Jedediah Smith Wilderness, Wyoming

"Keep close to Nature’s heart… and break clear away, once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean." – John Muir

In 2020, we backpacked 25 miles of the Teton Crest Trail beginning our route at Teton Village and ending our route at Jenny Lake using the Cascade Canyon exit (see map below). Undoubtedly, this was our most memorable and favorite backpacking trip to date, we completed it over two days and one night.

If you are visiting Jackson Hole, WY in the late summer we definitely recommend considering hiking all or part of the TCT. We began our hike using the Teton Village tram to Rendevous Mountain and from there hiked roughly 16 miles to Alaska Basin where we camped for the evening. We opted for Alaska Basin since it does not require a permit to camp and offers incredible sunset views of the surrounding peaks deep into the Jedediah Smith Wilderness.

On our hike out from the Alaska Basin on through Hurricane Pass and down Cascade Canyon we barely made it out in time just as an impressive early fall cold front and winter storm system moved through. A strong cold front arrived from the north on Monday afternoon and a rapid temperature drop followed. The temperature at the Jackson Hole Airport fell from 75℉ at 3:50 p.m. to 34℉ at 7:15 p.m. — a 41-degree temperature drop in less than three and a half hours!

Pictures only offer some insight, you have to truly experience it yourself to appreciate the incredible landscape of the TCT. It is definitely a challenging trail, however, the pain is worth the reward.