Travel tips to Yellowstone.

[Dorado]

So it looks like I may be able to do some traveling this coming year. I've always wanted to go to Yellowstone and Grand Tetons NP. My brother is moving to Salt Lake city so I can use his place to crash and hop from there to Yellowstone. I was wondering who all has been there and if they have any advise.

I'm looking at towards the end of May/beginning of June type of time frame before schools are out. I can get a round trip ticket to SLC for $250 and was thinking of catching a bus up from there. I'd be camping for a few days to a week. Got me some guidebooks that I'm reading through but first hand knowledge is better than any book.

[Arkansas Jim 107095]

My favorite time to go to YS is late May. The park is just starting to get over winter. The new growth has the creatures down low where you can see them. We’ve seen buffalo, elk, deer, wolfs and bears roaming the meadows in the northern part of the park. The northern part of the park is more interesting to us. The southern part of the park has the geysers, Old Faithful and such. Probably more hot Springs than the N part. For my wife and I, after see the geysers a few times was enough. Beat school being out is smart. Traffic is a killer during the summers 

[Yul Lose]

You are picking a good time of year to visit the park. The crowds won’t be near as large in late May and early June. Wildlife viewing is by far my favorite part of Yellowstone. You may want to see if there is a Air BnB in Jackson Hole, Gardner, Mt. or Cody that you could rent while you’re there.

[Dorado]

36 minutes ago, Arkansas Jim 107095 said:

My favorite time to go to YS is late May. The park is just starting to get over winter. The new growth has the creatures down low where you can see them. We’ve seen buffalo, elk, deer, wolfs and bears roaming the meadows in the northern part of the park. The northern part of the park is more interesting to us. The southern part of the park has the geysers, Old Faithful and such. Probably more hot Springs than the N part. For my wife and I, after see the geysers a few times was enough. Beat school being out is smart. Traffic is a killer during the summers 

That's my thought as well. I want to see the animals, trees, and natural wonders. Not a bunch of screaming brats. If I wanted that I'd watch the NFL or the news. I'd like to stay deep in the park and do some backcountry camping. Northern parts sound more like what I want.

21 minutes ago, Yul Lose said:

You are picking a good time of year to visit the park. The crowds won’t be near as large in late May and early June. Wildlife viewing is by far my favorite part of Yellowstone. You may want to see if there is a Air BnB in Jackson Hole, Gardner, Mt. or Cody that you could rent while you’re there.

I'll take a look at that option too. I was thinking that I could crash at my brother's place head up for a week or so then explore the area at my leisure. I should have a couple weeks of paid time off by then. Been savin' up.

[Ace_of_Hearts]

If you Are a "senior citizen" (and I am assuming you are. Make sure you purchase the Senior Pass at the first park you go to. It is good in all Federal Parks and you get in free, as well as everyone in your car, after you buy the pass.

 

[Dorado]

3 minutes ago, Ace_of_Hearts said:

If you Are a "senior citizen" (and I am assuming you are. Make sure you purchase the Senior Pass at the first park you go to. It is good in all Federal Parks and you get in free, as well as everyone in your car, after you buy the pass.

 

I'm 33. So.......yeah. No can do. Wanna do this while I'm young enough to enjoy it. Company I work for is generous enough to give me near 3 weeks of paid time off. I wanna abuse it.

[Assassin]

Late May and early June can still get cold and snowy. Bring gear to stay warm and repel water. Enjoy!

[Trailrider #896]

Just now, Assassin said:

Late May and early June can still get cold and snowy. Bring gear to stay warm and repel water. Enjoy!

Definitely carry winter survival gear in your vehicle until the end of June!  Strongly recommend that you NOT tease the buffalo, and DO NOT sneak up on a griz and honk your horn. Ol' Eph may turn around and do serious damage to the finish on your car with those long claws!  Do not attempt to pet those "wooly boogers".  They may not take kindly to it! Do not attempt to go swimming in those hot springs. Par boiling is detrimental to human flesh!  Otherwise, have fun! 

 

Oh, and if you happen to drive through Cody, Wyoming, be sure to stop at the Buffalo Bill Museum!  They have a few guns to look at!

[JD Lud]

I really liked hitting the park early to see some of the rare animals moving.  We went at 5am (getting kids up was rather fun) twice while there.  No traffic hardly at all that early and can catch stuff you wouldn't otherwise see.  I would imagine at your time frame it would be even better.

[Dorado]

1 hour ago, Trailrider #896 said:

Definitely carry winter survival gear in your vehicle until the end of June!  Strongly recommend that you NOT tease the buffalo, and DO NOT sneak up on a griz and honk your horn. Ol' Eph may turn around and do serious damage to the finish on your car with those long claws!  Do not attempt to pet those "wooly boogers".  They may not take kindly to it! Do not attempt to go swimming in those hot springs. Par boiling is detrimental to human flesh!  Otherwise, have fun! 

 

Oh, and if you happen to drive through Cody, Wyoming, be sure to stop at the Buffalo Bill Museum!  They have a few guns to look at!

But the buffalo are so fluffy! You mean it isn't a petting zoo?!

Hear I was wanting a bear hug.......

I may have to travel to Cody and see that. May be worth renting a car for.

54 minutes ago, JD Lud said:

I really liked hitting the park early to see some of the rare animals moving.  We went at 5am (getting kids up was rather fun) twice while there.  No traffic hardly at all that early and can catch stuff you wouldn't otherwise see.  I would imagine at your time frame it would be even better.

I'm hoping that I'll be able to get a backcountry permit so that I can camp in park away from everyone. Back in the woods and see things that most of the tourists don't get to see.

[Mud Marine,SASS#54686 Life]

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Fishing Bridge campground is the only one that allows soft sided living accommodations. If you can afford it, get a reservation and spend a night or two at Old Faithful Inn. West Yellowstone is a nice tourist town with some good stores and attractions. Try to go either before of after school vacations. The Park also has some excellent fishing opportunities.

My "job" as a boy was to bring dudes from our family ranch to the Park. Not a single one of them was ever disappointed.

[Dorado]

58 minutes ago, Mud Marine,SASS#54686 Life said:

Fishing Bridge campground is the only one that allows soft sided living accommodations. If you can afford it, get a reservation and spend a night or two at Old Faithful Inn. West Yellowstone is a nice tourist town with some good stores and attractions. Try to go either before of after school vacations. The Park also has some excellent fishing opportunities.

My "job" as a boy was to bring dudes from our family ranch to the Park. Not a single one of them was ever disappointed.

I hate campgrounds. I'd rather not go then deal with that garbage. I'll be getting a backcountry permit so that I can go off deeper into the woods and hopefully avoid seeing anything with two legs that isn't a bird or Sasquatch.

That West Yellowstone does sound nice. I'll write that down as a place to check out.

[Cholla]

Get up early and get into the park early.

Plan on taking one day per loop (Hayden Valley, Lamar Valley) to see things.

Three days is a minimum to see the park.

If you plan on taking photos of the waterfalls, the lower falls has a rainbow shoot out of it briefly each day when the sun hits the mist just right. I think it is in the morning but it will change as the days get longer. You would need to do some research on when it happens during your visit. 

[Dorado]

Really wish I had a motorcycle and a license for it. I'd love to ride around up there.

[Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619]

Great place. Good time of year to go, but, as some pards have said, it can be cold still then. On the other hand, in the Rockies, it can drop into the 30s suddenly in August. I've seen it with me own eyes in Glacier NP. Should be good whether when you've planned.

 

Teton of course is adjacent to Yellowstone, on the South. I camped at Jackson Lake with my boys in the early 90s; we found campsites much easier to find in Teton NP. But then we were there in high summer.

 

As some have said, 3 days is a minimum. It's a place not to miss; one of the wonders of the world, truly.

[Dorado]

Possibility of snow in June. I don't even get that here in December! Wow! Sounds great to be honest

 

[Forty Rod SASS 3935]

Everything sounds nearly perfect.  If only you could go up in about 1960 it would be.

[Trailrider #896]

5 hours ago, Dorado said:

But the buffalo are so fluffy! You mean it isn't a petting zoo?!

If you seriously want to pet and feed a buffalo, the Terry Bison Ranch, straddling the Colorado/Wyoming line off I-25 has an open-air train from which you can feed them and, if you can reach out, pet them!  While they aren't penned up, they have been pretty well domesticated, though I wouldn't want to get out and walk among them.  My wife wanted to take one home, but I doubt our flimsy wood fences would hold them.

[Mud Marine,SASS#54686 Life]

Winter is actually one of the best times to go. There are plenty of outfits that will take you on an absolutely breathtaking journey.

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[Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619]

2 hours ago, Forty Rod SASS 3935 said:

Everything sounds nearly perfect.  If only you could go up in about 1960 it would be.

 

But, alas, it's easier to get to Yellowstone than to 1960.

 

But by 1962, I was a lot more interested in getting to the girls than to Yellowstone.

[Chili Ron]

Howdy,

First and most important is a minimum of two pairs of comfortable

well broke in shoes. Several pairs of sox. And yes you will probably need

a down jacket as weather changes often.  

Try to avoid driving across the park.

Get a room or camp in one area and look it over then move to another.

Outside the park there is wonderful scenery Cody is worth a couple days at least.

Custer battlefield was unexpected but fascinated me.

I bet no matter how many days you stay, you will want to stay more.

I have a hard time imagining how to see all this without a car.

There could be tour buses that I didn't pay attention....

Best

CR

 

[Cheatin Charlie]

When I was there on my motorcycle they had Hiker-biker tent only camp sites at Grand Teton.  Primative camping only.  You'll be in your tent at dusk because of the mosquitoes.  They had paid showers that took quarters at that time.  Picture I took when leaving.

 

 

[Shootin' Shu]

Last time we went early season we arrived Memorial Day weekend.. Lakes were still frozen. It was a cold miserable drizzle and in the morning we had to pound ice off the car. Depending on weather some roads may not be open yet.

The last 20 years or so I fly into Billings Labor Day weekend, visit friends in Red Lodge, get a cabin just outside the NE entrance and fish and hang out in the Lamar Valley.

[Mud Marine,SASS#54686 Life]

Girls????  We always looked for the new Forest Service kids.  

[Dorado]

3 hours ago, Mud Marine,SASS#54686 Life said:

Girls????  We always looked for the new Forest Service kids.  

I'm thinkin' that his intentions were a smidge different there Mud.

[Forty Rod SASS 3935]

22 hours ago, Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619 said:

 

But, alas, it's easier to get to Yellowstone than to 1960.

 

But by 1962, I was a lot more interested in getting to the girls than to Yellowstone.

I used to try to get both.

[Church Key, SASS # 33713]

I was there in Mid-August a long time back and managed to drive through 6" of snow/slush. Suggest spending at least a couple of days at the Old Faithful lodge. I did not too long after Mt. St Helens blew up. Old Faithful was not at all predictable. Only glimpse of the Grand Tetons was the base due to a 500' ceiling cloud cover.  An absolutely wonderful trip. Make sure to stop at Jackson Hole and explore it.

 

Church Key.

[Dirty Dan Dawkins]

I took my family from GA to the West this summer: to the Black Hills, then Devils Tower then Cody then Yellowstone/Grand Teton then back through one of the best towns around Dubois, on to the Snowy Range, Grand Encampment. We were gone 16 days and had a blast. Did some camping here and there: Custer State Park, Grand Teton and Cody Reservoir. Take time to see the Cody Museum.  Lamar Valley is a pretty sweet place to see.

 

We camped at Colter Bay campground in G.T.N.P. a few days, entirely too busy for me, but it was a good central location for seeing things.  Convenient for early morning wildlife viewing at Oxbow Bend.

 

A side note: I would have drowned on Jackson Lake had my 13 year old daughter not been there to save my life.  That was in late July.  July 25th between 5 and 5:30 P.M. Took two or three weeks to settle my nerves from that event, and at times I think about it and still feel I'm not over what all that happened that day, physically, emotionally, spiritually. I thank the good Lord everyday he made my daughter alert and that he empowered  her little 100-105 pound body to get my 240 lb butt the 100 yards back to shore. 

[Oklahoma Dee]

Lots of great advice, mine is to find a horse wrangler guide and let them take you back into the area's where only the horse can take you.  We spent like three nights out there and rode every day, even some walking, which lead up to a magical secret waterfall that only the wrangler knew of.  Pretty special.  We did see a couple a hikers that were camping.... heard some bad news about one of them with a run-in with a bear.  Bear's are like bad people....they do what they want to regardless of the rules.

[Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619]

But unlike the bad people, the rules don't apply to the bears!

[Dorado]

1 hour ago, Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619 said:

But unlike the bad people, the rules don't apply to the bears!

Unlike bad people, you feel bad when you shoot a bear.

[Dorado]

4 hours ago, Oklahoma Dee said:

Lots of great advice, mine is to find a horse wrangler guide and let them take you back into the area's where only the horse can take you.  We spent like three nights out there and rode every day, even some walking, which lead up to a magical secret waterfall that only the wrangler knew of.  Pretty special.  We did see a couple a hikers that were camping.... heard some bad news about one of them with a run-in with a bear.  Bear's are like bad people....they do what they want to regardless of the rules.

That's a great idea! I love horse riding. Wonder what it'd cost?

[Three Foot Johnson]

Don't go during the eruption. 

 

If you see a moose, consider yourself lucky - the wolves have pretty much wiped them out. An extensive aerial survey about three years back turned up exactly 6 moose inside the park.

 

You may see a wolf close to the road, but most likely they will be some distance off. Take binoculars, a spotting scope and a tripod, then watch for the wolf watchers - the radio collar frequencies aren't published, but the wolf watchers have acquired them, so watch for vehicles with a bunch of "green stickers" (Save The Wolves!, etc.) with extra antennas, or just watch for 20 vehicles pulled off somewhere and everyone behind a tripod and spotting scope.

 

Don't ooh and aww too much over the first buffalo you see, as you should see several hundred.

Don't try and pet the buffalo. Don't sneak up on one, they really, REALLY do not like that. Don't try and get a picture standing next to one.

 

When the rangers snap at you to do something, DO IT - they're trying to protect your life.

 

The bull elk are less aggressive out of the rut, but don't push your luck, they'll still put the run on you.

 

This is the only moose I've seen in the park in at least ten years.

Other people will say they see several moose every time they go... I have my doubts.

 

And it's sideways...?