Jenny Lake and Schwabacher’s Landing
3 / 5
For Day 3 in the Grand Tetons, we hiked Jenny Lake—aka the most jam-packed spot in all of Grand Teton. Hidden Falls is the big draw. You can either hike to it or take a boat shuttle across the lake. The hike is about 2.4 miles one way from the Jenny Lake Visitor Center. The boat option requires tickets, lines, and a wait of 45 minutes to 1.5 hours just to board. I had flashbacks to Disney World. We passed.
Jenny Lake
1 / 30
Even the trail was pretty crowded, but we still enjoyed plenty of wildflowers and scenic viewpoints of the lake. Hidden Falls was awesome with tons of water barreling down. The creek was roaring too, full of whitewater rapids.
We started up toward Inspiration Point but bailed partway when we saw the conga line of people crawling up and down the mountain. Instead, we ditched the crowds and took the longer route back. The Jenny Lake Loop Trail around the other side of the lake was about 5 miles back to the trailhead, instead of retracing our original 2 mile route.
That side of the lake was quieter and much more peaceful. We spotted three hoary marmots, an osprey nest in the treetops, and passed the outlet where String Lake dumps into Jenny Lake, with water rushing hard between the two. Between the falls, the creeks, and the lake outlet, it felt like the whole day was powered by moving water.
After the hike, we swung by Schwabacher’s Landing, and saw the bison herd on the way. Schwabacher’s was a duck hotspot, and supposedly a moose one too, though we struck out on that (a recurring Grand Teton theme). The calm water gave us perfect Teton reflections.
As we rolled back to camp, we were treated to a wildlife encore: plenty of elk, two pronghorn, and one last look at the bison. Though at this point, I am beginning to wonder if moose in the Grand Tetons are just an elaborate conspiracy theory.
We started up toward Inspiration Point but bailed partway when we saw the conga line of people crawling up and down the mountain. Instead, we ditched the crowds and took the longer route back. The Jenny Lake Loop Trail around the other side of the lake was about 5 miles back to the trailhead, instead of retracing our original 2 mile route.
That side of the lake was quieter and much more peaceful. We spotted three hoary marmots, an osprey nest in the treetops, and passed the outlet where String Lake dumps into Jenny Lake, with water rushing hard between the two. Between the falls, the creeks, and the lake outlet, it felt like the whole day was powered by moving water.
After the hike, we swung by Schwabacher’s Landing, and saw the bison herd on the way. Schwabacher’s was a duck hotspot, and supposedly a moose one too, though we struck out on that (a recurring Grand Teton theme). The calm water gave us perfect Teton reflections.
As we rolled back to camp, we were treated to a wildlife encore: plenty of elk, two pronghorn, and one last look at the bison. Though at this point, I am beginning to wonder if moose in the Grand Tetons are just an elaborate conspiracy theory.