Yellowstone and Grand Tetons: Grand Tetons National Park

The Beauty of the Tetons

Shore of Lake Jackson, Colter Bay Village

We left West Yellowstone bound for Colter Bay on the north side of Grand Tetons National Park, off of Lake Jackson.  While it is only 102 miles, it took us over 3 hours.  We drove through some of the same areas we visited during our 2.5 days in Yellowstone.  Once we turned onto the South Entrance Road, we enjoyed beautiful sights as the road parallels the Lewis River.  This drive is called the John D. Rockefeller Jr. Memorial Parkway,  where the Teton Range ramps down a gentle slope at its northern end, while rocks born of volcanic flows from Yellowstone line the Snake River and form outcrops scattered atop hills and ridges. There are several places to pull off and view, however it was impossible to stop as all the overlooks were northbound, not to mention the 19 foot trailer we were pulling.

After arriving and setting up, we walked around the bay on Lake Jackson for a sunset and enjoyed one of our favorites while on the road - blackened fish tacos.   I just remember sitting at the picnic table and enjoying these tacos in the middle of this wonderful campground - it was wonderful.

The next morning was crisp, with clear skies, perfect for the day's plan of visiting the well-known photography sites within the park. I created a Roadtrippers route for the day to visit the "east side" of the park including Willow Flats, with Grand Teton on the right, Oxbow Bend, Snake River Overlook, Schwabacher, then the Moulton Barns.  What we learned is so different about the Tetons is the way they were formed.  They literally jut straight up, vs. the Rockies, where there are foothills.  This is a great resource to learn more from NASA's Earth Observatory site.  

I was so happy with all of the locations and being able to catch the Tetons' reflection in the water perfectly.  Until we had a moose visit us and mess that up!  Honestly, a surreal experience, where there were at least two dozen people on the east side of the river and a moose wanders in, takes a few sips of water, poses for photos, then exits the way he entered. 

We ended the day by visiting downtown Jackson, which was pretty crowded even during the pandemic!  We ended up finding a place to have a beer outside, which made us more comfortable.

The next morning we woke early so we could walk down to the shore and watch the sunrise on the Tetons.  There are several principal summits, sometimes referred to as the Cathedral Group.  There is Grand Teton at 13,775 feet, Mount Owen at 12,928 feet, Teewinot at 12,325 feet, Middle Teton at 12,804 feet and South Teton at 12,514 feet. Super quiet and peaceful.  The sun hits the tallest, Grand, first, then slowly lights up each of the peaks, in order of height.  

Glow before the first peak is lit up 7:58am

Sun hitting Grand Teton 8:05am

For our visit to the "west side", I again created a Roadtrippers route for the day.  Parking was a bit more challenging this day as we were visiting more popular areas like Jenny Lake where we lucked out to find a spot near the entry.  First we stopped at String Lake, as there is a short hike around the lake.  

String Lake looking towards Grand Teton

String Lake looking at Mt Moran

We then drove the Jenny Lake area, where you can take a 10 minute ferry ride across the Lake and access several trails ($18 per adult).  We took the Cascade Canyon Trail, where you cross over Cascade Creek several times.  We hiked to Hidden Falls and continued to Inspiration Point.  Well ok it was like 2/3 of the way to Inspiration Point, since we had to still return to the trailhead to take the ferry back, and I was still recovering from a broken foot several months prior.  There are a ton of trails we didn't even attempt, several of them may require an overnight.

We ended our second full day by driving to Jackson Hole to visit some of the shops and have dinner at Piste Mountain Bistro at the top of the gondola.  You can purchase tickets to ride the gondola near the base and we saw the line forming about 30 minutes before the gondola started at 5pm.  However, since I had made reservations at the Piste, our name was on a list and we didn't have to pay separately to ride and we didn't have to wait in line either!  Definitely check for the current status of reservations and riding the gondola (April 2021 website indicates you must pay $89/person for gondola tickets).  We enjoyed a 'retirement celebration' dinner and shared Bison Croquettes, followed by salmon for Tim and I had a broccoli tagliatelle.  We both agreed it was a top 10 meal for both of us!  

The next day we hooked up Minnie and started our journey back home.  It was a hazy, cloudy day and you could not see any of the peaks.  As we passed those special magical photo taking locations that just two days prior had provided some of the most amazing sights I have ever seen in nature, none of it was visible.  I felt blessed and grateful for the experience. We definitely need to go back some day.  

Next up for our Yellowstone and Grand Tetons trip:  Custer State Park area of South Dakota. 

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Have you been to Grand Tetons National Park?  Did you go during summer or winter months? Leave your comments below!   Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us.