Category: Wyoming

Grand Teton National Park: Jackson National Fish Hatchery

On By nationalparkswithtIn Wyoming3 Comments
Welcome back to National Parks and other public lands with T!

Wyoming 2023 Trip➤

In September of 2023, my husband I set out to explore some National Park units in the state of Wyoming. We visited Yellowstone, Grand Teton National Park, The John D. Rockefeller Parkway, and Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area. Just outside Grand Teton National Park, we visited the Jackson National Fish Hatchery.

Grand Teton National Park➤

The Tetons are the youngest of all the mountain ranges in the Rocky Mountain chain. Most other mountains in the region are at least 50 million years old but the Tetons are less than 10 million and are still rising. The Jackson Hole valley is of the same age and continues to sink. The tallest peaks tower almost 7,000 feet above the valley floor, already at an elevation of about 6800 feet. With no foothills, the resulting landscape is dramatic and breathtaking.

In the 1920s, John D. Rockefeller Jr. agreed to acquire thousands of acres around Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and then donate this land to the government for a national park. At the urging of Horace Albright, then director of the National Park Service, Rockefeller formed a company called the Snake River Land Company to buy up property around the Snake River in secret. Rockefeller wanted to keep his name out of it to keep the price lower.

Meanwhile, in 1929, President Calvin Coolidge signed the act creating Grand Teton National Park, at half its present size. The park only protected the Teton Range and 6 lakes at the foot of the mountains. Rockefeller encountered resistance from locals when he tried to donate his land to expand the park.

In 1943, Rockefeller told President Franklin Delano Roosevelt he would sell to the highest bidder if the government didn’t use his land for the park. Roosevelt used the Antiquities Act and declared additional land in the valley to be Jackson Hole National Monument. The two units were combined to become the present Grand Teton National Park in 1950.

Jackson National Fish Hatchery➤

The Jackson National Fish Hatchery is located just outside Jackson, Wyoming, near the National Elk Refuge. It plays a critical role in conserving native fish species and supporting healthy aquatic ecosystems.

The hatchery primarily focuses on the Snake River Cutthroat Trout, a native species that thrives in the cold, clean waters of the region. The fish raised here are used to stock lakes and rivers in western Wyoming and nearby areas, helping to support recreational fishing while conserving native fish populations. The hatchery also assists with habitat restoration projects and monitors the health of local fish populations.

As we were leaving Grand Teton National Park, we passed the hatchery and decided to stop. A docent invited us inside and showed us some of the operations. She then led us to the pond area out back and gave us time to explore. We were there on the day a government shutdown was narrowly avoided. The staff told us they would have continued to work anyway because they couldn’t just let the fish die. They collaborate with local indigenous peoples to support subsistence fishing programs.

Grand Teton Posts➤

Location: Moose, Wyoming
Designation: National Park
Date designated/established: February 26, 1929
Date of my visit: September 30, 2023