

Once at the trailhead you will walk down a paved path for about 300 feet where you will see a footbridge to your right. It took us about 7 and half hours including an hour lunch break to hike up and down from about 6,900 feet to 9,300 feet, an early start is definitely recommended. The trailhead is located north of the very popular Jenny Lake along String Lake Rd. This day-long adventure takes off from the Paintbrush Canyon Trailhead.

They constructed drystone retaining walls and erosion control structures, and also regraded a major portion of the pathway ensuring the route is safe and accessible.A strenuous ~13-mile out-and-back hike to a high altitude lake on the slopes of an 11,500-foot peak. It is called Paintbrush Canyon for a reason- Indian Paintbrushes and tens of thousands of wildflowers follow the path to the top. Crews etched a three-foot-wide trail in the bedrock, creating a stable and safe surface for both stock and foot traffic. The main objective was to reestablish a sustainable path in this technical area. The park’s trail crew completed three, eight-day backcountry hitches at the work site this past summer-meaning they camped near 10,000 feet for more than a week (three times) to complete the improvements. Sitting at 10,400 feet, this alpine area experienced significant damage from rain and snowmelt runoff in recent years, resulting in safety issues for hikers. Hurricane Pass is the first renewal site along the route.
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Limited by a short work season (it is only snow free for a few weeks each summer) and complicated logistics of getting tools and supplies to the high elevation job sites, the Crest Trail has remained largely untouched by the park’s maintenance crews for decades-until this summer.
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They had to find the best route, complete challenging manual labor to build every foot of trail, and keep going on and on in what had to seem like an endless expanse of rugged alpine terrain.” “It's mind blowing to think how much time was spent just getting supplies and equipment to isolated locations, and that was just the beginning. “To be a member of the CCC back in the '30s would have been both greatly rewarding and also extremely humbling,” said Grand Teton Assistant Trail Crew Supervisor Corey Kruse. The trail was completed in 1933 by the Civilian Conservation Corps and has welcomed hikers, backpackers, and horsemen every summer since then. Initially called the Skyline Trail and now known as the Teton Crest Trail, the iconic route is marked by high mountain passes, rugged terrain, and unforgettable views. The almost 90-year-old trail that travels through the high country of Grand Teton National Park provides a once-in-a-lifetime experience for those with the grit to get there. Grand Teton National Park’s first ranger and trail visionary.

No more thrilling mountain trip can be found in all America than that over the newly-completed loop of the Teton Skyline Trail.” – Fritioff Fryxell, 1934. In this way one learns to know these peaks with an intimacy impossible to the visitor who contents himself with distant views. “The linking together of the Cascade and Death Canyon trails, at their heads, took place on October 1, 1933, and marked the first step in the realization of a plan whereby the hiker will be enabled to visit that most fascinating region…In traversing this loop, one completely encircles the Three Tetons and adjacent high peaks, viewing them from all sides.

