of habitat rehabilitation, fencing of riparian areas, changes in agricultural practices, improved habitat quality, and an increase in trout populations. We are in a good spot.”

But the health of the river is constantly changing, and Verbeten says there are still plenty of challenges ahead, like the current conversation surrounding usage.

“Our community has come together and done tremendous work to protect and restore the Teton, but we need to continue,” she says. “We don’t get to stop and say we are done. We need to think about our impact on streams, fisheries, and each other for as long as we are here.”

Recreational impact is just one of the challenges that needs to be monitored.

Whether it was the availability of boats, the increase in population, or COVID-19—or all of the above—driving more people outside to recreate, Teton County was in many ways blindsided by the explosion in use that seemed to occur overnight on the Teton River. In three years, locals say, river use has gone from having the place to yourself “nearly 90 percent of the time,” to needing to plan ahead or head out during off hours just to find a place to park.

In response, the county was forced to take action.

Drafting the ordinance

Thanks to funding from private donors, specifically the Cushman family, Teton County was able to hire Warm Springs Consulting in the fall of 2021 to implement a public planning process for the Teton River, including two virtual charrettes and one town hall to bring stakeholders together. Warm Springs was then tasked with taking the public input and drafting the Waterways Recreation Ordinance for the county.

The ordinance covers the upper Teton River from the headwaters to Harrop’s Bridge and the lower mile of Fox and Teton Creeks. The ordinance does not regulate outfitters. Rather, it addresses commercial operations and private use. Some key points of the ordinance (see sidebar) are limiting the number of permitted commercial operators to two, setting a maximum of twelve total launches per day per com-

Waterways Recreation Ordinance

Find ordinance details at tetoncountyidaho.gov

Commercial Operators:

• Only two commercial operator permits will be issued.

• Must launch only at designated public access sites.

• Must operate between Teton Creek and Cache Bridge only.

• Twelve total launches per day max.

• Fifteen person group size limit.

• Launch no earlier than 9:30am, off river by 6:30pm.

• Pay a per customer fee to the county. The funds will go toward a river fund.

All Users

• Group size capped at fifteen persons or less.

• Larger groups must break up and launch fifteen minutes apart and stay out of sight from each other.

• No littering.

• No dumping of solid human or pet waste.

• No harassment of wildlife.

• Dogs leashed or confined to watercraft when feasible.

Parking Fees

• Paid parking slated to begin May 2024 using a small daily fee or affordable season pass.

• Revenues to go toward river management and enforcement.

• Parking on County Roads within a half mile of access sites will be prohibited.

mercial company, and capping group sizes to fifteen for both commercial and private boaters, in addition to rules for all users like no littering and no harassing wildlife to name a few. Another key component is the addition of paid parking slated to begin in May 2024. Marin noted that parking fees were favored by public comment over other options like boat passes.

The commissioners also approved $5,000 in funding for a seasonal data collection employee, whom Marin will supervise.

“The county and many partners and river users have been working on this process for quite some time, and the degree of collaboration is testament to how much our people value the Teton River and its recreation opportunities and natural resources,” says Teton County Commissioner Michael Whitfield. “We have heard from hundreds of our residents and have worked to find common-ground management solutions that work for our community.”

The long-term trick now, however, is figuring out how to reach users. Data collected in 2018 and 2021 showed that nearly 90 percent of Teton River floaters are private boaters using their own watercraft. These people can be hard to access.

Robert Carlson, the owner of Teton River Supply, which rents boats and provides shuttle service to the river, says personal watercrafts have become so ubiquitous that you can find inexpensive, low-tech models at Broulim’s grocery store in Driggs. The availability of access to watercrafts is a benefit as far as removing financial barriers of entry, ensuring people can more easily enjoy watersports on our public rivers. The other side of the coin, however, is overcapacity.

“A lot of people blame the crowding on commercial outfitters,” Carlson says. “But it’s not really us. Everyone is getting into the action.”

Still, commercial operators are an easy target for management, and in 2021, Idaho Fish and Game imposed some rules on their operations to try to

Cache Bridge

Horseshoe Bridge

Big Eddy

ALTHOUGH you may find yourself alone on certain stretches of the Teton River during a summer float, popular access points like the Big Eddy and South Bates are typically packed on a busy summer morning.

“No doubt the word is out now that the place I call home is an awesome place to live. I can’t blame anybody for wanting to go out on the river and enjoy it. I try to keep that perspective.”

- Mike Dawkins, of WorldCast Anglers

get a handle on overcrowding on the river. (These rules are also a part of the new ordinance.) Now these outfitters can only shuttle people between 9:30am and 6:30pm, they are limited to twelve launches per day, and they have to use specific access points. In addition, the two biggest operators—Teton River Supply and Wai Mauna Paddleboard Rentals—have voluntarily limited their group size to fifteen—the number of people who will fit into their shuttle vehicles.

But managing commercial operators does little to impact the overall use of the river. In fact, both Carlson and Kyle Ellison of Wai Mauna say the benefit of commercial outfitters is that they can teach their clients proper river etiquette. They can also help keep down congestion at river access points by limiting the number of cars and shuttle trips required to get a group on and off the river.

Private boaters, on the other hand, are harder to reach. They aren’t required to sign any waivers or get any training. So, they may not know how to be a responsible user when they launch on the river. It’s not that they don’t want to be. They just don’t know any better.

Last summer Marin caught word that an RV group camping in Teton Valley intended to float the river en masse. He estimates there were probably two hundred people in the group. He reached out to their leader and was able to get him to split his people into small groups and stagger their launch times. In the end, everyone was happy and there was no armada on the river.

“It hadn’t even occurred to them that launching two hundred people at one time would be an issue,” Marin says.

But Marin isn’t there to catch every big group, or every uneducated user, and he believes the biggest challenge the county faces is to get private boat-

ers aware of the issues and buy into proposed solutions. He’s not alone in his concern.

“Even though I’m a business owner who operates in the tourism industry, I know it can be a race to the bottom when you are focused on quantity instead of quality. I’m very big on promoting responsible, informative travel,” says Wai Mauna’s Ellison.

Ellison has a blog on his website that includes an entry on Teton River etiquette that addresses everything from proper behavior on the boat ramp to how to interact with anglers and wildlife. Carlson’s groups get an orientation talk before they go to the river that covers the same topics. Both men believe the only way their businesses can thrive is by promoting responsible river use by their clients.

And it seems that some of the first management tools likely to be implemented by the county will follow the models already established by commercial operators. Marin anticipates a public education campaign with things like signage in English and Spanish at river access points to help let users know the rules and regulations in place. Friends of the Teton River is also working with the county through a fundraising agreement to sell a “River Support Sticker,” inspired by Teton Valley Trails and Pathways’ trail support sticker fundraising program. The funds will go directly to the county’s river account to fund future staff and needed measures to better implement policy.

While much of the ordinance will no doubt be hard to police, Marin hopes that with education and awareness, these small changes will start to make some big improvements and help maintain the magic of the Teton River that its users love.

The Many Creeks of Teton Valley

The Teton River anchors the community, connecting nearly every aspect of life in the surrounding valley, from the snowpack that recharges it and the fish, wildlife, and vegetation it sustains, to the water it provides both the land and people. Flowing into the river, its many feeder streams are vital components of the valley’s deep-seated ties to our water source and tell another chapter of the river’s story. Dive into a snapshot of the creeks’ names, colorful history, and present use.

One of the valley’s most colorful characters, the 19th century mountain man Beaver Dick Leigh is the namesake for North and South Leigh Creeks.

Along Teton Creek near Driggs, the Teton Creek Corridor Project works to enhance the lives of humans and wildlife. (See more on page 72.)

A landslide formed Packsaddle Lake, which is approximately five acres in size.

The valley’s main waterway provides water for agriculture, household use, and an abundance of recreational activities— from floating to fly-fishing.

Teton Creek

Teton River

Driggs

Tetonia

Alta

By Kristen Pope Illustration by Cy Whitling

D a yrbCreek

This creek came to be known by its animal moniker for the number of red foxes spotted nearby.

Long before the road over Teton Pass was built, prehistoric native tribes used Moose Creek as part of a travel corridor to traverse the treacherous pass.

oxCreek

Hiking up Darby Canyon is a popular summer pastime. Several miles up the trail, the Wind Caves become visible.

Victor

In 1872, Dr. F.V. Hayden’s U.S. Geological Survey team observed the water was not freezing in the creek, so they fittingly dubbed it Warm Creek.

During the heyday of the railroad, the Pine Creek Pass was frequently used to transport grain from Swan Valley to load onto trains in Victor.

Pine Creek Warm Creek

MooseCreek

Going with

with the Flow

How Teton Creek Corridor became a restoration success story

BY JEANNETTE BONER

PHOTOGRAPHY

ILLUSTRATION BY CY

BY DAVID STUBBS

WHITLING

“The Teton Creek Corridor is one of our most important characterdefining landscapes in Driggs.”

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR DOUG SEL F

As far back as anyone can remember, there have been stories of the land and the people, and of the way life has ebbed and flowed through the valley.

These are the stories that bind us to history and, so often, to our own identity—a connection to the past and a promise of the future.

The story of Teton Creek provides the kind of tale that should be told and retold through the decades, and even centuries, as a story of brokenness and redemption, an example of shortsighted gain and long-term recovery.

“For me, Teton Creek is the story of the American West,” says Amy Verbeten, executive director of local nonprofit Friends of the Teton River. “It’s a story of how we have come to view these wild places as just resources that need to be developed, but it’s also a story that goes back even further. It’s our grandparents’ story and their grandparents’ story. It’s the story of understanding that these places we live in are natural places and that we need to live in balance with nature. Our grandparents knew that, but somewhere along the way, for many of us, the story was lost.

“It’s important that we take the time to stop and truly listen to the people in our community who have kept those stories alive for generations—the ones who still know the land and water,” she adds.

The Teton Creek and its corridor, comprising one of the most significant watersheds in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, has become a focal point for local and national discussions concerning where development and environmental conservation intersect.

This unassuming tributary of the Teton River has spawned millions of dollars of funding as private and public partners have worked to repair damage to the creek sustained from unfettered development in a growing resort community. What backhoes and bulldozers broke apart, the Teton Creek Collaborative sought to heal by protecting more than 1,100 acres of land, working to redesign undeveloped subdivisions to better protect wildlife habitats, and in-

vesting millions of dollars into building back a mile of the creek using stabilizing materials and native plants.

In turn, the collaborative has set the stage for other Western communities to heed this cautionary tale and perhaps earn the kind of hope found in a conservation salvation.

Through her work at Friends of the Teton River, Verbeten is one of many who have intimately studied, explored, planned, and prepared the restoration campaign known as the Teton Creek Corridor Project, a major piece of the ongoing saga of Teton Creek. Friends of the Teton River, along with the Teton Regional Land Trust, Valley Advocates for Responsible Development, Teton Valley Trails and Pathways, and the Teton LegacyWorks Group make up the core group that has worked to reestablish what our grandparents knew from the start—that this unique and defining stretch of landscape is critical to maintaining the natural balance of the valley.

It was sometime around the 1980s that Teton Valley started feeling the first pangs of what would become severe growing pains. Land was plentiful, the ski hill named Grand Targhee above Alta, Wyoming, was growing, and generational families made room for more families and modern-day pioneers. The land was surveyed and parceled. And while we argued about property rights as we still do today, the creek sustained critical damage as developers sought to tame the watershed with bulldozers and backhoes, working to straighten, widen, and ultimately dredge the creek near the Driggs Cemetery.

Some paid the legal price for the damage, but that didn’t prevent the longterm effects of what had been done to ripple through the community. The watershed was weakened: the banks started failing, the creek water was awash with sediment, and fish and streamside vegetation started to disappear. One study conducted by the U.S. Fish and

THE HEADWATERS of Teton Creek rise some 6,000 vertical feet above the Teton Valley floor. The creek flows through Wyoming’s Teton Canyon before reaching its confluence with the Teton River.

Wildlife Service found that damage to the stream channels contributed to a 95 percent decline in Yellowstone cutthroat trout numbers in the Teton River.

“The Teton Creek Corridor is one of our most important character-defining landscapes in Driggs,” says Doug Self, the Community Development Director for the City of Driggs. “And because of that, the city has chosen the corridor as a boundary for development. The water, wildlife, and landscape are its own treasure for the city and [help] define the community in which we live.”

The Teton Creek Corridor Project builds on decades of conservation work. The area in question encompasses a forty-two-square-mile stretch of Teton Creek and the surrounding corridor that makes up the waterway’s floodplain, an area prone to flooding through the centuries. Not the kind of flash flooding we often equate with the term flooding, but widespread flooding associated with stream and river beds where large amounts of runoff or precipitation increase water levels. The floodplain creates a safety net for such flooding.

The creek itself is born deep in the canyons of “the quiet side” of the Tetons, the headwaters flowing down from 6,000 feet above the Teton Valley floor. The creek rushes through Wyoming’s Teton Canyon, passing Reunion Flats, a place where the Shoshone and Bannock tribes gathered their hunting parties and where early fur trappers and mountain men met up after long winters. It’s also where the famed Hayden Survey (see A Grand Prismatic History, page 88) camped during the government-funded Western exploration of 1871—a project that would ultimately lead to the establishment of Yellowstone, the nation’s first national park.

Farther down, the creek spills across the Idaho border, cutting its way along the edges of the City of Driggs, the seat of Teton County, Idaho. Finally, it passes under State Highway 33 before coursing its way to its confluence with the Teton River (see A Fork in the River, page 62).

Arguably the most essential tributary of the Teton River, the creek also carries with it the weight of ecological and economic significance as criti-

cal habitat. It provides rare and valued spawning habitat for the Yellowstone cutthroat trout and was named as one of the top ten “Waters to Watch” in the 2009 National Fish Habitat Partnership. (Teton Valley itself remains a significant piece of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem through the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Strategic Plan, and within the Fish and Wildlife Service Cross Program Recovery initiative.)

Not only is the creek itself important, so is the floodplain surrounding it. This expansive, gradated landscape serves to spread excess water over a large area when the creek bed is flowing at over capacity. Flooding happens, but dangerous, fast-and-furious flash flooding is minimized by the dispersing and absorbing qualities of the floodplain. As such, the Teton Creek Corridor also becomes a major factor in keeping the public safe from natural disaster.

“People used to live close to the land,” says Verbeten. “And we shared generational stories. We lived close enough to the land to know where to build our homes and barns and where we couldn’t. These were times when people lived here longer than ten and twenty years and they knew the land. They knew where flooding had occurred, or they knew that certain areas flooded because that story was passed down to them. So, when they went to build a new home, people would know, ‘Oh, that area over there is prone to flooding and is probably not a good place to build.’

“This is the story of every stream system in the United States,” adds Verbeten. “Teton Creek is just one story of all these Western streams. We also see the Teton Creek story as being a model of what can be. At this point we can’t go back. We can’t undo all of what has happened to the creek. We need to accept what is, is. Then we move forward for the better.”

The community didn’t look back but moved ahead, first with drafting the Teton Creek Master Plan, an initiative led by Friends of the Teton River with support from the Department of Landscape, Architecture, and Environmental Planning at Utah University; the City of Driggs; and Teton County, Idaho. This master plan was incorporated into the

TETON CREEK is home to vital spawning beds for Yellowstone cutthroat trout and other key riparian habitat on its banks.

“We also see the Teton Creek story as being a model of what can be. At this point we can’t go back. We can’t undo all of what has happened to the creek. We need to accept what is, is. Then we move forward for the better.”

AMY

VERBETEN, FRIENDS OF THE TETON RIVER

county’s Comprehensive Plan for Development. In 2015, using that comprehensive plan as a guide, the Teton Creek Corridor Collaborative was established, and its mission set forth.

“This is an example of why good planning and vision [are] essential to the economic, social, and environmental success of a community,” says Kathy Rinaldi, who served two terms as a Teton County Commissioner and made the Teton Creek Corridor restoration a priority during her time in office.

The efforts of the group hit a big milestone last summer with the opening of Teton Creek Pathway, a two-anda-half-mile stretch of pathway along the south side of the creek, showcasing over a thousand acres of agricultural land that’s protected through conservation easements. Additionally, more than five miles of streambeds have been stabilized to reduce flooding risks and more than thirty-five acres of land have been restored to near natural state, along with an additional thirty-seven acres of surrounding sagebrush habitat.

And the work will continue. Doug Self revealed that a grant is in the works to continue flood mitigation along the corridor, extending down through the Creekside Meadows subdivision at the south end of the City of Driggs. And the Nature Conservancy in Idaho announced in January that the group has secured a thousand acres in the heart of Driggs. The effort’s primary goal will be to build and partner with the Teton Creek Corridor Collaborative to improve streamflow in Teton Creek while preserving agricultural land around the watershed.

“Teton Creek is just the start,” says Verbeten. “This is the model of how we can reshape development patterns and take that development out of floodplains. It’s how we can protect the floodplains we have and renovate the floodplains that have been damaged. This is taking what is a liability and turning it into an amenity.”

For more information, visit teton creekcorridor.org.

TETON CREEK PATHWAY

East of Driggs beginning from Cemetery Road, the Teton Creek Pathway winds 2.5 miles to Stateline Road, leading users along a scenic route adjacent to the flowing creek. While a fabulous addition to the many walkable trails throughout the valley in and of itself, the story behind the pathway is as vibrant as its encompassing backdrop. Teton Creek Pathway opened to the public in May 2021 as a safe, family-friendly recreational opportunity to better connect visitors and residents to the surrounding landscape and agriculture. The path is also a celebration of years of work among local nonprofits and partners to restore, protect, and preserve the Teton Creek Corridor. Find more information at tetoncreekcorridor.org

BE A GOOD STEWARD

RULES OF THE TRAIL

Courtesy of Teton Regional Land Trust

The Teton Creek Corridor Project is designed to balance public access, recreation, agriculture, habitat protection, and wildlife security. To ensure the well-being of users and wildlife, please respect the following guidelines:

• If you pack it in, pack it out.

• Please stay on the pathway and respect the adjacent landowners.

• Trail is open from sunup to sundown. No use after dark.

• Trail is closed December 1 – May 1 for big game migration.

• This is a non-motorized, multi-use trail. Please be courteous of other users.

• Please keep your dogs on-leash and pick up after your pets.

PROJECT PARTNERS

City of Driggs

Friends of the Teton River LegacyWorks Group

LOR Foundation

Private donors

Teton County, Idaho

Teton Regional Land Trust

Teton Valley Trails and Pathways

Valley Advocates for Responsible Development

“This is an example of why good planning and vision [are] essential to the economic, social, and environmental success of a community,”

KATHY RINALDI, FORMER TETON COUNTY COMMISSIONER

Homegrown

Teton Valley summers are short but sweet. Even shorter, it seems, is the summer growing season. We caught up with four avid gardeners positioned from Tetonia to Victor to share a snapshot of their hearty plots. When asked about their biggest challenge, they all shared the same sentiment: the climate. But the challenge of overcoming Mother Nature’s uncertainty might just fuel their thirst for gardening even further.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY CAMRIN DENGEL

Challenges for us include dealing with water—we primarily use rainwater and that can get scarce. Plus, those cold June nights can take a toll.”

CONNIE MOHR NORTH END

An avid hobbyist gardener, CONNIE MOHR is celebrated for her lush garden that produces impressive veggies. Residing at the north end of the valley, Connie enjoys spending the warm, long days digging in the dirt and tending to her veggies, which end up on her dinner table.

Time

spent with my hands in the dirt grounds my soul! I’m not sure if it’s the process of growing or what I grow that I enjoy more.”

PAUL FORESTER DRIGGS

Driggs resident PAUL FORESTER refers to his style of gardening as small urban farming. Cultivating and producing his own food in his downtown Driggs small plot allows him to grow a majority of the food he needs in the summer using a small footprint of his backyard. “I’m most passionate about small urban farming and how much food we can produce on a very small piece of land,” he says.

One year it’s snowing until July 4 and the next we have record heat. Or 40 to 50 degree temperature swings in just one day! This requires plants—and gardeners—with extreme adaptability.”

JUDY ALLEN DARBY

JUDY ALLEN, an avid gardener and educator of all-things Teton Valley growing, shares her high-elevation vegetable gardening expertise through her volunteer consulting work with the local schools’ gardening program. She also rents beds to the public at Darby Canyon Gardens, her personal garden space located at the mouth of Darby Canyon. “I love living in my mountain home and being able to grow food for my family,” she says.

What I love most about gardening in the Tetons is defying all odds when it comes to the weather. Despite temperatures that drop into the low thirties and even high twenties at night in June or August, perennials have such resiliency.”

KATE STITT VICTOR

Landscape designer KATE STITT takes her love of gardening from her professional life to her personal life. The owner and landscape designer at Blue Angel Garden Design, when Kate isn’t crafting stunning backyards and lush terraces for clients, she’s digging, sometimes reluctantly with a pickaxe, in her own garden beds south of Victor.

TOP Grand Prismatic Hot Spring is deeper than a ten-story building, and is the third largest hot spring in the world.

LEFT TO RIGHT The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone is carved 1,000 feet deep into the earth. Yellowstone is home to more than five hundred geysers. Mammoth Hot Spring’s travertine terraces are created by calcite deposits.

BY SMITH MADDREY

A Grand Prismatic History

Yellowstone National Park Turns 150

This year marks the sesquicentennial of the treasure of the West, Yellowstone National Park. The storied past of the founding of the nations’s first national park is worthy of celebration, while its sometimes complex present summons reflection.

The story of Yellowstone’s journey to become a national park hearkens back to an era just after the Civil War and the completion of the transcontinental railroad. In 1871, the Hayden Survey brought scientists and cartographers to document the region’s uniqueness, while painter Thomas Moran and photographer William Henry Jackson, both members of the survey, captured its grand scenery and geologic wonders. On March 1, 1872, around six months after the expedition’s return to Washington with its findings, President Ulysses S. Grant signed the Yellowstone National Park Protection Act “for the benefit and enjoyment of the people.”

Yellowstone served as a bellwether for the national park idea. But pieces of its history are dark, like the government’s removal of the Crow, Blackfeet, Bannock, and Shoshone tribes from the region. The park also suffered during its early years from poaching, vandalism, and inept leadership. The United States Army intervened in 1886 to restore some sense of order and remained a presence until 1916—around the time automobiles entered the park and the founding year of the National Park Service. In the century since, the park has weathered earthquakes, like the one in 1959 that killed twenty-eight people;

devastating wildfires, such as the 1988 fires that burned 36 percent of the park; wildlife management disputes, including the 1995 wolf re-introduction and the euthanizing of bison that controversially still occurs today; and overcrowding issues, witnessed currently in the surge in visitation and increased human and animal conflicts.

Why Yellowstone Remains So Special

For starters, it’s enormous. Inside its 2.2 million acres, the park boasts nearly three hundred waterfalls, more than nine hundred historic buildings, approximately one thousand miles of backcountry trails, and 466 miles of paved roads. Driving all of these roads will allow you to cover only 1 percent of the park. While northwest Wyoming holds the vast majority of the park, both Idaho and Montana contain small portions of it. Yellowstone is home to the country’s largest alpine lake (Yellowstone Lake at 7,000 feet above sea level) and gives rise to the Yellowstone River, often celebrated as the longest undammed watershed in the continental United States. You can’t see it all during one trip, so don’t even try.

Thermal activity in Yellowstone is otherworldly, dynamic, and varied. Over 640,000 years ago, a major volcanic

YELLOWSTONE National Park now welcomes an average of 4 million visitors each year, double the average visitor numbers seen in previous decades.

eruption created the thirty-by-forty-fivemile-wide Yellowstone Caldera, which forms a ring around much of the Lower Loop Road. Geologists still classify Yellowstone as a volcano and closely monitor its annual earthquakes—each year the park experiences somewhere between one thousand and three thousand quakes—from a consortium of experts known as Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (see usgs.gov/observato ries/yvo for updated data). Yellowstone holds more than ten thousand hydrothermal features and more than half of the world’s active geysers. Hydrothermals in the park include hot springs, mud pots, fumaroles, and the world’s highest-reaching geysers.

Wildlife remains abundant. Yellowstone is home to more than sixty-seven species of mammals (the largest concentration in the lower forty-eight states) and two hundred and eighty-five species of birds. The mammalian count also includes threatened species like the Canada lynx, grizzly bear, black-footed ferret,

Within the park boundaries lies one of the most intact ecosystems remaining in the world.

and pika. Once also considered endangered, wolves from Canada were relocated to Yellowstone for reintroduction and, as of 2021, there are at least ninetyfour of them in the park. The nation’s biggest bison population on federal land dwells year-round in Yellowstone, numbering 5,450 in summer 2021. The bison is the largest land-based mammal in all of North America. Finally, an estimated 728 grizzly bears (as of 2019) lived in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, or GYE. When you zoom outward and consider the much larger, twenty-two million-acre GYE—one that stretches from north of Bozeman, Montana, to south of Pinedale, Wyoming, with Yellowstone positioned in its center—the challenges of managing this much habitat for wildlife seem daunting.

TOP Old Faithful is the world’s most famous geyser. It erupts regularly, about every hour, hence its name. LEFT AND ABOVE Yellowstone is home to the largest concentration of large mammals in the lower fortyeight states.

PHOTO:

As one of the top-five visited national parks in the United States, Yellowstone continues to wrestle with the same evolving paradox: Are we loving this place to death? Since 2015, an average of four million annual visitors have traveled to Yellowstone—twice the number seen in the 1970s. The “it-belongs-to-all-of-us,” escapist ideal offered by our national parks clashes harshly with the realities of gridlock traffic, animal-human encounters, and an overcrowded, sometimes theme-

Since 2015, an average of four million annual visitors have traveled to Yellowstone.

park feel. Whether it is a reservationbased system or some other means of limiting visitor traffic, the park must make some difficult decisions about access in the years ahead. As former Park Superintendent Dan Wenk told National Geographic, “What might work for Disneyland is not the antidote for Yellowstone.”

Visitors can find all the information they need about current conditions, feefree entrance dates, and 150th celebrations at nps.gov/yell. To get the most out of a Yellowstone visit, go during the offseason. Give yourself enough time to discover side roads and to hike lesserknown trails. Instead of always being on the move, find a way to slow down and stay in one place for longer.

And, finally, remember, while you experience its sublime valleys, stunning canyons, and tumultuous geyser basins, that you are following in the footsteps of prehistoric indigenous people and wildlife that have ventured to and through Yellowstone for millennia.

AS YELLOWSTONE welcomes its next one hundred and fifty years, visitors are reminded to leave this natural wonder better than they find it.

Dr. John Toenjes,

Se habla espanol

Teton County Farm Women of the Year

Information gathered by DeAnn Waddell

Jardine

Shana Mickelsen

Dana Hoopes

JoAnne Kay (District)

LaRue Ripplinger

Alene Breckenridge

Bonnie Woolstenhulme

Ranae Kunz

Bobbie Douglass

Pearl Atchley 2009 Pauline Bagley (District) 2008 Laverta Hansen

(District) 2003 Janet Penfold (District)

Josephson

Thelma Mickelsen (District)

Gertrude Drake 1980 Elva Delaney (District & State)

Unkno wn 1978 Leora Schiess

TOP 2019 Farm Woman of the Year Elaine Johnson rides in the Victor Fourth of July Parade with her mules.

ABOVE 2018 Farm Woman of the Year Shana Mickelsen is all smiles on her float.

RIGHT Nancy Beard Jardine took home the farming achievement honors in 2021.

BY JULIA TELLMAN

Farm Woman of the Year

Award celebrates, evolves with valley’s rich agricultural legacy

In the Victor Fourth of July parade last summer, Nancy Beard Jardine sat proudly in the Teton County Farm Bureau float, waving and tossing candy to the kids jostling in the crowd. She had earned her spot in the public eye as the 2021 Farm Woman of the Year.

For nearly fifty years, the Teton County Farm Bureau has annually honored the women behind the scenes who help run the cattle, tend to the spuds, drive trucks, raise lambs, and move pipe while also juggling life’s many other roles and responsibilities. By naming a Farm Woman of the Year and giving her a moment in the spotlight, the bureau recognizes the time intensive and rarely glamorous life of operating a farm or ranch while also often serving as a parent and involved community member.

Each county in the state has its own branch of the Idaho Farm Bureau; the Teton County Farm Bureau was established in 1948 and is dedicated to strengthening agriculture and protecting property values for its member families.

An older version of the Idaho Farm Bureau handbook outlines the criteria for the woman of the year award, then called Farm Wife of the Year, among other variations: open to all Farm Bureau member families, the award honors “individuals who attain and personify the highest level of professional

excellence,” as well as celebrating “the potential of all women as valuable members and leaders in agriculture and their community.”

The first recorded Farm Wife of Teton County, chosen in 1977, was Margaret Hillman of Driggs, mother of seven children and an active member of the Farm Bureau Women’s Committee.

The Farm Bureau board is charged with selecting the Farm Woman each year. While nominees were solicited in the early days (“Farmers, why don’t you honor your good farm wife by applying for her,” suggests a Farm Bureau announcement published in the Teton Valley News in 1978), nowadays the board has a pretty good grasp of who might be next in line for the award.

DeAnn Waddell, who oversaw the program for many years, maintains the list of possible future candidates. There’s little chance of running out of local awardees anytime soon; the names fill two pages, double spaced.

“There’s a lot,” she says. “We try to rotate from one end of the valley to the other each year. We’re trying to get around to all of them, eventually.”

TOP Elva Delaney was Teton County’s first and only Idaho Farm Bureau Wife of the Year, a statewide distinction.

BOTTOM Clair Ann Hill was named the valley’s Farm Wife of the Year in 2002.

The Farm Bureau’s first choice doesn’t always accept the recognition. “We always have a couple alternates, just in case,” DeAnn says. “Sometimes our first pick is nervous, she doesn’t want the publicity. Some are grateful and willing, some are hesitant, some are just bashful, I guess.”

In the early 2000s, the name of the award changed from Farm Wife to Farm Woman (although in the newspaper the titles were used interchangeably from 2003 to around 2010). DeAnn says that was done in an effort to be able to include women who don’t have spouses and to recognize that societal changes have taken place.

“Some of their husbands have passed away,” she says. “The times have changed, and we wanted to reflect more of their independence.”

The Farm Woman is usually featured in a newspaper article before her triumphal appearance in the Victor Fourth of July parade. In those articles, awardees routinely express some surprise and bemusement at the title. The women generally share the common threads of large families and deep roots in Teton Valley, with generations of kin in the community through blood and/or marriage. Without fail they muse on the challenges of a life in agriculture.

“It’s a lovely, unpaid job, being a farm wife,” awardee Bobby Douglass told a Valley Citizen reporter in 2011. “There’s always some little task that’s yours for the day or for the hour. You’re like an unpaid hired hand that gets to do everything.” (Although, the article notes, she drew the line at moving irrigation pipe.)

In the past, Farm Women have had the opportunity to participate in the district contest, and winners of that go on to state.

Elva Delaney, a lifelong valley resident who farmed in the Darby area and also worked as a schoolteacher and played the organ for her Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ward, was named the Teton County Farm Wife in 1980. She was recognized thanks to her tireless dedication to the Farm Bureau, her devotion to tractor driving and spud farming, and her many church and community activities, the Teton Valley News reported at the time.

She went on to become the District

2 Farm Wife in June of that year. District 2 encompasses nine counties: Bonneville, Butte, Custer, Clark, Fremont, Jefferson, Lemhi, Madison, and Teton. In Coeur D’Alene that December, Elva was interviewed by a judging board at the state convention, and Teton County had its first (and only) Idaho Farm Bureau Wife of the Year.

There’s little chance of running out of local awardees anytime soon; the names fill two pages, double spaced.

The county’s most recent District 2 honoree was JoAnne Kay, named in 2016. In a video documenting the winners, the Farm Bureau interviewed her at her farm at the base of Kay’s Hill, where she said she likes to feed calves and drive tractors. A teacher with a Ph.D., JoAnne met her husband at Rick’s College (now BYU-Idaho in Rexburg), where the young couple dreamed of starting a dairy operation.

“There are no shortcuts in life,” she says about farming.

Susan Hill, a nurse at Teton Valley Health, recently took over from DeAnn and now manages the Farm Woman of the Year program. She has seen some changes; for instance, a few years ago, the state bureau stopped sponsoring an Idaho Farm Woman of the Year.

“There is no regional competition anymore, but our Teton County board wants to continue to honor women who are actively engaged and contributing to agriculture,” Susan says.

One benefit of that, DeAnn noted, is that the board can consider non-bureau members as possible awardees.

“We have a lot of names to add to the list, women who are newer to the valley, some who aren’t on big farms,” she says, referring to the many smaller organic and biodynamic farms that have sprouted in recent years.

So keep an eye out, at the 2022 Fourth of July parade and in coming years, for the Farm Woman seated proudly atop an agricultural-themed float.

ELEVATE OUTDOORS

Your source for the best in snow, dirt, style, and stoke in the Tetons since 2004. Inside the Driggs shop, you’ll find a crew passionate about the Teton lifestyle and excited to spread their passion for the outdoors. Whether you’re after a backcountry adventure, a day shredding the resort, or an afternoon exploring singletrack in the Big Holes, the Habitat crew is ready to get you dialed and styled for your next adventure.

WITH A NEW GROCERY STORE, more storefronts, and a plethora of homes popping up, Swan Valley is a little less sleepy these days. But for longtime residents and new homeowners alike, the valley maintains its footing as a neighborly small town.

BY TOM HALLBERG PHOTOGRAPHY BY SHANNON CORSI

A Place To Be Proud Of

Swan Valley balances growth, maintaining deep roots

When a summer morning’s first sunbeams throw golden splendor on the summits of the Snake River Range, Swan Valley starts to bustle.

Fishing guides pull trailers to boat ramps up and down the South Fork of the Snake River. Farmers are in their fields. Employees at Huck’s Rainey Creek Country Store open the counter where their famous square ice cream cones are served.

Located just twenty miles southwest of Victor, on the other side of Highway 31’s Pine Creek Pass, Swan Valley may simply look like a quaint roadside spot that advertises its dueling ice cream spots for miles outside town to out-of-staters and tourists headed toward Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks. Those who drive through the town regularly for recreation or to pick up essentials in Idaho Falls—and, of course, the residents—see a place that’s changing and growing while striving to hold on to its heritage.

“This is a farming community,” says Mark Lundquist, a Swan Valley resident of nearly seven decades who still works the family farm alongside his sons.

Larry Fleming, a wellspring of historical knowledge who descended from valley homesteaders, says that agricultural tradition started in the 1870s, with the Ross family, who ran cattle and horses. Around the turn of the twentieth century, more homesteaders moved in, establishing farms for livestock and

crops like alfalfa. For decades, Swan Valley remained a quiet hamlet, until the 1958 building of the Palisades Dam. The contractor who built it hired fifteen or twenty local farmers. “His idea was that the farm boys could work, and they could be taught,” says Larry, who so took to dam building that he made a career out of it.

Beyond holding back irrigation water for much of southern Idaho’s Snake River Plain, the dam improved the South Fork’s fishery, setting the stage for tourism to grow and the valley to change.

Around midday, the Swan Valley General Store’s aisles are crowded. License plates in the parking lot read like a map of the United States. Illinois. Idaho. Georgia. Washington. The quiet wonder on some tourists’ faces implies shock that the sleepy town boasts a store selling locally roasted coffee, prime cuts of meat, fresh produce, growler fills, hardware, and more.

“I wanted it to be a place that I’d be proud of, that the valley would use, and that, you know, made sense,” says Shane Fleming, who opened the General Store in October 2020. Before that, residents had to drive at least half an hour one way for groceries beyond the basic offerings at nearby country stores and gas stations, so being out of one

SHANE FLEMING opened the Swan Valley General Store to give residents a place to buy high-quality items without having to head to Idaho Falls or Teton Valley. “I wanted it to be a place that I’d be proud of, that the valley would use,” he says.

key ingredient for dinner could disrupt the whole menu.

Shane is Larry Fleming’s son and has a grandson, Swan Valley’s eighth generation of the Fleming family, attending the nearby Irwin school. Shane grew up in Swan Valley and moved away to run a large public company, but knew he wanted to return in retirement. When

remotely, so he and his family started looking.

“Fortunately, these townhomes were being built and we got into one of them, because it’s impossible to find a house to rent or own in Swan Valley right now,” he says.

Like Josh, Robyn Snyder says the new development is a godsend. She was

he came back, he bought the triangle of land adjacent to the highway intersection near Rainey Creek. (You can’t miss the swath of new building on the right side of the highway as you come into town from Pine Creek Pass.)

Despite tourism dollars flowing into the area, Swan Valley has become a difficult place to make a life. Like in many beautiful, popular destinations, an influx of retirees and second-home owners has elevated home prices and squeezed younger residents. Wanting to stimulate economic development and encourage young families to stay or move back, Shane built townhomes, bay homes, the General Store, and a row of storefronts. In a few short years, he sold all the homes. He signed the lease on the last store this past winter.

Josh Dalley, a helicopter pilot who grew up in Blackfoot and visited Swan Valley every summer, lives in one of the townhomes. The pandemic helped him realize he could run his business, a helicopter tour company in Arkansas,

me and helped me get through that,” she says. “And it didn’t matter where they came from; it was just everybody.”

New amenities and construction can come at a cost, and old-timers like Mark Lundquist say not everybody fits the small-town farming heritage, especially as second-home owners convert arable land to multimillion dollar home sites.

living in Star Valley south of Palisades Reservoir, but spillover from Jackson had changed the area’s small-town feel. Ten years ago, she moved to Swan Valley and commuted daily to Jackson to run her pet grooming business. With the opening of the storefronts, she moved Mountain Mutts and saved two hours a day in commuting.

“This development Shane put in has pretty much saved my life,” she says.

Being able to buy groceries in town is convenient, but those moving to Swan Valley say the people are the main attraction. With such a small population, especially among those who stay yearround, everyone knows everyone else, their kids play together, and they support each other in times of need. Pauline Scholes, who grew up in Swan Valley, moved to the Idaho Falls area for a bit, and then moved back. When her family went through a tragic time a few years ago, she says she was reminded of the value of living in a tight-knit community.

“Everybody just, like, wrapped around

It’s a place that’s changing and growing while striving to hold on to its heritage.

He believes most folks take about five years to adjust to the help-your-neighbor vibe, but he, like other residents, is happy to see the vibrant town core and young families sticking around.

As the sun dips below the horizon, the bustle slows. The cars leave, the lights of the General Store dim, the ice cream freezers are shuttered for the night. Without the tourists, Swan Valley regains its identity as a place where neighbors will pull your car out of the ditch in the winter or deliver casseroles when you’ve fallen on hard times.

New homeowners and longtime residents alike say that’s what they love about Swan Valley, not the cutthroat-trout fishing or the elk hunting (though they don’t complain about those things). No matter what kinds of businesses crop up or how many people move in, they hope it never loses the charm of a place where kids can grow up free range, running among the fields, and eighth-generation families live just down the road.

FAR LEFT Swan Valley attracts visitors from all over hoping to catch a prize trout on the South Fork of the Snake.

TOP AND BOTTOM When heading to town, look for advertisements for dueling ice cream shops. Huck’s Rainey Creek Country Store is famous for its square variety of the sweet treat.

route takes gravel bikers on a complete 360-degree circumnavigation of Teton Valley on connecting trails and roads.

THE WYDAHO One Hundred

BY KATE HULL PHOTOGRAPHY BY AARON COUCH

Off The Paved Path

Wydaho One Hundred and the man behind the map

Aaron Couch describes himself as “a bit addicted” to mapping bike routes in Teton Valley. And he’s not wrong.

Often, when local gravel bikers are searching for intel on available rides or lesser-known trails to explore, Aaron is their first call. “It is something I enjoy doing and sharing with people, either by bringing them on a ride or telling someone about a certain area,” he says.

A Nebraska native and former bike tech at Victor’s Fitzgerald’s Bicycles, Aaron is an avid cycling enthusiast and advocate for the nonprofit biking and trail community. He spends countless hours in the saddle cruising cattle roads, pushing up steep mountain forest roads, or exploring sometimes rutted doubletrack farm roads, all for the fun of adventure and the love of the ride.

“I love how Teton Valley is so diverse from each angle,” he says. “A ride in Victor is very different from a ride in Tetonia; and even then, just north of Tetonia is different.”

His ride of choice in the dry months is typically his Salsa Fargo, meant for miles and miles of gravel riding in all conditions and well-suited for his bikepacking adventures.

In 2017, Aaron turned his love of exploring and mapping courses into developing a self-supported and self-guided gravel biking adventure, the Wydaho One Hundred, a route that leads bikers on a complete 360-degree circumnavigation of Teton Valley, a distance of one hundred miles. But developing the

course, he says, was a happy accident.

In the fall of 2017, Aaron and a few friends did a bikepacking overnighter at the Jackpine-Pinochle loop rim. “The next day, we camped and rode back to the truck,” Aaron says. “But I said, ‘I think I am going to ride back to Victor.’ I was living in Victor at the time and decided to pedal myself back.”

On his Fargo, Aaron headed back to the south end of the valley without a real idea in mind on how he’d connect trails but armed with a few ideas and an understanding of where he needed to go.

“I was exploring and plotting,” he says. As he found connecting farm roads, and linked into Horseshoe-Packsaddle, he started getting more and more excited. “My mind was getting blown as I rode along, and I thought, ‘Wow, it would be so cool to link this up and do this intentionally.’”

The foundation of the Wydaho One Hundred was set. In the coming months, Aaron made alterations to the course, rode it a few more times, and kept perfecting it. He double and triple checked with the Teton County GIS map that each road was indeed a county road and not private, and cross referenced with other maps. He then worked with the team at Fitzgerald’s to get a plan in motion.

The next summer, Aaron and thirtyfive other gravel grinders completed the inaugural ride. The event featured

TOP An avid cycling enthusiast and advocate for the nonprofit biking and trail community, Aaron Couch enjoys mapping regional routes to encourage bikers to explore all the valley has to offer.

BOTTOM The Wydaho One Hundred route highlights the varying public trails and roads available in the valley.

one drop bag and water zone at Harrops Bridge, with access to tools, water, and whatever was in the bags the riders dropped prior to the ride for support. (In later years, Aaron added a second support station.)

You know those bike races that are as glitzy as they are competitive? Think crystal-clear trail markers, aid stations every ten miles or so, and flashy medals at the end. Wydaho One Hundred isn’t one of those. It isn’t a show-up-and-ride type of event either. But Aaron didn’t intend for it to be. Wydaho One Hundred is as much about knowing and studying the route beforehand as it is being able to ride your bike. He might say it’s even more about knowing the route.

“The route is unmarked,” he says. “That is part of the point. You have to trust the route and you also have to trust yourself.” While training time in the saddle is important, Aaron says that equally important is spending time learning the route beforehand.

“You can’t just show up and assume your computer will tell you what to do,” he says. “If you want to finish, prepare yourself to know the route.”

In addition to the century course, Aaron added a one-hundred-kilometer route for the second year of the event. “I felt like the one hundred miler wasn’t for everyone,” he says. So, he drew on his familiarity of interconnected farm routes and cow trails that, to his knowledge, not many people were riding, and created this shorter loop.

ABOVE AND RIGHT Wydaho 100 participants, whether in preparation for the event or riding the course on their own, are encouraged to study the map. Knowing the route, Aaron says, is as important as time in the saddle.

“The route is unmarked. That is part of the point. You have to trust the route and you also have to trust yourself.”

Aaron Couch, WYDAHO One Hundred Route Creator

Mapping the Route

View the course via the Ride with GPS app, then search Wydaho 100. The course is predominately gravel or dirt roads and is best ridden on a gravel or hardtail mountain bike.

“The route itself doesn’t look that pretty or beautiful when you ride it and it doesn’t make a lot of sense sometimes,” he says. “But that’s the point. Instead of pedaling this paved busy road, take this unexpected road and you might just see something unexpected you haven’t seen.”

An important detail? It’s not necessarily easier, just shorter. “It is not trying to be easier,” Aaron says. “It is trying to make you feel like you are out there and navigating on your own. You aren’t far away from any main road.”

One of Aaron’s favorite memories, he says, was during the one-hundredkilometer event. A man pedaled by Aaron and yelled, “I picked the wrong bike! I should’ve brought my mountain bike for this!” and laughed as he rode away. “You have to embrace your inner mountain biker,” Aaron says.

A key part of Aaron’s passion for the event was connecting it back to the community. Each year, the entry fee is a donation to local nonprofits that are supporting biking and maintaining trails in the valley, like Teton Valley Trails and Pathways and Mountain Bike the Tetons.

“While I wanted people to experience that sense of adventure for themselves, I wanted to bring awareness to the local cycling organizations. It brings me a lot of pride and joy to see that this is not just about riding bikes. It is about giving back and acknowledging the community involvement that allows us to ride in these places and the organizations that advocate for cycling to be on these Forest Service roads.”

While there is no official event on the books for summer 2022, Wydaho One Hundred is about more than an official ride day. It’s about getting on your bike and exploring the valley and its many paths, some of which might lead you somewhere unexpected. Aaron is looking forward to seeing his happy accident evolve into something that keeps encouraging riders to explore more and more of the valley.

At press time, Aaron was working with Ride with GPS as an ambassador to make the Wydaho One Hundred route an official regional route. To view the course, search Wydaho One Hundred Official in Ride with GPS or visit Aaron’s website, destinationreroute.com.

Pizzeria Alpino

Italian fare with Teton flair

a cozy atmosphere and fresh-made pastas, pizzas, and more served up daily.

THE PIZZERIA ALPINO team, including manager Marie Gauer and executive chef Brenndon Evans (pictured left), welcome patrons with

BY P.M. FADDEN PHOTOGRAPHY BY LARA AGNEW

Italian inspired and based in Driggs, this cabin for cozy dining specializes in house-made pizzas and pastas—with a side of Teton charm.

Sprung from the collective foresight of two veterans of the Culinary Institute of America with a shared penchant for sumptuous fixings, Alpino owes its start to John Koenig and David Hugo. The entrepreneurial duo got to brainstorming while co-workers at a peer restaurant and the rest proved serendipitous, delicious history.

“It was 2019, and kind of off-thecuff, when Dave and I found ourselves lamenting the lack of a [traditional] Italian restaurant in Driggs,” John says. What followed was a whirlwind of lease signing, renovations, and tap dancing through a takeout-only menu while enduring the pandemic.

“Pizzeria Alpino began as—and is—a great opportunity to pair fresh flavor with quality service,” John says. “And response from the valley has been very kind.”

The easy feeling of home that’s felt among those at the tables of Alpino suggests a business with a history far longer than a mere couple of years. Thanks to an appetizing, fresh-made menu, relaxed ambiance, and spacious seating—indoors or alfresco—Alpino and its diners have skipped the “getting to know each other” phase and settled straight into a “committed relationship” of shared meals.

That fast following points clearly to the accuracy of John and Dave’s aim. Guests from near and far are eager for what this Italian pizzeria is plating up.

“We start with the iconic Italian options,” John says. “Then, we weave in Hearty cuisine and down-home comfort swirl delightfully at Pizzeria Alpino.

the local products or produce available that time of year. And, of course, everything’s made from scratch.”

John’s favorite dish? The elk Bolognese lasagna.

“Our executive chef, Brenndon Evans, prepares a fennel béchamel before baking it in elk and beef Bolognese of carrots, celery, onions, and tomatoes,

“Pizzeria Alpino began as—and is—a great opportunity to pair fresh flavor with quality service.”

John Koenig, Pizzeria Alpino Co-owner

cooked down for roughly twenty-four hours. Then we roll out sheets of fresh egg-based pasta and bake the whole thing as a layered stack featuring fontina and Parmesan cheese.

“The lasagna’s a good one after a day in the mountains,” he adds.

Another favorite is the deliciously creamy fried risotto, Arancini di Riso. Masquerading as an appetizer, this meal unto itself traces its roots to the richly laden kitchen tables of Old-World Europe. The Arancini, plus any Alpino entrée or pizza, all but guarantees the tanks to be full for tomorrow’s Teton adventure.

“Our regulars know to expect a friendly atmosphere where they’ll be greeted by name and welcomed home, season after season,” John says.

Pizzeria Alpino follows a recipe to enrich Teton Valley’s hearty mountain community with house-made meals ideally suited for any time of year. Enjoy a bite (and a sip) with the Alpino family in the heart of Driggs. Learn more at pizzeriaalpino.com.

STOP BY PIZZERIA ALPINO for Italian fare enjoyed alfresco on the sunny deck.

Agave

310 North Main Street

Driggs, ID 83422

208-354-2003

Open Daily 11am–10pm

From the owners of El Abuelito in Jackson comes Agave, Teton Valley’s very own family Mexican restaurant! Serving fajitas, burritos, and all of your Mexican favorites, cooked to perfection seven days a week, with lunch specials from 11am to 3pm daily. Bienvenidos amigos, mi casa es su casa! [p. 97]

Barrels & Bins

36 South Main Street Driggs, ID 83422

208-354-2307

Open Daily 8am–7pm barrelsandbins.market

Teton Valley’s source for all-natural and organic products including local and organic produce, meats, cheeses, and bulk food; 460 Bread baked fresh daily; beer and wine; nutritional supplements; health and beauty products; all-natural pet foods; and much more! Juice & Smoothie Bar is open 9:30am to 1:30pm daily. Check in for sandwiches and salads, as well as other grab-and-go takeout options. [p. 16]

Broulim’s Food and Pharmacy

240 South Main Street Driggs, ID 83422

208-354-2350

Open Mon–Sat 7am–11pm broulims.com/driggs

Order sandwiches to go made from your choice of Columbus meats and cheeses. Breakfast sandwiches and paninis made fresh daily. Our deli has hot baked or rotisserie chicken, take-and-bake pizza, and other meals to go. Check out our display of hand-cut specialty cheeses! Freshly prepared salads, our own Sushi Bar, and hot Asian food. Daily specials of smoked meats available. Inquire at the deli for catering services. New coffee bar. [p. 90]

Butter

57 South Main Street

Victor, ID 83455

208-399-2872

Visit website for menus, hours, and online ordering butterinvictor.com

Butter makes it better, that is the true belief of husband-and-wife team Marcos Hernandez and Amelia Hatchard. Stop in or order your to-go online for a delightful spin on brunch classics, such as al pastor hash, biscuits with poblano sausage gravy, or our Mexican grilled cheese. Whether you are craving tacos at 8am or eggs at 2pm, we are here for all your brunch needs. Follow our Instagram @butterinvictor for specials and updates. [p. 34]

Citizen 33 Brewery & Restaurant

364 N Main St, Driggs, ID 83422

208-354-2073

Open Daily 4pm - 9pm citizen33.com

From the team behind Forage Bistro and Tatanka Tavern, Citizen 33 Brewery & Restaurant in Driggs is dedicated to serving fresh, delicious, and locally sourced food and beer from the Main Street pub. Enjoy ever-changing brews on tap by Brew Master Nick Farney and a delicious menu by Chef John Perry featuring elevated bar bites like local fried cheese curds and fried pickle chips, burgers, and flavorful entrees. Citizen 33 was built for the community and visitors of Teton Valley to come together and celebrate this amazing place with delicious food and cold craft beer. Cheers to the citizens, “a native or inhabitant,” of Route 33! [p. 12]

Forage Bistro & Lounge

285 Little Avenue, Suite A Driggs, ID 83422

208-354-2858

Open Daily 4pm – 9pm Reservations Recommended forageandlounge.com

Forage Bistro, specializing in seasonal regional cuisine with an emphasis on local ingredients, offers creative, chef-inspired dinner seven days a week. Enjoy half-priced bottles of wine every Wednesday. Amazing burgers, steak, trout, market fish, pasta, homemade desserts, and more made from scratch. Our open kitchen with nothing to hide offers diners a unique experience in Teton Valley. [p. 12]

French Press

COFFEE HOUSE R

French Press Coffee House 7168 HWY-33, Suite 4 Victor, ID 83455 208-787-6136

MONDAY THRU FRIDAY 6AM TO 5PM SATURDAY SUNDAY 8AM TO 5PM (208)787-6136

Mon–Fri, 6am – 3pm Sat and Sun, 8am – 5pm thepresscoffeehouse.com

FRENCH PRESS COFFEEHOUSE SERVES AS A "THIRD PLACE" FOR TETON VALLEY RESIDENTS AND VISITORS; A PLACE SO COMFORTABLE IT BECOMES AS ROUTINE AS YOUR HOME AND OFFICE. PROVIDING CLASSIC AND INSPIRED HIGH-QUALITY COFFEE DRINKS, A WIDE SELECTION OF TEAS, FRESH-PRESSED AND BOTTLED JUICES, PREMIUM SNACKS, AND A DEVELOPING MENU OF BAKED GOODS THAT FIT EVERY DIETARY PREFERENCE.

French Press Coffeehouse serves as a “third place” for residents and visitors; a place so comfortable it becomes as routine as your home and office. Providing classic and inspired high-quality coffee drinks, Idaho teas, fresh-pressed and bottled juices, premium snacks, and baked goods that fit every dietary preference. Owned by a lifelong local and a Frenchman, they have incorporated nostalgic childhood favorites from both countries, while prioritizing local, small business, and sustainable partners.

PRIORITIZING LOCAL, SMALL BUSINESS, AND SUSTAINABLE PARTNERS.

@THEPRESSCOFFEEHOUSE THEPRESSCOFFEEHOUSE.COM

Grand Targhee Resort

Alta, WY 83414

800-TARGHEE (827-4433) grandtarghee.com

The Branding Iron is the best-kept dining secret at Grand Targhee Resort. You’ll find a welcoming atmosphere that is both upscale and family friendly. Eric Gruber, our executive chef, has a rich culinary background that has taken him to resorts throughout the American West. Taste his culinary creations, including his signature pickle-brined fried chicken. At the Trap Bar and Grill, enjoy local microbrews on tap, great food like the famous Wydaho Nachos, and HD TVs with your favorite sports. Snorkels is your slopeside cafe; enjoy a hot coffee with a Wyoming-style breakfast burrito. Return in the afternoon for homemade soups and sandwiches. [BC]

Grand Teton Brewing

430 Old Jackson Highway

Victor, ID 83455

888-899-1656

grandtetonbrewing.com

Grand Teton Brewing has a wide selection of beer made right here in Teton Valley. Come enjoy a pint on their expansive lawn or grab a six pack to go! Visit their website for up-to-date hours and information. [p. 41]

Linn Canyon Ranch

1300 East 6000 South

Victor, ID 83455

208-787-LINN (5466) linncanyonranch.com

Whether you are staying at Linn Canyon Ranch or just want to join us for dinner, the Sunset Dinner Ride is not to be missed! Friendly mountain horses will be waiting to take you for a leisurely guided ride through the foothills of the Tetons, winding through aspen groves and fields of wildflowers. After your ride, members of the Linn family will welcome you back to an elegant western evening at our historic lodge. Appetizers and music on the porch precede a gourmet dinner, after which we’ll gather around the bonfire to roast marshmallows and stargaze. [p. 47]

Pizzeria Alpino

165 North Main Street

Driggs, ID 83422

208-354-8829 pizzeriaalpino.com

Open for dinner. Pizzeria Alpino is proud to offer Teton Valley fresh and delicious Italian inspired Rocky Mountain fare, perfect for any day. We are grateful to showcase locally grown products, including Morning Dew Mushrooms, Crowfoot Ranch, and late Bloomer Ranch. Please come join us.

Rise Coffee House

40 Depot Street

Driggs, ID 83422

208-354-RISE

Open Daily 7:30am–2pm risedriggs.com

Don’t miss live music on Sundays in the garden from 9-11am this summer! Rise Coffee House is a place where our community gathers and connects with one another. If you are looking for a beautifully crafted espresso drink, breakfast, or a mouth-watering baked good, you’ll be sure to find it here. Come enjoy culture, community, and excellent coffee. Voted best coffee in Teton Valley four years in a row. Cheers!

Swan Valley General Store

2988 Swan Valley Hwy

Swan Valley, ID 83449

208-483-3121

Open Sun: 8am – 7pm; Mon – Thu: 7am – 7pm; Fri – Sat: 7am – 8pm swanvalleygs.com

We serve hot daily specials for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Start your day with our handcrafted breakfast burritos and sandwiches. For lunch and dinner, we serve salads and made-to-order sandwiches produced from a variety of breads, deli meats, cheeses, and produce. Hot lunch and dinner entrées, delivered daily from the Snake River Roadhouse Restaurant, include daily specials as well as BBQ, pizza, soups, and side dishes. For dessert, or a delicious snack, try our handmade Huckleberry Hand pies, which can be served à la Mode with Reed’s Dairy soft-serve ice cream. [p. 32]

Tatanka Tavern

18 North Main Street, 3rd Floor of the Colter Building, Suite 315

Driggs, ID 83422

208-980-7320

Open Daily 4pm–9pm tatankatavern.com

Tatanka Tavern offers wood-fired artisan pizza, salads, and the finest craft beers and wines. Bring in the family for a night out or grab a seat at the bar and watch the game. Enjoy local favorites like the Fungus Amongus for dinner daily. [p. 12]

Teton Thai

18 North Main Street

Driggs, ID 83422

208-787-THAI (8424)

Lunch Mon–Fri 11:30am–2:30pm; Dinner Daily 4pm–9pm tetonthai.com

Voted Teton Valley’s favorite restaurant, Teton Thai offers something for everyone. Enjoy a variety of our family’s favorite recipes like our homemade crispy egg rolls, coconut milk curries, or savory wok seared noodles. Stop by our taproom located down the hall from Teton Thai. Serving old-world beers along with a menu from Teton Tiger, our sister restaurant located in Jackson, Wyoming. Dine in or take out. [p. 53]

The Royal Wolf

63 Depot Street

Driggs, ID 83422

208-354-8365

Open Daily; serving lunch and dinner 11am–late theroyalwolf.com

Since 1997, locals and visitors alike have enjoyed discovering this off-Main Street establishment offering a diverse menu of sandwiches, burgers, salads, appetizers, and entrées served in a casual, smoke-free, pub-style environment. Complementing our menu is a full bar serving all your favorite beverages, including cocktails, wine, and a selection of regional microbrews on draft. Enjoy outdoor dining on our spacious deck during the summer. Daily food and beer specials, WiFi, and billiards. Stop by to meet old friends and make new ones. Snow sagas and fish tales told nightly. (Hours and menu subject to change.)

Three Peaks Restaurant & Catering

15 South Main Street

Driggs, ID 83422

208-354-9463

Daily happy hours 4pm–6pm

threepeaksdinnertable.com

threepeakscatering.com

Enjoy classic Italian dishes with a wild western flare: Elk Meatballs, Spicy Pork Sausage Lasagna, and Idaho Rainbow Trout, just to name a few. A great downtown Driggs restaurant close to the stoplight. Boutique wine selection available for takeout or on-site enjoyment. Plenty of gluten-free and vegetarian options. Private inhome or on-site catering and cooking classes available. We feature locally made artwork in our unique, circa 1940s building. Visit our website or call for reservations. [p. 96]

Victor Emporium

45 North Main Street

Victor, ID 83455

208-787-2221

Open seven days a week

Over one million served! For more than sixty-five years, the Victor Emporium Old Fashioned Soda Fountain has served delicious milkshakes, including the World Famous Huckleberry Shake. Gourmet coffee and espresso served daily. The Emporium is also a great place to pick up those unusual gifts. Where the locals meet before enjoying the great outdoors here in Teton Valley. [p. 26]

Victor Valley Market

5 South Main Street

Victor, ID 83455

208-787-2230

Open Daily 7am

Victor Valley Market is your local grocer and the place to get fresh seafood and choice meats in Teton Valley. Offering a unique selection of groceries, from organic and specialty items to your everyday needs, including a full selection of wine and beer. Our gourmet deli counter offers delicious house-made takeout dishes, along with sandwiches made with locally baked bread, fresh salads, housemade soups, and so much more! Victor Valley Market has all that you need to make a delicious meal, whether for eating in or picnicking out. [p. 10]

Wanderlust Bistro

Located at Teton Valley Resort 1208 Highway 31

Victor, ID 83455 208-821-1982

Open Daily wanderlustbistro.com

From the owners of Butter Cafe in Victor and Streetfood at the Stagecoach Bar in Wilson comes Wanderlust Bistro, serving up breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily influenced by the flavors of Mexico. Hidden inside Teton Valley Resort, find us poolside for our fun take on all your favorite Mexican classics. Follow us Instagram @wanderlustbistro. [p. 34]

Wildlife Brewing

145 South Main Street

Victor, ID 83455

208-787-2623

Open Wed-Sun, 4pm–9pm wildlifebrewing.com

Since 2003, Wildlife Brewing has been a cornerstone of Victor’s restaurant scene. Locals and visitors alike visit daily to enjoy awardwinning microbrews and freshly made hand-tossed pizza. With a large family-friendly seating area and a unique stainless-steel bar, Wildlife is the perfect place to enjoy a quick brew after a fun-filled day or bring the whole family to enjoy the best pizza in the valley. Come on in and ‘Live the Wildlife!’ [p. 39]

C & C HomeServices

57 South Main Street

Victor, ID 83455

307-201-1861

cchsjacksonhole.com

C&C HomeServices provides luxury vacation rentals as well as vacation rental representation and premium home management services to homeowners in Jackson Hole and Teton Valley. We stand by uncompromising standards designed to overachieve the expectations of our owners and guests alike. Homeowners and rental guests enjoy meticulous attention to detail and twenty-fourhour service. We offer services, including short-term rental management, long-term rental management, caretaking, housekeeping services, snow removal, and lawncare. It is our pleasure to care for our clients’ homes and provide our guests the best in comfort and convenience. [p. 6]

Grand Targhee Resort

3300 Ski Hill Road

Alta, WY 83414

800-TARGHEE [827-4433] grandtarghee.com

After a day on the mountain, it’s time to relax at western style slopeside accommodations with the family. Be ready for the day’s adventure whether it’s first chair or epic mountain biking as you enjoy the high-alpine setting in our quaint mountain village. Rooms vary in size and budget, sleeping four to ten guests. The Sioux Lodge two-bedroom rooms offer a small kitchenette and are perfect for your next resort getaway. The resort is dog-friendly and offers pet-friendly rooms. Call 800-TAR-GHEE to book your stay. [BC]

Linn Canyon Ranch

1300 East 6000 South Victor, ID 83455

208-787-LINN [5466] linncanyonranch.com

Our lodging combines the best of luxurious accommodations with nature’s simple pleasures. Sleep peacefully in one of our luxury platform tents, or indulge yourself in creature comforts and rustic elegance in our artisan-built timberframe cabin. Our guests feel relaxed and inspired in our cozy mountain sanctuary. When you make your lodging reservation, we will also book your riding and dining activities at the ranch. We are also happy to help you reserve off-site adventures such as floating, fishing, hiking, and sightseeing. [p. 47]

Moose Creek Ranch

2733 East 10800 South Victor, ID 83455

208-787-6078 moosecreekranch.com

Come experience the new and improved Moose Creek Ranch, located at the base of Teton Pass outside of Victor, Idaho. Operating as Teton Valleys’ premier lodging destination, Moose Creek Ranch is open year-round and conveniently located on the quieter side of the Tetons near Grand Teton National Park, Grand Targhee Resort, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, and much more! Come experience the perfect basecamp for your adventures. Offering beautiful cabins, peaceful RV sites, and off-grid glamping cabins, Moose Creek Ranch has options for every traveler. The ranch also hosts unforgettable weddings, family reunions, holiday parties, and corporate events. [p. 18]

Teton Homestead

18 North Main Street #105 Driggs, ID 83422

800-746-5518 mail@tetonhomestead.com tetonhomestead.com

You’ve known Grand Valley Lodging for more than thirty years as the premier property management company in Teton Valley. Now, under new local ownership, we are ready to turn things upside down and shake it up a little bit. Introducing Teton Homestead—we are taking the best of Grand Valley Lodging and sprinkling on a touch of innovation. It’s time to reset your expectations of what to expect in a property management company. Teton Homestead—Expect more. [p. 23]

Teton Valley Cabins

34 East Ski Hill Road

Driggs, ID 83422

208-354-8153 or 866-687-1522

stay@tetonvalleycabins.com tetonvalleycabins.com

Nestled amongst mature cottonwoods, Teton Valley Cabins welcomes you for your special getaway, vacation home base, or family or group reunion. Quaint charm, rustic cabins, and affordable rates await you at Teton Valley Cabins, just one mile from Driggs, with its restaurants and shops. Enjoy our picnic and activity grounds or explore Teton Valley from here. We are centrally located, with Grand Targhee Resort just up the road and other recreational opportunities within a few minutes’ drive. Various room types are available. Our rooms are equipped with microwave, fridge, satellite TV, and WiFi. [p. 10]

Teton Valley Property Management

253 South Main Street Driggs, ID 83422

208-354-3431

info@tetonvalleypm.com tetonvalleyvacationrentals.com

Allow us to find that perfect home or condo to make your vacation memorable. All our homes are nicely furnished, meticulously maintained, and fully equipped to accommodate your group at a fraction of what you would pay for hotel rooms. All homes come complete with linens, kitchen necessities, smart TVs or satellite TV service, high-speed internet, soaps, and paper products. Book online and receive all the conveniences of home, away from home. [p. 8]

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Teton Valley is home to three meetinghouses of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Visitors of all ages and backgrounds are welcome.

Sunday worship services are held in Victor (87 East Center Street; 9am, 10:30am, and 12pm), Driggs (225 North 1st Street; 9am, 10:30am, and 12pm), and Tetonia (209 South Main Street; 9am and 10:30am).

Worship services are centered on the partaking of the bread and water of the sacrament. This one-hour meeting includes congregational hymns, prayers, and brief sermons focused on the love of God and atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Following this meeting, visitors of all ages are invited to attend a one-hour Sunday School class, divided by various age groups. Additional information can be found by calling Zane Calderwood (208-317-3325), Wade Treasure (208-351-4480), or by visiting ChurchOfJesusChrist.org

Headwaters Calvary Chapel

500 Ski Hill Road | Driggs, ID 83422 | 208-354-WORD [9673] headwaterschurch.fun

Our vision is to simply teach the Bible simply—and thus, our pattern of study is verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book, right through the whole Bible. Sunday service starts at 10am; dress is nice casual. Wednesday Bible study starts at 7pm; dress is casual. From the stoplight in Driggs, head east on Ski Hill Road and the church will be on your left as you round the turn.

St. Francis of the Tetons Episcopal Church

20 Alta School Road | Alta, WY 83414 | 307-353-8100 sftetons@silverstar.com | stfrancis.episcopalidaho.org

Join us for Sunday morning worship beginning at 10am. St. Francis of the Tetons Episcopal Church welcomes worshippers of all walks of faith. In the shadow of the Tetons, this historic church offers an opportunity to experience God’s presence and join in fellowship, spiritual renewal, and service to others.

Teton Valley Bible Church

265 North 2nd East | Driggs, ID | 208-354-8523 tetonvalleybiblechurch.org

Teton Valley Bible Church exists to glorify God and exalt Jesus Christ as Lord through Holy Spirit-empowered living and worship. Our mission is to make disciples through gospel-centered outreach, the spiritual building-up of believers, and living in loving fellowship with one another. We gather together to worship the Lord on Sunday mornings; please visit the website for service times. Pastor Jim Otto (MDiv) is committed to expositional preaching and Biblical theology. Childcare is available and all are welcome. [p. 45]

Grandview Baptist Church

2301 North Highway 33 | Driggs, ID | 208-220-0351 grandviewbaptist.org

As an Independent Baptist Church, we believe in traditional hymns and use only the King James Bible for all services and Bible studies. Join us Sunday mornings at 10am for Sunday School followed by a service from Pastor Daniel McDonald at 11am. A children’s program is available during service times. We also offer a Thursday night (7pm) prayer meeting, Saturday night (7pm) men’s prayers, and a Sunday evening (5pm) service. Visit our website to learn more about our Christian Homeschool Co-op, Kids’ Club (fall and winter), and Vacation Bible School Camp (summer). We provide transportation to all services with our van route ministry, just call for a pickup. Come join us in God’s Word and make the world a better place!

Teton School District 401

District Office: 208-228-5923

tsd401.org

Empowering our students to reach their full potential—Teton School District 401 provides a safe and exceptional learning environment where career and college readiness are the academic cornerstones of a relevant and progressive education. [p. 107]

Teton High School

Grades 9–12 | 208-228-5924

tsd401.org

Teton High School strives to recognize the uniqueness of the individual in preparing for a lifetime of learning. THS provides a safe and academically focused learning environment, where students are challenged for career and college readiness.

Basin High School

Grades 9–12 | 208-228-5928

tsd401.org

Basin High School is an alternative for students who meet the state criteria for enrollment. Students obtain credits through a stateapproved independent-study format, with assistance from certified staff.

Teton Middle School

Grades 6–8 | 208-228-5925

tsd401.org

The mission of TMS is to be a safe and innovative organization that empowers each student and staff member to develop a foundation of self-efficacy, build relationships, overcome challenges, stretch their grit and resilience, and recognize their potential.

Rendezvous Upper Elementary

Grades 4–5 | Driggs 208-228-5926

tsd401.org

Rendezvous’ mission is to create a caring community of learners who inspire each other to embrace curiosity, value others’ opinions, and develop a foundation of self-efficacy.

Teton K-3 Elementary Schools

Victor 208-228-5929 | Driggs 208-228-5927 | Tetonia 208-228-5930 in Driggs 208-228-5926 tsd401.org

The mission of the TSD 401 elementary schools is to be integral in the partnership between school, home, and community in nurturing and encouraging all children to become productive citizens and lifelong learners.

Chuck the Chukar

PHOTO BY LINDA SWOPE

CHUCK IS NO ORDINARY CHUKAR. An upland game bird whose brethren are common in the arid West, Chuck spends his days wandering in and out of a Victor chicken coop where easy meals and company of the chicken variety are plentiful. It’s a bit noisy in there. Aptly named for his “chuck, chuck, chucking” call, Chuck makes his arrival known to his chicken cohorts who seem to have accepted him as one of their own.