Grand Teton National Park and Jackson Hole: Practicalities
Shuttle buses to the park run from Jackson and Yellowstone. The visitor centers are just off the main road in Moose (daily: mid-May to June 8am-6pm; June-Sept 8am-7pm; Sept to mid-May 8am-5pm; tel 307/739-3399) to the south, and at Colter Bay (May 10-18 & Sept daily 8am-5pm; May 18 to June daily 8am-7pm; June-Aug daily 8am-8pm; tel 307/739-3594), halfway up, on the east shore of Jackson Lake. There are smaller centers at Jenny Lake (June-Sept daily 8am-7pm; tel 307/739-3343) and Flagg Ranch (June-Sept daily 9am-6pm). The Indian Arts Museum (daily: summer 8am-8pm; spring & fall 8am-5pm; free) at Colter Bay has an extensive collection of Plains Native American craftwork.The free Teewinot newspaper gives details of trails, facilities and ranger-led activities. The entrance fee of $20 per car ($10 for pedestrians and cyclists) also covers Yellowstone.
Most rooms , services and activities within the park are managed by the Grand Teton Lodge Co. (tel 307/543-3100 or 1-800/628-9988, ) and reservations are essential in summer. Prices for the comfortable rooms in Jackson Lake Lodge ($100-200) depend on whether or not you want a mountain view; Colter Bay Village Cabins (up to $35, en-suite $50-75, four-person cabins $100-130) are more utilitarian, and in high summer they also have $32 "tent cabins" - canvas cabins each with four bunk beds (no bed linen supplied), a wood-burning stove and outdoor barbecue grill - potentially pretty cold at night. There's good accommodation otherwise at Signal Mountain Lodge (tel 307/733-5470, ; $75-160), which has bland motel-style units with two double beds, bathroom and fridge, or much nicer rustic log cabins with two doubles plus private bath. All of the five summer-only park campgrounds work on a first-come, first-served basis ($12 per site). Visitor centers or entrance stations can advise on availability, or you can call (tel 307/739-3603) for recorded information. Individual campgrounds tend to fill in July and August in roughly the following order: Jenny Lake (8am; 49 sites, tents only), Signal Mountain (10am; 86 sites), Colter Bay (noon; 306 sites), Lizard Creek (2pm; 60 sites) and Gros Ventre (evening; 360 sites); Gros Ventre is the only campground suitable for large RVs. For backcountry camping, you need a permit , available free from the Moose and Colter Bay visitor centers and the Jenny Lake Ranger Station, near the Jenny Lake Visitor Center. The park restaurants and snack bars , especially at Colter Bay, are good but a little pricey. Dornan's Original Moose Chuckwagon (tel 307/733-2415), however, just outside the southern entrance in Moose, serves all-you-can-eat pancake breakfasts and rib dinners for a song. For the ultimate in relaxation, have an early-evening drink in Jackson Lake Lodge 's Blue Heron Lounge , where you can recline in comfortable chairs and watch the ever-changing blues, grays, purples and warm pinks of Mount Moran through huge picture windows.
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