For several years we’ve read blogs where Grand Teton was the author’s favorite National Park. Now we know why. The Park has everything. It has wildlife, mountains, lakes, rivers, prairies, glaciers, waterfalls, incredible hiking, great camping, lodges, and it’s beautifully preserved. The original National Park that protected the four major Teton peaks was established in the late 1920s. The remainder of the park, including “the Jackson Hole” valley, was added to the park just after WWII after a contentious battle with the local population.
Teton is roughly 40 miles long by 10 miles wide and the floor sits around 6500 feet above sea level. The geography is stunning. It is the product of tectonic plate collisions millions of years ago where the West plate went straight up and the East plate went straight down. This resulted in the almost vertical mountain range and the “hole” where many of the lakes are. Erosion and ice age glaciers did the rest.
Teton has a tremendous amount of wildlife, much of which is migratory. It is bear country and every campsite and picnic ground has a latched metal bear box to put food in. There are both Black and Grizzly bears, although Grizzlies rarely come into the populated portion of the park. Bison roam in many of the grassy areas and often cross the roads. During our stay, many of the other creatures were is different stages of their migration and weren’t around.
We spent nearly a week exploring the park and really didn’t see all of it. There is a huge wilderness area west of the front range that has long trails, but is not very assessable. Also, the park is surrounded by national forests, wildlife preserves, and wilderness areas. And Yellowstone National Park is less than an hour away.
We finished off the week with a trip to the town of Jackson Hole at the south end of the Park. It’s a cool, and somewhat glamorous western town, and has become a bit of a tourist mecca with a lot of high-end shops and accommodations. Many wealthy celebrities have villas there and are regularly seen around town. We had some great food and an enjoyable shopping experience.
To sum up our visit, the place has everything you picture a National Park should be about: beauty, nature, and authenticity. It has already become one of our favorites.
