24 Hours in Grand Teton National Park Itinerary
At the end of September, Korri and I took a long weekend off work to take a socially-distanced vacation to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. After driving through the parks two years ago on our way to the midwest and back, we’ve been itching to get back for a proper visit.
It was busier in the parks than I anticipated for late September, but we made the most of the trip; we had beautiful fall weather and the leaves were changing. I was happy for the extra eye candy! We stayed one night in Driggs, Idaho (just over the border from Jackson, Wyoming on the backside of the Tetons) and one night in Grand Teton before heading north to Yellowstone.
Here’s our itinerary for the one full day (or rather, two half days plus an overnight stay) we spent exploring Grand Teton National Park!
How to Spend 24 Hours in Grand Teton National Park
The first stop was at the Albright View Overlook to take pictures of the cloudless Tetons in all their glory—and watch the planes land at the Jackson Hole Airport…because we’re both aviation nerds. We got some cool photos of the planes in the air next to the mountains!
We arrived at the visitor center at the Moose entrance (south end of the park) in the early afternoon for a quick bathroom break and to get my national parks passport book stamped (very important!). We had purchased a national parks interagency annual pass prior to the trip, so entry at the gate was a breeze (just need to show ID along with the pass).
The interagency annual pass is $80 and gets you one vehicle entry (pass holder + three other adults in the vehicle) into any national park/monument/etc. for a year. The entry into Grand Teton and Yellowstone combined is $70, so this was a no-brainer (and gives us an excuse to visit more parks in the spring). They can typically be purchased at the entry gate of the first park you visit, but I like getting one from the forest service office in Boise ahead of time just in case the gate is out of stock.
Afternoon Hike at Jenny Lake
By some miracle, we were able to snag a parking spot at the South Jenny Lake Junction/Jenny Lake Visitor Center. We ate a quick lunch (turkey and cheese sandwiches) and then set off to hike! The original plan was to hike out to the Hidden Falls area, hike Cascade Canyon, and then hike back, but that would have been a lot of hiking (it’s about 5 miles round trip just from the parking area to the start of the Hidden Falls trail). We opted instead to take the Jenny Lake shuttle boat from the parking area to the other side of the lake and then hike back.
The shuttle boat cost $10 each one way (or $18 each round trip). It was around 2:30 PM when we got there, and the employees were suggesting that folks purchase a one way ticket out and hike back because the wait coming back was 1-1.5 hours and the last boat was scheduled to depart Hidden Falls at 4 PM. So, that’s what we did! Everyone on the boat had to wear a face mask, and every other row was blocked off. The ride across lasted less than five minutes.
Hidden Falls, Inspiration Point, and Cascade Canyon
This is one of the most (if not the most) popular trails in Grand Teton. It’s a relatively easy hike from the boat dock to the falls. We kept hiking up to Inspiration Point (at 7200 feet elevation!), which has a couple of rugged spots, and then along Cascade Canyon, but we did not make it very far before deciding to turn around. We wanted to catch the sunset and not be in the mountains after dark! Apparently there are always moose to be seen in Cascade Canyon, but we didn’t hike far enough to see them sadly.
In total, I think we hiked around 5 miles, which includes the 2.5 miles back to the parking area at South Jenny Lake. (It’s 5 miles back if you go around the north side of the lake!) The hike back was gorgeous and easy—right along the lake for part of it! And of course, the fall colors made me happy.
Mormon Row at Sunset
The hike took longer than we had anticipated, even with the boat ride, so once we got back to the car it was mid-evening and we had about an hour or so before the sun set. We drove up to the North Jenny Lake junction and took the scenic route back south along the lake before heading out of the Moose entrance on our way to Mormon Row to take photos of the most-photographed barn in America, T.A. Moulton barn, at sunset.
Stay at Colter Bay Village
We opted to avoid Jackson at dinnertime because it was so busy, so we drove about an hour north to Colter Bay Village, where we had a cabin reservation for the night. Luckily, Colter Bay really is like a village—there’s a grocery store (and gift shop), laundry facility, gas station, and restaurant called Ranch House that was open for take-out only until 9:30 PM. Because I had mentioned that it was my birthday when making the cabin reservation, they so graciously gave us each a free dinner! But OMG, the portions are huge. It’s awesome if you’re hungry (and definitely a good value for the money in my opinion). I couldn’t finish mine and was stuffed! Definitely recommend ordering the potato wedges.
Note that there are bears in Grand Teton! When checking into our cabin, I was told that there were many bears around, so we brought everything from our car into the cabin, including our cooler. Luckily, we didn’t have any close bear encounters! Also, I highly recommend reserving a cabin with two beds (a double and a twin) if possible; it’s the same price as a cabin with only one double bed, and you’ll have more room to stretch out. If you plan to stay in the park, book only through Grand Teton Lodge Company, not a third party!
The next morning, we slept in (so nice when we’re not in a rush!) and picked up breakfast burritos from the Ranch House (very yummy, and again—large!). We sat in our camping chairs and ate along Jackson Lake at swim beach in the Colter Bay area. A cold front had passed so it was chilly that morning and no one was swimming. There was a persistent crow stalking us for our food, though, haha!
After eating, we decided to head south towards Mormon Row again (just to see it at a time other than sunset), stopping along at multiple roadside pullouts along the way for photo ops. I’d love to see the barn and mountains at sunrise on a clear day someday, but that would require waking up early…
Roadside Pullouts
Grand Teton, like every national park, has beautiful scenery anywhere you look. There are pullouts everywhere along the main roads—stop at them! On the way back to Mormon Row along the main highway, we stopped at the Snake River Overlook and at Glacier View. Driving back north, we stopped at Elk Ranch Flats to snap photos of a herd of horses (and on the other side of the highway was a huge herd of buffalo!). Every pullout has a beautiful view! Oxbow Bend is another well-known favorite (and was absolutely gorgeous with the early fall colors when we were there, but we didn’t stop because it was so busy…next time!).
Jackson Lake
Jackson Lake is the largest of the lakes at Grand Teton. It’s a popular spot for boating, fishing, kayaking, canoeing, hiking…any outdoor activity you can think of, basically. Colter Bay Village is situated right next to the marina on Jackson Lake, and while we ran out of time to do anything other than eat our breakfast by the water, we made sure to stop at the Jackson Lake Overlook on our way to Yellowstone. It offers sweeping views of the lake and the mountains in the distance. There was plenty of fall color to enjoy, too! The aspens were absolutely stunning.
In a perfect world, we would have done another hike in the morning instead of laying low, but we were both so tired from the hike around Jenny Lake that it was nice to just do a little sightseeing before heading to Yellowstone! I could literally stare at those mountains all day. There are so many other hikes and activities I want to do next time we’re in the Tetons, including horseback riding and a lazy float on the Snake River. (Did you know the Snake River runs through the entirety of southern Idaho? I can’t even count the number of times we crossed it on this trip!) I’m looking forward to our next trip already!
WHAT I WORE to Grand Teton
What to Pack for a Fall Road Trip to Grand Teton and Yellowstone