Jackson Unpacked

On this week’s episode: federal workers are being laid off across the country, including in Teton County. One recently fired US Forest Service trail worker with the Jackson Ranger District, speaks up. We’ll hear more from one co-author of a book tackling the limits of growth in the West, with chapters tackling conservation and the cost of living in Jackson Hole. Also, a conversation from KHOL’s pu...

The Wyoming Senate narrowly passed a resolution recently that would ask Congress to turn over nearly all federal land in the state. That’s 30 million acres — about half of Wyoming’s total area. We hear from Aaron Weiss, the Deputy Director at the Center for Western Priorities, a conservation advocacy group, who says the resolution was is likely to change policy. The first few weeks of Trump’s pres...

Between the legislative session in Cheyenne and President Donald Trump’s first week back in the White House, immigration policies in Wyoming are on the fast track for an overhaul.   When the roads are too snowy to drive on – why not plane? As in snow plane. In Tetonia, there’s a festival celebrating the invention that bridged the technological divide between the horse-drawn sleigh and snowmobile. ...

Despite a $100 million done deal, questions linger for some, like environmentalists Susan Marsh and Jared Baecker, about how the Kelly Parcel will be managed. Park superintendent Chip Jenkins says the process of deciding exactly that begins now. And a future of the money from the sale may further oil and gas development according to Governor Mark Gordon and the State Board of Land Commissioners. T...

On this week’s episode: KHOL’s Jenna McMurtry reports on the controversy surrounding a potential charter school south of town, in Alpine. Heather Goodrich and Jeff Daugherty agree the town needs a new school, but exactly what that school should be, not so much. Matt Erickson, the area superintendent is not sure any school can be built before the start of the next school year. KHOL’s Dante Filpula...

On this week’s episode: KHOL’s Dante Filpula Ankney chats with Dem. Senator Mike Gierau of Jackson about the Regulatory Reduction Task Force and four potential bills some feel target Teton County. KHOL’s Rachel Stevens talked with Baylee Drewry AKA Miss Wyoming 2024 about her platform: supporting women in sports. Wyoming Public Radio’s Hanna Merzbach tells us some employers around Jackson are turn...

On this week’s episode: Following the election, immigrant advocacy organizations say more deportations are looking likely and a slew of legal challenges could also get in the way. KHOL’s Jenna McMurtry talks with Teton County Sheriff Matt Carr, Lincoln County Sheriff Matt Johnson and Jackson immigration lawyer Elisabeth Trefonas about that reality. It’s been about a year since Teton County Search...

On this week’s episode: KHOL’s Dante Filpula Ankney and Jenna McMurtry hit the polls to talk to voters in both Wilson and Jackson about what was on their minds as they cast their ballots. Those voters include: Marge Glick, Alex Coosaia, Anne Jones, Karyn Chin, Rachel Miller, Keith Cozzens, Milli Dawson, Margaret Gordon and Annette Robertson. KHOL’s Emily Cohen attended two election watch parties i...

On this week’s episode: Grizzly 399’s death has made national headlines and triggered memorials and gatherings from the Snake River Canyon to Grand Teton National Park. KHOL’s Dante Filpula Ankney reports both wildlife advocates like Kristin Combs and wildlife managers like Chris Servheen and Dan Thompson say the bear had a positive impact throughout it’s life but posed some unique management chal...

On this week’s episode: Producer Alyson Spery brings us a special election edition, featuring conversations with candidates running for local office and the constituents they aim to represent.  These conversions were recorded as part of KHOL’s local One Small Step initiative, produced in partnership with StoryCorps. One Small Step brings people with different beliefs into the recording studio to t...

On this week’s episode: KHOL’s Emily Cohen takes us overseas, to Kazakhstan where Jacksonites Scott Zimmerman and Hayden Hilke with a group of others from across the West compete in the World Nomad Games.  Wyoming Public Radio’s Caitlin Tan reports the U.S. Forest Service is facing budget cuts, meaning Scott Kosiba and the local nonprofit he leads, Friends of the Bridger-Teton, will continue to be...

KHOL reporter Jenna McMurtry tells us Teton County is proposing changes to its Fire Protection Plan, that among other things, expands the boundary of what’s considered wildland urban interface. Robb Sgroi of the Teton County Conservation District, Todd Fitzgerald of a local tree service business and Jackson Fire Marshall Raymond Lane provide insight into why and how residents can make their homes...

On this week’s episode: Host and KHOL Senior Reporter Dante Filpula Ankney heads to Teton Village to talk to Jacksonites Gabe McNees, Ryan Stanley, Anna Catino and Erme Catino after they finish Lotoja. The over 200 mile bike race ends here in the Tetons and is only possible due to work from organizers like David Bern.    KHOL reporter Jenna McMurtry talks with professional skier and ultrarunner Dr...

On this week’s episode: Host and KHOL Senior Reporter Dante Filpula Ankney introduces us to the station’s revival of One Small Step. In partnership with Storycorps, we’re hosting a series of conversations between candidates running for local office and a constituent they aim to represent —- that hold differing beliefs — finding coming ground. Tune into the first of the series between Wilson reside...

On this week’s episode: Trumpet Swans — the large, straight necked black billed bird was once thought to be extinct but its recovery has had strong ties to a Jackson-based nonprofit. We’ll hear more from a music therapist about their work in the community, a discussion about a tax on empty homes that’s been considered in mountain towns across the rocky mountain west including Jackson and we hear f...

On this week’s episode: Former President Donald Trump is coming to town for a costly private fundraiser, a Jacksonite is training to become the first Winter Olympian from his country, the science of wildfire smoke in the Rocky Mountain West and we’ll take a trip to a jagged rock face in Grand Teton National Park. How do we balance safety with the desire to leave no trace?    Jackson Unpacked airs...

On this week’s episode: the town’s budget deficit and a new agreement between the town and county to split the costs of joint services. Also, we head to the Snake River where recent heat spells are impacting the river ecosystem. Lastly, we chat with the owner of a local outdoor gear repair business working to make ends meet and we introduce our new reporter, Jenna McMurtry.   Jackson Unpacked airs...

On this week’s episode we take a trip out towards the park to get a tour of the Kelly Parcel. Its sale is inching closer but the fight to bring it over the finish line is far from over. Also, we hear from Jackson Police Department’s mounted patrol atop their steeds and the Grand Teton Music Festival's expansion of programming. Lastly, we had a conversation with the “Jackson Boys” from their time o...

On this week’s episode: the latest on the Teton Pass highway reopening via a detour as a complete rebuild looms and a conversation with U.S. Secretary of State Pete Buttigieg. Also, a trip to Wyoming’s first reproductive freedom summit, as some grapple with the uncertain future of abortion in the state – in part due to challenges from right here in Teton County. And to round out today’s episode, a...

On this week’s episode: All of our stories are focusing on the recent landslide closing the Teton Pass highway — and its impact on our community. Idaho commuters doubling their commute time. Businesses with how the pass is impacting them - if at all. And a WYDOT geologist to answer the question: how did this happen? Tune in!   Jackson Unpacked airs locally at 89.1 FM or via live-stream Mondays at...

On this week’s episode: Jackson landlords are tacking on extra housing fees, and it’s adding up to sticker shock for renters. And the upcoming Mountains of Color Film Festival aims to promote inclusivity in outdoor spaces. Also, outrage continues after a man brought a muzzled and leashed wolf into a bar about an hour from Jackson, and hatred is falling on the backs of those who had nothing to do w...

On this week's episode: We’re doing something a little different. KHOL recently partnered with Wyoming Public Media on an episode of its podcast, The Modern West. It’s part of the new season, High Altitude Tales, that goes behind the scenes with reporters out in the field. This episode is about one of the biggest issues in the region — you guessed it — housing in Jackson. It's all about people fin...

On this week’s episode: We go out shed hunting near the National Elk Refuge. A new law limited the opening week to Wyoming residents, but competition was still fierce. And a new immigrant resource center opened in Jackson specifically to support people from Tlaxcala, a small state in Central Mexico. Also, in the next part of our Workers series, we spend some time with barn owls and take a commute...

On this week’s episode: Recent allegations of wolf abuse in the southwest part of the state have drawn attention from around the world. We talk to some of the people who have been covering the story. Later, in the latest in our radio diary series of workers in Jackson Hole, a snow plow driver shares his efforts to prioritize his crew’s mental well-being. Also, we talk to Teton County State Represe...

On this week’s episode: A local nonprofit stepped up to try to make Teton Pass more safe, by running a shuttle for recreationists. Also, in Eastern Idaho, a streak of avalanche deaths among snowmobilers has revealed forecasting gaps, but some are trying to change that. And, on both sides of the Tetons, men are gathering in groups to get mental and emotional support, in the wake of a community trag...