Three Days in Grand Teton

Lots of claims are made for ranges whose mountains "just rise up out of the earth." The Tetons actually DO. These beautiful peaks jut 6,000 feet above the surrounding valley of Jackson Hole. Only 40 miles long, the geologic activity that formed this region is relatively recent, so erosion hasn't dulled the edges crafted by the glacial carving that followed, leaving the whole range looking like a series of American Matterhorns.

But there's more than geology here. Interspersed among the mountains are clusters of beautiful alpine lakes, lovely meadows, and lots of wildlife. There's some of the country's busiest national park sites, and some of the nation's most remote wilderness. There's great variety in the people, too: the descendants of ranchers who settled this area 125 years ago, tremendously wealthy western urbanites in Jackson Hole, those pushing for more development, and those seeking more wilderness. It's an important place for the conservation movement: John D. Rockefeller was so troubled by those seeking to strip this area of resources that he formed the Snake River Land Company to discreetly buy up the area and preserve it, creating a tension that still hasn't entirely disappeared.

When you head out to see the park, don't miss Jenny Lake. It's a beautiful mountain lake, and the short trail from the lake's western side to Hidden Falls is a gem. Consider taking the shuttle boat at least one direction to enjoy the magnificent view from the water. Head to Oxbow Bend Turnout or Willow Flats Overlook for moose watching. Visit the charming Chapel of the Transfiguration just north of Moose Visitor Station—there's no better match between church and nature anywhere.

And when you're ready to leave the crowds behind, head off to the Gros Ventre Slide, just outside the park's eastern boundary, for some solitude, pleasant hiking, and an interesting geology lesson. Or to the Phelps Lake Overlook trail for a beautiful view of a lake not quite as nice as Jenny, but with a lot less company. Consider a float trip on the Snake River, well removed from the roads, with a chance to see the wildlife up close.

Stop at every pullout and overlook on the park roads. Every one was built for a good reason, and we were glad we took time for each one.

Quick Tips:

These two principles apply at every National Park, but they're especially true here: to beat the crowds, (1) get up early, and (2) get off the pavement and into the park.

This place is very accessible, and very popular. Summertime crowds are large, and understandably so, given the tremendous beauty of these mountains (and Grand Teton's northern next-door neighbor, Yellowstone). But like everywhere else, there are plenty of people who don't want to start their vacation mornings much before 10am. If that doesn't include you, head for the really busy places (Jenny Lake, the overlooks, Hidden Falls) first thing, and use the rest of your days to get up into the valleys and onto the trails.

But sharing crowded beautiful places with other folks is still better than skipping them. We bit the bullet and hiked to Hidden Falls midday on the July 4 weekend, and it was busy, but with a nice kind of camaraderie.

Don't forget the evenings, either. It stays light really late here in the summer, and visiting the overlooks in the evening reduces the crowds a little bit. We headed out every night to look for wildlife and found the traffic a little lighter after 7 or 8pm. Oxbow Bend (at right, as seen from Signal Mountain) is a particularly great spot for moose watching, and understandably popular. Like Yellowstone, if you see people parked here en masse, there's probably something worth stopping for.

Lodging in the park is limited, and two of the lodges (Jenny Lake and Jackson Lake) are rather high-end. There are places out to the west past Moran, as well as south of the park in Jackson Hole, that put you about 20 to 30 minutes away from the park. We stayed out west near Togwotee Pass and enjoyed our commute up the Buffalo Fork River Valley each day. One evening, we drove off the main road (US 287) and into the Bridger-Teton National Forest and had fun exploring. We ended up at a high-end guest ranch beautifully situated in the valley, where we had a nice conversation with the owner as the sun set.

Best Way To Get Around:

Although the Park Service has instituted shuttle buses at other popular places (Zion, Grand Canyon, Bryce), they haven't done so here. You need a car to move between locations and overlooks, many of which are along the Teton Park Road. At the larger visitor centers (Jenny Lake, Colter Bay), there's plenty to do once you get there. But the parking lots do fill up, and it can be tough to get a spot if you arrive midday.

When you're driving north from Jackson Hole, all roads are in the Snake River Valley. It takes a little longer if you get off the park road, but you can still see the mountains no matter what road you're on. For one of your north/south passes, consider heading to the west along Antelope Flats Road, Gros Ventre River Road, or others. You'll find a lot less traffic, and little bit more of what this area was like before becoming so popular.

Location, location, location. This collection of cabins and lakefront units is right on the eastern shore of Jackson Lake (the only such resort in the park, as they point out to you). We spent 1 night here at the end of our Grand Teton Visit in an upper-level lakefront retreat.

For $210, our room (one of four in the building, two on each level) had a narrow but nice balcony along the front with two chairs and a magnificent view of Jackson Lake and its stony shoreline. The living area had a sleeper sofa and the bedroom had two queen-size beds. The small kitchenette could have used some updated pots and pans but did include a coffeemaker and coffee. There's a variety of other rooms here, too, including rustic cabins.

Our room was spacious and comfortable and gave the five of us than more than enough room to unwind. The central lodge has some other nice areas, as well as a small grocery store. The lodge is in the middle of the park, roughly equidistant from Colter Bay and Jenny Lake. If you wanted to spend a while in Grand Teton, this would be a good base. Several of the families we met do that every summer, coming here for a week of boating, relaxing, hiking, and sightseeing.

We wanted to spend at least 1 night in the park, which we knew might be hard to come by when we made our plans in April—but there was one spot left! It was exactly what we were hoping for: a comfortable place to relax and watch the sun go down on the Tetons in the evening, and to watch it rise again the next morning.



The sunrise was gorgeous, and my wife and I had coffee (provided in the room) on the balcony and watched the whole spectacle unfold. We left Grand Teton with the sunlight streaming over Jackson Lake and onto those goregous mountains.


You can learn more about the lodge at their website, but they only take reservations over the phone. Like most in-park lodges, a reservation requires a deposit of the first night's charges.)

This mountain lodge is evidently a big headquarters for snowmobilers in the winter, but it makes a good base for your summertime trip to Grand Teton, too. It's about 18 miles east of Moran Junction on the east side of the park, just as the US 287 heads up into Togwotee Pass. The 20-minute drive up the Buffalo River Valley to get here is pleasant.

There's a main lodge with traditional rooms and a restaurant. We stayed in one of the two dozen or so cabins, which held our family of five quite nicely. The cabins are located on a cleared hillside behind the lodge, but don't really give you much of a view. The rate was about $170 and gave you a bedroom in the rear with two queens (where we put the kids), a bathroom in the middle, a small kitchenette and a dining area, and a pullout sofa near the fireplace ($10 extra). (The mattress for the sofa was a lot more comfortable when we put it on the floor.) Both the bedroom and living room have TVs; the cabins also have BBQ grills right outside the front door.

The kitchen was pretty basic, but there was enough to make pancakes in the morning. Each cabin does include a coffeemaker and coffee. There's a laundry facility in the cabin complex, too (which allowed us to make good use of a rainy night), a gas station on-site, and a small store with all the grocery basics and more (at remote mountain prices, however).



The Tetons from Togwotee Pass, just east of the Lodge

The restaurant is pretty good—we ate one dinner and two breakfasts there. At breakfast, the buffet was basic but well done. The staff here was friendly, but we didn't spend too much time here during our 2-night stay, since we spent long hours in the park. If you come out this way, be sure to head the extra quarter-mile east up to the Togwotee Overlook, which gives you a great view of the Tetons.

If you're interested, the Lodge has a pretty good website with summer and winter rates, menus, and virtual tours of the rooms and cabins. The front desk was really, really helpful when I called to make reservations, and they also offer a 10% AAA discount.

It's July 1927. Someone comes galloping into town screaming to get out. Minutes later, half a mountainside is carried through town on a wall of water.

For the residents of Kelly, WY, it was the second time the mountain moved in 2 years. In June 1925, the limestone side of Sheep Mountain suddenly slid down the hill and into the valley. The rubble created a natural dam on the Gros Ventre River, 225 feet tall and a half-mile wide, forcing the creation of Slide Lake. Folks in Kelly lived downstream for 2 years before that natural blockage gave way, which took the town and the lives of six residents with it.

Even 80 years later, the marks of this enormous event still scar the landscape. The slide took the topsoil with it, and thus no forest has regrown in those spots—two large gashes on the mountainside that you can't miss. The forest service has made a terrific interpretive trail here, which takes you through the area in the Gros Ventre Valley where the slide came to a halt. There are piles of limestone boulders, trees still growing sideways, tangled masses of trunks and stumps, and other oddities that give you a real feeling for what happens when that much rock is on the move.

It's really worth making the trip out here, and if you do, I can almost guarantee you'll have the place to yourself. We were here on July 4th weekend, near lunchtime, and we saw no one else during our time on the trail. I wouldn't have thought to come out here if it hadn't been for a AAA guidebook, and the whole family was glad we did.

It's a pleasant drive across the flats to (new) Kelly and then a little bit farther: from Jackson Hole, take US 191 just inside the park boundary and bear right at Gros Ventre Junction and on to Gros Ventre River Road. Just past the campground, the road bears right and heads due east to Kelly and then heads north out of Kelly. After a mile and a half, Gros Ventre Road turns right. Keep going and you'll soon see the signs.

Unless you visit Grand Teton in the off season, you won't be alone in this beautiful park. Sometimes, that'll be okay—there are sites you wouldn't want to miss, even if you've got plenty of company at your side snapping pictures along with you. But if you're longing for a little solitude, this moderately strenuous hike is a good way to leave the crowds behind for 3 hours or so.

It's not trivial to get here: head south from Moose on Moose-Wilson Road, and after 3 miles, turn right. After another mile or so, it turns into a two-track road (you can't make it on the Moose-Wilson Road with an RV or motorhome). You'll pass a number of private cabins as you head for the ominous-sounding Death Canyon Trailhead. At the parking area, there will probably be a couple dozen other vehicles, too, since in addition to the day hike you're undertaking, this is a departure point for the backcountry. In fact, we had a little difficulty finding a place to park.

But the trail itself isn't as busy as it looks: during our afternoon ascent we only encountered about six to eight other groups of hikers. The trail is well marked and moves along a stream for a while before heading uphill. You're climbing 420 feet to an overlook of Phelps Lake, located on a wooded bluff above the beautiful waters below.



Our family of five found it just about the right length and difficulty for an afternoon outing. The trail is just under a mile each way, and the combination of meadow and forest along the path, along with the terrific view at the top, make this a great way to spend a few hours. It won't give you perfect solitude, but it will get you off the pavement and away from the crowds.

If you want to keep going, you can head past the overlook and branch off the Death Canyon Trail to Phelps Lake itself. You descend the glacial moraine you just climbed and wind around to the east shore of the lake. It's just over another mile each way, and fairly steep.

This workin' dude ranch is still owned and operated by the Turner family, whose ancestors fell in love with the area 80 years and four generations ago. It's the last dude ranch in a national park, and running float trips is evidently one of the many things they do well.

If you're looking for whitewater adrenaline, this trip down the Snake won't give it to you. There are a few small rapids here and there, but the focus of this excursion is on the scenery and the wildlife.

We took the evening supper float, which ran about $200 for our family of five. We met at the ranch, where we were ferried down to the dining pavilion at the river's edge. Our guides had dinner well underway, which was great: grilled salmon, ribs, and corn on the cob. We sat at picnic tables near the edge of the river, right in the park. That night's group then boarded three rafts: ours held 10 (our guide, our family, and one other family).



This was a perfect night: during our 11-mile trip down river, we watched the sun set on the Tetons and saw beavers, elk, hawks, and, the highlight, a bald-eagle dad teaching his eaglet how to fly. Our guide gave each of the kids a chance to take the oars, providing terrific parental photo ops. I love those pictures—my kids have huge smiles on their faces.

All of us had a great time. We pulled our rafts out of the river at the Moose Visitor Center right at 9pm, after a great 4 hours. I'd recommend this experience, and this company, to anyone. It's another great way to experience Grand Teton without the crowds, and was well worth the money.

You can get more details about the Triangle X Float trips at their website. The ranch itself is off US 191/26/89, about 7 miles south of Moran.

This little log cabin of a church fits perfectly here in the park. About a half mile to the west of the main park road, its altar faces the Tetons--and has a picture window over it, so the congregation looks out at the beautiful mountains beyond. It's one of many places in this valley from which to view these amazingly scenic peaks.

The Chapel was built in 1925 and is still home to an Episcopal congregation. Two stained glass windows inside the small narthex commemorate the seasons in the mountains. The rustic interior, filled with log-crafted seats, holds maybe 80. The highlight is the wonderful view over the altar, but the whole site is picturesque and perfectly made for photo opportunities. It's well worth a quick trip: we spent a pleasant hour here just enjoying the setting, the building, and the scenery.

Jenny Lake may be the world's most beautiful body of water. When we came upon it at the scenic turnout one morning, it was difficult to move on. The setting is spectacular: it's completely surrounded by the Tetons on its western and northern side. We ended up having our family portrait taken there by some new friends, and we all love that picture.

Jenny Lake is also the site of one of the park's main attractions: the pleasant hike to Hidden Falls. It's popular enough that unless you schedule it first thing in the morning, you'll find the trail pretty busy. When you get there, you'll know why: it's a modest climb along a series of cascades, leading to a beautiful 200-foot drop of pure whitewater.

You have several options for getting there: it's about 1.7 miles around the north shore of Jenny Lake to Hidden Falls. There's also a park concessionaire shuttle across the lake for $7.50 RT or $5 one way ($5/$4 for kids 6 to12). I'd recommend taking the boat at least one direction—Jenny Lake is a beautiful spot, located right underneath the Tetons, with wonderful views up at the mountains in almost all directions.

We took the boat both ways, so I'm not sure how much company you'll have if you hike around the lake. But once you get to the dock at the Cascade Canyon Trailhead, you'll certainly be part of a crowd on the last half-mile. It's probably the busiest trail I've ever been on (we were there about 1pm on the 4th of July). We hiked along with a group of 12 from the Teton Mountaineering School, who were beginning their ascent of Grand Teton. The whole crowd on the trail had a nice spirit.

The trail has a very modest elevation gain, about 150 feet. After taking you along some smaller but pretty cascades, it brings you out to the view of the falls. There are benches available if you'd like to sit and relax and watch the water for a while. The falls are called "hidden" because they are a little back in the woods: as you approach, you'll see a sign that says "Viewpoint 100 feet," even though you can hear and practically feel them.

Don't let the crowds scare you away from this spot. It's worth the trip.

The Jenny Lake scenic turnout is a little more difficult to reach than most (that, and our 9am arrival probably kept the crowds down). It's on a one-way stretch of road reached by heading west at the North Jenny Lake Junction on Teton Park Road. The first stretch is two-way; just before you reach Jenny Lake Lodge, it changes to one-way. From junction to turnout is about 2 or 3 miles; it's another half-mile to where this loop rejoins the Park Road.

You can find the schedule, fares, and more at the website for Jenny Lake Boating, the operator of the shuttle.

It's hardly the most beautiful peak in the park, but then again, you can drive up it. We were looking for a nice early evening activity after checking in at nearby Signal Mountain Lodge on our last night in Teton, before heading back through Yellowstone and onto Montana.

We headed south from the Lodge for about a mile and a half to the start of Signal Mountain Road. The two paved lanes gently climb 800 feet over 5 miles, with multiple but easy switchbacks (even so, trailers and RVs aren't allowed). It was a really pleasant trip under the forest canopy nearly the whole way, with the fading sunlight sneaking through. Every now and then, we'd get a peek back west to the Tetons or south toward Jackson Hole. After about 15 minutes, we found ourselves approaching the top of 7,600-foot Signal Mountain.

We first came to an overlook toward the south. Leaving our car in the deserted parking lot, we took the short trail to the southernmost bluff, where we found a great view of the Tetons and Mount Moran.



Getting back in the car, the road took us to the summit, with a panoramic eastern look out at the valleys.

There aren't many places here where you can get a mountaintop vista without doing the climbing yourself—this is one of them. Coming near sunset probably didn't help the mosquitoes (I wish we'd had insect repellant), but we still stayed for a while to enjoy the quiet.

If you like earning your vistas, there's also a 4-mile hiking trail (separate from the road) that leads more directly to the top.