On the trail - July 31, 2011

Proposed Title: Teton Treehouse Adventure

One hot, midsummer afternoon in the early 70’s, my friend Russell and I were sitting on a concrete stoop in front of my house staring at the forest preserve across the street. As the dog days of summer were setting in, we found ourselves bored out of our minds. Randomly, an idea popped into my head while gazing at the oak trees across the street. We should build a treehouse.

We selected a dead willow tree stump in my backyard as our project location. We proceeded to build a fortress with discarded building materials. It was to be the place where imagination, creativity, and adventure were encouraged during my youth. So when it came time to select an adventure to help celebrate my 30th birthday, it is no wonder a treehouse would somehow be part of it.

The name caught my eye as I was flipping through a bed & breakfast guide book looking for a place to stay as a base camp for an adventure. I stopped when I saw the name “A Teton Treehouse”. Located in Wilson, Wyoming just outside of Jackson Hole and Grand Teton National Park, this place looked amazing.

Tucked away in the trees on a north facing slope off Heck of a Hill road sits the bed & breakfast named “A Teton Treehouse”. 95 steps made of railroad ties are carved into the hillside and are your first test at aerobic fitness as you make your way up to what could be described as a modern day Robinson and Caruso hideaway. The spirit of the Old West mixed with the solitude of the wind thru the pines immediately begins to melt away the stress in your shoulders as you begin to relax.

The rooms can best be described as sanctuaries of casual elegance. From massive log rafters to downy soft comforters, you feel as though you are tucked away somewhere special. The large windows verify that you are indeed in a treehouse in the trees overlooking Jackson Hole.

With all that said, what really makes the place is the owner, a guy by the name of Denny Becker. Denny originally made a name for himself in the area as a river guide. When it was time to get married and start a family, he built the treehouse. Much like a pioneer would build a log cabin; Denny expanded his creation adding a room here and there until he decided to make it a bed & breakfast. Lucky for us he did.

This base camp for adventure originally served as the launching point of an epic backpacking trip into Grand Teton National Park. I use the word epic not to describe the degree of difficulty of the trip, but the degree of greenhorn that my friend Jim and I displayed. We carried more food and clothing on that trip than the lady from the Titanic. We brazenly shunned Denny’s help when it came to packing for the trip and it cost us big time. One blown out knee and a strained friendship were the result, but we both got over it.

We stayed both before and after the trip at the treehouse. Like all great adventures, we looked forward to, enjoyed, and now remember that trip fondly. After all these years, I remain good friends with Denny Becker. His wisdom about nature and life has been invaluable to me. If you ever get a chance to spend some time in the Jackson Hole area, I highly recommend you spend some time at A Teton Treehouse. It is a memory you will not soon forget.