10 Amazing Excursions To Discover Jackson Hole In Winter

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My family and I recently had the wonderful opportunity to launch out on a new adventure to discover the Jackson Hole area for our family vacation. As it was the first vacation we had been able to take all together in quite some time (the fourth trip planned and finally not cancelled due to Covid), we thoroughly enjoyed getting to experience the local culture of the Jackson area, adventure in Grand Teton National Park and take in the stunningly gorgeous views of the western landscape covered in snow. Receiving an average of 500 inches of snow per year, which lingers around for about 7 months, Jackson, Wyoming, and its surrounding area (known as Jackson Hole) is a perfect place to explore and enjoy a winter vacation. With such a snowy landscape, we found 10 amazing excursions to fully discover Jackson Hole for the winter wonderland it really is.

1. Hike in Grand Teton National Park

Similarly, as the Jackson area had experienced less snowfall than normal at the beginning of our trip in December, we were able to hike for two of the days with just our hiking boots, instead of full snowshoes. While the snow later in the season is too deep to hike in just boots, I would recommend waterproof shoes regardless of whether you are using snowshoes.

Taggart Lake

After entering the national park, the first hike that we tackled was Taggart Lake. With a good portion of the Teton Park Road closed for the winter season, the Taggart Lake trail head becomes the innermost launching point for hiking throughout the park. With a total trail loop of about 3 miles, the Taggart Lake trail is a very enjoyable hike that provides views of woods, snowy meadows, creeks, and Taggart Lake itself. As it was snowing during our hike, our visibility of the mountains surrounding the lake was limited, however the scenery was still stunning, and it truly felt like a winter wonderland (complete with ice skaters making their own rink on the lake).

Bradley Lake

Another hike we completed within the park was Bradley Lake. With about a 5-mile loop, the Bradley Lake trail starts off at the Taggart Lake trailhead and uses a portion of the same trail, before veering to the right. After the split, this trail gains much more elevation than the Taggart Lake trail does, so we were able to see more expansive views of the Tetons when the snowy fog started to clear. Surrounded by mountains, Bradley Lake is beautiful in its sharp contrasts of the dark trees and snowy drifts.

3. Snowmobile with Teton Valley Adventures

Following our days of hiking and skiing, we took a Cave Falls half day snowmobiling tour with Teton Valley Adventures. Located in the heart of Driggs, Idaho, Teton Valley Adventures outfitted us with any gear we might need including snow suits, helmets, boots, and gloves. After donning the proper apparel, we loaded into a 15-passenger van and drove about 45 minutes towards Ashton, Idaho to the trailhead of Cave Falls. Moving through the Caribou Targhee National Forest and parts of Yellowstone National Park, the snowmobiling tour provided stunning views. At around 20 feet tall and 250 feet wide, Cave Falls is the widest waterfall in Yellowstone National Park and is a true wonder.

As we were the first snowmobile tour to venture on the path that season, the one foot of snow that we were driving through, quickly became three feet. While we had to dig out each other’s snowmobiles on several occasions when they got stuck, we had a fabulous time and truly felt as if we were backcountry snowmobiling through the untouched wilderness. Our guide, Kerry, did an expert job leading our group and gave us an amazing glimpse into life in Idaho. Not only was Kerry a great guide, but everyone at Teton Valley Adventures was extremely kind and considerate. We worked with Melissa to not only set up our tour, but later, after the cancellation of a couple of events due to lack of snow, she spoke with us on the phone after hours to help us find other places to go sledding / have more snow excursions. With such beautiful landscapes and wonderful customer service, tours with Teton Valley Adventures are a must do for your next trip.

4. Sleigh Ride Through The Elk Refuge

Another adventure you must add to your Jackson Hole winter trip itinerary, is a sleigh ride through the Elk Refuge. Located in the center of the valley of Jackson, the elk refuge becomes home to thousands of elk throughout the winter months. Typically, snowstorms in the mountains move the elk down into the valley and refuge. While we did have this sleigh ride planned and were extremely excited about it, the lack of persistent snowstorms had prevented the elk from moving down into the refuge at the point in December we were there. Everyone we worked with at the Refuge was very helpful and honest about the lack of elk, and they allowed us to cancel our tour without any problems. While we were bummed, I still wanted to highlight this adventure as the customer service that we received was wonderful and typically, I am sure the excursion would have been extremely fascinating being so close to the animals. Fortunately, the large storms that came in the week following our trip began to push the elk down into the refuge. If you want to view glimpses of the refuge, they set up live webcams that show the happenings of the elk, so you can see if they have any elk even before your trip. Despite not taking the sleigh ride, the refuge was still gorgeous and showcased a beautiful backdrop of the Teton Range.

5. Visit The National Museum of Wildlife Art

Overlooking the Elk Refuge, the National Museum of Wildlife Art features sculptures, paintings and photography of both local and global landscapes and wildlife. With a lovely building integrated into the side of the hill, the Museum boasts not only of beautiful art, but also a gift shop and delicious restaurant, Palate. While not a tremendously large Museum, it should be added to your list of adventures, as everyone needs a break from the snow now and again. With a free outdoor sculpture trail, new exhibitions from National Geographic and works by artists such as Ken Carlson, John Audubon and Carl Rungius, the National Museum of Wildlife Art is a feast for the senses and will have you walking away with a better understanding of the wildlife living in and around the Grand Tetons.

6. Experience A Dog Sled Tour To Hot Springs

Another once in a lifetime adventure you must sign up for while in Jackson Hole is the Dog Sled Tour to Granite Hot Springs hosted by Jackson Hole Iditarod Sled Dog Tours. Complete with lunch, hot soups and beverages, this full day dog sledding tour takes you to the Granite Hot Springs located in the center of snowy woods. Only accessible during the winter months by skiing, dog sledding or snowmobiling tours, Granite Hot Springs features a concreted hot spring pool and changing facility alongside Granite Creek. Like the Elk Sleigh Ride, unfortunately, this excursion for us was refunded as the sled dogs were too strong to pull the sleds in the amount of snow that we had. Despite this, the owner, Frank, was very kind and invited us to his ranch to interact with his sled dog teams. With over 200 dogs, he takes a real pride in the tours that he offers, and unfortunately, this was the latest in the season, in his 43 years of mushing experience, he had ever been delayed due to lack of the right snow depth. While it was an unusual circumstance for our trip, I would highly recommend this tour based on the time, attention, and expertise that Frank exhibited through our phone conversations and generous invitation to his ranch.

7. Shop in Downtown Jackson

8. Snowshoe in Grand Teton National Park

Not only can you hike in Grand Teton National Park, but after a couple of large snowstorms, you will need to snowshoe. While the snow had been a little delayed at the beginning of our trip, by the end we needed snowshoes. Also available for rent at Peaked Sports, snowshoes simply strap to your hiking boots to help keep you on the upper layers of snow. They are especially advised if you ever go off trail as the drifts can become quite deep and the snowshoes will help prevent you from sinking entirely in them. As we had already explored the areas around Taggart Lake, we decided to venture into more of the northern part of the park called the Colter Bay area. Accessible by a different road that takes you around the park instead of through it during the winter months, Colter Bay is on the northeast side of Jackson Lake. Here, there are several 1-to-2-mile hikes around the protruding islands out onto Jackson Lake. We were able to snowshoe a couple of the islands, which was a lovely change from Taggart and Bradley Lake. Despite not having the same visibility of the mountains due to the snowy fog, the islands were a beautiful mix of wintery wood views and almost desolate looking lake views.

9. Stay In Local Accommodations

While possibly a different kind of excursion, staying in unique local accommodations can make or break your trip experience. While in the Jackson Hole area, we stayed in two local accommodations that both were wonderful experiences.

VRBO

As we were planning several days of our excursions on the Wyoming side of Jackson Hole and several on the Idaho side, we decided to stay in a VRBO in Tetonia, Idaho which is about 10 minutes outside of Driggs and about an hour from Jackson. Being close to Driggs was wonderful not only for the restaurants and activities, but also for allowing us to stop at the local grocery store, Broulim’s Driggs, to buy food for breakfast and lunch. We choose to eat breakfasts at our VRBO and pack lunches when out hiking, so having a kitchen fully equipped was wonderful. With a lovely fireplace, full kitchen, 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms and 2 living areas, the VRBO hosted by John and Diane fit all 8 of us comfortably and had beautiful views of the Teton Range. They provided games, local suggestions, and clear check in and check out measures for us to follow which was extremely helpful.

While the drive into Jackson / to Grand Teton National Park was beautiful, it can become a little more challenging going through the mountain pass in the snow, even with thorough scraping, so I would highly recommend renting a four-wheel drive vehicle. We were able to rent ours through Hertz and Enterprise, and with it being such a snowy region, if you request a four wheel/all wheel drive SUV, you will be almost guaranteed to get it. Most of the roads through the Jackson Hole area are through farmlands and not the mountains, however traveling over the mountains through the pass between Jackson and Driggs is needed. Due to our early flights out, we did stay in Jackson our final night to prevent going over the pass early in the morning, which I would recommend for the winter months. Even still, this VRBO was a lovely stay and provided us with just the right place for our winter vacation.

Wyoming Inn Of Jackson Hole

While we only stayed at the Wyoming Inn of Jackson Hole on the final night of our trip, we thoroughly enjoyed our time. Complete with a delicious restaurant (that will also deliver to your room), the Wyoming Inn provides boutique luxury in the heart of downtown Jackson. Only about 15 minutes from the airport and 20 minutes from Grand Teton National Park, the Wyoming Inn makes for a delightful stay.

10. Try Their Fabulous Restaurants

Last, but certainly not least, you must visit the delicious restaurants throughout the Jackson Hole / “Wydaho” (Wyoming Idaho) area.  While Driggs, Victor and Jackson are not huge areas, they offer many wonderful restaurants with great service. A few of our favorite restaurants throughout the trip were:

• Tatanka Tavern – Driggs, Idaho – marvelous pizza with airy artisan crust
• Teton Thai – Driggs, Idaho – delicious Thai food (various curry dishes, fried rice, General Tso’s etc). They even had a buy one get one entrée free special while we were there
• Bubbas BBQ – Jackson, Wyoming – quaint local BBQ with sandwiches, ribs, brisket and more
• Palate – Jackson, Wyoming – located within the National Museum of Wildlife Art, amazing food (Game Stew, Bison Gyro, French Onion Grilled Cheese etc) with a view of the Elk Refuge
• The Gun Barrel Steak and Game House – Jackson, Wyoming – taste of the west with plates featuring elk chops, bison sirloins and rosemary chicken

Final Thoughts

While there are so many wonderful excursions to undertake in Wyoming and Idaho, these are a few that were our favorites to plan and enjoy. “Wydaho” is a special place in our country with natural beauty at every turn, exhibited through the people, wildlife, and landscape. If you are looking for your next winter destination full of both indoor and outdoor adventures, this is the place for you. Grab your family or friends and take the next step to explore the still very much wild west.

Happy exploration!

Chloe