"The Grand Tetons" - that's what it means in English, the Great Breasts.
Granpa's photo is much better than my ol' iPhone-out-the-windshield snapshot:
The Frenchman that named these peaks was a trapper and fur trader. When does one trap? The winter time. Imagine these mountains totally covered in snow. Now, what might they look like to a lonely fur trapper? That's probably why the name stuck...
Jackson Hole, Wyoming is at the base of these mountains, and the Grand Teton National Park butts up against Yellowstone National Park. In fact, the entrance fee for one gives you access to the other.
It is truly beautiful here, and the air is crisp even in July. The animals come out of the mountains into this valley to winter - except for the big horn sheep. The people come here year round.
We, of course, weren't the first people here. The Native Americans came because of the abundant "necessaries" found naturally here. The ecosystem that is included in Grand Teton National Park currently covers 20,000,000 acres (Looks like 20 million acres to me, huh? "Millions" of unoccupied land, and there are those who say America is running out of land for people to live on - especially land with resources. I don't think so!)
To be honest, the farmers, ranchers, and hunters around here fought hard to keep the Feds from "confiscating" their land for a park. Ultimately they lost the battle - but only partially. Congress did make the concession that these folks would be allowed to continue to graze livestock in the Park, and they also put in the provision that no U.S. president would be allowed to claim any more Wyoming land to set aside for a national park anytime in the future. That's a rare win for State's rights! When is "enough" enough? I'd say 20,000,000 acres is more than enough!
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