My wife and I are taking the kids camping to Yellowstone this summer. What are places that are must do's when we are there and on the way out?
if you're going through Cheyenne, fling a few arrows at our range...there's also a pretty nice range at Curt Gowdy.
Must do: 1. Pick up Iowa Veteran on the way out and take him along! Look for the non-tourist traps that aren't so crowded to give the kids a trip they will never forget. When I was young my parents took us to an old gold mining town in Colorado where we stayed for a few days and then to Dillon which was a very small town on a crystal clear lake for a week. We fished, hiked, panned for gold, and on the way over Loveland Pass had a snowball fight in July. That was 45 years ago and I remember it fondly like it was last week.
Well you got old faithful, a town called canyon I believe. That's pretty cool. Lots of elk hanging out around the town some big bulls. You also have walking trails that your able to get out of the vehicle to stretch. You also got Yellowstone lake, upper and lower falls, feed fish and watch all the crazy things people do jus to get a picture. There's also a couple ghost towns that are probably hour or two from there in Montana. Virginia city and Nevada city. And depending on when you go. We could maybe meet up and we could BBQ. I live jus about 1.5-2 hours away from Yellowstone. *edited* Country_ Boy
Jackson Hole is a must. Spend a couple days in the Tetons. Hit Old Faithful first and then head East. Most of the animals and best scenary are on the east and northeast side of the loop IMO. We were out there for 6 days last year and are going back for 8 days this summer. I love it out there.
Most people just blow through the Bighorn mountains to get to Yellowstone. Stop in the bighorns and take some hikes to some of the alpine lakes. Beautiful and WAY less people than Yellowstone in the summer.
If you happen to be near the North Entrance, head north past Gardiner and have dinner at a little place called the Lighthouse. It's maybe about a 10 minute drive north of the main entrance. Very good food. Had a steak to die for. The obvious things to see or do on the way would be the Badlands, Mt. Rushmore, Devils tower. While you are there, I'd say some of the coolest places are on the north side. Mammoth Springs is really cool. The Sheep Eaters cliff would be fun for the kids to play around on. Lots of wildlife viewing on the road to the Northeast entrance.
Must see spots are; bubbling mud pots, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone; Lamar Valley for wildlife (bring binoculars and spotting scope if you have them); Mammoth Of course you have to hit old faithful and check out the old Yellowstone Lodge while you are near old faithful. One thing to be careful of is spending too much time in the car. Make sure to get out and hike around a bunch. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Take the hike around Jenny Lake and check out the falls on the west side.Have fun I loved Yellowstone
Skip Old Faithful. It's the most anticlimactic waste of time ever. Get out of your car and go on as many hikes as you can.
Dornans in Moose (South of Yellowstone / Teton entrance) Get a cabin on the Snake for a night. Have dinner on the upper deck of the Pizza Pasta and watch the sunset behind the Tetons while you eat. You can thank me later.....
I don't see Tom as a fly fisher. I'm thinkin bait fisherman... I realize you're going on a family vacation, Tom, but you know yer in trout heaven, right? if I am wrong and you have a day alone or even day hiking in somewhere with the family, then 2 words - Slough Creek https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fra4FsCjvk
flat creek is certainly an option and it's easy access... RIGHT BY THE HIGHWAY... in one of the most beautiful valleys in north America! the cutthroats in Slough Creek average ~20" so I don't consider them small. It's a good hike in and not for the uninitiated... bear spray required. how much vacation ya got left, TJ? we could meet tom there and bait his hook?
ok tom... we'll stop threadjacking... obviously, the geothermal features of Yellowstone are unique... I'll share a couple of my favorite off the path places. 1) huge mud pots off the beaten path - take Fountain Flat drive (north of old faithful area) and park at end of road in small parking area. park at x, walk down the road (closed to public) to the firehole river, don't go across the bridge, but turn east and go up the river on the north\east bank. there are hot springs, flows, etc flowing into the firehole all long here, especially on the opposite bank. a few-several hundred yards from the road, turn north and go kinda up on a hill... but lord be careful... up on top of the rise are some huge mudpots big enough to loose a semi in - ok, its an exaggeration, but the are huge! I was fishing up the firehole on day through there and discovered them on accident. I had gone to the bank to rest and heard this reverberating thumping coming from that direction... hiked up there and it was all the huge mudpots thumping making the noise and vibrating the ground. i'll have to locate the other one and continue...
