In the footsteps of Ansel Adams,,,sort of
Trip Start
Aug 30, 2011
1
19
27
Trip End
Sep 28, 2011
Where I stayed
What I did
Snake River Overlook
Jackson, Wyoming
Friday, September 16, 2011
I stopped and took some images looking back towards the geyser basin and then we left the park for our next stop Grand Tetons National Park. I thought by now we might be over the whole grand scenery thing but each of the parts of the Rockies is slightly different and has something to offer. In the case of the Grand Tetons I had a specific reason for wanting to visit.
Ansel Adams took one of his more famous images the Snake River outlook with the Grand Tetons in the background. So I was on a bit of a mission to try and find the location and take a similar image. Adams traveled a huge glass plate camera and shot in black and white then spent hours perfecting the image in the darkroom. I just really wanted to stand where the grand man stood and see what he saw.You leave Yellowstone and straightaway enter Grand Tetons. We stopped at the Grand Teton National Park Ranger station for a map and some information about what we could see on a rainy old day.Following the very helpful Ranger's advice we stopped at the Colter Bay Visitors Centre and Indian Museum. Having seen the MOA in Vancouver we were still impressed with the handicrafts and the interpretative centre displays. Chris and I were both amazed at the intricacy and beauty of the craft work. I had noidea the Indians decorated their with such detail and skill. I gestates part of the reason for travelling.
We continued further into the park the day improved slightly and we stopped at Willow Flat for a panoramic view of the Grand Tetons. Even with cloud cover it looked spectacular in its own right.
The Tetons National Park is a lot more compact than Yellowstone so we were able to get to the Snake River Overlook that afternoon. I tought I was going to have trouble finding it, but as you'll see there is a car park, paved walkways and a low stone wall to keep photographers from falling over the edge.
I took an image and converted it to B&W in as close a spot as I could to Adams original view. Obviously the landscape has changed since his 1920/30's visit but I still enjoyed being there and drawing on the eh same inspiration as one of my photographic idols.
We drove into Jackson Hole, a fairly charmless place. Our accommodation was another cozy log cabin, with TV and Internet :). Tomorrow we are off to see the “most photographed barn in the USA”
