A State of Mind

Story and Photos by Karen Akgulian

I drove to Stanley from Idaho Falls late on a Friday afternoon in summer, when the sun’s reflected light danced off the roadway and clouds stretched to the horizon. The drive was easy and I found myself wondering why I hadn’t made this journey sooner.

As the road wound through the canyon, I felt the stress of work slip away increasingly with each new curve.

The stillness of Stanley settles into your bones. The jagged peaks of the Sawtooth Range don’t just dominate the skyline, they shape the rhythm of the land and the people who pass through it. Life runs on the seasonal pulse of a mountain town that knows how to wait.

The presence of the mountains demands that you slow down, listen harder, and notice more. I was in town only for the weekend, but I easily became accustomed to its tempo.