What a way to really experience the park! Short of climbing the mountains themselves, the Cascade Canyon hike gets you as up close and personal to the heart of these stunning mountains as possible. It is a great hike to do with kids, too, because you can go uphill as far as you want on a great trail before returning the same way downhill. This way can adjust your effort expenditure to match how you or the kids are feeling that day. When the group begins to tire, just turn around and head back downhill.
One of the nicest things about this hike is the fun boat shuttle from the Jenny Lake visitor center dock to the opposite shore at the base of the mountains. It is a short ride ($50 for our family of four, round trip) and the boats run from 7AM to 7PM every 15 minutes. Someone told me that the 7AM boat is only $5 per person, but I did not verify that. The trail is excellent (go left from the dock when you start after disembarking) and at first goes up but not too steep. There are some interesting stream crossings over good bridges and before long you arrive at a junction with a short spur to Hidden Falls. It is worth the short detour. Return to the junction, and follow the trail up to Inspiration Point, which offers beautiful views of Jenny Lake and beyond to the east, and views of the rugged Teton Mountains to the west. Most people stop and turn around here, but plenty of people do continue up into Cascade Canyon. The trail flattens significantly after Inspiration Point, but does still have a slight uphill gradient. It is not nearly as steep as the first section, though. The views of the mountains and the stream continue to amaze throughout the hike, and you will enjoy wildflowers, close views of the highest most rugged peaks, meltwater cascades, and some beautiful spots along the stream through the canyon. There are even a few decent spots to swim on a hot day. We kept hiking until our kids tired out, about a mile short of the trail junction at the head of the valley and on the west side of the main mountain range.
There is water available (in coolers) on the far shore of Jenny Lake, but there are no toilets and you must pack out all of your trash. There is also a trail around all of Jenny Lake, so if you miss the last boat, you will not be stranded and you can hike the ~2 miles back to the visitor center and campground. I highly recommend not hiking around Jenny Lake, and saving all of your energy for Cascade Canyon by taking the boat, especially if you have kids that will tire. The hike up the canyon is much better than the hike around the lake.
Here are a few photos from our hike up this amazing place. We have plans to go back and do a long backpacking loop once our kids are older.
Grand Teton National Park with kids