Lodging · Grand Teton National Park
A rustic climbers’ base with shared bunks and Teton views.
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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 area
Cottonwood Creek: Lunch beside the Pack Meadow“You're coming up on Cottonwood Creek Picnic Area, where five tables sit among cottonwoods above the creek. If you've brought lunch, this is an easy place to break the drive.”
Plays on the road 0.6 mi from Grand Teton Climbers’ Ranch 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
Grand Teton Climbers’ Ranch is a seasonal, communal bunkhouse inside Grand Teton National Park, just south of Jenny Lake. It’s a useful in-park base for climbers and other outdoor visitors, especially if you value location and a friendly shared-house atmosphere over a private room. This is open-bunk lodging, not a quiet cabin getaway. Check the operating season before planning a stay; park entry is required.
Cabins are open, co-ed, one-room spaces with 4 to 10 wooden bunks each. They have no heat or air conditioning. Bring your own sleeping pad, pillow, and sleeping bag. The tradeoff is noise: creaky floors and bunks, plus guests arriving or leaving early or late, can disturb light sleepers. Pack earplugs if that sounds like you.
There’s no restaurant; guests bring their own food and cook in the outdoor shelter, which has electricity and some shared equipment. Bring a cookstove, too: cooking isn’t allowed in the cabins or parking lot. Separate men’s and women’s bathhouses have showers, sinks, and toilets for registered guests. There’s also a communal library, a board for climbers looking for partners, and free bikes for nearby errands. The ranch has no public Wi-Fi.
The ranch occupies the former Double Diamond Dude Ranch, which opened in 1924. Climbers took over the property in 1970, and the 1985 Beaver Creek fire burned half of its original structures. That history gives the bunkhouse setting a different feel from a purpose-built hostel.
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
EasyTaggart Lake Trail3 mi · 1.5 hr · 0.8 mi awayA mellow climb through aspens to a lake under the Tetons.
ModerateTaggart Lake–Bradley Lake Loop5.6 mi · 2.8 hr · 0.8 mi awayTwo alpine lakes and a ridge walk beneath the high Tetons.EasyTaggart Lake - Beaver Creek Loop3.8 mi · 2.5 hr · 0.8 mi awayA 3.8-mile lake loop with a moraine climb and creekside return.
ChallengingDelta Lake Trail7.6 mi · 6 hr · 2.1 mi awayA steep boulder climb to turquoise water below the Tetons.
ChallengingGarnet Canyon Trail8.2 mi · 5 hr · 2.1 mi awayA steep approach to a boulder field below Middle Teton.
EasyMenor's Ferry Trail0.4 mi · 45 min · 3.3 mi awayA riverside loop visits a replica of Jackson Hole’s historic ferry.
EasyMoose Ponds Loop Trail3.4 mi · 2 hr · 3.3 mi awayWillow ponds and a Lupine Meadows loop under Teewinot’s peaks.
ModerateJenny Lake Loop Trail7.1 mi · 4 hr · 3.3 mi awayThe full-lake loop brings the Cathedral Group into view.
Picnic area · 0.6 mi awayCottonwood Creek Overlook and Picnic AreaPicnic tables, the Manges cabin and fall aspens below the Tetons
Sight · 0.7 mi awayTeton Glacier TurnoutA roadside chance to spot the park’s largest glacier.
Sight · 0.9 mi awayLucas-Fabian HomesteadA homestead stop with Teton views and a 58-year-old climber's story.
Sight · 1 mi awayBradley LakeA second alpine lake with a strong view of Garnet Canyon.
Sight · 1 mi awayTaggart LakeA three-mile hike ends at a glacial lake under the Tetons.
Scenic pullout · 2 mi awayWindy Point TurnoutA quick view of the central Tetons, with pathway access.
Sight · 2.1 mi awayBar BC Dude RanchWalk among cabins from Jackson Hole's early dude-ranch era.
Sight · 2.6 mi awaySurprise LakeA Teton-facing shore at the end of a steep alpine climb.Parkwolf’s Grand Teton ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
