This topic contains 21 replies, has 6 voices, and was last updated by 
BeccaDay 9 years, 2 months ago.
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We’re talking about taking a trip here sometime in the next year. That’s as much as we’ve planned so far. Five days in the park, plus travel to and from.
Tell us your experiences, and what you might do differently if you had a do-over. Thanks.
Book your in-park lodging ASAP… like NOW! We have made the Old Faithful area our base of operations twice, and that was so much better than the one time we stayed at a huge campground that was far from stuff. We did our running around during the day, then by evening we were back in the OF area and could take our time wandering that area until we turned in. (Just checked on where we stayed, and they’re pretty much already booked for 2016. 🙁 )
Use the park website to check out all sorts of things: http://www.nps.gov/yell/index.htm
We’ve been to Yellowstone numerous times over the years…always camping. You didn’t mention if that’s in your plans. The area around Yellowstone Lake is spectacular for its views, wildlife, fishing, and hiking…and it’s well located for day trips around the park. The last several times we’ve been to Yellowstone though we’ve been disappointed by the reduction in the variety of wildlife. Re-introduction of wolves have taken a drastic toll on the number of moose and elk…still a ton of buffalo though!
Oconto...the birthplace of western civilization:)
Ooooooo! Camping! No problem getting a site right now, and camping is 1/2 price for seniors with the access pass. (Pay one small fee once, and it’s good almost anywhere forever. 62+)
The Grant area, Bartrod? Don’t know about the camping there, but the location is good for visiting Old Faithful and the Tetons. We did our laundry at Grant Village. Saw elk wandering on the thermal stuff by the lake at West Thumb. Kayakers cruised by on the water, too.
Yeah…that senior pass card is awesome…have used it numerous times 🙂 We’ve never camped around West Thumb…usually use the Bridge Bay campground.
Oconto...the birthplace of western civilization:)
Ah, the recess bell just rang so not enough time for my many tips. Will respond sooon…
Not all who wander are lost. -J.R.R. Tolkien
We are excited about getting our senior passes. We considered camping, but I think now we’re looking at after Labor Day, as close to October as possible. We might want to live a bit more sumptously. They have cabins, which are not fancy, but a step up from out little bitty tent. The cabins connected with the Snow Lodge look like a possibility, if any are available.
There’s also lodging in West Yellowstone and Gardner just outside the park. There’s a couple of cool cemetery caches in Yellowstone that are virtuals…along with a ton of earthcaches..one is at Lake and there’s another at Mammoth Hot Springs.
Oconto...the birthplace of western civilization:)
We didn’t even make a dent in the ECs at Yellowstone when we visited in 2011. 🙄
Here’s a unique cache we really wanted to do but we didn’t take the time for the long (but not difficult) hike: GCK3QT
Pat, How many days did you spend at the park?
We booked four nights at the Old Faithful Lodge cabins. (Ours were without bathrooms, but those and the showers were in a nearby building… like camping, only in beds and under a roof.) Went in late July. We got to the park early enough on the first day to see some stuff, and when we left on our last day, we saw the stuff at the north end on our way out, so five days of seeing things. One day we went to the Tetons, one day we went to West Yellowstone to get Montana and the Idaho caches. 😉 Always planned our routes to hit the popular stuff early enough to avoid later crowds, although parking was tough in some spots at some times. Had the OF area to wander around after supper.
We had been to Yellowstone a couple of times before, but since we had our great-nephew with us this last time (he was nine then), we visited some areas that we didn’t really need to see again, but we wanted him to experience them. And as I said, we didn’t do a lot of the caches that were available in the park, mainly because we were there to see the park and not cache. Of course, when we were right there in spots and the questions were easy to answer, then we did those… 😉
We are excited about getting our senior passes. We considered camping, but I think now we’re looking at after Labor Day, as close to October as possible. We might want to live a bit more sumptously. They have cabins, which are not fancy, but a step up from out little bitty tent. The cabins connected with the Snow Lodge look like a possibility, if any are available.
When I visited in ’09, I went right around the Labor Day weekend and if/when I visit again, I plan on going during the same time frame. The weather was pretty much fantastic every day (an odd shower now and then) and the crowds were much more reasonable. I wouldn’t mind going later but once you get to October, you start pushing up against the possibility of snow.
I stayed at the Lake Lodge cabins and those were pretty nice. Rustic (no television, internet, stove, fridge, etc) but mine had my own bathroom/shower. Though, the shower was quite an adventure since the hot water would run out very quickly…taking Navy showers was pretty much mandatory. By the end of my stay, I was an expert in taking showers in under a minute. In fact, the best shower I’ve ever had was the one I took at the Best Western in Thermopolis…that one lasted a loooong time. Definitely good memories.
So I would definitely suggest going behind the Grand Prismatic springs and climbing up one of the bluffs so that you can get an aerial view. We never made it to this virtual, but I believe that this is the trail you take to it. GCJW3Z ASo you take the first parking area south of the Grand Prismatic Spring and then take the trail that heads north from there. It was a crushed rock path when we were there. Then head up one of the hills on some unofficial trails. Although, it may be snowing, which will make it difficult to climb up there. You just never know what the weather will be like up there.
The obvious choice for a place to visit is Old Faithful, you can see the most stuff in one area there. We also really loved this area: GC7A91
Not all who wander are lost. -J.R.R. Tolkien
A couple of really neat hikes…although there’s no caches on them that I’m aware of…are the Elephant Back Trail near Lake, and the Lone Star Trail near the Kepler Cascades/Old Faithful.
The Elephant Back Trail goes up to an overlook of Yellowstone Lake that is truly spectacular…lots of switchbacks and a somewhat high terrain rating but not bad.
The Lone Star Trail leads back to the Lone Star Geyser which is almost as awesome as Old Faithful but gushes for a good 20 minutes…and there are not hundreds of people around flashing cameras…trail is an easy hike of about an hour; then waiting around for the geyser to erupt…it does erupt on a semi-regular unannounced schedule. We took a picnic lunch and a book along.Oconto...the birthplace of western civilization:)
The Lone Star Trail leads to the traditional cache GCK3QT that I mentioned in an earlier post. (We didn’t do it… 🙁 )
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