Delta Lake Trail Review (Grand Teton NP, WY)

The Delta Lake Trail sits in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, and if you love uphill running, you’ll love it. If you don’t, you’ll hate it. Either way, you’ll appreciate the payoff: turquoise water lined by snow-covered banks, with the Grand Teton itself standing over the lake like a watchman. I rated it 7.5/10 overall. The climbing and the unmarked final scramble keep the Technicality and Runnability scores down, but the payoff at the top is hard to beat.

Gentle switchbacks give way to boulder fields and a steep final scramble, with real odds of wildlife along the way. Below, I’ll break down what to expect, how to plan around the trickiest parts, and how to run your own version of this one.

Trail Details

Delta Lake Trail at a Glance

9.21 mi My distance

3,015 ft Elevation gain

3:56:36 My time

Route type: Out-and-back
Start → finish: Lupine Meadows → Delta Lake → Lupine Meadows
Highest point: Delta Lake · approximately 9,016 ft
Terrain: Steep switchbacks, exposed roots, boulder fields and scrambling
Exposure: Open switchbacks and a steep final scramble
Water: No treated water · carry roughly 2 L or bring a filter
Navigation: Final section is unmarked and unmaintained · download the GPX
Wildlife: Bear country for the entire route · carry accessible bear spray

TTR Trail Rating

DELTA LAKE TRAIL

Lupine Meadows Trailhead, Grand Teton National Park, WY

7.5

Overall

7.0

Scenery

5.5

Technicality

6.0

Runnability

4.5

Crowds

4.0

Parking

For a complete list of trails, be sure to check out my Trail Running Route Database where I add, review, and recommend every trail I’ve run around the world.

Should you run it?

If you’re only running one trail in Grand Teton, this is the one to pick. It’s steep, it’s partly unmarked, and the final push is more scramble than run, but the payoff at the lake makes all of it worth it.

Run the Delta Lake Trail if you:

Love uphill running and want a real alpine payoff for the effort. Nearly the entire trail climbs.
Don’t mind an unmarked, unmaintained final stretch that requires some route finding and light scrambling.

Skip the Delta Lake Trail if you:

Want a clearly marked, maintained trail. The last section to Delta Lake isn’t managed by the Park Service, and it shows.
Aren’t comfortable with boulder fields or steep, rooty terrain. This isn’t a trail you can zone out on.

Trailhead directions

The trail starts at the Lupine Meadows Trailhead inside Grand Teton National Park, off the Teton Park Road south of Jenny Lake.

It’s a popular trailhead, so get there early to grab parking and beat the crowds. There’s a toilet at the trailhead, but no water fill-up station, so bring everything you’ll need for the full out-and-back.

The route

Start at the Lupine Meadows Trailhead on undulating singletrack, then begin climbing (~0.5 mi)
Climb through five switchbacks with 20%+ grades, with views opening up over Bradley and Taggart Lakes (~2 mi)
Reach the trail split near the sixth switchback and hang a right toward Delta Lake, not left toward Amphitheater Lake (~0.5 mi)
Descend slightly through rooty terrain into a boulder field, then climb the final scramble to the lake (~1 mi)
Retrace the route back to Lupine Meadows, or extend to Surprise Lake and Amphitheater Lake from the trail split

Lupine Meadows to the trail split: The first half mile is undulating singletrack before the climbing starts in earnest. A 10%+ grade for another half mile leads into five switchbacks with 20%+ grades, and it’s a completely normal move to hike this section rather than run it.

The views make up for the effort. Bradley Lake and Taggart Lake come into view below you on the switchbacks, and they only get better as you climb.

Liked: The switchback views over Bradley and Taggart Lakes make the steep grind worth slowing down for.
Watch for: The trail split near the sixth switchback is easy to miss, especially if hikers are clustered around it. Hang a right toward Delta Lake, not left toward Amphitheater.

Split to Delta Lake: Past the split, the trail turns technical fast. It’s rooty and runs slightly downhill until you hit the boulder field, where it becomes a make-your-own-path climb across the rocks.

From there, the trail loosely continues through forest and more stone before the final push: an almost vertical stretch of exposed roots that puts you right at the lake’s edge once you round the last rock.

Liked: The final scramble delivers the payoff fast. You round one last rock and the lake and the Grand Teton are right there.
Watch for: This section isn’t maintained or marked by the Park Service. Download a route ahead of time rather than relying on trail signage.

Optional extension: Surprise Lake and Amphitheater Lake: The way back is the same route in reverse, all downhill, which makes for a fast and fun return if the trail is clear.

If you want more mileage, the trail split offers an option to extend. Instead of heading back down toward Lupine Meadows, continue uphill toward Surprise Lake and Amphitheater Lake. This adds roughly 2 to 3 miles, bringing the full run to around 12 to 13 miles.

Liked: A solid way to add distance without repeating terrain you’ve already covered.
Watch for: This is still bear country, and it stays that way further from the main trail. Stay alert and be ready to turn back if conditions or wildlife sightings call for it.

Photos from the trail

A metal sign at the Lupine Meadows Trailhead provides distances to various destinations: Bradley Lake (2.9 miles), Taggart Lake (4.0 miles), Surprise Lake (4.6 miles), Amphitheater Lake (4.8 miles), and Garnet Canyon (4.1 miles).

A scenic overlook showing Bradley Lake and Taggart Lake, surrounded by dense pine forests. In the distance, mountains rise under a partly cloudy sky with rolling clouds casting shadows on the valley below.

Logistics

Bear spray: You’re in bear country the entire way, including on the Surprise Lake and Amphitheater Lake extension. Carry it somewhere accessible and make noise through quieter, forested sections.
Water: There are no water sources on the trail unless you’re carrying a filter. Plan on roughly 2 liters for the full out-and-back.
Navigation: The final stretch to Delta Lake isn’t maintained or marked by the National Park Service. Download a GPX route or use a trail app before you go rather than relying on signage.
Weather: Skip the trail if it’s wet or icy. The steep, loose sections near the top get dangerous fast in those conditions.
No dogs: Dogs aren’t allowed on this trail.
Timing: Start early. This trailhead fills fast, and an early start helps you beat both the crowds and the afternoon heat on the exposed switchback sections.

Delta Lake Trail FAQs

How long does it take to run the Delta Lake Trail?

Most runners finish the 7.2-mile out-and-back in 2 to 3.5 hours depending on fitness, altitude adjustment, and how much of the final scramble you hike versus run. Hikers should budget 4 to 6 hours.

How many miles is the Delta Lake Trail?

The out-and-back from Lupine Meadows Trailhead is about 7.2 miles with roughly 2,300 feet of elevation gain. Adding Surprise Lake and Amphitheater Lake brings the total to around 12 to 13 miles.

Do you need a permit to run the Delta Lake Trail?

No permit is required for a day trip. You’ll need a standard Grand Teton National Park entrance pass, and the trail is accessed from the Lupine Meadows Trailhead off Teton Park Road.

Are dogs allowed on the Delta Lake Trail?

No. Dogs are not permitted on this trail or on backcountry trails in Grand Teton National Park generally.

Is the Delta Lake Trail dangerous?

The final stretch is unmarked and involves boulder scrambling and steep, rooty terrain, which gets genuinely dangerous when wet or icy. You’re also in bear country the entire way, so bear spray and situational awareness are non-negotiable.

What’s the best time of year to run the Delta Lake Trail?

July through September is ideal. June can still have snow lingering on the final scramble, which makes that section more dangerous than it needs to be.

4 responses to “Delta Lake Trail Review (Grand Teton NP, WY)”

Patrick
March 5, 2026 at 9:35 am
On the two destination national park articles I’ve read that you’ve written, you never mention the simplest and most important part for people who want to visit the area; where is it (i.e. for the Highland Trail if the first sentence said set in Montana or MT or anything indicating that). Instead, I went to google the trails since it seems you provided some good insight but once scanning through and seeing nowhere on there was any indication of location, it’s not great for the readers. The people who live up in there would already be familiar with these, so if the intent was to attract destinations, then it should be in the very first sentence man. They also have a state park by the same name in NY for example. Appreciate your work, but it was maddening reading the first article and thinking to myself “really…how is this not the most obvious thing to keep readers from leaving your site”.
Take care, may continue to come and quickly scan or see if a picture peaks my interest, but I’ll then go somewhere else to review it, and will eventually just stop coming to your site all together when someone else can provide all the information in one place. Just my reaction, I am sure I am not the only one though.
Good luck with everything
1. Kyle Cash
  March 5, 2026 at 9:48 am
  Patrick, appreciate you writing in. The location is actually in the title and in the trail start section of both posts you mentioned. Though I hear you that a location pin and GPX file would make navigation even easier and harder to miss, and I’ll add those. Always looking to improve, so I appreciate the feedback!
  1. Patrick
    March 5, 2026 at 12:49 pm
    I appreciate the response. If you did that, that would be awesome and very helpful, but I do see you have them separated by region. You can “ctrl f” and not once in the entire article is the state mentioned though (except my comment, sorry about that wasn’t sure if it was feedback comments or like forum comments for everyone to see). I click on the links in the article, to your Strava, nothing indicates it. If it is a destination or travel piece, I do not think that is unreasonable to assume that as pertinent information.
    I was just browsing destinations to plan a trip where I could train at some more elevation than what I have at home, and that my girlfriend would also enjoy haha. So immediately had the attention grab with the headline and pictures, but was like where is Glacier National Park? Stupid me was hoping it would be in Alaska for some reason, then I was reading your section about grizzlies and thought well or maybe Washington, turns out neither.
    I didn’t at first see you had destinations sorted by region, but I see for others you have it in the description “in New Hampshire” for Franconian Ridge. I guess the first couple I picked, or the ones that interest me are maybe the exceptions and not the rule.
    That’s all I meant by it, would be helpful to say Grand Tenton National Park in Wyoming or Highland Trail in “insert national park”, Montana just for people who aren’t familiar with all the parks. I found myself getting frustrated reading almost immediately and then switched to just scrolling through to find the state, just to not find it, then moving back to google just to see what state it was in, then you see other articles written about it and you may lose a reader because of it or you pointed a reader to someone else unintentionally by having them go back to google just because of something small like that.
    Don’t want to have too many tabs open at work showing where my mind is really at, thinking of my next escape haha.
    Either way, the site is great and I appreciate the effort and information and advice and pictures all greatly! Will definitely be a frequent visitor moving forward.
    1. Kyle Cash
      March 6, 2026 at 5:48 am
      Ha, that totally makes sense now — if you’re not already familiar with where the parks are, the name alone doesn’t tell you much. Adding the state upfront in the body is an easy fix and worth doing. Glad you found it useful and hope you find a great trip!