Established in 1872, Yellowstone National Park is located primarily in Wyoming, the park also extends into Montana and Idaho. Yellowstone has active geothermal features with geysers and boiling mud pots throughout the park.
During the Fall of 2018 we made our way to America’s First National Park. Had I known it would be so amazing I would of asked to go sooner. If you haven’t seen it in person and love the outdoors. We highly recommend it.
Accommodations
There are nine lodges (hotel and cabin style) within the park. We stayed for four amazing days in a cozy lil cottage apart of the Lake Yellowstone Hotel which as you guessed is right on the shores of Lake Yellowstone. As a heads up however, Televisions, radios, and air conditioning are not available in any park lodging. So if you are needing these amenities it’s best that you find a place outside of Yellowstone National Park. You can find plenty of hotels right outside the west entrance of the park. However the west is also the busiest.
The Five Entrances into the Park
The North Entrance: This entrance will bring you almost straight to Mammoth Hot Springs which is something that shouldn’t be missed.
The Northeast Entrance: This entrance gives you the best access to Yellowstone’s legendary Lamar Valley where grizzlies, black bears, bison and wolves roam.
The East Entrance: This entrance brings you right to the Yellowstone Lake, the largest mountain lake at such a high elevation of 7,733 feet. It stretches 20 miles long and 14 miles across and its shorelines are dotted with geothermal features
The South Entrance: Allows you to easily access two National Parks in a day, Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Park. This is the exit we chose.
The West Entrance: As mentioned above, the west is the busiest entrance. However within minutes you are in the middle of a geyser paradise. This is the entrance we came into, we were not even a mile in when we started seeing the local wildlife of deer and bison.
What to Experience
Mammoth Hot Springs:
Created over thousands of years as hot water from the spring cooled and deposited calcium carbonate. It’s a large complex of hot springs on a hill of travertine by the north entrance of the park. The different colors and textures with anything in this park are a must see. Not even the best photographer can capture what this park has to offer. Unfortunately over time the water level is dropping drastically.
Grand Canyon of The Yellowstone:
The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone is the first large canyon on the Yellowstone River downstream from Yellowstone Falls. The canyon is approximately 24 miles long, between 800 and 1,200 feet deep and from .25 to .75 mile wide. While it is no where near the size of the Grand Canyon in Arizona it is worth seeing during your stay.
West Thumb Geyser Basin:
West Thumb Geyser Basin is one of the smallest geyser basins in Yellowstone however is the largest geyser basin on the shores of Yellowstone Lake. This location also makes it one of the most scenic. We went there early in the morning to enjoy it as the sun was coming up over Lake Yellowstone in the background. Also trying to avoid as many crowds as possible.
Upper Geyser Basin:
The Upper Geyser Basin is known for having the famous Old Faithful Geyser. However there is much more to see then Old Faithful as it has the largest concentration of geysers in the world, including many of the worlds largest geysers. Make sure you take your time while going through it. Five of the largest geysers Castle, Daisy, Grand, Old Faithful and Riverside are predicted by the Park Rangers. While Old Faithful is popular and well known our favorites were Beehive and Grand.
Grand Prismatic Spring:
This probably needs no introduction. It is the largest hot spring in the United States, and the third largest in the world. And one of the most beautiful things that this world has to offer. It’s at the western side of the lower half of Yellowstone’s Grand Loop road approximately 6 miles from the Old Faithful area.
There are two ways to enjoy such beauty:
- The .5 mile boardwalk which is located at the Midway Geyser Basin is the most popular and the close up way to see it.
- The overlook which is a 1.2 miles round trip hike is a fairly new way that is accessed from the Fairy Falls Trail and the route we chose to enjoy such beauty. However depending on the time of year you choose to visit. This may be closed due to bears.
The Local Wildlife:
No article should ever be written about a National Park without the mentioning of it’s local wild life. Yellowstone is home to more wild animals than almost anywhere else in the United States. What you will see most of during your visit besides its birds are Bison and Elk as they are just everywhere. Make your way to Lamar Valley for a almost guaranteed spotting of these large bison that call Yellowstone home. Note: Chances are during your stay at Yellowstone you will have to deal with traffic. But not due to an accident or that there are two many cars on the road, but because of these huge Bison that pretty much run the place. Please use caution though and do not try to get a up close selfie with one. Bison weigh between 770 – 2,200 pounds and I would hate for anyone to get hurt. The local Deer and Elk you will spot often early in the mornings shortly after the sun has risen or right before it sets out on a hillside or even in a parking lot of your hotel accommodations.
There is so much more to see during your stay at Yellowstone. I could go on and on about it, however I wanted to point out what I felt were the main attractions.
Here are a couple extra photographs that were too beautiful not to share
