Teton Range

Mountain range in Wyoming, United States

Teton Range

Teton Range, from the Snake River overlook, by Ansel Adams

Highest point
Peak| Grand Teton
Elevation| 13,775 ft (4,199 m) NAVD 88[1]
Coordinates| 43°44′28″N 110°48′06″W﻿ / ﻿43.74111°N 110.80167°W﻿ / 43.74111; -110.80167
Dimensions
Length| 40 mi (64 km)
Width| 12 mi (19 km)
Geography
Country| United States
State| Wyoming
Range coordinates| 43°45′N 110°50′W﻿ / ﻿43.750°N 110.833°W﻿ / 43.750; -110.833
Parent range| Rocky Mountains
Aerial view of the Cathedral Group of the Teton Range from the southeast with South Teton, Nez Perce Peak, Middle Teton, Grand Teton, Mount Owen, Teewinot Mountain (from left to right; see the image annotations), Taggart Lake (left), and Bradley Lake (right)

The Teton Range is a mountain range of the Rocky Mountains in North America. It extends for approximately 40 miles (64 km) in a north–south direction through the U.S. state of Wyoming, east of the Idaho state line. It is south of Yellowstone National Park, and most of the east side of the range is within Grand Teton National Park.

One theory says the early French voyageurs named the range les trois tétons ("the three nipples") after the breast-like shapes of its peaks.[2] Another theory says the range is named for the Teton Sioux (from Thítȟuŋwaŋ), also known as the Lakota people.[3] It is likely that the local Shoshone people once called the whole range Teewinot, meaning "many pinnacles".[4]

The principal summits of the central massif, sometimes referred to as the Cathedral Group, are Grand Teton (13,775 feet (4,199 m)), Mount Owen (12,928 feet (3,940 m)), Teewinot (12,325 feet (3,757 m)), Middle Teton (12,804 feet (3,903 m)) and South Teton (12,514 feet (3,814 m)). Other peaks in the range include Mount Moran (12,605 feet (3,842 m)), Mount Wister (11,490 feet (3,500 m)), Buck Mountain (11,938 feet (3,639 m)) and Static Peak (11,303 feet (3,445 m)).

## Geology[edit]

Main article: Geology of the Grand Teton area

Between six and nine million years ago, stretching and thinning of the Earth's crust caused movement along the Teton fault. The west block along the fault line rose to form the Teton Range, creating the youngest mountain range in the Rocky Mountains. The fault's east block fell to form the valley called Jackson Hole. The geological processes that led to the current composition of the oldest rocks in the Teton Range began about 2.5 billion years ago. At that time, sand and volcanic debris settled into an ancient ocean. Additional sediment was deposited for millions of years and eventually heat and pressure metamorphosed the sediment into gneiss.

Subsequently, magma was forced up through the cracks in the gneiss to form granite, anywhere from inches to hundreds of feet thick. Other intrusive igneous rocks are noticeable as the black dikes of diabase, visible on the southwest face of Mount Moran and on the Grand Teton. Starting during the Cambrian period, deep deposits of sedimentary rock were deposited in shallow seas over the metamorphic basement rocks. Erosion and uplift have exposed the metamorphic and intrusive igneous rocks now visible on the east slope of the range and in the Cathedral Group and the Paleozoic and Cenozoic sedimentary rocks on the west slope. As recently as 2.1 million years ago the Huckleberry Ridge Tuff was deposited along the west slope of the north part of the range.

The Teton Range rises dramatically above Mormon Row. Grand Tetons in 1921

One reason the Teton Range is famous is because of the dramatic elevation profile visible from the eastern side, which rises sharply from 4,000 to 7,000 feet (1,200–2,100 m) above the valley floor. Unlike most mountain ranges, the east side of the Teton Range lacks significant foothills or lower peaks which might obscure the view. This is due to the presence of the Teton Fault at the base of the east slope as well as the range being too young to have eroded into soft hills. The Snake River flows southward through the valley before turning to the west and entering Idaho.

The Teton Range as seen from the National Elk Refuge, March 2024.

## As a filming location[edit]

The Tetons and Jackson Hole have been the setting for a number of films, including John Wayne's film acting debut in The Big Trail in 1930 and the western film classic Shane in 1953.[5] Mount Moran and the surrounding mountains were used as a backdrop for the lake/swamp setting in the original television series Land of the Lost. In addition, this mountain range is shown on the cover of rapper Kanye West's eighth studio album Ye.[6]

## See also[edit]

* Breast-shaped hill
* Geology of the Grand Teton area
* List of mountain ranges in Wyoming

## Notes[edit]

1. ^ "Grand Teton". NGS Data Sheet. National Geodetic Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, United States Department of Commerce. Retrieved September 12, 2009.
2. ^ "Creation of the Teton Landscape: The Geologic Story of Grand Teton National Park (The Story Begins)". Nps.gov. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
3. ^ Ullrich, Jan. (2008). New Lakota Dictionary. Lakota Language Consortium. ISBN 0-9761082-9-1
4. ^ "Teton range peak names". DeAnza College. September 22, 2013. Archived from the original on April 9, 2016. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
5. ^ Goetzmann, William H. (July 24, 2004). "Picturing Jackson Hole and Grand Teton National Park". A Place Called Jackson Hole. Grand Teton Natural History Association. Retrieved May 15, 2011.
6. ^ Mizoguchi, Karen; White, Chelsea; Telling, Gillian (June 1, 2018). "Kanye West Raps About Kim Kardashian West Leaving Him, Bipolar Disorder in 7-Track Album Ye". People. Archived from the original on June 1, 2018. Retrieved June 1, 2018.

## External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Teton Range (category)

* National Park Service Grand Teton Park site
* A description of the Grand Teton Grand Traverse

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Mountains of Wyoming

Absaroka Range|

* Abiathar Peak
* Atkins Peak
* Barronette Peak
* Breccia Peak
* Clayton Mountain
* Colter Peak
* Druid Peak
* Eagle Peak
* Fortress Mountain
* Francs Peak
* Index Peak
* Mount Chittenden
* First Peoples Mountain
* Mount Hornaday
* Mount Langford
* Mount Norris
* Mount Schurz
* Mount Stevenson
* Pilot Peak
* Sheep Mesa
* The Thunderer
* Washakie Needles
* Younts Peak

Bighorn Mountains|

* Bighorn Peak
* Black Tooth Mountain
* Bomber Mountain
* Cloud Peak
* Darton Peak
* Hallelujah Peak
* The Innominate
* Mather Peaks
* Mount Woolsey
* Penrose Peak

Black Hills|

| Bear Lodge Mountains|

* Inyan Kara Mountain

|

Others|

* Missouri Buttes

Gallatin Range|

* Antler Peak
* Bannock Peak
* Bunsen Peak
* Clagett Butte
* Dome Mountain (Park County)
* Echo Peak
* Gray Peak
* Joseph Peak
* Mount Everts
* Mount Haynes
* Mount Holmes
* Mount Jackson
* Purple Mountain
* Quadrant Mountain
* Sepulcher Mountain
* Terrace Mountain
* Three Rivers Peak
* Trilobite Point
* White Peaks

Gros Ventre Range|

* Darwin Peak
* Doubletop Peak
* Sheep Mountain

Laramie Mountains|

* Casper Mountain
* Laramie Peak
* Muddy Mountain

Medicine Bow Mountains|

* Elk Mountain (Carbon County)
* Medicine Bow Peak

Salt River Range|

* Mount Fitzpatrick

Teton Range|

* Albright Peak
* Battleship Mountain
* Bivouac Peak
* Buck Mountain
* Cathedral Group
* Cleaver Peak
* Cloudveil Dome
* Disappointment Peak
* Doane Peak
* Dry Ridge Mountain
* Eagles Rest Peak
* Elk Mountain (Teton County)
* Forellen Peak
* Fossil Mountain
* Grand Teton
* Green Lakes Mountain
* Housetop Mountain
* The Jaw
* Littles Peak
* Maidenform Peak
* Middle Teton
* Moose Mountain
* Mount Bannon
* Mount Glory
* Mount Hunt
* Mount Jedediah Smith
* Mount Meek
* Mount Moran
* Mount Owen
* Mount Saint John
* Mount Wister
* Mount Woodring
* Mount Woodrow Wilson
* Nez Perce Peak
* Owl Peak
* Prospectors Mountain
* Rammell Mountain
* Ranger Peak
* Raynolds Peak
* Red Mountain
* Rendezvous Mountain
* Rendezvous Peak
* Rock of Ages
* Rockchuck Peak
* Rolling Thunder Mountain
* Shadow Peak
* South Teton
* Spearhead Peak
* Static Peak
* Survey Peak
* Symmetry Spire
* Table Mountain
* Teepe Pillar
* Teewinot Mountain
* Temple Peak
* Thor Peak
* Traverse Peak
* Veiled Peak
* The Wall
* Window Peak

Uinta Mountains|

* Humpy Peak
* Medicine Butte

Wind River Range|

* American Legion Peak
* Atlantic Peak
* Bair Peak
* Bastion Peak
* Bastion Peak-Northeast Peak
* Bears Ears Mountain
* Big Sandy Mountain
* Block Tower
* Bow Mountain
* Brown Cliffs North
* Cathedral Peak
* Desolation Peak
* Dog Tooth Peak
* Dome Mountain (Hot Springs County)
* Doublet Peak
* Downs Mountain
* East Temple Peak
* Flagstone Peak (Fremont County)
* Fremont Peak
* Gannett Peak
* Harrower Peak
* Henderson Peak
* Jackson Peak
* Klondike Peak
* Knife Point Mountain
* Lander Peak
* Lizard Head Peak
* Mitchell Peak
* Mount Bonneville
* Mount Chauvenet
* Mount Febbas
* Mount Helen
* Mount Hooker
* Mount Koven
* Mount Lander
* Mount Nystrom
* Mount Owen
* Mount Sacagawea
* Mount Warren
* Mount Washakie
* Mount Whitecap
* Overhanging Tower
* Payson Peak
* Pingora Peak
* Pylon Peak
* Raid Peak
* Rampart Peak
* Roaring Fork Mountain
* Roberts Mountain
* Shale Mountain
* Sharks Nose
* South Downs Mountain
* The Sphinx
* Split Mountain
* Sunbeam Peak
* Three Waters Mountain
* Torrey Peak
* Turret Peak
* Twin Peaks
* Union Peak
* Valentine Mountain
* Valentine Peak
* War Bonnet Peak
* Warrior Peaks
* Watch Tower
* Whiskey Mountain
* Wind River Peak
* Wolfs Head

Wyoming Range|

* Wyoming Peak

Others|

* Amethyst Mountain
* Aspen Mountain
* Barlow Peak
* Bridger Mountains
* Cook Peak
* Copper Mountain
* Dirty Mountain
* Douglas Knob
* Dunraven Peak
* Factory Hill
* Ferris Mountains
* Folsom Peak
* Garfield Peak
* Granite Mountains
* Granite Peak
* Heart Mountain
* Hedges Peak
* Hoyt Peak
* Jelm Mountain
* Mansface Hill
* Mount Hancock
* Mount Leidy
* Mount Sheridan
* Mount Washburn
* National Park Mountain
* Owl Creek Mountains
* Prospect Peak (Park County)
* Rawhide Buttes
* Roaring Mountain
* Sierra Madre Range
* Signal Mountain
* Snake River Range
* Specimen Ridge
* Sublette Mountain
* Tongue Butte
* Trischman Knob
* White Mountain
* Wilkins Peak

Authority control databases

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* VIAF

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