It had been years since I last enjoyed the wilderness from within a tent, especially a mountain wilderness. After undergoing major life changes, I was ready to get the backpack on once again, and sleep among the local wildlife. With snow still thick in the higher elevations, my first choice was the Lower Paintbrush Camping Zone in the Teton Mountains of Grand Teton National Park, also known as, my home.
Always picky for a view, I found a beautiful little spot overlooking both Leigh and Jackson Lakes in northern Jackson Hole below. Despite short nights that time of year, I was in bed after dark, and up for sunrise. I wanted to relish every moment of crepuscular daylight among the granite skyscrapers.
I came away with many photos of that night and the following morning, but none captured the emotion of what I was feeling quite like the moment the sun first appeared in the northeast. The warmth of sunrise hitting my tiny 1-person tent was a welcoming back to the wilderness. In addition, that day would kick off an incredible summer filled with plenty more backpacking trips and day hikes. It wasn’t just a return to the wilderness. It was a return to myself.