Sight · Grand Teton National Park
A river launch with a dark 1886 story and a tough run.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Grand Teton Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Grand Teton National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Grand Teton audio tourRecorded for this place
Deadmans Bar: The Story Behind the Name“You’re nearing Deadmans Bar on the Snake River, with an access road that turns to gravel near the water. Stop here if you’d like to get down to the river and watch float boats coming and going.”
Plays as you drive up to Deadmans Bar in the Parkwolf Grand Teton Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“…We have been driving around with the audio tour and it has been informational and spot on. The whole family has been impressed. We used it for Yellowstone and Grand Teton.”
Guide
Deadmans Bar is a small-boat launch and Snake River access area in Grand Teton. Come to put in, fish, watch float trips, or look for wildlife along the water. There is auto and boat-trailer parking, a vault/composting toilet, and an information kiosk with river-safety panels. The access road changes from pavement to gravel as it reaches the river.
The Snake’s braided channels shift from year to year. The 10-mile float from Deadmans Bar to Moose Landing is rated advanced and is the park’s most challenging stretch, with a steeper drop, stronger current, and side channels that can end at logjams. All boats need a Grand Teton permit; boaters also need to meet the park’s Wyoming aquatic-invasive-species decal and inspection requirements.
This is a chance to get down to the Snake rather than view it from a highway turnout. The river carries snowmelt west from the mountains, and its banks are used by moose and beavers. Those animals are part of the corridor, not a guaranteed sighting.
Three mining companions of John Tonner were found dead along the river in 1886. Tonner was arrested, then freed on self-defense grounds; there were no witnesses. That story is the reason this launch has such a grim name.
Wildlife
172 sightingsGrizzly BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
195 sightingsBrown BearMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
32 sightingsGray WolfMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
1,816 sightingsMooseMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
614 sightingsBisonMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
738 sightingsElkMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Grand Teton. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyCunningham Cabin Historic Trail0.2 mi · 15 min · 3.7 mi awayA short cabin walk for Jackson Hole history and Teton views.
EasySchwabacher Landing Trail0.6 mi · 30 min · 4 mi awayBeaver ponds turn the Tetons into a morning mirror.
EasyMoose Ponds Loop Trail3.4 mi · 2 hr · 4.9 mi awayWillow ponds and a Lupine Meadows loop under Teewinot’s peaks.
ModerateJenny Lake Loop Trail7.1 mi · 4 hr · 5 mi awayThe full-lake loop brings the Cathedral Group into view.
Sight · 0.5 mi awaySnake River OverlookClassic river-and-Teton view, though trees hide part of the famous bend.
Lodging · 3 mi awayTriangle X Dude RanchRanch rides and meals, with the Tetons over the cabin porches.
Sight · 3.1 mi awayMount Moran TurnoutMoran’s dark stripe is a magma-filled crack nearly a billion years old.
Sight · 3.2 mi awayPotholes TurnoutA glacial kettle tucked into sagebrush flats.
Sight · 3.4 mi awayTeton Point TurnoutA broad Teton panorama, with the Snake River tucked below.
Sight · 3.7 mi awayCunningham CabinA tiny homestead cabin with a big Teton view.Sight · 4 mi awaySchwabacher LandingStill water turns a Snake River stop into a Teton mirror.
Scenic pullout · 4.1 mi awayMountain View TurnoutA wide Teton panorama without a hikeParkwolf’s Grand Teton ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
