Devil’s Staircase Wyoming Hike Trail Guide

August 13, 2021 The Virtual Sherpa Comments 0 Comment

Devil’s Staircase is a beautiful hike located just outside of Alta, Wyoming and is not located in Grand Teton National Park making it a dog friendly hike. The namesake of the hike is a fun little rocky scramble known as the Devil’s Staircase. The hike presents a unique view of the Tetons at its summit with beautiful wild flowers, rushing waterfalls and spanning views of the valley along the way. This is a fairly popular hike so expect a large number of other hikers during the summer weekends.

Devil’s Staircase Wyoming Quick Facts

Devil’s Staircase Rating: ★★★★ (⅘ Stars)

Distance: 10.25 miles RT

Elevation Start: 7,050ft

Highest Point: 9,000ft

Total Elevation Gain: 2,172ft

Estimated Time to Complete: 5-6 Hours RT

Difficulty: Moderate Difficulty System Explained

Class: Class 1 – What does this mean?

Season: Late June- Early December (Expect snow outside of this period)

Weather: Check the Weather Forecast

Directions to Devil’s Staircase Wyoming

Trailhead: South Teton Canyon

Getting Here: From Alta, Wyoming take West Alta Ski Hill Road for 2 miles. Next, take a right onto Teton Canyon Road and continue for 4.6 miles until you reach the hiking area. Near the end of the drive you will pass the first hiking area, continue on two small bridges to reach the South Teton Canyon parking area. The road does turn to dirt after a few miles of driving on Teton Canyon Road but is driveable with most vehicles.

Fees: There is no fee to hike the Devil’s Staircase.

Parking: When hiking Devil’s Staircase, there are two main parking areas: at the Teton Canyon lot or just down the road right next to the North Teton Creek trail. Both parking areas can be very busy on a summer weekend since they also share parking with the Teton Canyon Campground. Getting there early or later in the day would be advised. Both areas do have a non-plumbing bathroom.

Summary

Camping: Although you can backcountry camp along the trail, it’s most common to camp at the trailhead or along the road leading up to the parking lot. The Teton Canyon Campground is right at the start of the trail while. In addition, there are a handful of car camping spots along the road.

Dogs: Devil’s Staircase is a dog friendly hike, and dogs do not have to be kept on a leash per park regulations. This hike is very popular with other hikers and dogs so make sure your pup plays nice with others before choosing this hike and letting them off the leash. There are plenty of water sources along this hike as well.

Make it a Loop: Devil’s Staircase is an out and back hike with options to extend your hike with other trails in the area.

Trail X Factors: Elevation Gain

The Devil’s Staircase hike may not seem steep for the first few miles but once you leave the South Teton trail, the elevation comes at you very quick. Once you take right and head up to the actual stairs, the elevation gain is basically nonstop for a few miles until you reach the large table where the trail ends. Overall, this hike packs a punch with 2,000+ ft of elevation gain over 5 miles of one way hiking.

Hike Tip(s): I have two tips for Devil’s Staircase hike. First, I would highly recommend hiking poles as they will save your knees and legs during the steepest ascents and descents of this hike.Second, I would highly recommend getting to the ending point of the Devil’s Staircase and not just hiking to the stairs themselves. Sure, the stairs are a cool feature of this hike, but the most beautiful portion is the large field and table at the top right before the Teton Crest Trail. Here, you will have a great spot to eat a snack, soak in the wildflowers and waterfalls that surround you and enjoy a unique perspective of the Tetons in front of you.

Best Views: The scenery on this entire hike is beautiful, but far and away the best views in my opinion were at the top of the final bit of trial before the hike hits the Teton Crest Trail and ends. Here you have outstanding and unique views of the Middle, South and a bit of the Grand Teton. This hike is also a beautiful spot to look at wild flowers almost the entire way during the summer months.

Devil’s Staircase Hike Route

Gear Needed

Mickey’s Mountain Kit
Backpack

Hiking Shoes or Hiking Boots
Map of area or GPS – I use the Garmin inReach
Bear Spray

Optional: Hiking Poles
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Our Trip to Devil’s Staircase: June 2020

Jackie, Juno and I decided to take a spur of the moment trip up to Jackson, Wyoming so that I could hike the Middle & South Tetons. I had a great time on that hike, but knew it was time to find a more family friendly hike for the three of us. After a little research, Jackie found the Devil’s Staircase hike which was just what we needed. The hike was fairly crowded to start, but thinned out as we knocked out a few miles. The hike presented beautiful views of the valley, colorful wildflowers and a unique perspective of the Middle, South and Grand Teton right as the trail ended. The namesake of the hike is a section of rocky hiking called the Devil’s Staircase which is a fun little scramble.