National Parks Not Top 10 (But Still Great) - No. 12
Discovering the Beauty of America's National (and other) Parks
I’m thinking about maybe visiting this National Park again sometime next year …
We didn’t spend a lot of time in this park last time, as Yellowstone dominated our trip in 2016! But this park is just a short drive away from Yellowstone, which means we would get to see both if we do decide to go next year!
Number 12 on our favorite National Parks list is …
Grand Teton National Park!
Located in Moose, Wyoming …
This National Park has a lot to offer in impressive scenery, gorgeous hikes, and Snake River float trips.
Honestly, this park should be higher on our list. We just didn’t spend much time here, so I don’t have a lot to rate it on. But I have a strong suspicion that if we spend a good bit more time here, this park will rise in our ranking! Hence the reason we are thinking of going next year!
Scenery:
I gave Grand Teton a near perfect 4.5 stars out of 5 in this category. Unfortunately, I can’t seem to find any pictures from our trip to Grand Teton, so I’m linking you to an awesome YouTube video by brother Jordan Moore instead — Beyond the Pullouts (J. Moore Outdoor Photography, YouTube, September 5, 2018).
Wasn’t that an amazing video?!
Variety:
The scenery of Grand Teton is absolutely gorgeous, among the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited. That said, the scenery is really the main draw, with not nearly as much variety as its neighbor to the north, Yellowstone N.P.
Don’t let that deter you from visiting; like I said, visiting Yellowstone and Grand Teton in the same trip is a great idea. But I would say if you visit both, spend the bulk of your time in Yellowstone; for a trip of 6 days, I would suggest 4 in Yellowstone and 2 in Grand Teton.
For variety, Grand Teton N.P. gets 3.0 stars.
Wildlife:
Wildlife abound in this area of the country! Animals you will find in Grand Teton include:
Moose,
Elk,
Mule Deer,
Bison,
Pronghorn Antelope,
Black Bears & Grizzly Bears,
Beavers,
Otters,
Grey wolves,
Mountain Lions,
To name a few!
Grand Teton N.P. gets 4.5 stars in this category!
Camping/Lodging:
Campgrounds abound in this National Park. Perhaps you will want to check out the gorgeous views at Jenny Lake Campground or Signal Mountain Campground. There are also several lodges, ranches, and cabin areas to choose from in Grand Teton.
For Camping/Lodging opportunities, this park gets a solid 4.0 stars!
Other Amenities/Recreation Opportunities:
There are plenty of outdoors recreational activities available in this park, including:
Hiking,
Mountaineering,
Rock Climbing,
Fishing,
Floating the Snake River,
Lake Boating,
Horseback Riding,
Snowshoeing and Skiing.
There are also several restaurants located within the park itself.
3.5 stars for other amenities.
Busyness:
This park had 2.8 Million visitors last year, and 3.8 Million visitors in 2021. Compare that with Yellowstone, which saw almost 3.3 Million visitors and and 4.8 Million visitors in respective years. 3.0 stars.
Accessibility:
This National Park is fairly remote; if you’re needing to visit a nearby major airport, you’re probably in for a drive:
Denver, CO - 8 hours southeast
Boise, ID - 5.45 hours west
Billings, MT - 6.45 hours northeast
Salt Lake City, UT - 5 hours southwest (closest)
For accessibility, this park only gets 3.0 stars.
Personal Experience:
As I stated last time when I rated Hot Springs National Park a little lower than it really deserves, our personal experience really plays the biggest factor in our rating system (hence the possibility of 5 extra bonus points). This really hurts Grand Teton National Park in a big way. We simply didn’t do much in this park (again, part of the reason we want to revisit it). Because we spent so much time at Yellowstone, Grand Teton really became sort of an afterthought, and that’s unfortunate. I’m afraid I’m terribly shortchanging Grand Teton here, but I’m only giving it 2.0 stars for right now.
Overall Rating:
Grand Teton deserves to be higher, but this is all based on our rating methodology with personal experience being the most important factor. Thus, Grand Teton National Park comes in on our ranking with 3.44 stars.
Maybe if we get to spend some more time there next year, this park will rise in our ranking, but for now …
Grand Teton National Park — Our No. 12 Favorite National Park!
Until next time,
Keep exploring, friends!
— Chase
Work Cited:
"Beyond the Pullouts." YouTube.Com, uploaded by J. Moore Outdoor Photography, 5 Sept. 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=crK1FGkVYnM.