Magic in the Tetons, Part III

milky way at grand teton mountain

The Magic in the Tetons Ladies Photography Retreat with Kristen Ryan was full of so much content that I couldn’t fit it all in one blog post. If you missed the first two posts you can find Part I here and Part II here.

After we experienced sunrise at Oxbow Bend we headed back down the road and stopped at the Snake River Overlook. This is the spot where Ansel Adams took his famous image of the Grand Tetons overlooking the Snake River in 1942. I was in awe to stand in the same place and view the same scene that the great Ansel Adams once stood. When I got home and reviewed my images I decided that one was worthy of a black and white edit, inspired by Ansel Adams’ image. The trees have grown a little in the last 80 years 😉 so you can only see a portion of the river as it curves through the landscape.

Black and White of Grand Tetons and Snake River

And a color version.

Grand Tetons with Snake River

Our next stop was Schwabachers Landing but a different viewing area than the previous night. We wandered around soaking in the beauty of the mountains, river and evergreens.

Grand Tetons at Schwabacher Landing
grand tetons and evergreens at Schwabacher Landing

The evergreens were so beautiful against the snow capped mountains.

Grand Tetons with evergreens overlooking Snake River

We enjoyed lunch at Signal Mountain Lodge before returning to our cabins to rest before sunset. The clouds were abundant all day but decided to float away at sunset. I decided to try a starburst behind TA Moulton’s barn as the sun dropped below the mountains.

sunburst behind grand teton mountains at TA Moulton barn

The barn is located on Mormon Row in the Grand Teton National Park. The Mormon’s sent homesteaders from Idaho to Wyoming in the late 1890’s to support their expanding population. The families clustered their farms to share labor and community thus creating what is now known as Mormon Row. Thomas Alma (TA) & Lucille Moulton settled on this land in 1910 but it took Thomas 30 years to build the barn pictured above. In the mid-1900’s, Mormon Row was acquired as part of the Grand Teton National Park. **info from the Grand Teton National Park Foundation**

We stayed in this location and waited for nightfall and the milky way. I’ve always be in awe of astrophotography but have only tried it a few times. As we positioned ourselves behind the barn for the best view of the milky way, we chatted and laughed. As the sky grew dark you could here the “oohs” and “aahs” as the milky way became visible.

milky way at TA Moulton Barn

Since we had several hours to photograph we moved to another location to capture the mountains and the milky way. I am in love with astrophotography! The below images capture my experience and awe as we stood under the night sky filled with thousands of stars. Words can’t adequately describe how I felt that night but these images will always take me back to standing side by side with 7 wonderful women at 2:30am in the Grand Teton National Park!

milky way at grand teton mountain
milky way at grand teton mountain

I’ll share more in the next blog post.

Photograph what brings you Joy!

  1. Kristen Ryan says:

    Loving your recap of our time together Sharon! And your images are just so beautifully photographed!

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