104
NOVEMBER 2013
•
HEMISPHERESMAGAZINE.COM
THREE PERFECT DAYS
||
JACKSONHOLE
DAY TWO
| When the Four Seasons
openedhere in 2003, it put JacksonHole on
the luxury-travel map and helped change
the perception of the area from a rugged
outpost to the kindof placewhere aperson
might decide to rent a helmet cam from
an on-site ski concierge while his boots
warmed ina locker.Which ispreciselywhat
youdobeforeheadingoutsideandbreezing
past powderhounds cramming themselves
into the tram for first tracks.
It’s not long before you arrive at
Terra
Café
, a buzzing eatery on the ground
floor of the LEED-certified Hotel Terra.
The poached eggs with potato bread,
roasted tomatoes, chopped bacon, chives
and smoked paprika hollandaise require
some recovery time, but they’re worth it.
whosemenu involves suchneo-traditional
cuisine as lobster sliders and caribou sau-
sage. A restaurateur and 18-year Jackson
Hole resident named Gavin Fine runs the
place, along with just about every other
high-end eatery in town. A er demolish-
ing the hoisin-glazed spare ribs in short
order, youmake amental note to seewhat
else the guy’s got to offer. He has a gi .
The sledding, dipping, shopping and
gorginghave taken it out of you, soyouhop
in your rental car and head toward your
new digs in Teton Village: the
Four Seasons
Resort and Residences Jackson Hole
. After
glancing around the lobby, which strikes
theperfectbalancebetweenglitzyandcozy,
you nod to the cowboy hat–clad bellman,
check in and hit the hay.
Back intown, it’s time for some shopping.
Predictably, Jackson has plenty of stores
selling cowboyhats, elk antlers, wolf paint-
ings and dreamcatchers, but among these
youfind a clutch of home goods and cloth-
ing shops that’dmake anyBrooklynhipster
feel at home.
Stio
, a sleek and functional
outdoor apparel label from local designer
Steve Sullivan, opened its minimalist flag-
ship store here late last year. You pick up
a few items of clothing that require five
trademark symbols to fully describe their
variousweatherproofingcapabilities, confi-
dentthatyou’renowpreparedforwhatever
mushing or whooshing might lie ahead.
Dinner is nearby at
The Kitchen
, whose
interior looks like a bunker built by a
postmodern Scandinavian designer and
BOMBINGTHEBORDERS
Sidecountry skiing’s secret origins
In the 1980s, the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort—or, specifically, the steep cliffs,
narrow chutes and airy powder beyond its roped boundaries—was the stomping
ground of a secret fraternity of high-flying ski daredevils known as the Jackson Hole
Air Force. Membership patches were offered to those who pushed limits not for show
but for the thrill—whether anyone was there to witness a gnarly run didn’t matter.
Their motto was “Swift, Silent, Deep,” and these hotdogs are often cited as a major
influence on today’s extreme skiers.
Nowadays, of course, accessible out-of-bounds terrain (“sidecountry”) is a
mandatory feature of quality resorts around the globe, including at Jackson Hole,
where skiers are given suggested entry points.
Hats and T-shirts emblazoned with the JHAF logo can be picked up at shops around
town. The patches, meanwhile, are still extremely difficult to get your hands on.
WARMING UP AND
CHILLING OUT
The laid-back lobby
at the Jackson Hole
Four Seasons, which
put the town on the
luxury map
