Battle of the Parks: Grand Tetons vs. Yellowstone
We’re in the height of the summer of Covid-19, with high rates of unemployment (with myself counted as one of the many filing each week), nightly Black Lives Matter protests, a major clash between political parties, spikes in infection rates, and an overall sense of dread. In other words, this felt like an ideal time to GTFO out Portland, hit the road, and head to an area with very few people, but tons of gorgeous scenery.
After 11 hours of driving, we stopped for the night in Idaho Falls, which was a mistake because this town offers nothing. Instead, make the short detour to Sun Valley to browse the darling mountain town, take a soak in Frenchman’s Hot Springs, and enjoy a steak at Pioneer Saloon. The next morning, we drove two hours to make it to Jackson, which is just a few miles outside of Grand Tetons National Park. I mean, does it get much more beautiful than this?
After we explored the Grand Tetons, we headed to Yellowstone National Park. On the left, we have the Grand Tetons. On the right, one of the many springs from within Yellowstone. Which parks is right for you? Read on to see my thoughts.
Above: One of the barns along Mormon Row. Hello, gorgeous! Below: Scenes from our hike when we crossed Jenny Lake. Not bad, not bad.
SO. MANY. BISON. And the baby bison! So adorable. Just don’t get close because the last thing you want on a vacation is to get gored.
A few of the views from within Grand Teton National Park. One of the best things about this park, IMO, is that you get to enjoy views like these from pretty much everywhere. The granite mountains are surrounded by six lakes, the winding Snake River, and fields of sagebrush. Because you’re driving through fields rather than a forest, the scenery is consistently beautiful, with various areas offering their own unique viewpoint of the range. From the left, we stopped at Schwabacher’s Landing, the Snake River Overlook (where Ansel Adams captured one of his famous photographs), and Jenny Lake, where we took a boot to the opposite side to hike to Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point.
Another great thing about Grand Tetons National Park? It’s mere minutes from the town of Jackson (more commonly referred to as Jackson Hole), where you can go shopping, grab drinks, and get something to eat at one of the many restaurants and bars. The benefit of having a charming town nearby cannot be emphasized enough. We enjoyed lunch at Persephone Cafe and cooled down with beers at Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, both of which I fully recommend.
After our day spent in Grand Tetons, we drove about three hours (including going through a thunderstorm) to West Yellowstone to make it to our glamp. I’m admittedly not a camper, but I’ve always wanted to stay at Under Canvas because their glamping tents looked right up my alley, perfect for Instagram, and made me feel like I was mildly roughing it, but in the most pampered way possible. After a decent night’s sleep, we woke up early and headed to the park.
Our first day was spent mostly exploring the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. The Yellowstone River flows through the middle of the canyon, and on either side you can see dramatic colors, shapes, and puffs of steam from the hydrothermal features in the walls, with upper and lower falls adding to the spectacle. We took in the view at Artist Point and hiked to Point Sublime, which, admittedly, was not all that sublime at the end, but WAS quite beautiful most of the way.
Our second day in Yellowstone was spent exploring the famous springs, starting with none other than Old Faithful. This geyser erupts every 90 minutes, so plan your arrival accordingly (you can look up to see when it’s estimated to erupt). We got lucky and arrived not long before it erupted, and right as a bison was walking by the geyser. It was almost too good to be true.
Two of the more famous springs are Morning Glory and Grand Prismatic, which are both gorgeous. There are boardwalks and paths you can stroll to view all the different springs, but you’re in pretty much full sun, so come prepared. And on that note, some of these areas are popular with bears, so if you’re going when there aren’t as many people out, play it safe and bring your bear bells and/or spray.
Yellowstone Versus Grand Tetons
So let’s say you only have time to visit one park and can’t decide which is better suited to you. I’m here to help you decide:
If you want to see animals: Yellowstone is home to the most diverse species in the United States, so this is the place to see wildlife. Unfortunately, I didn’t see any bears or moose (although this might also be a good thing, seeing as how I’m still alive), but you’ll get the best chance of viewing these animals and more in Hayden and Lamar Valleys at dawn or dusk.
For overall scenery, Grand Tetons wins. You get beautiful views of the mountains from everywhere in the park, Grand Tetons wins hands down for this. Yellowstone is also beautiful, and the scenery is more diverse, but it didn’t have the “wow” factor that Grand Tetons does.
How much time have you got? There’s a lot to do in Grand Tetons, and I would have loved to spend more time there, but even with just one day I got to see a lot of the park. On the other hand, with Yellowstone, we had two days there and there was still SO MUCH we didn’t see. I’d visit Yellowstone when I have closer to a week to explore, because this park is also huge. We stayed in West Yellowstone and getting to Lamar Valley would have taken two and a half hours, so spending so much time driving can also be exhausting. In short, if time is limited, Grand Tetons is easier for exploring. With more time, Yellowstone offers a lot to explore.
Do you want something besides nature? Then Grand Tetons is your park. With Jackson a short drive away, you don’t have to rough it the whole the whole time you’re there and can take a break from nature. Another cool thing about the town is that there are bike trails that go all the way to Jenny Lake, which could be another fun way to see the park and get some exercise.
My overall choice? Grand Tetons. They were absolutely stunning and our day spent exploring the park and Jackson was by far my favorite.