Fall in Jackson

Sep 22, 2012

Happy first day of fall! I know the high today in Columbia is 90, so it's probably not very fall-like there today. Jackson, on the other hand, is definitely starting to change. Fall in Jackson is not very long, or even as colorful as other parts of the country (like New England) but it has been beautiful. From what I've heard, this is what happens in the fall here: it's relatively warm until one day it's all of a sudden cold... and then it's winter and doesn't get warm again for a long, long time.

Here are some pictures of the fall colors in Jackson. This one was taken right at the end of August near the top of the Teton Pass, but it just felt like a fall day. This might be the best iPhone picture I've ever taken.

View from the top of the Teton Pass

With the recent fire, many of the dog friendly trails around town have been closed. While this was a bummer, there are other places to go (you just have to drive there) and we have been frequenting the river. The other night we saw a moose and a bald eagle on our walk there, which was awesome. There are pathways along the river which are really nice, and dog friendly! Sammie acts terrified of every dog she meets. Even worse if it's more than one dog! She acted scared of a pug yesterday. She's a nut.

Sammie on the Snake River!

Pathway along the Snake River ... Gorgeous even with all the haze

Hazy Tetons

By the way, the local fire is over 90% contained. I think it is supposed to be 100% really soon... I still hear some helicopters flying back and forth but less frequently, and they've lowered the number of people working on it. Aside from the one here, there are so many other fires happening around.

Map of fires from inciweb.org

Because of the surrounding fires and wind patterns, it has been incredibly smoky here. There are even signs on the road cautioning people to turn on their lights and be careful because it's so thick! Sometimes it clears up some by the afternoon, like in the pictures above. I don't mean to complain, as it is still beautiful out here, but it has definitely been a learning experience! I really just didn't know the impact that wildfires made here, mostly because I had never thought about it. Luckily, the smoke hasn't really physically bothered me too much. A lot of people are experiencing trouble breathing and frequent nose bleeds, but this luckily hasn't happened to me. I am hoping for it to return to normal soon, though. I miss seeing blue skies!

Because of the progress on the fire, some of the local trails have opened very recently. Sammie and I went on a nice hike yesterday and saw lots of aspens turning yellow.