Hiking in Jackson Hole, WY

Though some Jackson residents consider using the JHMR tram to be cheating, if used correctly, it can really just save you time and energy and add to your hiking and backpacking options.

Mica Lake is a rarely-visited lake only a short scramble from the wildly popular Lake Solitude.

This short 4-mile trail is an excellent route with very little elevation gain and nice vistas.

Crystal Butte Trail is my secret in-town hike with the best views of Jackson and the Tetons.

Though this is a long, fairly strenuous hike, the views from Static Peak make it all worth it. A classic Teton adventure.

It's not an official trail, but enough people come up this steep, wildlife-rich canyon between Death Canyon and Cascade Canyon to keep the trail in decent shape. But avalanches in 2014 have made about 1 mile of the trail quite horrible, it's covered with downed trees.

An amazing, little-done full-day hike that climaxes with a two-mile ridge-top walk to the summit of the tallest peak in the Sale River Range.

The 6-mile route up Swift Creek is one of the most geologically interesting trails in the Gros Ventre Wilderness.

10,351-foot Taylor Mountain is a great bang for your hiking (or skiing) buck: offering expansive 360-degree views, and a feeling of being out there while never being further than several hours from a major highway.

Blue Miner Lake is considered by many locals to be the best lake in Jackson Hole. It may be a pretty strenuous 7-mile hike to reach it, but once there, you won't be disappointed. Magnificent.

Visit two glacial-fed alpine lakes whatever the season.

The hike to Mt. Meek is an unmaintained-but-well-worn trail to the summit of a Teton peak that isn't in Grand Teton National Park, which means you can bring your dog.

A hike/scramble to the summit of Disappointment Peak provides amazing, close-up views of the Grand Teton.

Paintbrush Canyon and Cascade Canyon are two of the most spectacular destinations in Teton National Park, and the loop that connects the two is one of the best hikes in the nation.

This 18-mile roundtrip route offers some of the best views in the area of the Tetons. It's a really wonderful place to explore the big country.

The Jumping Rock on the northeastern shore of serene Phelps Lake is a very popular summer destination for locals and out-of-towners trying to cool off after a nice hike in the area.

An 20-mile alpine loop hike in Yellowstone's far northwest corner that follows a ridge for seven miles and passes close to 9,888-foot Big Horn Peak, which you have an opportunity to summit.

It might not be as well known as Cirque of the Towers, but it's certainly close in terms of quality. This 12.4-mile loop features a lot of elevation and an equal amount of stunning scenery.

A hike that will make you forget the Tetons, this takes you deep into the Gros Ventre range on well-established trails used mostly by area outfitters. Expect to see few people, lots of wildflowers, evidence of a HUGE landslide that happened in 2012 or 2013, some horseback riders, and lots of snow capped peaks, albeit not as jagged as the Tetons.

Boiling River is one of the few places within Yellowstone NP where you're actually allowed to soak in the warm thermal springs, and it's only a 1/2-mile hike from the parking lot.

A GTNP hike that affords vistas of Phelps Lake before dropping into a steeply-walled, wildflower-rich canyon.

The route to Ski Lake is the easiest alpine lake hike in Jackson Hole.

This trail is somewhat difficult to access, but if you can find it (and stay on it), you'll be treated to one of the best hikes in the Jackson Hole area: wildflowers aplenty and great views of the Tetons.

The South Teton is an exciting non-technical hike and a beautiful summit.

The Shoal Falls Trail offers a roughly 10-mile roundtrip hike through rolling meadows and aspen groves with a beautiful set of falls at the terminus.