ElkFest

The 59th annual ElkFest takes place Saturday, May 16, 2026, on Jackson Town Square — a date confirmed by the official elkfest.org website and Eventbrite registration. The event’s identification as the world’s largest elk antler auction is certified by the World Record Academy and grounded in nearly six decades of documented practice. What began in 1968 as a practical solution to the National Elk Refuge’s shed antler accumulation has become one of Wyoming’s most genuinely irreplaceable annual events: a live auction where conservation financing, Scouting program funding, and community celebration intersect under the four iconic antler arches that have defined Jackson Town Square since 1953. Admission is entirely free. Those wishing to bid must purchase a Bidder Registration in advance; all bidding is live and in-person only, with no remote or online option.

The Auction in Detail

Lot viewing opens at 8:00 a.m. The auction begins at 10:00 a.m. and runs through approximately noon. Approximately 200 Boy Scouts and adult leaders spend late April scouring the National Elk Refuge’s 25,000 acres for naturally shed antlers, logging roughly 2,000 volunteer hours in the collection process. The 2024 collection yielded 8,170 pounds of antlers; 2023 produced 9,696 pounds. The record collection stands at 13,698 pounds from 2014. Standard lots sell by weight, with premium matched sets evaluated on symmetry, color, and point count commanding considerably higher per-pound returns. Specialty items — beetle-cleaned European mount skulls with attached antlers being the most sought — generate the auction’s headline bids; the record single item reached $15,200 in 2023 for what is believed to be the largest skull ever recovered on the refuge. The average price per pound has risen from roughly $6 forty-five years ago to approximately $26.73 in 2024. Recent auctions have generated approximately $218,000 annually, with 75 percent directed to National Elk Refuge habitat enhancement and 25 percent to Scouting programs serving communities from Star Valley to Alta.

Weekend Programming Beyond the Auction

The Kids’ Corner from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. features educational tables sponsored by Wyoming Game and Fish and the National Elk Refuge — a natural history curriculum delivered in the context of the very conservation effort the auction funds. The Scouting America Expo runs in conjunction with the auction with hands-on outdoor skills demonstrations. Sunday’s High Noon Chili Cook-Off runs noon to 4:00 p.m. with a $5 all-you-can-sample pass and competition categories covering both professional and amateur entrants. The Jackson Youth Baseball Food Court serves the auction grounds starting at 7:00 a.m. with sweet potato pancakes, coffee, and a morning menu running through burgers and the bison huckleberry sausage that has become its signature afternoon offer. The Mountain Man Rendezvous at Teton County Fairgrounds runs through the weekend alongside ElkFest as part of the broader Old West Days celebration.

Where to Eat in Jackson

The Bunnery Bakery and Restaurant (130 N. Cache St., Jackson, open since 1973) is the community’s most-loved breakfast institution, with a yeast-raised OSM (oats, sunflower seeds, millet) bread that is both the restaurant’s most recognized product and its most convincing argument that Jackson’s visitor economy has not entirely displaced local dining culture. The multigrain pancakes, the house granola with local honey, and the OSM French toast represent the kitchen’s range at its most Teton-specific. Snake River Grill (84 E. Broadway, open since 1993) is the Jackson dining room most frequently cited by food-serious visitors, with a seasonal menu drawing on Wyoming ranching and hunting traditions — the elk tenderloin with wild mushroom sauce and the Snake River Farms Wagyu strip steak have anchored the kitchen’s reputation across three decades of regional recognition. Persephone Bakery (145 E. Broadway, open since 2012) fills the artisanal pastry and morning coffee slot with the sourdough loaves, croissants, and seasonal tarts that have made it one of the most discussed independent bakeries in the Mountain West.

Points of Interest for Families

The National Elk Refuge, which produces every antler sold at the auction, offers winter sleigh rides through the elk herd and summer hiking access that give families a direct encounter with the 7,500 elk that winter on the refuge annually. The Jackson Hole Wildlife Safari through the refuge and Grand Teton National Park provides the most complete wildlife viewing itinerary available in the area — bison, pronghorn, bald eagle, osprey, and with patience, wolves and grizzly bears are all part of the broader Greater Yellowstone ecosystem visible from the refuge road system. Grand Teton National Park, beginning at the northern edge of Jackson, is one of the country’s most accessible alpine experiences for families with children — the Jenny Lake loop trail and the string of visitor centers along the inner park road provide genuinely substantive natural history content at a scale that rewards visits at any age.

Book Your Stay on the Lake

Jackson Lake in Grand Teton National Park is the region’s defining body of water — a moraine-dammed glacial lake with the Teton Range rising directly from its western shore. Search Lake.com for properties in the Jackson Hole valley to find vacation rentals that provide access to both the Town Square auction and the extraordinary lake-and-mountain landscape that makes Jackson Hole one of the American West’s most singularly compelling destinations. May is shoulder season in Jackson, with favorable rates compared to the summer peak that follows ElkFest weekend.