It was the crown jewel of a national park but locals are furious influencers have ‘ruined it’

It was a hidden gem in Grand Teton National Park for years but now Delta Lake has become overrun with influencers and locals are not happy.

Getting to the tranquil alpine lake in the Wyoming park is not for the faint-hearted, as the stunning scenery awaits beyond a challenging and dangerous hike.

The approximately 10-mile round-trip is often steep and requires an off trail scramble towards the end, but content creators think the breathtaking views are all worth it for the perfect Instagram post.

Longtime climber and member of The Teton Climbers’ Coalition, Christian Beckwith, told Daily Mail that locals who once loved the secluded spot now avoid the lake, after people ‘in flip flops’ with speakers and booze have transformed it into a ‘party destination.’

‘[It] kind of blew up over the last ten years or so,’ he said.

‘Delta Lake became a place where the locals don’t go because of its status as “Instagram Lake.”‘

When Beckwith visited in the summer he was shocked at the number of people there, describing it as a ‘jaw-dropping spectacle,’ with wear and tear on the trails displaying that they had been ‘loved to death.’

‘It’s truly a beautiful place. It’s just gorgeous, but we were taken aback by the number of people, how it was just a different type of park user,’ he said.

A visitor poses with the beautiful scenery of Delta Lake as a backdrop (file photo)

In 2025, the park saw 5,203,057 visitors, a 3.6 percent increase from 2024

Rangers have urged hikers to follow ‘leave no trace’ principles but in 2020 this bear box showed just how much the trail was used as it was found stuffed full of trash

In 2025, the park recorded a total number of 5,203,057 visits, a 3.6 percent increase from 2024.

Recreational visits saw a 16.89 percent increase, while non-recreational visits, those in the park commuting, carrying out work or research, increased just shy of five percent, according to National Park Service data.

Beckwith said the volume of visitors had resulted in a number of informal overlapping trails that deviate from the main path, a phenomenon known as ‘braiding.’

‘I was finding used toilet paper on the sides of the trail. There’s one section that has just been pulverized into dust,’ he recalled, saying the sight left him ‘shocked.’

‘We’re used to such a high caliber park experience here,’ Beckwith said. ‘All the other trails are just exquisite and pristine.’

Grand Teton National Park services shared photos in 2018 of littered toilet paper following numerous reports from park employees of rubbish being strewn everywhere.

In 2020, a bear box was found full of trash as the rangers urged hikers to follow ‘leave no trace’ principles.

And in May last year, volunteers picked up around 980 pounds of litter across eight miles of trail.

Morgan Hill, a travel content creator, told Daily Mail that she has visited the park numerous times and Jackson Hole is one of her favorite spots

Park rangers have encouraged people to ‘leave no trace’ on their visits to keep the park beautiful for everyone

A photo of a fox that had captured a rogue Pringles can was shared in 2022 by the park to its Facebook page with the caption: ‘Although it may be slightly amusing… the sad truth is that the fox in the photo may be removed (euthanized) if [it] continues to pursue human food.’

The post explained how wild animals that get used to seeking out human food can become dangerous or aggressive and expose visitors to diseases, including rabies.

However, social media content creators visiting the park have refuted claims that visitors like themselves are ruining it.

Morgan Hill, a travel content creator, told Daily Mail that she has been to the park numerous times and Jackson Hole has become one of her favorite spots.

‘[It’s] a very special place to us,’ she began. ‘Two summers ago, we decided to come out to Jackson Hole, and really just became infatuated with this place.

‘Once we got to the top of Delta Lake, I mean, it’s a view that will take your breath away,’ she said. ‘It’s my favorite hike in the world. We’ve done it twice now.’

Hill said that on their way up they ‘passed a few people,’ but on their second time up ‘there wasn’t many people up there.’

‘We spent probably the last 30 minutes of that hike with no one else up there. It was so peaceful. It’s so quiet,’ she said.

The lake offers breathtaking views that provides the perfect backdrop for Instagram photos

Content creator Morgan Hill believes that Delta Lake’s difficulty to get to helps to keep away some of the less passionate park goers, who may be more inclined to disrespect the land

Hill (pictured) said she can understand that there’s backlash to the increase in visitors but believes the outdoors is for everyone

Hill believes in the ‘leave no trace’ mantra and added: ‘I know that there are people on either side of the line here. It’s either don’t tell anyone about any of the hidden hikes, “we don’t want anyone to know about this.” They hate content creators and influencers sharing this stuff.

‘Then there’s people like me. I understand if something is getting too packed, you do have to maintain that. There are people out there that don’t care. They’ll leave their trash.

‘But we are so passionate and help everyone, leave no trace. You pack it in, pack it out. This is not our home. There’s wildlife out here, it can danger them. But I’m a big believer that our world was created to explore.’

Hill believes that Delta Lake’s difficulty to get to helps to keep some people away.

‘This is a hard hike to get to. Several people have turned around where there’s a sign that says this is not a maintained trail. You know, you’re on your own, it poses the risk of death,’ she said.

‘If my husband wasn’t with me the first time, I would have said over my dead body,’ she admitted.

Filmmaker Devon Dodd who hiked to Delta Lake in August told Daily Mail: ‘I would say it’s inaccessible to somebody who isn’t used to that kind of strenuous hike, but I was honestly surprised by the amount of people that were up there.

‘My friend told me when he was up there probably like a few months before us, there wasn’t a soul up there. There was probably like 30 people up at the top of the lake when we were there.’

In May of last year, volunteers picked up around 980 pounds of litter across eight miles of trail

Park services shared photos of toilet paper discarded in Grand Teton National Park in 2018

This photo of a fox with a can of Pringles was shared by the park in 2022 on Facebook

Dodd said his trip was during peak season, and added: ‘I wasn’t expecting, you know, a clear lake but yeah, we were there during pretty heavy tourism season so I can’t complain that much.’

He too had believed Delta Lake was more of a hidden gem and said that its growing popularity presented a ‘double-edged sword.’

He explained that having people promote the outdoors was important for America but added: ‘On the other hand it can accelerate visitation. There’s going to be a lot more people visiting a place once they’ve seen a video on it on TikTok or Instagram.

‘There’s a lot of people without the education or preparation needed to protect those kind of fragile environments.

‘[At Delta Lake] It’s mostly rocks but you can definitely tell the strain that’s been put on it, just in the erosion of the footpaths.’

Dodd said Delta Lake was just one example of how fragile hiking mountains can be overwhelmed quickly when visitation outpaces national park management.

To try and cope with increased visitors, the Teton Climbers’ Coalition has partnered with the national climbing advocacy group Access Fund.

According to the Vice President of Partner Projects Ryan Kelly, the goal of the project is to create a ‘single durable route’ to avoid the current system of informal braided trails.

Filmmaker Devon Dodd said he was surprised by the amount of people he encountered when he undertook a trek there

Delta Lake is located in Glacier Gulch and is fed rock flour from the Teton Glacier, which turns the water turquoise

‘That’s where we see impacts to vegetation and the potential for erosion from exposed soil,’ Kelly told Daily Mail.

‘By finding the most durable route and consolidating use through that, through minor trail improvements and some minimal signage, you get everyone going on the same route. You can really improve the experience up there.’

Work on the restoration efforts is set to begin in June. Grand Teton National Park Foundation committed to raising $61,200 for the first phase of the project.