Jackson Unpacked

This is a bonus episode from “The Modern West,” a production of PRX and our friends over at Wyoming Public Media. In the podcast's 10th season, “The Gray in Between,” reporters tackle stories from a wolf incident in Sublette County last year that gained worldwide attention, to creative solutions to the affordable housing crisis, to the inevitable death of elk in the Jackson Herd, right here, in our backyard.

This week: People are solving the affordable housing shortage in the American West by building unusual homes like straw bale or modular.

This is a bonus episode from “The Modern West,” a production of PRX and our friends over at Wyoming Public Media. In the podcast's 10th season, “The Gray in Between,” reporters tackle stories from a wolf incident in Sublette County last year that gained worldwide attention, to creative solutions to the affordable housing crisis, to the inevitable death of elk in the Jackson Herd, right here, in our backyard.

This week: People are solving the affordable housing shortage in the American West by building unusual homes like straw bale or modular.

Take a trip to Grand Teton National Park’s most popular trail where an adaptive athlete from Jackson is advising Grand Teton National Park on how to make it more accessible. We remember a beloved mother, photographer and Jacksonite that died in a tragic accident earlier this month. We unpack a threat to public media, including KHOL, being considered by federal lawmakers and we have a conversation with the founder of the Targhee Music camp, a bluegrass sanctuary of sorts.

Jackson Unpacked airs locally at 89.1 FM or via live-stream Mondays at 7:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and Fridays and Sundays at 12:30 p.m. Support Jackson’s only nonprofit newsroom by becoming a member of KHOL today.

This week, we have a bonus episode from “The Modern West,” a production of PRX and our friends over at Wyoming Public Media. In the podcasts 10th season, “The Gray in Between,” reporters tackle stories from a wolf incident in Sublette County last year that gained worldwide attention, to creative solutions to the affordable housing crisis, to the inevitable death of elk in the Jackson Herd, right here, in our backyard.

Reported and produced by KHOL’s Dante Filpula Ankney, hop in a pickup as we head out into the National Elk Refuge just outside Jackson, to hear all about the debate over whether to wean elk off winter feeding before chronic wasting disease strikes.

On this week’s episode: The print news scene in Pinedale is a one-woman show. We journey 80 miles to the Western outpost to see how a start-up radio station is trying to parch the news desert, and all the political challenges that come with the territory. In Teton County’s schools, we hear how educator Piper Worthington is trying to integrate students in their first year from another country. The Mexican-born, European-trained chef Oscar Ortega is a top-five finalist for the James Beard Award in the category of outstanding bakery. He shares what keeps him innovating in his Jackson shops. And, with selling federal land for housing or energy development back on the table in Congress, we learn how some conservatives in our region advocate for the idea on a much larger scale.

Jackson Unpacked airs locally at 89.1 FM or via live-stream Mondays at 7:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and Fridays and Sundays at 12:30 p.m. Support Jackson’s only nonprofit newsroom by becoming a member of KHOL today.

The Jackson Hole Rodeo sits in the middle of town and sells out almost every summer night. We hear what’s on the minds of those in the stands and the chutes as its organizers consider if its popularity has a cap. Author and editor at The New Yorker, Michael Luo, joins us to talk about Wyoming’s hidden history of anti-Chinese violence and immigration. A Jackson musical about a woman’s rise to power in a frontier town returns to the stage. And Salt Lake City band Huertado shares how the Utah landscape inspires their reverb-drenched sound.

When people think about leaving an abusive relationship, the biggest barrier in their way is often housing. But what happens if there’s nowhere to go? We hear how an organization across the pass is dealing with a surge in need after the murder of a Victor mother. With the Trump admnistration expressing interest in converting public lands to private housing, a new study looks at the potential challenges and consequences. And Jackson native Melissa Elliott, AKA Missy Jo, is not only a music teacher but establishes herself as an emotional guru on her new EP. Her her converstaion with KHOL’s Evan Ballew and learn why she’s singing about being banned from the Wilson Post Office. 

Jackson Unpacked airs locally at 89.1 FM or via live-stream Mondays at 7:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and Fridays and Sundays at 12:30 p.m. Support Jackson’s only nonprofit newsroom by becoming a member of KHOL today.

On this week’s episode: As newsrooms around the country assess the first 100 days of President Trump’s  second administration, we bring you the view from Jackson Hole. In the foreground for county electeds is public land, where workers who manage the vast majority of our county have been fired, rehired and grappled with resignations. Advocates say the impacts have only just begun. In town, we hear from workers laid off prematurely from the county’s health department who helped people get vaccinated and navigate complex paperwork. And we hear from a team that mapped miles of fence on public lands east of Yellowstone near Cody to help wildlife while balancing the needs of working cattle lands. 

Jackson Unpacked airs locally at 89.1 FM or via live-stream Mondays at 7:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and Fridays and Sundays at 12:30 p.m. Support Jackson’s only nonprofit newsroom by becoming a member of KHOL today.

Looming beneath the surface on North Cache is a plume of a carcinogen called benzene from an old gas station, about to be unearthed to build a mega-hotel. Is the development leading to remediation, risk, or both? In a novel effort to protect both cattle and elk from disease, the Greater Yellowstone Coalition has started a new program to share costs with ranchers moving cattle in  winter, with the majority of work now in Teton County. And Chris Archuleta, frontman and guitarist of Jackson Hole band Box Elder, came into the KHOL studios to debut the band’s brand new single, “Origami Bats,” exploring how friendships change with age. 

Send your farewells to our outgoing music director Jack Catlin a.k.a DJ KnewJack. Tell him what five years of Heavy Warmup morning show, DJ creation, and overall vibes curation meant to you @891KHOL. 

Jackson Unpacked airs locally at 89.1 FM or via live-stream Mondays at 7:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and Fridays and Sundays at 12:30 p.m. Support Jackson’s only nonprofit newsroom by becoming a member of KHOL today.

An inside look at one family paying down debts and saving for a home with Habitat for Humanity. We’ll hear how the fashion of Gaper Day at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort helps your favorite ski bum break from the typical beanie and base layer. As federal employees grapple with layoffs, we catch up with a postal worker union representative to hear how the United States Postal Service has been living with staffing shortages for years. And as this year’s ski season comes to an end, we hear from a man keeping track of all the slang words for snow.

Jackson Unpacked airs locally at 89.1 FM or via live-stream Mondays at 7:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and Fridays and Sundays at 12:30 p.m. Support Jackson’s only nonprofit newsroom by becoming a member of KHOL today.