Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Fur trappers named the large valley east of the Teton Range Jackson's Hole for a fellow
trapper. A hole to them meant this type of valley surrounded by mountains. In 1895, a wagon
road was completed from West Thumb in Yellowstone Park through the South Entrance to
the new Wyoming settlements to the southeast.
This is an area with many things to do; in fact, you need a day or more just to visit the most
outstanding stops in Grand Teton National Park, with perhaps a boat trip or a short hike.
A Sampling of Summer Activities in Jackson Hole
• In and near Jackson: rodeos and “shootouts,” chairlift at Snow King, National Wildlife
Art Museum, National Fish Hatchery
• In Teton Village: aerial tram to Rendezvous Mountain, Grand Teton Music Festival
classical concerts in July and August
• In and around Grand Teton National Park: ranger-led hikes and campfire lectures,
float trips and white-water rafting trips, horseback riding and pack trips, fishing, climb-
ing, and biking
• Near G.T.N.P. headquarters at Moose: the excellent Murie visitor center, former home
of conservationists Olaus, Adolphe, Mardy, and Louise Murie and now devoted to the
conservation of wildlife and wild places; the exhibits and trails of the Laurance S. Rock-
efeller Preserve
he
Snake River
has its source in the southern backcountry of Yellowstone, then traverses
Jackson Hole. Its name does not come from the snakelike path it takes through the area,
but rather from the French Canadian trapper name for the Shoshoni tribe: Snakes (Serpents
in French). According to some researchers, the trappers misunderstood the sign Shoshoni
people used to identify themselves: a sinuous hand motion with index finger extended, indic-
ating that they were grass weavers. Instead, the trappers thought the sign meant the track of a
snake.
Grand Teton National Park
came into being in 1929 after much disagreement between
advocates for adding the Teton country to Yellowstone and local ranchers interested in keep-
ing the land private. At that time, Congress decided not to extend Yellowstone Park in this
direction, but simply placed the land in the public domain. Grand Teton reached its present
size only in 1950, with the addition of the part of Jackson Hole that includes the outer road
(U.S. Highways 26/89/191).
