Hello all. I am in the middle of planning our Yellowstone/Grand Teton vacation for next summer. Was wondering if you all could help me with some questions:

(1) We are driving to Jackson from Cody. Will probably be driving through Grand Tetons in the late afternoon. Would this be a good time to do the Hidden Falls hike via the boat ride at Jenny Lake? Do lines for the boats get long? How long approximately would it take to ride the boat across, hike to the falls and come back?

(2) It seems lodging can be expensive in Jackson. Any recommondations for quiet, clean, motels? We are traveling with our boys, so B&Bs are out, and a pool is pretty much a necessity. We don't want to stay in Motel 6 type of place (not that there's anything wrong with these), but we don't want to pay $200/night for lodging, either.

I'm sure I'll have more questions, but any help on these would be appreciated. Thanks!

Depending on how late in the summer you go, you might want to take the boat ride and do the hike in the morning. Thunderstorms are a risk in the afternoons later in summer. You'd probably also see less of a line the earlier you go. I took the ride and the hike in early July about 8 years ago, and I remember it as a great thing to do. I think we left in the morning and we didn't have too much of a line.

I don't know the ages of your sons. If they are young or rowdy, you might want to keep an adult between them on the hike. As I recall, there were significant dropoffs by the trail. I'm always worried that my two kids might shove each other around at just the wrong time on a hike.

If you're going all the way up to Inspiration Point (1.2-mile vertical climb from where the boat lets you off), you can figure probably 2-3 hours total. The climb up will take a while! I wouldn't advise going on a weekend, as you'll have difficulty finding a parking space at that area of Jenny Lake in the afternoon.
As for a place to stay, we just returned from the area and stayed at the Painted Buffalo Inn. We too wanted a pool, which limited our choices. It was conveniently located in Jackson, affording us the opportunity of leaving our car at the motel and walking to our destinations downtown. With our AAA discount, the room was $124.02 (including tax).

karens
I'm confused. Are you driving from Cody thru Yellowstone and then into Jackson? We found Jackson to be very expensive. Howard, you got a great rate at the Painted Buffalo! We paid 132.00 AAA at Motel 8! clean room and good continental breakfast but no elevator and we had three floors to drag those suitcases up!

Thanks so much, everyone.

cd- Yes, we were going to go from Cody, a bit through Yellowstone and down into Jackson. We are flying into Bozeman and home through Jackson Hole. So I have us in Yellowstone for 3 days, and during the 3rd driving to Cody b/c I heard the drive to Cody is very scenic. I also really am fascinated by western US history and I wanted to see Trail Town there. I guess this isn't how a lot of people do this, huh? I have our flights and have to fill in where we'll be staying each night, so our motels are not set in stone yet.

Travellyn - thanks for the heads up about the trail. My boys are young (10 and 8) AND rowdy, so this is good to know. For some reason, they don't mind hiking/scrambling uphill as much as walking a flat path. Scrambling is fun, hiking can be boring. Go figure.

karens
I know that this place is too Motel 6ish, but I wanted to let others out there know that we stayed at the Alpine Inn in Jackson on July 2 for $84.00 per night. That was for two adults and a teen boy. They do have a pool. It is within 2 or 3 blocks of town square. It was fine for what we needed. We headed to stay in Teton National Park the next night. I booked this in March for the July stay.

Hi Karen, about cody: i don't recall the trail town being anything special, but be sure you tour the Buffalo Bill Historical Center when you're in town. Its a wonderful museum about the west and your kids are the perfect ages for it, too.
Also, cody has a nightly rodeo that is really wonderful. It was our first (in 1996) but the kids were so impressed that we've gone to others since. However, none have been as good as cody's.

Hi karens
I would just encourage you to take the northeast entrance into Yellowstone (you will go thru Montana) instead of the east entrance from Cody. You will be on the Cheif Joseph Hwy and it is awesome!! Some of the best scenery we saw! It is a little longer, but so worth it. You will pass thru a lot of wildlife in the Lagrange area and then at Roosevelt turn south heading to Canyon (terrific) and then Old Faithful and the geyers and then on to the Tetons. Just an opinion, we just returned yesterday.

I also strongly recommend the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody. It's a wonderful museum.

Just got back from a similar trip.

Cody - do the rodeo, it's a must.
Cassie's Supper Club - have dinner here, it has a prohibition history.
If you have some time, Buffalo Bill Ranch does a horse back riding trip, it's about 20 miles outside of Cody on the way to the East enterance of Yellowstone. We did the 4 hour trip and really enjoyed it. Very freindly people.

Yellowstone - so much to suggest, but if you're in the Canyon area, do the Uncle Tom's Trail down to the lower falls. It's tough coming up, but I bet your kids will like it. There are so many stop off's in the park, you can occupy a lot of your time doing that.

Teton- I second the Jenny Lake Trail/Hidden Falls/Inspiration Point. It's a fairly easy to moderate trail, but does offer some scrambing opportunities.

Jackson - Jackson Hole Lodge is nice if you get a suite, they're much more updated than the other rooms. $150ish
Antler Inn - a bit motel 6ish, but updated rooms, clean and inexpensive $110ish
A couple of suggestions for restaurants, the Brewery has great food (and beer) and there's a place called D.O.G. (Down on Glen) that you can pop in for a great take away breakfast burrito. Also the Bunnery is another good breakfast place.

Have fun!

We stayed at Elk Country Inn (which is in the same chain as Antler Inn) for about $75 on July 7 or 8, 2003. It has a hot tub and guest laundry, but not a full pool. Nice, clean, comfortable rooms though.

www.elkcountryinn.com

Your boys will enjoy the free "street shootout" re-enactment daily in Jackson. I forget the time, but you'll be able to ask anyone on the main street or visitor centre.

Town Square Shoot-out
Watch a lively reenactment of frontier justice on the Jackson Town Square in what is the longest running shoot-out in the country, 43 years to be exact! Memorial Day through Labor Day: Monday - Saturday at 6:15 p.m. Free to the public. Reservations are not required or accepted. Sponsored by the Jackson Hole Chamber of Commerce, 733-3316.


Also, if you can afford it, white water rafting was great fun (& safe) on the Snake River. We went with "Mad River" rafting company. It was about 4 hours including a supper cookout meal for $41.00 each. The cheapest trip is $31.00 without a meal.

www.mad-river.com


We had a great trip. I'm sure your family will too! Wish it was time to go again...

You'll love the Tetons and Yellowstone. The hike up to the falls and Inspiration Point isn't too bad. I'd highly recommend continuing that hike all the way up Cascade Canyon and to Lake Solitude, but it sounds as if you're kids would get bored. On a clear day, it is absolutely spectacular. It's also about a 7-hour round trip, so probably not in your scope of things. You can do the falls and point in about 90 minutes RT. When we did the hike to the lake, we took the first boat over (had to scrape the ice off the seats...it was mid-Sept. and 32 degrees early in the morning). When we returned from the hike around 3 pm, there was quite a line for the boat (we had to wait for the third one...about a 30-minute wait).

We stayed in the Colter Bay cabins in the Tetons...nice, clean, and very affordable. Jackson Lake Lodge is also very nice, but you'll pay more for the extras.

As far as eating, the grill in the Jackson Lake Lodge is respectable fare, but if you want to take the kids for a great burger, don't miss Billy's Giant Hamburgers in Jackson (same entrance as the Cadillac Grille). These are some of the best big fat burgers you'll ever have! Have a great trip!

I also second the Uncle Tom's Trail...absolutely breathtaking view of the falls and your kids will love it, if your thighs don't from climbing back out!

I'll second Colter Bay...the log cabins. Roomy, clean, everything you will need, except the pool. BUT, I seem to remember that guests at Colter bay had pool privileges at Jackson Lake Lodge.

http://www.gtlc.com/lodgeCBV.htm

Some dining suggestions:
*Dornan's Chuckwagon in the Teton--breakfast, lunch or dinner. Food is excellent, and you dine in a beautiful outdoor setting.
*Nora's Fish Creek Inn in Wilson (a short drive from Jackson)--Don't let the outside of the place fool you. The food is outstanding.
*The Bunnery in Jackson--excellent breakfasts.
*Snake River Grill in Jackson--Excellent food, though a little expensive.
*A general observation--have a buffaloburger. Better and healthier than its equivalent from a steer.