Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park--Picture Perfect

Our view of the Tetons can't be beat.

The carful of kids spent the night in Grand Teton National Park as we wind down our epic road trip that started in Central Texas to the Canadian Rockies and back through Yellowstone National Park. Staying at some kid-pleasing places along the way, the carful of kids have spent their days exploring the some of the grandest scenery in North America.

We bunked down in a camping cabin in Colter Bay Village with a pot belly stove to keep us warm, until it burned out. It seems our pioneering skills could be better and I wouldn't recommend this property to families with young children. 

This is the view from behind the camping cabin, pretty amazing.

A new day has dawned and we are up and ready to go to our next planned excursion, a breakfast wagon ride. It departs from Jackson Lake Lodge Corrals, just around the corner from our camping cabin.

We are scheduled to ride out to the Willow Flats area for a hearty breakfast except it's raining lightly. When I check in, I notice that the wagon is not covered--yikes. But the trip is still a go.

A bit of a cool, drizzly start to our Breakfast Cookout in Willow Flats.

I really want to love this but the carful of kids just finished an Old West Cookout and wagon ride at Roosevelt Lodge. They did it better, from start to finish. Both excursions are booked and managed by Xanterra, the NPS concessionaire.

The ride itself is less picturesque, especially when you pass the water treatment plant on the way out and back. I just didn't have the feeling that I'm away from it all, especially when I see cars passing by. 

When we get to their cookout site, it isn't covered so the tables are wet but they have a campfire going for us. The food is great and there is plenty of it, biscuits and gravy, sausage, bacon, pancakes and lots of coffee and cocoa for the kids. That's great except when we have to huddle together and eat standing up under the tiny cooking pavilion--not fun.

So my advice to Moms, if you are doing this at Roosevelt Lodge, skip this one. If you are heading out to Grand Teton NP in the dry, high season, the issues I had shouldn't be a problem.

After a hearty breakfast, the carful of kids are ready to walk it off so we drive down Teton Park Road. At the Jackson Lake Junction you have the option of taking the less traveled Teton Park Road or Highway 191. Both routes are stunning, scenic drives so if you have the time, drive both.

The view at Jenny Lake is not to be missed.

After a quick stop at Signal Mountain Lodge, we arrive at Jenny Lake Lodge. This area is picturesque and parking is limited. The cabins are well-appointed and the dining options tend to be more upscale. 

We are itching for a walk and the Jenny Lake Visitor Center has it. This area has lots of parking with trails, restrooms, a visitors center and a bookstore. The walks in this area are great for smaller kids and at the end of the trail we find our next excursion.

Ready to take a ride across Jenny Lake, this is a great activity for kids.

I love waterfalls and look for any reason to visit one--I heard there's one across Jenny Lake so the carful of kids need a ride. At the Jenny Lake Boating Launch, we find what we need.

Jenny Lake Boating offers a shuttle across Jenny Lake to the Hidden Falls trail and onto Inspiration Point. The ride is effortless as it glides across the glass-like water of Jenny Lake; the kids love it. Reservations are not required and a boat leaves every 15 minutes.

The shoreline of Jenny Lake as we take a ride across it to hike to Hidden Falls.

Jenny Lake Boating has round-trip and one way tickets if you want to hike back. The distance is nearly two and a half miles in one direction and nearly five miles in the other. Tickets are $15 round trip and $9 one-way for adults and for children, it's $8 round trip and $6 one-way. 

If you have the time, check out Hidden Falls across Jenny Lake.

The hike to Hidden Falls is a doable one mile with some steps and rocks along the path, my carful of kids enjoy it. The view of the falls makes it all worthwhile for me and the bridge over the creek excites the kids.

The carful of kids love the bridge across the trail. 

After we make the loop, the carful of kids catch the boat back across Jenny Lake--now on to our next quest. Though we have driven through some of the best wildlife viewing in North America, there is still one animal that we haven't seen and we are hot on a lead.

In the SUV, the carful of kids look south towards Moose Junction for the elusive moose. A Park Ranger told us to drive down the Moose-Wilson Road and look in the creek that runs next to the road.

The brown dot in the center is the moose, eating tender greens in the shallow water of the creek.

Moose are notoriously shy creatures; we follow the directions and sure enough in the marshy creek, we find a moose. They are vegetarians and primarily eat the tender green shoots found in shallow water. The best time to see most animals is dawn and dusk.

The Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center is designed to resemble the jagged peaks of the Tetons.

After our moose adventure, the carful of kids check out the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center--opened in 2007, this building sets the stage for future NPS visitor centers. With recycled and energy-efficient building materials plus an innovative design that mirrors the rugged terrain of the Tetons, the Craig Thomas Visitor Center is one you won't want to miss.

This area of Grand Teton NP is known for its moose population. 

The carful of kids put the finishing touches on their Junior Ranger booklets and turn them in to the Park Ranger for a special badge, a wood one. We add them to our collection of nearly 60 we have already.

The NPS Park Ranger checks over the Junior Ranger booklets

After checking out the southern end of Grand Teton NP, the carful of kids head back to our campsite at the northern end of the park at Colter Bay Village. Instead of taking Teton Park Road, we jump on the year-round Highway 191--it's just as picturesque of a drive, only faster.

The cozy Cunningham Cabin, the carful of kids decide this living is not for them.

On the way back, the carful of kids stop at the Cunningham Cabin to peak into the life of a frontier family. This is a great teaching moment for my kids, who can't even begin to understand the hardship of frontier life without electricity.

Dinner is ready.

The daylight is fading and the carful of kids are hungry so we load up in the SUV. Our next destination is a campfire dinner at our campsite.

Up Next: A morning exploring Boulder, Colorado.

Know before you go:

Grand Teton National Park is open 7-days a week, 24-hours a day, seasonal road closures during the winter. The admission is $30 for a 7-day pass or you can use an America the Beautiful annual pass ( $80 ). The lodging in Grand Teton National Park is reservable up to 16-months in advance. I advise making reservations as far in advance as possible.

This is Grizzly Country and it is advised to carry and know how to use Bear Spray at all times.

Grand Teton National Park with the Carful of Kids

Sitting by the fire in Roosevelt Lodge in YNP, the kids love the rustic feel.

The carful of kids explored the Upper Rocky Mountains for nearly a month on a road trip that started in Central Texas and meandered to Jasper National Park and back. After spending five glorious days exploring Yellowstone National Park, we have to move on.

The carful of kids wake up in our Rough Rider Cabin in Roosevelt Lodge after a quintessential Old West Cookout in Pleasant Valley. If you have kids, I highly recommend this activity and staying in the cabins at Roosevelt. It's an authentic experience that  you and your kids will remember fondly.

We are headed to the Old West Cookout in covered wagons through Pleasant Valley. My favorite excursion in YNP.

The whole reason to make the trek to Yellowstone NP is to reconnect with the natural world and this will get you close. Did I tell you the carful of kids found a small, mule deer that they followed around the cabins? The boys loved it. My daughter found a wild raspberry bush along the banks of the mountain brook next to our cabin. It’s idyllic for the whole family and a great way to discover and explore.

We are headed to Grand Teton National Park, just 40 miles down the road from Grant Village Junction at the South Entrance of Yellowstone NP. Before loading up the SUV, we walk over to the Roosevelt Lodge for a hearty breakfast, this is a great option for families.

This is the view from our table inside the Roosevelt Lodge, you can see why this area is a favorite to visitors.

The Roosevelt Lodge is a log cabin, built in 1920, that evokes the spirit of the Old West. Along with the Old Faithful Inn, I found it to be another great option for families. It has that authentic feeling that I crave in a property. You just can’t replicate the way a 90-year old building feels.

The first thing you see as you walk up to the Roosvelt Lodge is the row of rocking chairs lining the front porch. I take a minute to sit a spell and write in my travel journal--I'm in Heaven.

Breakfast at Roosevelt Lodge, wanna share?

Inside, you will find the Roosevelt Lodge's restaurant with a western theme and a kids menu that satisfies my carful of kids. I order a western skillet that is more than enough for most people.

The carful of kids have sampled our way across the dining rooms of Yellowstone and found the service and food above my expectations for concessionaires. I usually cookout in parks but in Yellowstone, it's not that easy. Most of the lodging properties in Yellowstone forbid cooking near cabins, except Roosevelt Lodge so if you want to cookout at the cabin you can.

I really hate to say goodbye to Yellowstone, I wish it was closer so I could visit it more often. Once a decade is just not enough.

It's a short drive in-between Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks but first we have to get out of Yellowstone since we are at the northeast corner of the park. With seasonal road construction and slow-moving traffic, this can take some time--like hours to drive the nearly 80 miles to exit Yellowstone. Pack your patience, like you would pack your snacks.

Hayden Valley is a must-stop for wildlife in YNP, the Yellowstone River runs through it.

Though at times slow-moving, we do get another opportunity to drive through the wildlife-rich Hayden Valley, one of the places you might find grizzlies or wolves. Then onto the Fishing Bridge Junction, where we hit seasonal road construction.

Once outside the boundaries of Yellowstone, we drive through John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway. There is a visitors center and you can stamp your National Parks Passport Book here. The Park Rangers here are a wealth of knowlegdge for this area, Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks combined, so stop if you have the time.

Grand Teton National Park has a different feel than Yellowstone so if this is your first trip to the area don’t assume the parks look the same. Grand Teton NP features the mountains as a backdrop and is more majestic than Yellowstone, which is rich in geothermal features and wildlife.

The view of Grand Teton is the reason to visit this park.

At the base of the Grand Tetons are--Jackson Lake, Leigh Lake and Jenny Lake, all of which reflect the mountains giving you that wow moment when you see them. There are several lodges that dot the park along the main route, Teton Park Road.

The carful of kids want to do a little exploring before heading to the cabin for the night so we drive over to Jackson Lake Lodge, built in the 1950s. This lodge is the hub for Jackson Lake and features some incredible views from the lobby so be sure to check it out.

Inside the main lobby of the Jackson Lake Lodge, the view is amazing so be sure to walk through.

The carful of kids walk around and find the giant, standing grizzly bear next to a sign announcing a Ranger Talk about grizzlies later. They beg to go, they love the idea of grizzly bears, just not encountering a grizzly bear.

He is running from the Grizzly, he will outrun it because he's 7. You will not. 

The Jackson Lake Lodge and Cottages are a popular choice for families since it has a pool and a playground, which you don't find in most of the national park lodgings. There are several restaurants in the lodge as well; the carful of kids are hungry so we duck into the most family-friendly one.

The Pioneer Grill's claim to fame is the longest continuously running counter in the world. They feature a kids menu full of kid-pleasers and a not-to-be-missed dessert.

The Teton Treat, a crowd pleaser for the carful of kids.

After a satisfying dinner, the carful of kids head to the Ranger Talk about Grizzlies and I sneak a little alone time in the lobby with my travel journal and a drink. The fire is going and the view is to die for.

The Grizzly Ranger Talk is a hit with the carful of kids and I recommend the Ranger Talks throughout the NPS. My carful of kids really seem to engage in the presentations and the activity counts for the requirement for the Junior Ranger Badge Booklet.

I made reservations at a camping cabin in the Colter Bay Village at the northern end of Jackson Lake so the carful of kids head back.  There is a campground, a separate RV park, one and two bedroom cabins and camping cabins ( think tents ). You will also find a grocery store, gas station, two restaurants, pay showers and a launderette, along with a marina and corral. This area can get congested at times.

The outside of our camping cabin at Colter Bay Village.

The term camping cabin is a little misleading, I would call this a tent. It has two log walls and two canvas walls, inside you will find a pot-belly stove and four single bunks. There are NO electrical outlets to use.

The outside includes a picnic table, a fire pit and a bear box. You will be required to keep a bare campsite to keep the foragers away.

While the carful of kids love this property, I have my reservations.

First, the bedding looks ancient, guessing by the harvest gold colored cover--I might have slept on it when I was a kid. So out comes the Clorox wipes to wipe them down and I'm not a germaphobe.

Second, the bunks don't have built-in railings. Yes, they have some at check-in but they have seen better days and for little kids. I make the boys sleep on the bottom bunks so they don't roll out in the night.

Outside the camping cabin, sometimes the carful of kids climb on things.

Third, the daily rate doesn't include a bathroom. Yes, there is a restroom without showers within walking distance and it's adequate. But for a hot shower, I have to go to the Colter Bay Village for a pay shower ( $ 4.25 a person, that adds up with a family of five ) and that facility has not been updated since I visited in 1999. I remember it.

The takeaway for Moms, I don't recommend Colter Bay Camping Cabins and I won't stay here again. Sorry Grand Teton NP, I love you and your scenery but I am unimpressed by this property. Again, the kids loved it, other parks just do this better like Parks Canada.

Overall, I am usually impressed with the quality of the lodgings within the NPS, this has been the exception.

Up Next: Another day in Grand Teton, with an excursion at Jenny Lake.

Know before you go:

Grand Teton National Park is open 7-days a week, 24-hours a day, seasonal road closures during the winter. The admission is $ 30 for a 7-day pass or you can use an America the Beautiful annual pass ( $ 80 ). The lodging in Grand Teton National Park is reservable up to 16-months in advance. I advise making reservations as far in advance as possible.

This is Grizzly Country and it is advised to carry and know how to use Bear Spray at all times.