Hi Bryan,

I’d suggest at least two or three hours and I’d assume a longer line on and around weekend days. Good luck!

Any thoughts on how early to get there to be the first in line to maximize the success of getting the permits we want please? Thanks!

Hey Ryan,

Only one person in the group has to actually get the permit in person; it’s issued to that person for a specific number of people, start and finish dates, and designated camping zones. Get there early, a line will form, but the park issues two-thirds of its backcountry permits—a higher proportion than most parks—to walk-in backpackers, so your chances are pretty good. Good luck!

A group of hiking buddies and myself are headed out to our yearly backpacking trip and this year we chose the TCT. Some of us will be getting there a day earlier than the rest of the crew. I haven’t been able to find this information anywhere online but do you know if it is possible for the earlier arriving group to obtain a walk-up permit without the rest of the group there yet. There will be three individuals arriving earlier and two coming the next day.

Thanks,

Ryan

Hi Tim,

Good to hear from you and congrats on your permit, it’s hard to get one in Grand Teton! That’s a good itinerary and late July should be a nice time, with wildflowers erupting everywhere.

I’ll point out one detail: If your second night is in Death Canyon (rather than Death Canyon Shelf), coming from Lower Granite Canyon, you’ll climb up to Fox Creek Pass and then drop at least several hundred feet to reach the Death Canyon camping zone, then have to backtrack uphill to Fox Creek Pass the next morning to continue north on the TCT. It’ll be a big day to the South Fork of Cascade. You might try calling the backcountry desk at the park and asking about switching Death Canyon to Alaska Basin, which always has availability (and you’d be able to do that when you arrive at the park in July, too). That would eliminate the superfluous elevation gain and loss to Death Canyon and give you moderate days two and three.

Enjoy your hike, it’ll be a great one! I’d love to hear what you think of it afterward. Take care and happy new year.

Hopefully I didn’t screw it up too badly! Question for you: Is it possible to make changes the day I pick up the permit, like you can at Rainier? For example, I’m thinking if Paintbrush Divide is still snowed in, I might want to change my route.

Thanks for supporting the organizations that help protect our wonderful wild spaces, John. And good luck getting another Tetons backcountry permit. It’s always good to be heading back to the Tetons!

Thanks for writing this up! You gave a few details I needed reminding about and so I appreciated the article. I also wanted to share that 2021 was the first year that I have ever donated to the National Parks Foundation and also Grand Teton National Park. Kudos to everyone who work to support and celebrate these incredible resources!

John and Elora
Home in Minnesota and bound for the Tetons again in 2022

You’re welcome, Chris, and good luck with applying for a backcountry permit for backpacking the Teton Crest Trail.