Yellowstone & Grand Tetons National Park

 29 May     Idaho Falls, ID - West Yellowstone, MT              123 miles     2 hours   

We have arrived in West Yellowstone and very excited to be here! This year marks the 150th Year Anniversary for Yellowstone National Park. Our last trip to Yellowstone was 13 years ago. On that trip we just passed through. We saw Old Faithful and a couple of other things but didn't get the chance to really explore. On this trip we're at Yellowstone for 9 days. 

We're staying about 20 minutes from Yellowstone National Park at Yellowstone Holiday RV Campground in Montana. We'll be here for 4 nights, they offer a Good Sam discount $82.62 per night. Kind of pricey but all the parks in this area is. This campground is right on Hebgen Lake, it's absolutely beautiful. 

Today has been very cold and rainy, the high was 48 degrees and more rain expected. Hopefully it's warmer tomorrow, we're not used to this cold weather!

What a difference a day makes! We woke up this morning and everything is covered in snow. It's very cold but very beautiful. 

Our view of Hebgen Lake

For our Yellowstone and Teton visit, I purchased an audio tour from Gypsy Guide for $15. It's like a tour guide in your car. Narrated driving tours that automatically play stories, local tips, and directions, based on your location. No cell or wifi signal required. Just download the app, hook it up to your bluetooth and enjoy the tour. 

We highly recommend this audio tour for anyone making this trip to Yellowstone and Grand Tetons. 

31 May       Today we spent the day exploring the Mid and Upper Geyser Basin area, also the Old Faithful Village. The Upper Geyser Basin, home of Old Faithful, hosts the greatest concentration of active geysers on Earth.

One of the many hot springs

Old Faithful    

Most of this area has boardwalks to see the geysers. There are signs all over to stay on the boardwalks. There have been a lot of injuries and even deaths to ignorant people who wander off the boardwalks to try and get closer to the geysers.

There has also been injuries to people getting too close to the wildlife in this park. Especially the bison. We have witnessed this....people are stupid! There are warnings all over for bears too. It's recommended to always carry bear spray.

 01 June       Yesterday we overdid it so today we cut it a little short and explored the Norris Geyser Basin Area today. I say cut it a little short but it was still about 6 hours of exploring. It's still very cold during the day but we're making the best of it. So much to see......

02 June     West Yellowstone, MT - Fishing Bridge RV Park, WY     70 miles  

Today we moved to a campground inside the park. Fishing Bridge RV Park is the only campground in Yellowstone with full hookups. A little pricey at $95 per night but worth it. We're here for 5 nights. There's a lot of bear warnings at this campground. Never leave any food or anything with odors out because it will attract bears. This campground does not allow tent camping, only hard sided trailers or RV's because of the bear activity in the area. 

03 June     We explored Mammoth Hot Springs today. This park is huge, so even though we're camping inside the park, it still took over an hour to get there. Mammoth Hot Springs terraces are like living sculptures, shaped by the volume of the water, slope of the ground, and objects in the waters path. Travertine builds up rapidly here and causes the features to change quickly and constantly. 

04 June     The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone was spectacular. The Upper and Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River add to its grandeur. 

There are a lot of hikes in this area but Joe and I caught some kind of bug. Both of us not feeling great so we just drove to the lookouts and did very little hiking today. It's been very cold and rainy these past few days so that doesn't help but we're still managing to enjoy the park. 

Old Faithful may be more famous, but the Grand Prismatic Hot Spring is the most photographed thermal feature in Yellowstone. That's because of its crazy bright colors and enormous size. Its massive expanse stretches approximately 200 feet across. The high temperature of its water -160 fahrenheit-ensures that the spring is often cloaked in steam. 

Grand Prismatic at ground level

We walked around the Midway Geyser Basin and checked out the Grand Prismatic Hot Spring, that was at ground level. Then couple of days later we hiked the Fairy Falls Trail to get an aerial type view. It wasn't a very clear day and the colors weren't that brilliant but it was still pretty nice. 

  There were some bison on the trail and some people were getting too close.....again.

06 June      We drove out to Yellowstone Lake and West Thumb Basin today to do more exploring.  Yellowstone Lake is the largest high-elevation lake (above 7,000 feet) in North America. The lake is covered by ice from December to May or June. 

 

West Thumb Basins boiling springs sits on the shore of Yellowstone Lake. 

Its June and there's still ice on the lake

During our time here it snowed on us twice. The temperature dipped below 30 at night and a lot of times mid 40's during the day. A little too cold for us. We still managed to see most of the sights but not able to do any hard hikes. Lots of walking though. Plenty short walks on the boardwalks to see the different geysers and hot springs. Even though the weather was cold and we got sick, we still enjoyed our stay at Yellowstone. 

Ready to hit the road

Black  bear

Woke up to all this snow

07 June     Fishing Bridge RV Park - Grand Tetons National Park      99 miles   3 hours

Few landscapes in the world are as striking and memorable as that of Grand Tetons National Park. Rising abruptly from the valley floor, the Teton range offers a testament to the power and complexity of nature. The mountains, valleys, lakes, rivers, and skies are home to diverse and abundant plants and animals. 

We have arrived at Grand Tetons National Park. We're staying at Gros Ventre Campground located inside the park. Its dry camping, so no hookups. Staying for 4 nights, $47 per night. This campground is huge, over 300 sites with different loops. 

Our campsite at Gros Ventre Campground

08 June       Phelps Lake is the southern-most of a string of gem-like lakes nestled at the base of the Teton peaks. It sits at the mouth of the impressive towering granite walls of Death Canyon. 

The trail begins on the sagebrush flats, rises gently along scenic Lake Creek through mixed forest, and ends at the south shore of Phelps Lake. 

09 June      We drove out to Colter Bay Village located in the northern part of the park. Enjoyed a hike on a trail that connects both Swan Lake and Heron Pond. The level trail follows Colter Bay shoreline with views of Jackson Lake and the Teton Range. 

Today, two picturesque barns highlight Mormon Row. Settlers John and Thomas Alma Moulton built these barns on adjacent homesteads. Photographers from around the world stop by the Moulton barns to capture this iconic historic structure with the Teton Range in the background. 

10 June       Jenny lake lies at the base of the Cathedral Group which includes The Grand and other highest Teton peaks. The cool inviting forest, the shining lake, soaring peaks overhead, and the promise of Cascade Canyon makes this the most superb of all Teton experiences. 

We got an early start to beat the crowds and took the boat shuttle across the lake to start our day. Hidden Falls is 200 feet high and is invisible until a sudden turn in the trail.         

Hidden Falls

Jenny Lake

Rocky trail

Inspiration Point is breathtaking although the climb left us breathless. The trail to Inspiration Point is a steady climb and the footing occasionally rough. We normally avoid hikes with all these switchbacks and elevation but we powered through and so glad we did. 

Inspiration Point

Cascade Canyon

 We continued on to the start of Cascade Canyon with the Grand Teton soaring a mile over our heads. It is one of the most spectacular canyons in the Teton Range. We didn't go too far in but sill enjoyable.

  

Schwabacher's Landing is a spot on the Snake River where the terrain flattens out and allows easy access to the river. When the wind is calm, the pond reflects the central Teton Range framed by spruce and cottonwood trees.

The reflection of the Teton Mountains in the still, flat water of the Snake River is majestic, making this a prime spot for photos. 

A curious bear

We've enjoyed the warmer weather here at Grand Tetons National Park. A little chilly in the mornings but it warms up pretty nicely. We had a couple of days in the mid 70's. We managed to do some hiking everyday, it's so beautiful here. This park is not as big as Yellowstone so we could cover the whole park in one day. I would stay longer next time, just so we can do more hiking and take our time finding animals in the early morning and late afternoons.