After a year and a half of staying home, we knew our 2021 Canoe52 trip needed to be epic. We love Connecticut, but we wanted to venture far away into an environment that was much different than what we were experiencing day in and day out. With two weeks blocked off on the calendar, we determined we could squeeze in three states: Wyoming, Colorado and Kentucky.
Our adventures in Wyoming began with a 3 day roadtrip to reach Grand Teton National Park. Two 18-hour driving days, followed by one 4 hour day brought us to Colter Bay Campground, located within the park. In researching the rules of the park, we found that the only lake that allows dogs in boats was Jackson Lake. Jackson Lake is a large lake, carved out by glaciers and raised by a man-made dam.
The boat launch at Jackson Lake is large and easy to find. We pushed off in the morning as the sky began to gray. We could tell there would be rain. With our limited time in the park, we had this one opportunity to hit the water. The area was receiving much needed rain during our visit after weeks of drought and devastating wildfires across the West. Smoke from wildfires hundreds of miles away hung heavy in the air throughout our visit.
Out on Jackson Lake
As we paddled away from the shoreline, the rain began to fall. With our rain gear handy, we paddled on. Within 15 to 20 minutes the rain cleared and clouds provided little peeks at the blue sky behind them.
Motorized boats are permitted on Jackson Lake. Traffic that day was limited to some tour boats and a few motor boats with tubers or skiers in tow. That probably had something to do with the forecast! Our goal for this paddle was to see how close we could get the mountain range. Not something we’d recommend for novice paddlers. The tricky thing about lakes is that your are subject to a lot of wind as you leave the shore. You don’t have the current of a river to help you along. You’re doing all the work.
There was choppiness on the water and the mountain range is A LOT further than it looks on this lake that spans over 25,000 acres! We found a shoreline with pebbles and rocks where we could pull over, rest, and take in the views without having to navigate anything. This reprieve was a highlight of the trip. Here we enjoyed a pour of Absaroka double cask gin. On our drive to the park, we found Jackson Hole Still Works, a distillery in Jackson Hole, WY. This gin is aged in whiskey barrels and smooth enough to sip on its own. We also REALLY loved their “sloshies” too.
The Majestic Tetons
Pro tip, either choose a very distinct landmark at the boat launch or navigate by compass to find where you put in. Dropping a pin on Google Maps is another option, but you can’t always rely on technology when you’re out of range. All of these come in handy when you’re in an unfamiliar body of water.
Despite the rain, which honestly added to the adventure, the views and the paddle were absolutely stunning. The Tetons are majestic. They are gigantic and honestly, they’re in danger. In danger of losing their glacier caps. The glacier on Grand Teton, the largest in the range, has shrunk over 20% since the 1960s. Ecosystems reliant on water from the Teton glaciers may dry up, the bigger impact that goes beyond impacting our sightseeing.
The next stop on our trip was Yellowstone National Park.
