sheenaL83

Sweetwater is a good dining choice in Jackson. There's a great visitor center in Jackson at the National Elk Refuge that has some neat displays, helpful employees and just about any map/flyer that you could want for the area. It's fun to tour the downtown area of Jackson, even though it is rather touristy.

There's a great little restaurant at Moose Junction with a patio bar area. It's a beautiful spot to enjoy a cocktail and take in the scenery.

I also agree that you do not need an SUV.

I would recommend visiting in mid-late August as well. Early June is still the very beginning of summer and there's a good possibility that the South Entrance of Yellowstone will still have snow at that time.

Enjoy! I lived in that area for 2 summers during college and it's lovely.

uadalaa

Oliver, what exactly do you have in mind for Teton Crest Trail? The Teton Crest Trail is a 30 mile monstrosity that passes through some of the most amazing backcountry areas of the park. Many of the sections are 5-10 miles from a trailhead, so they aren't something that can be done in just a few hours. Someone mentioned taking the tram up Rendezvous Mountain at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. That's a great idea ... there are some trails that you could access and then you can turn around when you're ready to (although you won't be hiking in the most dramatic areas of the Tetons). I'm not sure what you meant by "early." The tram isn't going to be open at sunrise. Anyways, the views from the top of the tram are spectacular.

You also mentioned "Possibly to continue on to Lake Solitude." That is a 15-mile hike from Inspiration Point. Be sure to plan ahead if that's what you're going to do. Bear spray is a must. And be sure to time your hike so that you will be able to take the shuttle back across Jenny Lake (unless you want to hike the extra two miles along the shoreline). It's an incredible hike (Lake Solitude is truly a gem and the view of the Tetons as you hike down from Lake Solitude is gorgeous), but it's a tough hike and not something to be done on a whim. Here's a long article I wrote a few years ago: http://www.themountaingoat.net/?p=56

I think I saw somewhere that you said you weren't a major hiker. That's tough to interpret ... but another hike you might consider is Hermitage Point. The trailhead is at Colter Bay and it's a 10-mile loop that is as flat as a pancake and gives you great views of the Tetons and Jackson Lake. It follows some of the Jackson Lake shoreline and passes above some willow flats with possible moose sightings and plenty of possible bird sightings. Here's an article: http://www.themountaingoat.net/?p=53

Lone Star Geyser and Mount Washburn are great hikes in Yellowstone if you're looking for something that's about six miles round-trip and won't take all day.

Hope this helps ...

LemonThrower

would second the rec for Sweetwater in Jackson if you are there.

rest. in Moose Junction is Dornans. Kid friendly, but they are not allowed up on the roof deck so be aware that your picturesque views include the parking lot. still if you are in the area a reasonable place.

LemonThrower

just did 2 days in Jackson, 2 in Tetons, 4 in Yellowstone, and then Glacier.

really liked the tetons.

Jackson was OK but would skip if i did it over again. best things were whitewater rafting class II and III on Snake River and lift to top of Jackson resort - free after 430 and half priced drinks.

liked tetons the best. stayed at Colter Bay cabins with private bath at $175 and would recommend. Jackson Lake had nice views but hotel is a concrete box. Lobby is worth a visit.

hiked the rockefeller preserve trail to lake phelps at sunset and inspiration point hikes and recommend both. other highlight was top of signal mountain at sunset. stop 80% of the way to the top at the jackson lake overlook; the top affords an eastern view only.

yellowstone was good but the hikes are either very short or extremely long. you get a lot of confused tourists wandering around which gets annoying fast. stayed at OFI with a geyser view and lake hotel. definitely do the OFI tour. mixed reviews on lake hotel. i didn't like it but my wife did. first, the architecture doesn't match the park, and it doesn't look as good as in the pictures. second, when you drive up, you see the back which is ugly and cluttered with lots of various equipment. third, and most importantly, the hotel is old and noisy. its a wood hotel, so when someone walks past your room the floor vibrates. the transmission of the vibrations is worse than noise if you are trying to go to sleep. literally the worse night sleep i ever had. the dining room was OK, about what you would expect from a decent hotel but easily could be skipped. we did like the interior decor - it was antique without being fussy, sort of like the style in the Shining Hotel if you know what i mean. its post-victorian and pre-Deco. Its a simple but elegant style. the sun room was a highlight. great place to unwind and socialize. we had a renovated room that was very nice inside. I would say the interior is akin to a new Westin, ignoring the sound/vibration problems, and the exterior was just a dump. Even the lake view was overrated imho, since the lake is so huge is much less picturesque than many of the other lakes in Tetoans?YNP.

i think these historic hotels are very overrated as places to sleep. sure, visit them, but i would sleep in a cabin. that said, the cabins behind the lake hotel looked like prison cottages, and the cabins at Jackson Lake Lodge looked like army barracks. I really liked the log cabins at Coulter Bay a few minutes north of Jackson Lake Lode on Jackson Lake. At YNP, i would look at the cabins at Canyon or Fishing Bridge.

some pieces of advice. YNP is huge and you spend a lot of time driving. get a roomy car like a minivan with unlimited miles. also, realize that with the distances and traffic you are not going to see that much each day. splitting your stays between the east and west side of the park is a good idea. The canyon area seems isolated but is actually very centrally located imho. I would stay in the park though. The NE exit near mammoth is far from the rest of the sites and Gardiner itself doesn't have many lodging options. West Yellowstone is closer but still somewhat far and the hotels there are about the same cost as in the park. The Coulter Bay area had a great general store and restaurant with free wifi too; wifi in YNP was $5/hour and little to no cell coverage.

finally, we were going to exit the park via the Bear Tooth highway. however, i figured it would add4-5 hours to our trip. We were on our way to Glacier and skipped it, and considering the views along Going to Sun Road don't regret it.

we really enjoyed our trip. YNP is good but its not somewhere i would return to. Once you see it i think you are good. Tetons and Glacier i could go back to every year.

Swiss Tony

Just to pitch in - and add to what LemonThrower has said re Yellowstone. I enjoyed my visit there, but that was about 25 years ago. It's a place I'd love to take my kids to as I think they'd be in awe of the geological stuff, but we also went to Glacier. That's the sort of place I could return to time and time again.

Never been to the Tetons but I think Yellowstone has such blatant scientific relevance that it should be on everyone's to do list.

LemonThrower

we did the hike up to Inspiration point. took the boat round trip. hike was middle of the day, it was hot, and i was exhausted. its basically walking up a 50 story stair case. its worth going to the top buts its a little harder than the books give credit for. when we got to the top, i was planning to go back home but some hikers on that trail said they saw a bear. my son was very excited so we hiked another 20 min up the trail. I thought it was called something canyon trail. anyway, its a very nice trail and much more level. it follows the river between two huge mountains. its forested so fairly cool. we got to the place where the bear was - he ate a lot of berries and was sleeping so we turned around. but that was a nice trail to hike. as noted above, its not a loop trail so the logistics are challenging. you need to start very early to get to where you are going or bring your own gear to camp. nearby was a horse trail that started at the jenny lake parking lot - worth looking into. its a separate trail because of manure.

cvhatton

A few side notes......

If possible, I suggest renting an RV and staying at Fishing Bridge (only campground in the park with full hookups) but heavily populated with bears.

Lone Star Geyser near Old faithful is a nice little hike and much more peaceful than oldfaithful as it is out more in the back country. Well worth the hike though as each eruption lasts roughly 30 minutes. Goes off every few hours (2-3 If I remember correctly). The old faithful visitors centers does one ranger guided hike each morning and they log the time of the eruption, so you can either go with the guide, check with the visitors center for last known eruption to gauge your time....or you can wing it.


Also fairy falls is a nice little waterfall with a fairly short hike.

An ABSOLUTE must do in Yellowstone....The Boiling River. In Mammoth, the hot water from the geysers runs off into the Gardner river. Scalding hot water, mixing with the cold Gardner river is something to experience at least once. The parking is unmarked so I would suggest asking a ranger.

The petrified forest in the Lamar area is nice to see and if you want to see wolves, Lamar valley in the morning or in the evening is a great place.

djp98374

I heard about this story this morning:

http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/06/us/wyo...issing-couple/

A wisconsin couple trying to leave Yellowstone on their way back home to Wisconsin ended up driving on Beartooth Highway (Hwyw 212). the missed the signs that it was closed for winter and continued driving to above 10,000 feet when they then got stuck in snow.

Reports circulated of a missing couple and someone who lives near the pass took a snowmobile up to try and find them and did.

they wee up there for about 6 days trapped and started writing letters to loved ones thinking this may be it for them.

IMHO: They should have known better than to even have tried driving that way. they could have driven part of beartooth then split off toward Cody then onto home.

The reason I want to post this story here is because this is true for many mountain roads in the western USA from October thru May are closed for the winter because of pass level snowfall.

the roads generally closed from first big snowfall (late september-early November) to the time of snow melt (which can be from mid Arpil into July).

Many of these are near in or near National Parks or cross over mountain passes above 5,000 feet

The roads that stay open during winter (but will be closed briefly due to a winter storm) are Interstates and major US highways (usually 1 or 2 digits).

GPS units do not usually program this information in. You need to look at the traditional state roadway maps where they list under the route "(closed in winter)"

Previously a well circulated story happened in late November 2006 when a family from San Francisco wanted to drive from Eugene to Gold Beach through the mountains where there are mnay unmapped and unmarked forest roads.


http://blog.oregonlive.com/oregonian...kimfamily.html

ArizonaRoadWarrior

We are planning a trip this summer which includes a stop at the Yellowstone National Park.

I went to Yellowstone when I was a six-year old but that has been several years ago.

How many days is enough to see the 'main' attractions? I know that the park is huge (2.2 MM acres). I have read a few articles suggesting three full days as a minimum.

Your recommendations for activities\attractions?

Which area (i.e. south entrance, north entrance, etc.) is the best to stay? Any recommendations for hotels?

Your suggestions and advice would be greatly appreciated by us.

Thanks.

mediator

I would say two and a half days are minimum.

If you are entering from the South　(Grand Teton), then stay at Grant Village at Day 1. Drive to Old Faithful on Day 2, visit the sights as a counter-clock fashion, from Old Faithful to Canyon. Stay at Canyon on Day 2. On Day 3, visit Lamer Valley for animal sighting, then head to Mammoth. Stay at Mammoth Hotspring on Day 3. Depend on the season, if the Beartooth Highway is open, then leave the park through this route.

ludocdoc

I'd look at a map of Yellowstone this way: it's sort of a figure 8 of roads, except that it's a square on top of a hexagon. Nearly every point is something to see. Look each one up and see what appeals. Figure that each leg from point to point is a 20 minute drive, many closer to 30. There are hotels at various points, and at the gateway cities of West Yellowstone and Gardiner, just outside the park. Thus, if you stay in Gardiner the whole time, Old Faithful is about a 1.5 hour drive. Drives are longer for construction which is common early in the season repairing from winter - the NPS website has details.

Drives get longer if you are lucky enough to see a rare animal, like bear or wolf. The term is "Bear Jam." Bison are ubiquitous, large herds are common, and Bison walking down the roads (obstructing traffic) are common too. Thus, drive times may be longer. Point is, it's unlikely you can see the park in a meaningful way in 2 -3 days, but you can do a whirlwind drive by. I'd favor a week minimum, but every extra day gets you a bit deeper into enjoying it.

Whirlwind: Old faithful goes off every hour, so you stop by, see the main lodge (impressive), see it blow, and you're on to the next site in 1.5 hours or so. Better: several mile walk through the geyser basin past other geysers (which erupt every 4 to 12 to 24 hours) and many very pretty springs. Lunch at the lodge. Lounge in a rocker writing postcards. Half day minimum.

I'd spend minimum a half day in the Mamouth area - there are two areas to hike around there with nice formations and such. Another minimum half day at the Canyon/waterfall area.

If you're into lakes, fishing (I'm not), there's one with a geyser in it that people used to cook fish in (no longer allowed).

I love the drive out the northeast entrance through the Lamar valley, have seen great herds of bison there and lots of animals. I enjoyed the drive farther out over the Bear Tooth scenic highway to Red Lodge (consider coming in this way if it fits your route)

If you want to avoid moves, I'd stay a night or two at Old Faithful and a bunch at Gardiner. For me, West yellowstone doesnt add much if you can get rooms at Old Faithful - I've stayed in both the Main lodge and the snow lodge. Snow is newer, more like a conventional hotel, main lodge is historic. you MUST at least go in the main lodge. If you consider price vs amenities, you will be disappointed -- they are not 4 star rooms. The price is for the location -- avoiding that 1.5 hour drive out and back to your hotel each day, and the ambiance.
In reality, with driving, each of these pushes to nearly a full day. Build in some swing time in case it rains...

TRRed

I'm guessing "several years" is, to say the least, somewhat of an understatement?

Keep in mind your time travelling in the park may be considerably different depending on when in summer you are visiting. In my experience, early June (before summer break in a lot of the country) and late August (after summer break in generally other parts of the country) are considerably less crowded than late June to mid August. During peak periods, it can feel like you are constantly behind someone who is stopping to take a picture of every elk and bison, and a route that should take you 90 minutes pushes into 3-4 hours.

Old Faithful area for me is the focus. Grand old dame of a hotel. The previously mentioned geyser walk is fairly flat and easy. You can rent a bike for that also. Going out on the boardwalks late on a moonless night (with a flashlight to help you stay on the boardwalks), >.5 miles from the hotel to get away from the lights, the starfield is amazing.

I don't think the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and the upper and lower falls were mentioned yet, and they are worth seeing. There are a lot of 1-3 hour walks all over the park (search day hikes), if that is your thing. Something more challenging? Trek up Mt. Washburn, still a day hike but longer.

Overall, in decent weather, I would recommend a week for Yellowstone and Grand Teton combined. I've done 1/2 day float trips down the Snake river in sections which are basically Class I (good picture opportunities) as well as sections that were II-III (bring waterproof camera). Those were really enjoyable, but hard to do if you are trying to cram seeing a lot into a couple of days. YNP/GTNP are not where you want to do a "If This is Tuesday, This Must be Belgium" tour, IMHO.

For lodging in YNP, in addition to Old Faithful Hotel and Snow Lodge, look into Mammoth and Lake Yellowstone Hotels. Outside of YNP, toward and in GTNP, there are a lot of good options: Flagg Ranch, Jackson Lake Lodge, Togwotee Lodge, Jenny Lake Lodge ($$$$), etc. A number of the facilities in the area and in and out of the park may have a variety of accommodations, some that are decent and others that you are not sure you really want to walk barefoot in. And be aware that, last time I checked, not every room at Old Faithful Hotel had "en suite" facilities. Some in the "old section" shared a hall bath.

Good luck.

TRRed

WildWilly

I was amused by your mention of the Mt Washburn hike.

It's about 3 1/2 miles up to a ranger station at the top. The trail is a very smooth, gently climbing dirt road.

The problem is that it starts at 8,800 ft in elevation and goes up to about 10,350 ft. You're gasping for oxygen within a minute or two unless you live in that type of elevation.

Also, it's a good idea to take with a heavy sweater as it could get very cold near the top. The savior is that you're permitted to go inside the ranger station to warm up.

UA Fan

How about Grand Prismatic Hot Spring?

WildWilly

Sorry, it disappeared. I'll try again later.