Winter Lingers On. And on

Sun Halo over the Teton Range

Winter 2022-23 was one for the history books. Or should I say “is” one for the history books. Because just this morning we woke up to a couple of inches of fresh snow in the Valley! Old-timers in Jackson Hole tell me that this is how winters always were, back in the ‘ol days. Hmmmm. I’m glad I missed those days.

The hardest part of this record snow and cold is the effect on wildlife. This winter was a devastating one for pronghorn, elk, mule deer and many other critters that we cannot monitor quite as easily. Avian flu, pnuemonia, and just plain old starvation caused record numbers of wildlife to perish. The upside is, however, that when the thaw eventually does come, predators - think grizzlies, mountain lions, coyotes, foxes etc, will find a freezer stocked with food to kick off their spring.

And speaking of grizzlies, another side effect of this weather is that the grizzlies are still not out and about. Yes, there have been a few sporadic sightings, but unlike previous years when even the females were out and visible by now, the northern park is still covered in at least a foot or two of snow and the grizzlies are nowhere to be found. Which means they will be extra hungry when they finally emerge from their dens. So please be sure to give them space. Their survival might depend upon not being impeded in their search for food.

I shot this image of a sun halo over the Tetons just yesterday. You can see how much snow there still is.