An adventurous hike at Phelps Lake in Grand Teton National Park

As we neared our destination point on our hike to Phelps Lake, we could hear excited chatter and then a large “kurr-splash” followed by “burr, the water is cold!” I guess that when you are jumping into a lake with water coming from a melting snowfield, it will be cold.

Our destination was to “The Rock” on the shore of Phelps Lake in Grand Teton National Park. It is a popular spot where many hike to jump off a 40-foot boulder into the lake. Phelps Lake is nestled in the mouth of Death Canyon at the Laurance S. Rockefeller Preserve just off the Moose-Wilson Road in Jackson Hole.

The preserve has limited parking, so when we got there, someone had to wait about 40 minutes before enough hikers returned to get a parking spot. My wife and I began hiking while my daughter and son-in-law waited. They caught us after we had hiked about two of the 2.5 miles to the Rock.

We all enjoyed seeing a doe mule deer, chipmunks, a host of flowers, including the beautiful Monkshood and some birds. But I really enjoyed the different forms of granite rocks. Most of the boulders and rocks we encountered were different types of granite. My favorite was one that appeared to be a snake wiggling through the host rock.

We were hoping to see some bear as my wife had hiked it two weeks before and had seen two of them. But the recent hot weather had dried up most of the huckleberries in that area and the bears had moved to a better picking spot.

The hikers we met coming down the trail were interesting to visit with a little. Most of them had made the hike to jump off the Rock. One 10-year-old boy told me he had jumped off it five times while most of the older adults had refused to make the leap. One young lady told me that it was more exciting than bridge-jumping because the water was so clear and deep.

Once we got to the Rock, we saw a group of teenagers and young adults taking the plunge, but we passed up the opportunity ourselves. We took the time to enjoy a late afternoon lunch and rest our legs for the hike back down.

We returned by the Woodland Trail, the same way that we had gone up because our time was limited. The Woodland Trail is mostly in trees and you are in the shade most of the time. We could have taken the Lake Creek Trail to complete the Lake Creek-Woodland Trail Loop that would have been about a 5.6-mile hike.

Hikers have many options with the moderate rated Phelps Lake Trail Loop that goes around the lake and has a boardwalk that crosses the wetland area. For serious hikers, they can hook onto the difficult Death Canyon Trail.

The preserve has a nice information and exhibit center located about a five-minute walk from the parking area that explains the history of the area. Laurence S. Rockefeller Preserve was a ranch used as a family retreat for generations that was donated to the National Park Service in 2007. To preserve the pristine areas in Jackson Hole, the Rockefeller family has donated over 30,000 acres of land to help enlarge Grand Teton National Park.

Nearing my 80th birthday, I am grateful to have hikes like the Phelps Lake hike to enjoy with family and friends. If you meet me on a trail, I will probably stop you and visit with you about your experience.