National Parks

[peterswim]

In the current issue of Adventure Cyclist, Chuck Haney has an article titled "Road Cycling in the National Parks".  The article starts off with a double-paged photograph of a rider in red riding up a spectacularly scenic road.  It looks like the Tetons, but I can't find a caption indicating the location.  Does anyone know where the photograph was taken?

[John Nelson]

My initial thought was that you just hadn't found the caption, because surely the ACA would not have forgotten to caption this picture. But alas, as I reviewed the issue, there is indeed no caption. Nevertheless, I agree with your guess. It does indeed look like the Tetons. The mountains in the background seem to match the ones in the picture on page 42, so it looks like these two pictures were taken at different points along the same road.

[jamawani]

If this is the image you are talking about:

http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Road-Biking-in-Grand-Teton-National-Park-Wyoming-USA-Posters_i9565190_.htm

Then, yes, it is Grand Teton National Park.

The looming mountain is Teewinot - the Grand is behind it.
The stretch of road is the Park Road about 1 mile north of North Jenny Lake Junction.

I used to live in Jackson - still live in Wyoming 20 years after leaving Jackson.
The park is lovely, but there are quite a few people.
The photo was probably taken early on a late summer/early fall day.
There is a paved off-road trail from the Moose Entrance to Jenny Lake.
And there are a few places and times when the riding is nice.
(In spring after they plow the snow but the road isn't open yet is best.)

There is hiker/biker camping at Jenny Lake, but even the rangers don't often know about it.
Even though Jenny Lake Campground fills by noon - there are almost always hiker/biker spots.

There are lots of unpaved roads that you can ride in Grand Teton which offer all of the views -
But you have the feeling of solitude so rare on pavement.

PS - Pulled up Google Streetview of same location.  CH clearly used telephoto.

[peterswim]

Yup, that's the photograph and thanks for providing the link.  I had not thought of using Google Streetview, but that is a good suggestion for future road questions.  As to there being "quite a few people" let me say that I live in Los Angeles, so to me most roads outside my area seem lightly traveled.  Happy cycling everyone.

[jamawani]

PS -

Since it was 20 years ago, I was a bit younger then.
Absolutely loved to x-country ski the park.

Visited the park this past June and biked/hiked.
Love the backcountry, but still too hectic for me.
After visiting GTNP, I biked into Kirwin, a ghost town near Meeteetse.
I was the only person on the heart-stopping narrow road.
(I did see a horse party in the valley below, but they were gone on my way back down.)
No one was in Kirwin the entire time I was there.

Pix of me skiing long ago and on the Park Road this past June.