Coming up on Teton Pass, Casey Cochran wasn’t sure he really wanted to go over the temporary fix that is in place after a large portion of the pass gave way this summer.
“Those people who drive the pass every day, they know what they’re doing and they’re in a hurry,” Cochran said. “And I’m just a slow poke in front of them, hitting my brakes one too many times. So, I try to avoid it in general.”
With the grade on the temporary fix steeper than before at 11.5%, and the curves a bit curvier and sharper than before, Cochran said he thought seriously about just taking the long way around. But he really wanted to see what the pass would be like ahead of winter in anticipation of those steeper grades and tighter turns when it’s icy and slick.
“So I did it, and it was fine,” he said. “But it would not be my first choice of a ride.’”
Cochran is among the 6,000 to 7,000 or so people who use Teton Pass each year in December. Many of that number are commuters who will use the pass to get to work in Jackson every day.
All of them are weighing those new variables when it comes to using the pass to drive back and forth between their homes and work.
“Granted, I don’t drive the pass every day,” Cochran said. “And I do think the temporary fix is a pretty good one. But, if it came down to it and the weather was really bad and the canyon was closed but the pass was open, I’d probably choose to stay in town for the night.
“They really did a good job,” he continued. “But that’s just what my comfort level would be.”
Same As It Ever Was To Regular Commuters
Comfort levels are much higher among those who use the pass every day. Most of them seem to be raring to go.
They’ve put on their Blizzak tires and stocked up emergency kits with water and snacks. They’ve’ also tossed in a few extra blankets and clothes, even when they don’t expect any problems going over the pass.
Take Jenny Jensen, for example, who drives the pass every day to an office job in Jackson.
“I know it’s pretty steep,” she said, referring to the 11.5% grade for the temporary fix. “But so far, I think it’s been fine. We’ve not had any really crazy storms yet, but there’s been a few times where it has been icy, and people just go slow right there.”
The speed limit has been lowered in the area and signs are posted, Jensen said.
“I think as long as people go 20 or lower when it’s slick, I think it’s going to be fine,” she said. “They did a really good job making this a good road.”
Jensen can call in if the weather were to make traveling the pass too dangerous and ask to work remotely from home. She doesn’t anticipate needing to do that more often. But she’s set up just in case with extra blankets and snacks in her emergency kit. She’s even got a pair of Yak Tracks for her feet, just in case she needs to get out of her vehicle.
Ditto for Travis Halvorson, who said he also can call in to work remotely and usually does so multiple times in each week.
“There’s so many spots where you do need to go slow anyway,” he said. “So that one spot where it’s a little bit sharper now doesn’t really stick out.”
Halvorson said he doesn’t have an emergency kit per se. He has a shovel in his car year-round though, as well as a blanket and additional clothes. He doesn’t bother with all-season tires, either. He just uses his snow tires year-round.
He particularly likes that WYDOT has chip-sealed the road, which he feels has given it good traction for the wintry weather.
“I haven’t had to drive it on a really nasty day yet this year,” he said. “We will get some days where it’s really hairy, so I guess we probably haven’t seen the worst of it yet.”
He’s more worried about people who refuse to follow the rules and try to sneak over the pass with semitrucks or trailers.
Permanent Fix In Progress
Wyoming Department of Transportation has taken a number of steps to improve safety on the temporary route over the pass, while it works on a permanent fix.
That included the chip-seal surface for improved traction, as well as guardrails placed on both sides of the detour.
“The area is monitored constantly with instrumentation that would indicate any movement and monitors groundwater levels to inform our Geology Program of any possible issues,” WYDOT Resident Engineer Bob Hammond told Cowboy State Daily. “Nothing of concern has happened, and the detour meets design requirements for stability.”
WYDOT is continuing to work on the permanent fix, which will put the road back where it was when the road was built back in the 1960s.
The road originally had a 9.2% grade with a 286-foot radius curve at the location of where the pass gave way.
“The temporary detour cut the road to the inside of the old curve to be away from the landslide and allow room for working on the permanent repair,” Hammond said. “The detour was built at 11.5% with multiple smaller curve radii as small as 150 to 200 feet.”
That’s drivable at slow speeds, Hammond added, but not suitable for a permanent route.
“The effort was to have a detour open quickly, avoid the slide area and be forward-thinking to have space to work and build the new permanent road,” he said. “The permanent roadway under construction now will have a grade of 9.2% and a radius of 288 feet, which is nearly identical to the original roadway.”
The permanent road will have a foundation designed to prevent future landslides, Hammond said.
Sheer micropyles have been situated to hold materials in place, and a robust drainage system will keep water out of the area.
“Lastly, the fill is much lighter than just dirt alone and has less driving force to want to push down to make a slide,” Hammond said. “The slope is also not as steep as the old embankment. All these add up to a long-lasting fill to place the new road.”
The commute over Teton Pass this winter will be a lot steeper and curvier for drivers this winter. (Wyoming Department of Transportation) 
The commute over Teton Pass this winter will be a lot steeper and curvier for drivers this winter. (Wyoming Department of Transportation) 
The commute over Teton Pass this winter will be a lot steeper and curvier for drivers this winter. (Wyoming Department of Transportation)
The Right Mindset
When it comes to driving the pass, the most important thing has always been mindset, said Abby Tarver. She owns the Call of the Wyld, a Jackson dogsledding business with kennels in Idaho.
She drives Teton Pass with her dogs every day twice a day, up to 45 of them on each of two trucks.
“We put studded snow tires on, and we spend a lot of money on equipment to make it,” she said. “And our trucks are all four-wheel drive trucks and everything.”
Tarver said she’s really impressed with the job WYDOT did and has no reservations about using the pass this winter.
“It’s definitely steeper and a little sharper of a curve,” she said. “But honestly, you’re typically going like 15 to 20 mph in the wintertime anyway, so it’s not like you’re moving that fast. I think it’s going to be fine.”
Much depends on people following the rules, she added.
“All it takes is one person to wreck or whatever, and the whole pass comes to a standstill,” she said.
She wouldn’t consider taking the long way around to avoid the pass.
“I’ve driven that before and it’s equally as scary,” she said. “You just kind of have to pick the lesser of all evils, and that’s different for every person. To me, once you learn to drive it, the pass is not so scary. It’s just when you do get those people who are driving recklessly. That’s what I’m more concerned about.”
Renée Jean can be reached at renee@cowboystatedaily.com.
