Get Out: Curtis Canyon, the anytime camp

Friday, June 26, 2009

By Matthew Irwin

Jackson Hole, Wyo.-Not until the wind hit us on the Curtis Canyon overlook did we think we’d have to move the BBQ party back to our place.

Driving up on Sunday, clouds rode the Teton and Gros Ventre ranges, avoiding much of the valley as they rained through the intermittent rays of the seven o’clock sun. 

A bighorn sheep flashed across the landscape, disappearing into the trees.
“I knew I should have made it for earlier,” my lady said.

“We’ll be OK,” I said, not wanting our plans to be undone, but also aware that the allure of Curtis Canyon is it seems far away, but it is close enough for an early retreat as much as a spontaneous BBQ or campout.

Those of us who had not been on the overlook before dug in the cars for blankets and bartered with others for articles of clothing.

Speckles of rain and dark clouds made the wind seem colder, so with the thought of trying to light the grill, we contemplated calling the rest of the party before they arrived to save them the drive.

Finally, someone suggested we duck behind the butte, into the trees of a Curtis Canyon Campground.

And that made all the difference.

We noticed the stillness immediately. Some of the guys ran out for firewood, while the others of us started the charcoal grill.

The ladies prepared the food, one of them noting that we had assumed hunter-gatherer roles.

The dogs patrolled the perimeter of our site.

We poured wine, and waited for the rest of our party to arrive.

Occasionally, a tree shook in the wind, dropping its deposit of rain on us.
You’ve been to a BBQ before, so it would be a waste of words to describe details of a grill full of food, glasses full of wine and faces full of smiles.

However, let me say that if you have friends who play the fiddle and the Bodhran, bring them along.

Of course, guitars, mandolins and banjos also suffice as dessert music. (We ate homemade ice-cream sandwiches.)

I, along with just about everyone else, stared into the fire until someone finally alerted us to the sky, completely open and full of stars.

We put out the firepit and the grill with the ice from our cooler, and we were home in bed by midnight – maybe not rested, but certainly mentally prepared for Monday. JHW

Curtis Canyon is located on Bridger-Teton National Forest land. Take the National Elk Refuge Road past Twin Creek Ranch at the bend. Take the second left to the butte and climb the switchbacks. The overlook is on your right; the campground is on your left.

Photo by Matthew Irwin
Mark Tuttle and Jaime Reilly provide the BBQ tunes.

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Get Out: Curtis Canyon, the anytime camp | Planet JH News Article: General News

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