Hermitage Point campsite 9, as good as it gets.
29 Hermitage Point
Description: A unique hike on an undeveloped peninsula in expansive Jackson Lake
Start: Hermitage Point Trailhead
Total distance: 9.4-mile lollipop loop
Best season: Mid-June through Sept
Maps: Earthwalk Press Grand Teton map; National Park Service handout map; Grand Teton Association’s Colter Bay brochure
Finding the trailhead: Take US 89 into the park and turn west into the Colter Bay area, which is 11 miles south of the park’s northern boundary or 5.2 miles north of the Jackson Lake Junction with US 287. After turning into Colter Bay from the main highway, drive 0.9 mile on a paved road, then turn left (south) at the first turn after passing the general store. The trailhead is a little hard to find the first time you go into the Colter Bay area. It’s located at the southern end of the big parking lot near the boat launch. Park here, along with the boaters. Be careful not to take the trail heading off to the east behind the trailhead sign. Instead, walk to the end of the parking lot toward the boat launch where you see the trailhead signs marking the beginning of the trail. Go to the visitor center (just north of the trailhead) for restrooms. Trailhead GPS: 43.901205 / -110.641466
Hermitage Point campsite 9, as good as it gets.
The Hike
The Hermitage Point area is a confusing labyrinth of trails. After hiking all of them, I recommend this route as among the best hikes in the park. This is essentially an extended version of Swan Lake and Heron Pond.
Be sure to take a map and closely watch the directional signs along the route. There are lots of junctions along this short loop, and if you’re enjoying the scenery too thoroughly (which would be easy), you might get on the wrong trail.
The trail starts out as a service road (it has a locked gate and is only occasionally used by official vehicles). Along this stretch of trail, you can enjoy outstanding views of Colter Bay, with Mount Moran providing a classic backdrop.
At the end of the dirt road, you reach the first junction with the Swan Lake Trail, where the loop section of this trip begins. Go right (south), unless you decide to take the route in reverse. The trail turns into singletrack, but it’s still in excellent shape.
About a quarter mile later, you reach a fork in the trail. If you don’t mind a little hill, go right on the alternate Jackson Lake Overlook Trail for a nice view from the Jackson Lake Overlook. Either trail takes you to Heron Pond about a half mile later.
Heron Pond is mostly covered with pond lilies. You can usually see pelicans, Canada geese, and other waterfowl species on the pond. In the evening hours, you might see beavers dining on the pond lilies, or you might see a moose in the willows that surround the pond.
At the south end of Heron Pond, you reach a four-way trail junction. Take the extreme right turn, onto the Hermitage Point Trail, and keep heading south along the lakeshore. You return to this junction later in the hike. In 0.8 mile, turn right (south) again at the junction with the cutoff trail.
After leaving Heron Pond, the trail stays out of sight of Jackson Lake for a while and then enters open sagebrush country with stunning views of the Teton Range, especially Mount Moran, across Hermitage Point. It stays this way for about a mile to the point.
Heron Pond, along the Hermitage Point Trail.
After a rest to soak in the scenery from the point, continue through the sagebrush meadows as you head back along the east side of the peninsula, past the designated campsite 9, to the junction with the cutoff trail. Go right (north) at this junction and hike another 0.7 mile to the second cutoff trail. Here, take a left (west) and go over a small hill and down to the four-way junction at the south end of Heron Pond. At this junction, take the first right (not the trail along the shore of Heron Pond) and go north back over the small ridge down to Swan Lake.
Like Heron Pond, Swan Lake is mostly covered with yellow pond lilies. The lake gets its name from the two trumpeter swans that lived here in the 1980s. The rare swans never produced any young, but they fiercely defended their territory, chasing away other swans that might have successfully nested in this prime habitat.
After the lake you pass by abandoned sewage ponds and then arrive at a junction with a trail heading off to the right (north) to the Colter Bay corral. Go left (west) and 0.1 mile later rejoin the abandoned service road for the 0.4-mile walk back to the trailhead.
Camping: You can camp on Hermitage Point at campsite 9—definitely a five-star campsite (at least!) with a terrific view from a fantastic food area near the lakeshore. There is room for three or four tents and easy access to water. Campfires are allowed in the designated fire pit, and the site has two bear boxes for safe storage of food and garbage. Campsite 9 GPS: 43.857184 / -110.641743
Options: The Hermitage Point area is a labyrinth of trails with many options to shorten or lengthen your hike. Keep the map out and take your pick.
Miles and Directions
0.0Hermitage Point Trailhead
0.4Junction with Swan Lake Trail; turn right
0.6Junction with Jackson Lake Overlook Trail, alternate route; turn right
1.4Heron Pond and a four-way junction; turn far right
2.2Junction with cutoff trail; turn right onto Hermitage Point Trail
4.4Hermitage Point
4.9Designated campsite 9
6.6Junction with cutoff trail; turn right
7.3Junction with trail to Heron Pond; turn left
7.8Heron Pond and four-way junction; turn first right
8.3Swan Lake
9.0Rejoin main trail to Colter Bay area; turn right
9.4Hermitage Point Trailhead