Grant Teton National park is an awe-inspiring place where you’ll see jagged peaks, historical sites, wildlife and many opportunities to hike and explore the beauty of nature. We visited in August, 2021, and want to share some of our experience with you.
What to know before you visit
A trip to Grand Teton National Park will be much more enjoyable if you plan ahead. So, here are some things to know before you go.
🗺️ Location and Terrain
Grand Teton National Park is located in the state of Wyoming. It’s North of Jackson Hole by about 20 minutes, and South of Yellowstone by about an hour. There are two entrances to Grand Teton: a North and a South entrance, so keep that in mind as you plan which direction you’re coming from, and where in the park you’ll be staying.
The mountains in Grand Teton are staggering, and seem almost overwhelming in how immense they are. This is because this part of the Rocky Mountains doesn’t feature foothills. This means you go from grassy plains to mountains almost immediately, as if one distinct landscape was copied and pasted onto another.
This also means trails in Grand Teton get steep quick! Be sure to check apps like AllTrails to get a sense of the elevation change that happens as you get further into the mountains.
Pro Tip: Download and purchase a GPS guide through GuideAlong. There’s a guide for Yellowstone that includes 375+ points of interest, and there’s also a version that includes Grand Teton with 550+ points of interest.
What you can expect to see (and do)
There is a lot to see in Grand Teton – camping, history, trails, geology, wildlife – but there are really three main categories of adventures you’ll find there: driving, exploring lakes & rivers, and backcountry hiking. Each of these, respectively, gets you closer and closer to the mountains and further into the pristine wilderness that Grand Teton offers it’s more than three million visitors each year.
Driving in Grand Teton National Park
The park does a really nice job of providing pull-off areas along the main roads that give you some of the best views in the park. Seeing the peaks from one angle is really not enough. Grand Teton offers around 25 “official” stops around its 42-mile loop and there are 40 or so if you count some of the smaller stops scattered throughout the park. That’s a lot to see!
While driving we HIGHLY RECOMMEND purchasing the GuideAlong GPS guide for Grand Teton National Park. It’s a really rich, well-timed audio tour of the park that lets you know where to spend time, and what to skip.
Hikes, Lakes, and Rivers
Many of the trails in Grand Teton are on or near the mountains – which makes sense – but you’ll need to be prepared! Shorter, easier trails exist in the plains area as well (and they do provide great views of the mountains).
Backcountry adventuring
There are over 230 miles of hiking trails that navigate through rugged, high-alpine wilderness, deep canyons, and along pristine lakes. While some are fairly easy, there are many, many backcountry trails that are rated as difficult and require some advanced planning. We didn’t venture onto any of these trails while we were there, but we’d love to come back and spend more time in the wilderness.
Lodging and Camping in Yellowstone
Yellowstone features 12 campgrounds (over 2,000 individual campsites), and nine main lodges, but with over 4.5 million visitors per year, you’ll want t
Our Two Day Itinerary
We visited Grand Teton in late August, 2021 and spent two full days there. We know we missed a lot of things, but we developed a strategy that we felt worked pretty well for us: plan your days around bigger landmarks, but leave room to stop along the way.
Here are a few of the landmarks we visited during our two (really two and a half) day stay:
Day Zero – Arrival and Setup at Camp
While not one of our full days, it’s worth noting where we set up and where we grabbed dinner the first night we were in Grand Teton. We visited with our popup camper, and stayed at the Colter Bay Campground, on the North side of the park. All the sites were clean, quiet and came equipped with a bear box/locker for added space.
Before we rolled in to our campsite though, we grabbed pizza from Leek’s Pizzeria, by Leek’s Marina. It was busy when we arrived and we waited about 45 minutes for our pizza to be done, but it was a nice treat for weary travelers.
Day ONE – Lakes and Lookouts
For our first full day in Grand Teton, we spent some time at Jenny Lake and explored some of the awesome, accessible trails in that area. Since we were coming from the Lizard Creek Campground in the North end of the park, we decided to stop off at a few sites along the way so we could take in the views.
- Colter Bay Visitor’s Center – We figured the best way to start the trip was with some information and some guidance from the park rangers. So, we stopped in to the Colter Bay Visitor’s Center and got our game plan while Ellis said some words over the intercom.
- JP Cunningham Cabin – A short stop off the main road on the East loop. If you like history and want some great, distant views of the Tetons, this is a great place to do it.
- Jenny Lake – A gem within Grand Teton. The lake is stunning and the West side features some of the best access to higher peaks and backcountry hikes. When we arrived, we at lunch along the shore and took in the views. Then, we followed the trail up to waterfalls and a scenic viewpoint that looked over the lake.
- Jenny Lake Visitor’s Center – The visitor’s center itself doesn’t offer much to see, but here you’ll find bathrooms, water and a small gift shop. We stopped here to refill our waters and followed the boardwalk to a place we could sit for a while and eat snacks before our hike.
- Hidden Falls – From the shore of Jenny Lake, we took the Hidden Falls via Jenny Lake trail. It’s a short-ish walk that takes a very leisurely 45-60 minutes to complete, but at the end you’ll be rewarded with an amazing view of a powerful alpine waterfall called Hidden Falls. You’ll hear it before you see it!
- Inspiration Point – From Hidden Falls, you can make your way up to Inspiration Point. This hike is more difficult than the walk to hidden falls because you’re gaining elevation pretty quickly. But the views… the views are worth it. Dramatic peaks behind you to the West and Jenny lake and the Teton valley to the East. It’s not a long hike, but be cautious with small children or less able-bodies people since it does involve climbing over a few rocks/steps while exposed on one side to some steep drops.
- Ferry ride across the lake – While we could have hiked back the way we came (or taken the 7-mile loop around the whole lake), we decided to mix things up and take the ferry back across. They run every 30 minutes or so, but check the times and the weather to see when they’re running during your visit.
Day Two – Mormon Row and Museum
Our second day was really a half day since we had to move to a different campground and set up our camper for our final night. So, we left the site around 10AM, but we still covered a lot of ground! Here are a few of our favorite stops:
- Signal Mountain Summit – We enjoyed the drive up signal mountain because it takes you through some pretty dense forest before you reach the peak. Along the way, we saw some ptarmigan in their summer colors (brown versus white in the winter) and a few deer. Once you reach the summit, you’ll get to see a “Panoramic view of Jackson Hole” which would have been true for us if it weren’t for the smoke. Yep, wildfires in 2021 were BAD in many parts of the country and we unfortunately saw the smoke setting into the valley.
- Mormon Row – One of the more complete ghost towns in Grand Teton, there are a few houses and bits of history scattered throughout the area. We didn’t expect to spend so much time here, but it really is a unique vantage point within the park, offering incredible and picturesque views of the mountains. If you like history, there’s a lot here, so take some time to read the signs and listen to an audio guide like GuideAlong.
- Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center – This is the biggest museum in the park and offers a range of video-based, self-paced and guided education. The rangers here are all really great with kids and they made the experience really engaging with puppets and stories of many of the more common (and famous) animals in the park.
- Moose – Yep. It’s a town. Called Moose. There’s a lot of history in this area, but there’s also a few restaurant options which were decent. After having camp food for a few nights it was nice to do a late lunch here.
Beware of the bear (spray)
While we never ended up needing to use the bear spray, we did bring two cans with us (it was a deal at Costco). It’s not required in the park, but it’s highly recommended (especially if you are backcountry hiking). Black bears will typically leave you alone, but you don’t want to take a chance with a grizzly (brown bear).
You can rent bear spray at the park, but whatever you do, don’t “test” it indoors. We walked into the grocery store in Grand Teton and someone had just set off a can of bear spray. I, like everyone else, ran out coughing, eyes watering, and thinking my sinuses were full of lava.
Educational opportunities in Grand TeTon
There are so many educational opportunities in Grand Teton. Whether you’re listening to a Guidealong Tour, booking a private tour or just taking some time to read the signage in the park, there is something to learn for all ages. We relied heavily on our Guidealong Tour for this trip because the narrator (we called him “Parker Moose Jackson”) was easy to follow, funny and full of interesting facts and stories.
Don’t forget to talk with the rangers too (they love to teach). You can also visit museums and do some research on your own. We like to keep a list of questions our kids develop throughout the day, and then do some research in the evenings when we’re back to WiFi.
Our thoughts on Grand Teton
Grand Teton is a must-see National Park that offers so many amazing experiences. From the wildlife, to the trails and mountain peaks, to the history of the park, there is a lot to learn, see and do. We wish we could have stayed longer, but we were thankful to be able to pack so much into those full three days.
As long you’re prepared, you’ll have an amazing time. Start planning NOW!
But what about… bears?
Ahh, right. Almost forgot. The question everyone asks: what about… bears?
Yes. There are bears in Grand Teton National Park. The black kind (that just want your food) and the brown kind (that might decide you are food). For both types of bear you need to be smart and follow the bear advice on the Grand Teton National Park website.
When we visited the park, Meredith and I both packed a can of bear spray and had it accessible when we were in areas with few people. A few rules we never broke: don’t leave food out, don’t hike with meats and open snacks, make noise while hiking (easy for our big family), and don’t venture into backcountry trails. We never did see a grizzly bear, but we did see a few black bears during our trip.
Talk to the rangers, follow the rules, and use common sense and you’ll be just fine.