Impressions of Jackson, Wyoming

Jackson, Wyoming is a charming gateway to Grand Tetons National Park. It offers understated western charm and minimal neon. Nothing like Gatlinburg, Tennessee or some other towns that prosper because a great natural wonder is just outside the city limits. We flatlanders and tourists like to call it ‘Jackson Hole’ but the last name was meant to describe the valley. The town is just, ‘Jackson.’ It has a tourist economy as a ski destination in the winter and the entrance to the National Park year-round.

One of the Elk Antler Arches, Jackson, Wyoming (19 June 2014)

At the four sides of the town square are massive arches made of elk antlers. The arches were originally installed between 1953 and 1969. Each arch contains around 2000 racks and weigh between 10,000 and 12,000 pounds. Antlers, not being the most durable material, means the arches are replaced every forty years or so.

The Boy Scouts of Jackson have a pretty good thing going. Since they live in elk country and since elk shed their antlers every year and since elk antlers have value, the scouts have struck an agreement with the feds and are allowed to collect discarded antlers and auction them off. The Elkfest website confirms that the scouts manage to recover an average of 8000 pounds of antlers every year and bidders fork over an average of $17 per pound for them. A quarter of the proceeds go to fund scout activities and the rest goes to the Elk Refuge to help manage the herd.

Another Elk Antler Arch, Jackson, Wyoming (19 June 2014)

Apparently, the best I can find as to WHY people flock to Jackson to buy antlers is to use them in furniture, art and jewelry designs. Yet the auction site documents the price per pound…not a very aesthetic way to put it.

I’m reminded that there are cultures that prize horns and other animal parts for their medicinal and other lifestyle enhancement qualities. The demand for animal parts can support an African poacher’s family but it is driving certain species to extinction. While that’s not the case for American elk, the rhinoceros is fast disappearing. This is when I imagine a busload of Chinese tourists cruising by the town square, reacting in wide-eyed awe at the sight of the arches created from tons of antlers.