Grand Teton National Park

http://www.all-keyboard.com/,http://www.keyboards-shop.com/,http://www.laptop-fan-shop.com/ Grand Teton National Park is a United States National Park in northwestern Wyoming. Approximately 310,000 acres (130,000 ha) in size, the park includes the major peaks of the 40-mile-long (64 km) Teton Range as well as most of the northern sections of the valley known as Jackson Hole. Sony VAIO PCG-3B1M Battery Only 10 miles (16 km) south of Yellowstone National Park, the two parks are connected by the National Park Service managed John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway. These three protected areas in conjunction with surrounding National Forests constitute the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, which at almost 18,000,000 acres (7,300,000 ha), is one of the largest intact mid-latitude temperate ecosystems in the world. Sony VAIO PCG-3C1T Battery Human history of the Grand Teton region dates back at least 11,000 years, when the first nomadic hunter-gathererPaleo-Indians would migrate into the region during warmer months in pursuit of food and supplies. In the early 19th-century, the first Caucasian explorers encountered the eastern Shoshone natives. Sony VAIO PCG-3D1M Battery Between 1810 and 1840, the region attracted fur trading companies that vied for control of the lucrative beaver fur trade. U.S. Government expeditions to the region commenced in the mid 19th-century as an offshoot of exploration in Yellowstone, and the first permanent white settlers in Jackson Hole arrived in the 1880s. Sony VAIO PCG-3G2M Battery Efforts to preserve the region as a national park commenced in the late 19th-century and in 1929, Grand Teton National Park was established, protecting the major peaks of the Teton Range. The valley of Jackson Hole remained in private ownership until the 1930s, when conservationists led by John D. Rockefeller, Sony VAIO PCG-5R1M Battery Jr. began purchasing land in Jackson Hole to be added to the existing national park. Against public opinion and with repeated congressional efforts to repeal the measures, much of Jackson Hole was set aside for protection as Jackson Hole National Monument in 1943. The monument was abolished in 1950 and most of the monument land was added to Grand Teton National Park. Sony VAIO PCG-7141M Battery Grand Teton National Park is named for Grand Teton, the tallest mountain in the Teton Range. The naming of the mountains is attributed to early 19th-century French speaking trappers—"les trois tetons" (the three teats) was later anglicized and shortened to Tetons. Sony VAIO PCG-7143M Battery At 13,775 feet (4,199 m), Grand Teton abruptly rises more than 7,000 feet (2,100 m) above Jackson Hole, almost 850 feet (260 m) higher than Mount Owen, the second highest summit in the range. The park has numerous lakes, including 15-mile (24 km) long Jackson Lake as well as streams of varying length and the upper mainstem of the Snake River. Sony VAIO PCG-7151M Battery Though in a state of recession, a dozen small glaciers persist at the higher elevations near the highest peaks in the range. Some of the rocks in the park are the oldest found in any U.S. National Park and have been dated at nearly 2.7 billion years. Grand Teton National Park is an almost pristine ecosystem and the same species of flora and fauna that have existed since prehistoric times can still be found there. Sony VAIO PCG-7154M Battery More than 1000 species of vascular plants, dozens of species of mammals, 300 species of birds, more than a dozen fish species and a few species of reptiles and amphibians exist. Due to various changes in the ecosystem, some that are human-induced, efforts have been made to provide enhanced protection to some species of native fish and the increasingly threatened whitebark pine. Sony VAIO PCG-7162M Battery Grand Teton National Park is a popular destination for mountaineering, hiking, fishing and other forms of recreation. There are more than 1000 drive-in campsites and over 200 miles (320 km) of hiking trails that provide access to backcountry camping areas. Sony VAIO PCG-7181M Battery Noted for world-renowned trout fishing, the park is one of the few places to catch Snake River fine-spotted cutthroat trout. Grand Teton has several visitor centers that are managed by the National Park Service and concessionaire managed facilities which operate motels, lodges, gas stations and marinas. Sony VAIO PCG-41112M Battery Paleo-Indian presence in what is now Grand Teton National Park dates back more than 11,000 years.^[4] Jackson Hole valley climate at that time was colder and more alpine than the semi-arid climate found today, and the first humans were migratory hunter-gatherers spending summer months in Jackson Hole and wintering in the valleys west of the Teton Range. Sony VAIO PCG-7153M Battery Along the shores of Jackson Lake, fire pits, tools and what are thought to have been fishing weights have been discovered. One of the tools found is of a type associated with the Clovis culture, and tools from this cultural period date back at least 11,500 years. Some of the tools are made of obsidian which chemical analysis indicates came from sources near present dayTeton Pass, south of Grand Teton National Park. Sony VAIO PCG-71312M Battery Though obsidian was also available north of Jackson Hole, virtually all the obsidian spear points found are from a source to the south, indicating that the main seasonal migratory route for the Paleo-Indian was from this direction.^[5] Sony VAIO PCG-7144M Battery Elk, which winter on the National Elk Refuge at the southern end of Jackson Hole and head north into higher altitudes during spring and summer, follow a similar migratory pattern to this day.^[6] From 11,000 to about 500 years ago, there is little evidence of change in the migratory patterns amongst the Native American groups in the region and no evidence that indicates any permanent human settlement.^[5] Sony VAIO PCG-7191L Battery When White American explorers first entered the region in the first decade of the 19th century, they encountered the eastern tribes of the Shoshone people.^[7]Most of the Shoshone that lived in the mountain vastness of the greater Yellowstone region continued to be pedestrian while other groups of Shoshone that resided in lower elevations had limited use of horses. Sony VAIO PCG-3C1M Battery The mountain dwelling Shoshone were known as "Sheep-eaters" or "Tukudika" as they referred to themselves, since a staple of their diet was the Bighorn Sheep.^[7][8] The Shoshones continued to follow the same migratory pattern as their predecessors and have been documented as having a close spiritual relationship with the Teton Range. Sony VAIO PCG-3F1M Battery A number of stone enclosures on some of the peaks, including on the upper slopes of Grand Teton (known simply as The Enclosure) are thought to have been used by Shoshone during vision quests.^[9] The Teton and Yellowstone region Shoshone relocated to the Wind River Indian Reservation after it was established in 1868.^[7] Sony VAIO PCG-3H1M Battery The reservation is situated 100 mi (160 km) southeast of Jackson Hole on land that was selected by Chief Washakie. The Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804–1806) passed well north of the Grand Teton region. Sony VAIO PCG-3J1M Battery During their return trip from the Pacific Ocean, expedition member John Colter was given an early discharge so he could join two fur trappers who were heading west in search of beaver pelts. Colter was later hired by Manuel Lisa to lead fur trappers and to explore the region around the Yellowstone River. Sony VAIO PCG-8141M Battery During the winter of 1807/08 Colter passed through Jackson Hole and was the first Caucasian to see the Teton Range.^[11] Lewis and Clark expedition co-leader William Clark produced a map based on the previous expedition and included the explorations of John Colter in 1807, apparently based on discussions between Clark and Colter when the two met in St. Louis, Missouri in 1810.^[12] Sony VAIO PCG-8161M Battery Another map attributed to William Clark indicates John Colter entered Jackson Hole from the northeast, crossing the Continental Divide at either Togwotee Pass or Union Passand left the region after crossing Teton Pass, following the well established Native American trails.^[13] Sony VAIO PCG-3C2M Battery In 1931, the Colter Stone, a rock carved in the shape of a head with the inscription "John Colter" on one side and the year "1808" on the other, was discovered in a field in Tetonia, Idaho, which is west of Teton Pass. The Colter Stone has not been authenticated to have been created by John Colter and may have been the work of later expeditions to the region. Sony VAIO PCG-5N2M Battery John Colter is widely considered the first mountain man and, like those that came to the Jackson Hole region over the next 30 years, he was there primarily for the profitable fur trapping; the region was rich with the highly sought after pelts of beaver and other fur bearing animals. Sony VAIO PCG-5P1M Battery Between 1810 and 1812, the Astorians traveled through Jackson Hole and crossed Teton Pass as they headed east in 1812.^[14] After 1810, American and British fur trading companies were in competition for control of the North American fur trade, and American sovereignty over the region was not secured until the signing of the Oregon Treaty in 1846. Sony VAIO PCG-5S1M Battery One party employed by the British North West Company and led by explorer Donald Mackenzie entered Jackson Hole from the west in 1818 or 1819. The Tetons, as well as the valley west of the Teton Range known today as Pierre's Hole, may have been named by French speaking Iroquois or French Canadian trappers that were part of Mackenzie's party.^[15] Sony VAIO PCG-9Z1M Battery Earlier parties had referred to the most prominent peaks of the Teton Range as the Pilot Knobs. The French trappers' "les trois tetons" (the three breasts) was later shortened to the Tetons.^[16] Formed in the mid-1820s, the Rocky Mountain Fur Company partnership included Jedediah Smith, William Sublette and David Edward Jackson or "Davey Jackson". Sony VAIO PCG-7171M Battery Jackson oversaw the trapping operations in the Teton region between 1826 and 1830. Sublette named the valley east of the Teton Range "Jackson's Hole" (later simply Jackson Hole) for Davey Jackson.^[13][17] As the demand for beaver fur declined and the various regions of the American West became depleted of beaver due to over trapping, Sony VAIO PCG-7186M Battery American fur trading companies folded; however, individual mountain men continued to trap beaver in the region until about 1840.^[13] From the mid-1840s until 1860, Jackson Hole and the Teton Range were generally devoid of all but the small populations of Native American tribes that had already been there. Sony VAIO PCG-81112M Battery Most overland human migration routes such as the Oregon and Mormon Trails crossed over South Pass, well to the south of the Teton Range, and Caucasian influence in the Teton region was minimal until the U.S. Government commenced organized explorations. Sony VAIO PCG-31311M Battery The first U.S. Government sponsored expedition to enter Jackson Hole was the 1859–60 Raynolds Expedition. Led by U.S. Army CaptainWilliam F. Raynolds and guided by mountain man Jim Bridger, it included naturalist F. V. Hayden, who later led other expeditions to the region.^[18] Sony VAIO PCG-8152M Battery The expedition had been charged with exploring the Yellowstone region, but encountered difficulties crossing mountain passes due to snow. Bridger ended up guiding the expedition south over Union Pass then following the Gros Ventre Riverdrainage to the Snake River and leaving the region over Teton Pass.^[19] Sony VAIO PCG-31111M Battery Organized exploration of the region was halted during the American Civil War but resumed when F. V. Hayden led the well-funded Hayden Geological Survey of 1871. In 1872, Hayden oversaw explorations in Yellowstone, while a branch of his expedition known as the Snake River Division was led by James Stevenson and explored the Teton region. Sony VAIO PCG-61111M Battery Along with Stevenson was photographer William Henry Jackson who took the first photographs of the Teton Range.^[9] The Hayden Geological Survey named many of the mountains and lakes in the region.^[20] The explorations by early mountain men and subsequent expeditions failed to identify any sources of economically viable mineral wealth. Sony VAIO PCG-51112M Battery Nevertheless, small groups of prospectors set up claims and mining operations on several of the creeks and rivers. By 1900 all organized efforts to retrieve minerals had been abandoned.^[21] Though the Teton Range was never permanently inhabited, pioneers began settling the Jackson Hole valley to the east of the range in 1884.^[22] Sony VAIO PCG-51211M Battery These earliest homesteaders were mostly single men who endured long winters, short growing seasons and rocky soils that were hard to cultivate. The region was mostly suited for the cultivation of hay and cattle ranching. By 1890, Jackson Hole had an estimated permanent population of 60.^[23] Sony VAIO PCG-51212M Battery Menor's Ferry was built in 1892 near present dayMoose, Wyoming to provide access for wagons to the west side of the Snake River.^[24] Ranching increased significantly from 1900 to 1920, but a series of agricultural related economic downturns in the early 1920s left many ranchers destitute.^[25] Sony VAIO PCG-41111M Battery Beginning in the 1920s, the automobile provided faster and easier access to areas of natural beauty and old military roads into Jackson Hole over Teton and Togwotee Passes were improved to accommodate the increased vehicle traffic. In response to the increased tourism, dude ranches were established, Sony VAIO PCG-41111V Battery some new and some from existing cattle ranches, so urbanized travelers could experience the life of a cattleman. To the north of Jackson Hole, Yellowstone National Park had been established in 1872, and by the close of the 19th century, conservationists wanted to expand the boundaries of that park to include at least the Teton Range. Sony VAIO PCG-61412V Battery By 1907, in an effort to regulate water flow for irrigation purposes, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation had constructed a log crib dam at the Snake River outlet of Jackson Lake. This dam failed in 1910 and a new concrete Jackson Lake Dam replaced it by 1911. The dam was further enlarged in 1916, raising lake waters 39 ft (12 m) as part of the Minidoka Project, Sony VAIO PCG-71112M Battery designed to provide irrigation for agriculture in the state of Idaho.^[29][30] Further dam construction plans for other lakes in the Teton Range alarmed Yellowstone National Park superintendent Horace Albright, who sought to block such efforts.^[31] Jackson Hole residents were opposed to an expansion of Yellowstone, Sony VAIO PCG-81111V Battery but were more in favor of the establishment of a separate National Park which would include the Teton Range and six lakes at the base of the mountains. After congressional approval, PresidentCalvin Coolidge signed the executive order establishing the 96,000-acre (39,000 ha) Grand Teton National Park on February 26, 1929.^[32] Sony VAIO PCG-81111V Battery The valley of Jackson Hole remained primarily in private ownership when John D. Rockefeller, Jr. and his wife visited the region in the late 1920s.^[28] Horace Albright and Rockefeller discussed ways to preserve Jackson Hole from commercial exploitation, and in consequence, Sony VAIO PCG-81212M Battery Rockefeller started buying Jackson Hole properties through the Snake River Land Company for the purpose of later turning them over to the National Park Service. In 1930, this plan was revealed to the residents of the region and was met with strong disapproval.^[28] Sony VAIO PCG-81212V Battery Congressional efforts to prevent the expansion of Grand Teton National Park ended up putting the Snake River Land Company's holdings in limbo. By 1942 Rockefeller had become increasingly impatient that his purchased property might never be added to the park, and wrote to the Secretary of the Interior Harold L. Ickes that he was considering selling the land to another party.^[33] Sony VAIO PCG-51111M Battery Secretary Ickes recommended to President Franklin Roosevelt that the Antiquities Act, which permitted Presidents to set aside land for protection without the approval of Congress, be used to establish a National Monument in Jackson Hole. Roosevelt created the 221,000-acre (89,000 ha) Jackson Hole National Monument in 1943, Sony VAIO VPCS13X9E/B battery using the land donated from the Snake River Land Company and adding additional property from Teton National Forest.^[34] The monument and park were adjacent to each other and both were administered by the National Park Service, but the monument designation ensured no funding allotment, nor provided a level of resource protection equal to the park. Sony VAIO VPCS12V9E/B battery Members of Congress repeatedly attempted to have the new National Monument abolished.^[35] After the end of World War II national public sentiment was in favor of adding the monument to the park, and though there was still much local opposition, the monument and park were combined in 1950.^[31] Sony VAIO VPCS12V9E/B battery In recognition of John D. Rockefeller, Jr.'s efforts to establish and then expand Grand Teton National Park, a 24,000-acre (9,700 ha) parcel of land between Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks was added to the National Park Service in 1972. This land and the road from the southern boundary of the park to West Thumb in Yellowstone National Park was named the John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway.^[36] Sony VAIO VPCF13M8E/B battery The Rockefeller family owned the JY Ranch, which bordered Grand Teton National Park to the southwest. In November 2007, the Rockefeller family transferred ownership of the ranch to the park for the establishment of the Laurance S. Rockefeller Preserve, which was dedicated on June 21, 2008. Sony VAIO VPCF13Z0E/B battery During the last 25 years of the 19th century, the mountains of the Teton Range became a focal point for explorers wanting to claim first ascents of the peaks. However, white explorers may not have been the first to climb many of the peaks and the earliest first ascent of even the formidable Grand Teton itself might have been achieved long before written history documented it. Sony VAIO VPCM13M1E/L battery Native American relics remain including The Enclosure, an obviously man-made structure that is located about 530 ft (160 m) below the summit of Grand Teton at a point near the Upper Saddle (13,160 ft (4,010 m)).^[39][40] Nathaniel P. Langford and James Stevenson, both members of the Hayden Geological Survey of 1872, found The Enclosure during their early attempt to summit Grand Teton. Sony VAIO VPCM13M1E/W battery Langford claimed that he and Stevenson climbed Grand Teton, but were vague as to whether they had made it to the summit. Their reported obstacles and sightings were never corroborated by later parties. Langford and Stevenson likely did not get much further than The Enclosure.^[9] Sony VAIO VPCF22M1E battery The first ascent of Grand Teton that is substantiated was made by William O. Owen, Frank Petersen, John Shive and Franklin Spencer Spalding on August 11, 1898.^[39] Owen had made two previous attempts on the peak and after publishing several accounts of this first ascent, discredited any claim that Langford and Stevenson had ever reached beyond The Enclosure in 1872. Sony VAIO VPCF11M1E/H battery The disagreement over which party first reached the top of Grand Teton may be the greatest controversy in the history of American mountaineering.^[9] After 1898 no other ascents of Grand Teton were recorded until 1923.^[41] By the mid-1930s, more than a dozen different climbing routes had been established on Grand Teton including the northeast ridge in 1931 by Glenn Exum. Sony VAIO VPCF13M0E/B battery Glenn Exum teamed up with another noted climber named Paul Petzoldt to found the Exum Mountain Guides in 1931.^[42] Of the other major peaks on the Teton Range, all were climbed by the late 1930s including Mount Moran in 1922 and Mount Owen in 1930 by Fritiof Fryxell and others after numerous previous attempts had failed.^[41] Sony VAIO VPCYB2M1E battery Both Middle andSouth Teton were first climbed on the same day, August 29, 1923, by a group of climbers led by Albert R. Ellingwood.^[41] New routes on the peaks were explored as safety equipment and skills improved and eventually climbs rated at above 5.9 on theYosemite Decimal System difficulty scale were established on Grand Teton. Sony VAIO VPCYB3V1E battery The classic climb following the route first pioneered by Owen, known as the Owen-Spalding route, is rated at 5.4 due a combination of concerns beyond the gradient alone.^[9] Rock climbing and bouldering had become popular in the park by the mid 20th century. In the late 1950s, gymnast John Gill came to the park and started climbing large boulders near Jenny Lake. Sony VAIO VPCY11M1E battery Gill approached climbing from a gymnastics perspective and while in the Tetons became the first known climber in history to use gymnastic chalk to improve handholds and to keep hands dry while climbing.^[43] During the latter decades of the 20th century, extremely difficult cliffs were explored including some in Death Canyon, and by the mid-1990s, 800 different climbing routes had been documented for the various peaks and canyon cliffs. Sony VAIO VPCS12L9E/B battery Grand Teton National Park is one of the ten most visited national parks in the U.S., with an average of 2.5 million visitors annually.^[45] The National Park Service is a federal agency of the United States Department of the Interior and manages both Grand Teton National Park and the John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway. Sony VAIO VPCF11S1E/B battery Grand Teton National Park has an average of 100 permanent and 180 seasonal employees. The park also manages 27 concession contracts that provide services such as lodging, restaurants, mountaineering guides, dude ranching, fishing and a boat shuttle on Jenny Lake.^[46] Sony VAIO VPCYB3V1E/R Battery The National Park Service works closely with other federal agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Reclamation, and also, in consequence ofJackson Hole Airport's presence in the park, the Federal Aviation Administration. Sony VAIO VPCF23P1E Battery Initial construction of the airstrip north of the town of Jackson was completed in the 1930s.^[47] When Jackson Hole National Monument was designated, the airport was inside it. After the monument and park were combined, the Jackson Hole Airport became the only commercial airport within a U.S. National Park. Sony VAIO VPCF23N1E Battery Jackson Hole Airport has some of the strictest noise abatement regulations of any airport in the U.S.^[47] The airport has night flight curfews and overflight restrictions, with pilots being expected to approach and depart the airport along the east, south or southwest flight corridors.^[48] Sony VAIO VPCY21S1E/L Battery As of 2010, 110 privately owned property inholdings, many belonging to the state of Wyoming, are located within Grand Teton National Park. Efforts to purchase or trade these inholdings for other federal lands are ongoing and through partnerships with other entities, 10 million dollars is hoped to be raised to acquire private inholdings by 2016.^[49] Sony VAIO VPCY21S1E/G battery Some monies are allocated from congress via the Land and Water Conservation Fund, but Grand Teton National Park may not get all the money needed from the fund as it is divided up between four different federal agencies. Efforts to exchange federal land from other areas for inholdings were still in the negotiation phase in 2012. Sony VAIO VPCF24M1E battery Grand Teton National Park is located in the northwestern region of the U.S. state of Wyoming.^[51] To the north the park is bordered by the John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway, which is administered by Grand Teton National Park. The scenic highway with the same name passes from the southern boundary of Grand Teton National Park to West Thumb in Yellowstone National Park.^[36] Sony  VAIO VGN-FZ31M Battery Grand Teton National Park covers approximately 310,000 acres (130,000 ha), while the John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway includes 23,700 acres (9,600 ha).^[52] Most of the Jackson Hole valley and virtually all the major mountain peaks of the Teton Range are within the park. Sony Vaio VGN-FZ19VN Battery The Jedediah Smith Wilderness of Caribou-Targhee National Forest lies along the western boundary and includes the western slopes of the Teton Range. To the northeast and east lie the Teton Wilderness and Gros Ventre Wilderness of Bridger-Teton National Forest.^[53] The National Elk Refuge is to the southeast, and migrating herds of elk winter there. Sony Vaio VGN-FZ39VN Battery Privately owned land borders the park to the south and southwest. Grand Teton National Park, along with Yellowstone National Park, surrounding National Forests and related protected areas constitute the 18,000,000-acre (7,300,000 ha) (28,000 sq mi (73,000 km²)) Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Sony Vaio VGN-FZ39VN Battery The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem spans across portions of three states and is one of the largest intact mid-latitude ecosystems remaining on Earth.^[54] By road, Grand Teton National Park is 290 mi (470 km) from Salt Lake City, Utah and 550 mi (890 km) from Denver, Colorado. Sony Vaio VGN-FZ31ZR Battery The youngest mountain range in the Rocky Mountains, the Teton Range began forming between 6 to 9 million years ago.^[56] It runs roughly north to south and rises from the floor of Jackson Hole without any foothills along a 40 mi (64 km) long by 7 to 9 mi (11 to 14 km) wide active fault-block mountain front.^[52] Sony Vaio VGN-FZ31SR Battery The range tilts westward, rising abruptly above Jackson Hole valley which lies to the east but more gradually into Teton Valley to the west. A series of earthquakes along the Teton Faultslowly displaced the western side of the fault upward and the eastern side of the fault downward at an average of 1 foot (0.30 m) of displacement every 300–400 years.^[56] Sony Vaio VGN-FZ31ER Battery Most of the displacement of the fault occurred in the last 2 million years.^[57] While the fault has experienced up to 7.5–earthquake magnitudeevents since it formed, it has been relatively quiescent during historical periods, with only a few 5.0–magnitude or greater earthquakes known to have occurred since 1850. Sony Vaio VGN-NR31E/S Battery In addition to 13,775 ft (4,199 m) high Grand Teton, another nine peaks are over 12,000 ft (3,658 m) above sea level.^[59]Eight of these peaks between Avalanche and Cascade Canyons make up the often-photographed Cathedral Group.^[60] The most prominent peak north of Cascade Canyon is the monolithic Mount Moran (12,605 ft (3,842 m)) which rises 5,728 ft (1,746 m) above Jackson Lake.^[61] Sony Vaio VGN-NR31ER/S Battery To the north of Mount Moran, the range eventually merges into the high altitude Yellowstone Plateau. South of the central Cathedral Group the Teton Range tapers off near Teton Pass and blends into the Snake River Range.^[62] Sony Vaio VGN-NR31J/S Battery