Sunset Safari & Stargazing Tour

The wildlife that can be found in Grand Teton National Park is an especially cosmic catalyst for visitation. Many travel from all around the world in hopes of observing incredible megafauna like bison, moose, elk, pronghorn antelope, grizzly and black bears, in their natural element. The experience of searching for wildlife is exciting and inspiring. Unlike animals in captivity, our wildlife and birds thrive in natural cycles and systems. There is work and careful scrutiny required to sometimes spot even just a fleeting glimpse of an ear, antler or fur. From a moose browning on willows near the Snake River, to a grizzly hunting elk through the sage at Antelope Flats, this particular knowledge from our guides is what inspires our guests to visit Grand Teton National Park with us.

Grand Teton National Park also provides a spectacular location for stargazing with minimal light pollution and high altitude. The lack of light pollution means that many more stars are visible here than in more populated regions, and a high altitude contributes to even clearer views by reducing the amount of atmosphere between you and the cosmos. Within an already stunning landscape of a wide valley with the majestic Teton Mountain Range as a picturesque backdrop, stargazing in Grand Teton becomes a bucket list experience that should not be missed. Take in the Milky Way as you have never seen it before, then use our computerized telescope to see star clusters, nebulae, planets, and more depending on the season.

Different seasons hold the potential for different wildlife sightings and for different celestial sights. During spring a greater variety of animals reside within the valley floor of Grand Teton National Park, and galaxies and star clusters shine in the night sky. Grizzly and black bears will emerge from their hibernation dens throughout late April and into May, they are typically lethargic and hungry those initial few weeks after being rousted. The bears will amble around the valley, looking for early season food sources such as biscuitroot, spring beauties, grasses and clover. At the same time, the big bear of the constellation Ursa Major twinkles high in the sky, with wonders such as Bode’s Galaxy hidden within waiting to be unveiled using our telescope. Ursa Minor, the little bear, holds the north star Polaris and allows us to navigate the night sky by jumping between constellations.

As the heat of summer increases the snow lines recede and animals like the elk, wolves, bears and occasionally even bison begin to move into the hill country. Viewing them may require scouring mountainsides with high powered optics like spotting scopes. Moose, on the other hand, will settle in their summer homes near riverways and ponds, forging on aquatic vegetation along with the tender twigs of willow shrubs and cottonwood trees. Above our heads, the Milky Way is at its brightest as summer points us toward the galactic core teeming with stars spilling across the night sky. The Summer Triangle of stars Deneb, Vega, and Altair provide a framework for stellar discovery as we look for double stars and globular clusters. Later in the season you might see the Andromeda galaxy, our nearest galactic neighbor, or the peak of the Perseids meteor shower in late August.

Regardless of the season and the wildlife, Grand Teton National Park has much to offer. There are geographically striking views from nearly every vantage point in the valley, ranging from jagged, high alpine peaks to meandering, rushing rivers to deep crystalline lakes and as a rich anthropological history that starts nearly 11,000 years ago with the seasonal presence of indigenous people, which eventually shifted to the expansion of human development from the east as homesteaders fought their way into the valley, and now exists as a unique natural space that tourists seek out to get a taste of a western world that still consists of more wild than civilization.

A Sunset Safari and Stargazing Tour will try to give you a taste of it all in just one evening. The route will vary depending on weather conditions and the season, as both influence the visibility of the night sky as well as the wildlife. But trust our experienced guides will know the most fortuitous locations to make the most of the tour.