Despite being a lifelong equestrian, I was greatly challenged by an early July horseback excursion into the Teton wilderness of Wyoming. Due to a connection with a pack-trip guide at the almost 100-year-old Triangle X Ranch, which overlooks the Grand Teton mountain range just outside Jackson Hole, Wy., I was asked to join what promised to be a “trip of a lifetime.” The group of seven, six of my family members and one friend, had to sign detailed waivers specifying “hold harmless” details regarding every imaginable accident scenario involving wild animals, weather, unforeseen dilemmas, etc., but we also had to state our level of horseback riding experience. All in the group had been in the saddle since childhood, so we were confident we could handle the planned five-day horseback riding excursion that left from a trailhead just outside Grand Teton National Park and ventured 20 miles to base-camp location in …