Jackson Hole Field Trips Guide

Field Trip Categories In And Around Jackson Hole

Zoos, Aquariums, And Wildlife

National Museum of Wildlife Art
National Museum of Wildlife Art sits on a bluff overlooking the National Elk Refuge, so students can compare artistic representations of animals with real wildlife habitat outside the windows. Its collection spans historic and contemporary wildlife art, including works influenced by European traditions, American Western art, and modern conservation perspectives. Sculpture trails and outdoor works broaden the experience beyond galleries. Upper elementary students can compare anatomy, movement, and habitat in different artworks; middle and high school groups can investigate how artists shape public attitudes toward predators, hunting, conservation, and wilderness. In winter, visible elk on the refuge make the connection especially powerful. Teachers should ask students to choose one artwork and identify which details appear scientifically observed and which are artistic decisions.
Street Address: 2820 Rungius Rd, Jackson, WY 83001
Web Address: https://www.wildlifeart.org/

National Elk Refuge
National Elk Refuge protects winter habitat immediately north of Jackson for one of the region's largest migrating elk herds. Thousands of elk can gather on the refuge in winter after moving from higher summer ranges, making migration, seasonal carrying capacity, and wildlife management visible at an exceptional scale. Sleigh rides, when snow and operations permit, bring visitors into the winter landscape under controlled conditions. Upper elementary through high school groups can study migration corridors, supplemental feeding debates, disease, predators, and the challenge of managing wildlife across federal, private, and national-park lands. Summer visitors may see fewer elk, so seasonal expectations matter. Teachers should frame the refuge as an actively managed system with tradeoffs rather than a fenced sanctuary where animals simply remain year-round.
Street Address: 675 E Broadway Ave, Jackson, WY 83001
Web Address: https://www.fws.gov/refuge/national-elk

Gardens, Parks, And Outdoor Learning

Grand Teton National Park
Grand Teton National Park protects the dramatic Teton Range, glacial lakes, sagebrush flats, forests, rivers, and wildlife habitat of Jackson Hole. The mountains rise abruptly because faulting lifted the range while the valley dropped, creating a clear geology lesson visible from nearly every major viewpoint. Jenny Lake, the Snake River, Mormon Row, and visitor centers offer different combinations of ecology and human history. Upper elementary groups can study animal adaptations and glacial landforms; middle and high school students can add plate tectonics, fire ecology, migration corridors, tourism pressure, and Indigenous history. Wildlife such as moose, bears, bison, and elk must be observed from safe distances. School groups should select one accessible area rather than spend the day driving between overlooks; field notebooks and repeated landscape sketches can reveal far more than constant movement.
Street Address: 103 Headquarters Loop, Moose, WY 83012
Web Address: https://www.nps.gov/grte/

History, Civics, And Heritage

Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum
Jackson Hole Historical Society & Museum interprets the valley's Indigenous history, homesteading, ranching, tourism, mountaineering, and community development through artifacts, photographs, oral histories, and changing exhibits. Students can compare the romantic image of Jackson Hole with the difficult realities of isolation, winter, ranch work, transportation, and land-use change. Grades 4 through high school can investigate why dude ranching and tourism became economic alternatives to agriculture and how conservation transformed land around the town. Younger students respond to saddles, tools, clothing, and historic photographs. The museum is most useful before a walking tour of Jackson's historic core because it gives context for buildings and town-square traditions that might otherwise look like simple Western-themed decoration.
Street Address: 175 E Broadway Ave, Jackson, WY 83001
Web Address: https://jacksonholehistory.org/

Museums, Tours, And Local Landmarks

Teton Raptor Center
Teton Raptor Center occupies the historic Hardeman Ranch in Wilson and rehabilitates injured birds of prey while providing education with non-releasable raptor ambassadors. Hawks, owls, eagles, falcons, and other species allow students to examine talons, beaks, wing shapes, eyesight, and hunting strategies up close without handling wild birds. Elementary students can compare adaptations; middle and high school groups can discuss rehabilitation criteria, migration, lead poisoning, vehicle collisions, habitat, and why some injured birds cannot safely return to the wild. Education programs are far more valuable than arriving without a scheduled presentation because the birds' individual stories explain the center's mission. The historic ranch setting also supports a secondary discussion of how working landscapes and wildlife habitat overlap in the Jackson Hole valley.
Street Address: 5450 W Hwy 22, Wilson, WY 83014
Web Address: https://tetonraptorcenter.org/

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