PART I OF A 3-PART ITINERARY | 9 Days: Teton, Yellowstone, & the Ranch at Rock Creek
Admittedly, our initial plans for this trip did not involve the parks at all. Our inspiration started with a ranch trip that I had taken with my family back in the early 2000s, and we wanted to repeat the awesome experience we had. As we were planning, we were so close to the parks that we couldn’t resist and tacked a couple days onto our itinerary. Ideally, we would've loved more time in the parks and at the ranch, but life gets in the way. We ended up with a day and a half at Teton, two full days in Yellowstone, and 4 full days at the ranch.
Grand Teton National Park is just a stone's throw away from the legendary ski town of Jackson Hole, where our adventure began. Teton is a photographer's paradise. If the altitude doesn't take your breath away, the views surely will. Read on to learn more about our experience in the park before continuing on to Yellowstone and the Ranch at Rock Creek.
DESTINATION GUIDE:
OUR OTHER ITINERARIES FOR THIS TRIP:
THE RANCH AT ROCK CREEK - COMING SOON
DAY BY DAY GUIDES:
DAY 01:
JACKSON HOLE & FIRST GLIMPSE OF PARK
GETTING THERE:
Usually when I remember a trip, I don’t think much of the flight. It's a necessary part of getting to where you need to be, and it tends to evoke painful memories, if any at all. Flying into Jackson was actually a treat. For starters, Jackson Hole is unique because it happens to be the only airport located in a national park, which means that you also catch awesome aerial views of all the park's beauty on your approach. I happened to be sitting on the right side of the plane and caught a real show with views of the iconic peaks out my window as we flew alongside them on our descent. The airport itself is also one of the most beautiful I've ever flown into and town is just a short drive away. The only negative to our flight was that Michael missed it. I wasn’t thrilled, but I was solo for day one.
THE TOWN OF JACKSON:
Once I picked up the car and dropped things off at our hotel in the nearby Teton Village (where the ski resort is), I headed into Jackson in search of a late lunch. For a mountain town, Jackson is pretty substantial. There are lots and lots of shops and restaurants all centered around the main square with Jackson's iconic antler arches. It's all very pristine and perfectly on-theme; the aesthetic almost felt like a very high end theme park.
I was not going to make it without eating before my 9 PM dinner reservations, so I set my sights on Hand Fire Pizza. They didn't open until 5, so I was really pushing it on the "late lunch." But, I didn’t care. The restaurant is set in a cool old theater with neon signage and specializes in wood-fired pizza. I ordered a Saddle Bronc Brown beer, which was honestly a beer worth remembering. The BBQ pizza also hit the spot with tender pork, a tangy-sweet sauce, and light crispy crust.
INTO THE PARK:
I still had about two hours of daylight left, so I made the most of it and ventured into the park for the first time. I didn’t make it very far before I had to pull off just to stare at the Tetons. It was an obvious sign of being a first-timer because there were so many better vantage points deeper in the park, but I was compelled to stop - multiple times.
The real goal of this venture was to scope out where I wanted to take sunrise photos the next morning. Last thing I wanted was to be fumbling around in the dark, trying to navigate a dirt road without a clue where to set up my tripod. Eventually, I made it to the spot, just at the edge of the water with the Tetons reflecting down, perfectly framed by trees. It was gorgeous. I spent much longer than I had planned, just taking it all in. Eventually, the sun began to set, so I stayed for that too.
The sunsets in Teton actually get a bad rap. The mountains are tall, and the sun sets behind them, so you really don’t get the same light you might expect. The sunrises, on the other hand, create beautiful soft light that, in the right conditions, paints the Tetons a shade of purple that looks photoshopped. This sunset turned out to be better looking than I had expected, and it was great practice for framing the mountains for the next morning.
Once satisfied with my camera prep, I headed back into town for my reservations at Orsetto. Again, I was thinking this would be a carb-load date-night with Michael, but our change in plans meant I grabbed a solo spot at the bar. The place isn't huge but it had a lively, modern vibe. I had the seafood pasta, which was good but quite rich and grabbed a Bolognese to-go to pick Michael up at the airport. Tomorrow we would venture into the park and kick off the "roughing it" portion of our trip.
KEY STOPS:
MORNING: Flight in & exploring Jackson
LUNCH: Hand Fire Pizza
AFTERNOON: Sunset photos in the park
DINNER: Orsetto
CLICK HERE to read the full destination guide to Grand Teton
DAY 02:
MOUNTAIN VIEWS & MOUNTAIN HIKES
IN SEARCH OF A SUNRISE:
Morning came early. We were on a mission to beat the sun, which was set to rise around 7 AM, which meant we were up at 5. I'm not a morning person, so it was incredibly hard for me to leave the warm, cozy bed to schlep our luggage down to the car. We arrived at my spot from the day before around 6:10, and there were already quite a few cars there - we weren't the only ones with a thing for sunrises.
Everything went smoothly - I got a great spot, all the equipment played along, we were (relatively) equipped for the freezing cold, and we were on time to capture the first sliver of light. Everything went smoothly that was in our control, that is. Unfortunately, overnight the crisp blue skies had fallen victim to the smoke of the forest fires ravaging the Rockies and West Coast. Were the photos bad? No. Were they the stunning, can't-believe-this-is-real shots I was hoping for? Also no. I was bummed, but honestly, even with the low, diffused light and hazy skies, it was still a great way to start the day. At the very least, we were excited to be up to grab a campsite and get things set up so we could have some hot chocolate to warm ourselves up.
THE HUNT FOR A CAMPSITE:
Once again, we thought our plan couldn’t be going better to plan. We were up and at 'em before 8 AM; surely we had beaten the campground rush, right? Wrong. Getting a campsite at Teton was a nightmare. We were there at the beginning of off-season, which meant that some of the campgrounds had already closed, and they would all continue to close in the next couple weeks. I was hoping that would correspond with less crowds due to the risky weather and start of the school year. We were wrong, so wrong.
We started our hunt at Signal Mountain campground. It's a pretty decent sized campground with some useful amenities, but not as notoriously busy and small as Jenny Lake campground. Unfortunately, this campground had a really inefficient check-in system, which left us circling for quite some time, just trying to stalk someone that looked like they would be leaving and then marking the space with a sticker and some kind of possession. After a lot of frustration, we gave up. We then headed to Lizard Creek, but missed the note about the closing date in the newsletter, which was just a few days before. By this time, it was almost 10 AM, and I was feeling hopeless. We headed to Colter Bay, which is one of the most substantial campgrounds in the park and got in a very long line. Despite the campground's size, I was very worried about getting a spot, and we had heard rangers announce that other campgrounds in the park were full for the day already. After another 45 minute wait we got the good news - we had a spot!
After a maddening morning, we were pleasantly surprised by how nice Colter Bay was. Our campsite was pretty secluded with a short trail nearby to one of the beaches. The main entrance had a helpful ranger station, a restaurant (which was actually open for takeout), and a general store that was well equipped with full-on groceries, firewood, ice cream, and beer! There were also hot-water showers, laundry, gas, and a marina - all right at our fingertips. We had worked up an appetite after our eventful morning and setting up camp, so we made a little breakfast and took in our little slice of the forest.
JENNY LAKE:
We wanted to make sure to do some hiking, so we headed to Jenny Lake. The drive around the park is gorgeous, so we didn’t make it there until almost 2 after stopping at several spots on the Teton Park Road. It was packed. The parking lot was a complete no-go, so we parked a ways back on the road. Jenny Lake is one of the most picturesque in the park, situated at the foot of the Tetons, it’s a launching point for several great day hikes as well as longer hikes up Cascade Canyon and beyond. We took the boat across the lake, and our captain joked that you could hike all the way to Idaho - he wasn’t kidding! The boat is a nice luxury that cuts out the extra couple miles hiking around the lake. It's also a nice scenic trip that reminded me of some scenes in Jurassic Park, with the mountains looming over the edge of the water as you approach, knowing adventure waited beyond.
Once we crossed the lake, we began hiking towards Hidden Falls. Our captain was very clear that this is the backcountry and you should treat it as such. But, this part of the trail was very well-trafficked and equipped with well-maintained bridges and trails crisscrossing the mountain creeks that cut through the rugged terrain. That said, always practice leave-no-trace principles and come prepared with navigation, water, bear protection, etc. Lots of people seemed to forget this part; I saw lots of hikers in inappropriate clothes, even flip flops, with way more focus on taking selfies than being safe and soaking in the beauty. The trail is not overly rugged, but you are literally climbing a mountain, just via "stairs." Some hikers seemed to sprint up the trail while others struggled, ducking out to catch their breath. Again, come prepared and know your limits.
There are a number of falls on your way up the trail, but eventually you reach the much larger Hidden Falls. Despite the name, it would be hard to miss. There will be a number of hikers hanging out at the clearing at the base of the falls and more in and on the falls themselves. The falls are pretty sizeable and well worth the trip. It was a great chance to catch our breath in the shaded clearing and feeling the spray from the falls.
The next stretch up to Inspiration Point was the most challenging of the hike. The trail turns from packed down dirt to uneven exposed rocks on a narrow ledge curving around the mountain. Lots of people still traveled the trail, but it might not be everyone’s cup of tea - especially if you aren’t a fan of heights or feeling sure-footed.
It was getting late enough that we knew we needed to turn back despite really wanting to continue up into Cascade Canyon. We already knew we wouldn’t make the return trip for the boat, which meant we would need to hike the extra 2.4 mile length of trail around the south side of Jenny Lake. Two miles isn’t that far, but it feels a lot longer when you know you could’ve been sitting on a boat instead and are in a hurry so you can squeeze in a final stop or two. The hike itself is beautiful and takes you right up to the edge of the lake, but we couldn’t have been more thrilled when we made it back to the trailhead area for more water, a restroom, and a chance to get off our feet.
WRAPPING UP:
The big stop I wanted to make today was Mormon Row. The barns with the mountains in the background are an incredible piece of American History - not to mention a quintessential photo op. People consistently recommend this as a great sunrise photography spot, but we got there at peak golden hour and it was beautiful (even with the unfortunate wildfire smoke). Like our sunrise stop, we were in the company of several couples who deemed the landscape good enough for their wedding shots.
The barns themselves need a little help to come alive from a history perspective, so I recommend taking advantage of the park info and doing a little homework. It’s a lot more impressive to comprehend how these barns came to be and what their original homesteaders went through to establish a town in such a remote place. I would’ve loved to have poked around more than we did, but we had had a longer day than planned and were ready to get off our feet.
Getting off our feet didn’t mean we were quite done for the day because I had a couple more photo scavenger hunt stops to make - the Snake River Overlook and Oxbow Bend. Luckily these were both on the main highway headed back to camp and required almost no walking - perfect! The Snake River Overlook is where Ansel Adams took his famous photograph, perfectly showing the “snake” of the Snake River. Oxbow Bend is another bend in the Snake that is a potential photography goldmine. The relatively still reflecting water bends around a group of aspens, mirroring their fiery falls colors and the looming Signal Mountain if conditions are right. The area is also popular with a variety of wildlife including birds of prey.
We could not have been happier to return to our little slice of the wilderness back at the campground and enjoy a peaceful evening of campfire conversation after a long day. Don’t get me wrong - we had an awesome day, but looking back I would have split it up into two days if we had the time. My feet would have thanked me!
KEY STOPS:
MORNING: Sunrise on the Snake River
LUNCH: Snacks after setting up camp
AFTERNOON: Jenny Lake - hiking to Hidden Falls & Inspiration Point
LATE AFTERNOON: Mormon Row & scenic overlooks
CLICK HERE to read the full destination guide to Grand Teton
TAGS
#nationalparks #active #adventure #GrandTeton #JacksonHole #itinerary #mountains #nature #outdoors #hiking #camping #Rockies #wyoming #USTrip #WildWest
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