Off to Yellowstone and Tetons - first time! - share any "must see" lists..

[NRaleighLiberal]

Finally, we are off for 7 days at Yellowstone and 3 at the Tetons - staying in an airbnb in Cooke City MT first, then moving to one in Victor Idaho. We leave early tomorrow morning - this will be the first trip to one of the big time US National Parks.

For anyone who knows the parks - any must see things off the beaten path - places that tend to get overlooked in the guide books, etc?

The whole idea of walking among geysers, all sorts of other thermal features, seeing wildlife makes us happy! Pictures to come....

[Botany]

1. Please don't pet the big doggies

[msongs]

2. be prepared for winter weather. really. its september and frost is happening already

across the northern areas of the US

[yellowdogintexas]

11. yes. we had snow in Sept. Also it got cold at night

we were camping and didn't have the deep winter sleeping bags.

However, the day we had snow all day was beautiful. Big fat flakes, and watching geysers while it was snowing was neat.

[Nac Mac Feegle]

14. I lived up in that area during the early '80's

There was an expression: "We only have two seasons around here; Winter and the Fourth of July weekend. Occasionally it snows then."

I woke up one July 5th morning to 3 inches of snow.

Make sure you have some warm clothing.

[mrs_p]

3. Do you fly fish?

[uppityperson]

4. There are short hikes throughout Yellowstone, lift up mt at Tetons. Look for blueberries

Have a great trip, both places are amazing.

[we can do it]

5. Glacier NP. Just got back. Beautiful!

[gratuitous]

6. We did a little boat trip in Tetons

It was a running commentary / cowboy breakfast deal to an island in the middle of the river. The commentary was very good (I could, for a while, name several of the mountains in the Tetons), and the breakfast featured fresh trout. Ate myself stupid. As I recall, it was less than $100 for Mrs. gratuitous and me. One of the highlights of the first trip to the Parks.

[maxsolomon]

7. the guidebooks are pretty accurate.

Grand Prismatic Spring, the Old Faithful Inn, and West Thumb Geyser Basin are at the top of my list.

Mammoth Hot Springs is at the bottom - it's not that active now.

& sharpen your elbows - Chinese tourists don't respect personal space.

In Jackson Hole, you can ride a gondola at the ski resort up on to the Tetons if you're not a hiker. Nice up there.

[NRaleighLiberal]

8. Kick

[eppur_se_muova]

9. Check predicted eruptions of the Great Fountain Geyser ASAP ....

they tend to be pretty far apart and a little uncertain, so you have to find a spot in your schedule where you aren't in a hurry to get anywhere else. If it's too dark outside at the time expected, come back another day.

Also, note the prevailing winds, so you can try to stay on the "dry" side of the eruption.

If you have a video camera on a steady tripod, try to set it up and just leave it running. If you have two, set one to zoom out ... way out ... because the eruption might turn out much bigger than you were expecting. I saw one eruption of this geyser, and I would *love* to have been able to review it in slow-mo. It looked like a huge blue dome grew silently out of the water -- then it just blew. Thanks to a malfunctioning camera, my one still shot came out as a double exposure on top of Old Faithful.

Great Fountain Geyser
The Great Fountain Geyser is a fountain-type geyser located in the Firehole Lake area of Lower Geyser Basin of Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. It is the only predictable geyser in the Lower Geyser Basin. Wikipedia
Elevation: 7,349? 0?
Eruption height: 75 feet (23 m) to 220 feet (67 m)
Location: Lower Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Temperature: 49 °C (120 °F)
Frequency: 9 to 15 hours
Did you know: Great Fountain's maximum height ranges from about 75 feet (23 m) to over 220 feet (67 m). wikipedia.org

Also located in the Lower Geyser Basin is Great Fountain Geyser. Great Fountain is the only predicted geyser in the Lower Geyser Basin and the only predicted geyser in Yellowstone that you can drive to. Predictions for this geyser are posted at the Old Faithful Visitor Center and, when staffing allows, at the geyser.

http://yellowstone.net/geysers/lower-basin/

Don't forget Yellowstone has its own petrified forest.

[mobeau69]

23. Steamboat went off the day before we arrived. People were still buzzing about it though. n/t

[yellowdogintexas]

10. if you have a little extra time, go down to Thermapolis

There is a huge hot spring there with free public "baths" really nice pools about 4 feet deep with benches, changing room, etc. Owned by the state.

Also, there are at least two indoor swimming pools with small tube slides - these are open year round. We really enjoyed our day there - after three days of camping and walking around Yellowstone, those hot springs felt wonderful and therapeutic too. There is a really neat dinosaur museum there as well.
We went there from Jackson and the route takes you through the Wind River Reservation and it is a lovely drive. If you are in the Cody area it is a pretty direct drive.

[yellowdogintexas]

12. Another side trip, Bozeman MT

https://www.museumoftherockies.org/exhibit/siebel-dinosaur-complex



We went up from Gardiner MT in the morning, did the museum and came back down to West Yellowstone for our last night in the park area.

[Smickey]

13. Careful on Teton pass into say Jackson Wy.

As I recall its worse going east to west but still Downshift where necessary. And its necessary alot.

[Nac Mac Feegle]

15. If you get into Jackson Hole, WY

Look to see if Jedediah's House of Sourdough is still around, and eat there.

It's been a long time since I was there, but it's one of those places they refer to as an Institution.

Make sure you have plenty of time to pull off the road to just look at everything occasionally.

It's some of the most beautiful scenery on the planet.

[Stuart G]

16. ....two words...MUD GEYSER......MUD GEYSER..........MUD GEYSER...... Yellowstone National Park...

Ask around...to where the MUD GEYSER is...well known..but not one of the major attractions..and guess what.........It is a MUD GEYSER...............

.it is a MUD GEYSER... that bubbles and stinks..but is truly spectacular..well worth the climb up a hill and around and about....I remember seeing it in the 60s, then went back to Yellowstone in 2010..yes it still stunk, and was still bubbling,,,and it was something that you cannot forget..and is....well................it is a............


................................"MUD GEYSER'......................................................

YES, it is worth going out of your way to see........................."MUD GEYSER".......the rangers and the
locals.. will know...Ask at the Info Center.........oh...and it is not one that people talk about....cause it stinks...and it is.............................an ugly ......................MUD GEYSER.............

.yES, GO SEE THE.................THE MUD GEYSER......................... get the picture??????????????????
............................and it is made of ............guess what??? mud.........

[Stuart G]

17. Yellowstone Canyon..................several views..........

Go out of your way to see Yellowstone Canyon and the falls...the view across the canyon is also spectacular....It is worth a day trip .just to see the views...at one point ..you can look across the canyon, and if the sun is shinning you cans see the cliffs made out of............are you ready??????????????????

............YELLOW....STONE..............YES...the sides of the canyon are...YELLOW.. AND THE RIVER FLOWS THROUGH.............ask for one lookout point...which is extremely famous...where everyone goes, looking down the canyon...across at the falls, about two miles away...the view...is incredible..and well worth going to..When you go in they will give you a map, and that view is well known.......and worth the trip........now....

it isn't the .........MUD GEYSER.............................BUT...that view of the canyon is world famous...and the info center will give you the directions..........Ohh.........................................................

Spend an hour or two at the INFO CENTER....LOTS OF INFO THERE...AND well worth going to...If I recall it is near OLD FAITHFULL....so you will see the INFO CENTER....no matter what......................................sorry if I am sounding sarcastic this eve...am a little off today...Yellowstone National Park is a wonderful place.....I hope you enjoy your stay.....The buffalo are everywhere...they are in general , not violent...don't get too close....Also, at one end of the park there is a beautiful lake...(forgot name..) well worth a stop at the center there...and a walk along the lake.....

[RobinA]

18. Yellowstone

Paint pots, geyser basin that includes Morning Glory Spring, Norris Geyser Basin, Lamar Valley, go a bit east to the Beartooth Highway, Mammoth Hot Springs, the road to Gardiner, MT. Any place, really. I LOVE Yellowstone.

Can't talk about the Tetons. Was there as a kid in '73 and absolutely loved it. Went back in 2001 and the crowds just ruined it.

[wishstar]

19. Hike down to overlook at top of Yellowstone Falls- one of most stunning sights of my life

There are several trails around the falls, but the one that goes directly down close to top of falls is the most amazing one and not too long of a trail

[Grammy23]

20. If you find that snow interfers with your plans

and the park closes a road, just regroup and go somewhere else that day. The road may be opened a day or two later. That happened to us so we just rerouted ourselves and because it is so big, you will have plenty of options.

We went to a general store one day that had a deli and bought a picnic lunch. Sandwiches, chips, drinks. Maybe even a big chocolate chip cookie found its way into our bag! 😉 As we were out and about, we found a place to stop for a picnic and just gawk at the scenery. It was lovely. We saw coyotes, antelopes and bison, all at a distance, but still cool to see them in THEIR environment.

I concur about taking the appropriate clothes for cool to cold weather You will be happy you brought a jacket, hat and gloves, even if you peel them off later in the day. We were there in September and it snowed overnight and the jackets and gloves came in handy.

You won't see everything. It is just too big. See the popular, well known places and just get out and drive. You will see amazing things no matter where you go.

In the Tetons one day we got up at the crack of dawn to photograph sunrise and catch the mountains in the distance as the sun began hitting them. When we got there we discovered a bunch of other photographers had the same idea! Some of them had some very serious equipment and clearly were not amateurs! We all stood around shivering, waiting for the sun to come up. But boy, when it did, it was spectacular! We also captured a stunning sunset on Lake Yellowstone with more mountains as a backdrop. You are going to have a great time no matter where you go! Be prepared to "show us your vacation photos" when you return! 😉

[NRaleighLiberal]

21. We are part way through. There are no words to capture

this magnificent place. We...humans...are nothing-we are dwarfed by the awesome power and beauty of nature.

We've always felt that, but the impact here is so much more evident than when buried in our everyday Raleigh lives.

Our 10 days here won't even begin to touch the possibilities. Favorite so far...Lamar Valley, and Norris basin.

And yes we woke to snow in Cooke City!

[mobeau69]

22. Drove from CO though Cheyenne and Casper then west through the Bighorns and Cody.

The drive from Cody to the park was spectacular the last week of September. Got held up by some sheep herders crossing the road on horseback outside of Cody. We had a smoke or two on the drive. It was a long time ago. Best vacation ever. The Grand Canyon the next year ranks right up there though.

We camped at a wilderness campground that evening outside the park. It was 18 miles from the entrance to the gate and we didn't want to take a chance on not getting a campsite and having to drive 18 more miles back out. We just slept in our bags that night and in the morning a couple of elk walked right past us through the fog. They nearly stepped right over us in our bags that were covered with a thin layer of frozen dew.

God, that was good.

Have fun!