One Big Adventure: Climbing Wyoming's Grand Teton
This climber’s peak should be on every hiker’s life list.
For experienced mountaineers, backpacking Grand Teton National Park is a must. The park stretches high above northwest Wyoming, encompassing 310,000 acres of snowcapped peaks and 200 miles of steep, rugged trail. Every year over 2.5 million visitors come to hike the best trails in Grand Teton National Park, making it among the most popular parks in the United States.
You don’t have to be a backcountry star to appreciate Grand Teton; the western park has plenty of flat, easy and accessible terrain. Even so, the park’s full beauty can only be found by venturing into its heart, where nearly a dozen glaciers dot mountainsides. Hikes like the 36-mile Teton Crest Trail give amazing views of the park’s tallest peaks.
Some backpackers follow trails high up into challenging mountain passes, while others try their hand at Grand Teton National Park’s namesake peak: the nearly 14,000-foot Grand Teton. This mother-of-all-peaks — complete with its own glacier — attracts nearly 4,000 climbers every year, making it one of North America’s premier alpine climbs.
This climber’s peak should be on every hiker’s life list.
Traveling in bruin country can bring out any parent's inner grizzly.
Last month, Lisa Jhung hit the road with her husband and two sons. Their mission: go on the most epic national parks road trip that they could in two weeks.
You voted, we listened. Meet Clay Hanna, the Laurance S. Rockefeller Preserve Supervisor for Grand Teton National Park, a model for his peers, a protector of visitor experiences, and one heckuva ranger.
It may be in a popular park, but you won't find any crowds on this underappreciated trail.
These 9 miles of mountain madness, from Paintbrush Divide to Hurricane Pass, are among the best 100 miles of trail in the whole national park system.
The Tetons are showy enough to make roadside views almost as good as the backcountry ones. Almost. This wilderness lake is a haul to reach, but the journey is just as good as the destination.
Ditch the roadside crowds on this family-friendly, 4.1-mile out-and-back to an indigo lake framed by the mighty Tetons. Bring binocs: Songbirds abound.
The standard approach for GT climbers, this 6-mile, 5,000-foot trek to the Lower Saddle yields divine views.
Navigate boulder fields, rocky ridgelines, and seasonal snowfields during this long, challenging ascent of the third-highest peak in the Tetons.
Ramble an unknown portion of Teton backcountry on a partly off-trail tour.
This serious scramble ends on a pinpoint summit overlooking the Grand Teton.
Explore a majestic climbers' haven in the heart of the Tetons.
The range's best-kept secret harbors big, open mountain terrain.
Explore the park's new Rockefeller Preserve on this 3-mile loop that traces the southern shore of Phelps Lake and reveals striking views of the Tetons.
This 7-mile mountain bike loop climbs past spectacular views of the Tetons and the Snake River Valley, then descends on singletrack through aspens and pines.
This challenging, 18.1-mile backcountry trek wanders the rugged canyons, alpine lakes, and scree fields of Grand Teton National Park.
Towering peaks, alpine lakes, and rugged canyons highlight this challenging, 21.7-mile backcountry trek in Grand Teton National Park.
This 14.6-mile out-and-back meanders past lodgepole pine, towering peaks, and a waterfall on its way to a backcountry campsite at the foot of the Tetons.