The view from our cabin...that's Yellow Stone Lake!
When I stepped outside our cabin in the morning, I legit started rubbing my eyes, thinking I was dreaming. Coming in at night, we weren’t able to really see the nature wonderland we had driven into, so seeing it for the first time in the light of day was truly remarkable. Although we had simply picked the cheapest option with a private shower and availability, we really lucked out in terms of location. Outside our cabin were views of a gorgeous lake surrounded by mountains and forests. And as we later discovered, some of the other places to stay were a bit nicer and therefore, more popular but the more popular the area (such as Mammoth), the less you feel like you are truly in the middle of nature. I think the Lakeview area provides a happy medium in that arena-you feel surrounded by nature but not in a scary, what-happens-if-a-bear-attacks way. But in all seriousness, no matter where you stay, nothing prepares you for the scenery once you arrive.
Gorgeous Yellowstone Lake, right outside our cabin
The Whip's victims from the drive the night before...that's some serious bug juice!
One advantage to staying in the cabins is that no matter how tired you are, it’s near impossible to sleep in. We woke early, partially due to the sun poking through our curtains and the sounds of nature all around but also because it’s not exactly the kind of sleeping accommodations that encourages you to linger in bed. Craving a shower, I was relieved that we had chosen a cabin with a private bath as opposed to the option to forgo the shower and use the communal showers located in a building outside the cabins. Group showers with serious strangers, just isn’t for me. With low expectations, I was pleasantly surprised at how clean the bathroom was, but nonetheless, it’s the kinda shower you want to wear flip flops in and it’s not exactly a shower you are tempted to hang out in for very long. But having spent a summer backpacking in Europe, I have to say that it was about the same size as many European hostel showers but much cleaner. Figuring out the hot and cold proved somewhat difficult and required the help of Mr. RN who laughed at how I was still a New Yorker at heart. (I’m sorry, but I don’t know very many of my New York friends who would’ve touched this shower with a ten foot pole!) The shower never got too warm, but nonetheless, it was perfectly adequate and surprisingly refreshing for a cabin shower in Yellowstone. The dust in the room had provoked my allergies, so purchasing a Claritin was my first order of business. Luckily, there was a general store located next to the cabins with all the supplies you might need from medicine and toiletries to snacks and water to memory cards for your digital camera and of course, some fun souvenirs.
Just a quick walk from the general store, brings you back to the main lodge where Mr. RN and I had checked in the night before. In addition to being home to that fabulous little bar and the check-in and informatin center, the lodge has bathrooms, vending machines and laundry facilities (in case you really want to spend some time in the park or have an emergency). The lodge also houses a cafeteria where we chose to have breakfast (lunch and dinner are also served there).
The cafeteria reminded me of the lunchroom in elementary school with cereal options, juice, yogurt, bagels, coffee and hot breakfast items like french toast and eggs. I was pleasantly surprised to find they had soy milk and some fresh fruit to once again satisfy the New Yorker in me. When we arrived around 8:30am, the cafeteria wasn’t very crowded, but more and more people began filing in as we ate our breakfast. The food was mildly overpriced, and Mr. RN was offended to discover that a small container of milk nearly cost $2, but for an area that makes its money off tourism, that didn’t come as a huge shock to me. (Some who were more economical than ourselves or who had perhaps been there before, brought their own cereal and snacks, which they supplemented with coffee etc from the cafeteria. And some very budget-concious visistors set-up their own breakfast tailgate of sorts, enjoying their breakfast outside their car with food they brought. Normally I’d think that was a bit cheap, but in Yellowstone it actually seemed like a perfectly acceptable option I might even consider in the future if I had the time to plan ahead.) But the cafeteria offered equally beautiful views of the lake as our cabin-not a bad way to enjoy your breakfast and get excited to explore your surroundings.
After breakfast, we loaded up on sunscreen, having seen quite a few red faces and necks in the lodge the night before. We also took turns spraying each other down with bug spray, which I definitely recommend, although to be honest, bugs were really not a problem while we were there-partly due to the elevation (something I love about Park City!) and I’m sure partly due to the strength of the sun. If you are camping or really want to ensure maximum protection against bugs (and perhaps other animals like bears), I would also recommend skipping the perfume, hair spray, scented lotion and even deodrant unless you have non-scented versions of these items. But honestly, I forgot that tip and was not in the least bit bothered by bugs. The morning happened to be quite cool, so we went with lot’s of layers, which proved smart because the temperature varies depending on where we you are in the park. But for the most part it was a beautiful sunny day in the upper 70′s. We also packed a backpack with snacks, water, extra sunscreen and cameras to take on our hikes, which we learned is pretty much essential if you plan to hike in these parks.
Once in Yellowstone, I found it surpising that you truly do not get cell phone reception at all, considering it can take you well over an hour to exit the park depending on where you are and many of the hikes can take you hours to get back to the trailhead. So it’s important to let people know where you are going and bring a backpack and other supplies, since you can’t rely on a cell phone in case you need to call for assistance or look something up. The radio stations in Yellowstone also do not really work, so I suggest bringing along your ipod or some CD’s or if you are like us, some Italian tapes (which we’re hoping will teach us some rudimentary Italian for our trip to Italy in September). Luckily there are stores and gas stations in the park, and surprisingly gas was only about eight cents more inside the park.
We decided to make Old Faithful our first stop. I had never seen it and I felt like it was a must-do at Yellowstone, even though Mr. RN said it was overrated. The drive to Old Faithful took about thirty minutes, and we soon realized that if you want to see the park in a efficient manner, you pretty much have to drive from site to site, each of which is spaced about 30 plus minutes from one another (some being up to two hours apart). But I would argue that the drive is part of the experience itself. The beauty and diverse ecosystems and landscapes you see on the way just blows your mind.
Quite a scenic driveWhile Mr. RN drove, I had the chance to check out some of the pamphlets they have at the lodge, which I must say were not very helpful, especially compared to the ones at Zion and Bryce. I would definitely see if the park rangers can give you more detailed maps when you arrive or if you drive in at night like we did, I’d try to find one in the morning, because the ones we found at the visitor’s centers were not super informative when it comes to directions. It also doesn’t help that the signs directing you to various places are sparse. However, the pamphlets do tell you a lot about the park, and make for great reading for your drive thru the park.
Some quick facts that I found cool:
-Yellowstone is the first naitional park in the world and one of the largest in the U.S., encompassing Wyoming and small parts of Montana and Idaho.
-It offers over 950 miles of backcountry hiking trails
-The main things you may want to see are: Mammoth Hot Springs, Tower Falls, Lower Falls, the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, Old Faithful Geyser, and Gibbon Falls.
-There are five major entrances and eight main areas to stay or hike from including Mammoth Hot Springs, Tower-Roosevelt, Canyon Village, Fishing Bridge, Lake Village and Bridge Bay Marina (where we stayed), Grant Village, Old Faithful, Madison Junction and Norris Geyser Basin. The park is also divided into five countries: Lake Country, Geyser Country, Mammoth Country, Roosevelt Country and Canyon Country; each country is home to various sites and hiking trails. By driving, you can really see all of the main areas and attractions in the park and choose to spend as long or as little as you want at each.
The pamphlet also warns you that Yellowstone is home to both black and grizzly bears, as well as tons of other wildlife, which you should (in case you aren’t using commonsense!) leave alone and NEVER feed. There is a page dedicated to what you should do if you run into a bear, and I have to say, it’s not incredibly comforting, even though they say an encounter is rare and an attack is even rarer. Personally, one in a million doesn’t comfort me, becuase you never know when you’ll be that one in a million, but I guess if thousands of people visit the park, it can’t be that dangerous.
Yellowstone Lake from the car
The drive to Old Faithful offers striking views of Yellowstone Lake. Although we had stayed right on its shores, it wasn’t until we got in the car that we realized how big it actually is! According to my pamphlet reading, it’s so large that it can create its own weather and the shore is 141-miles long. You can check out West Thumb Geyser Basin on the lake’s shore, where there are several small geysers, hot springs and bubbling pots, but we decided to skip those since the Old Faithful area offered plenty of them.
Old Faithful
Old Faithful is located in Geyser Country for a reason-it’s surrounded by tons of geysers, natural pools and hot springs, with the most impressive geyser, Old Faithful, as the main attraction. When we got there, people had already begun crowding the benches that surround Old Faithful.
Waiting for Old Faithful to eruptWe stopped in the visitor’s center to find out when it would next erupt, as Old Faithful erupts approximately every 92 minutes. While it boasts one of the largest eruprtions of all the 10, 000 hydrothermal features in the park, spraying thousands of gallons of water into the sky each time, part of its claim to fame is the fact that Old Faithful erupts on schedule, every 92 minutes, rarely missing an eruption. While Mr. RN thought it’d be cooler if it erupted every hour like he originally thought, I argued that time is a manmade concoction and perhaps, 92-minute cycles have some significance in nature to which we are unaware.
The view of Old Faithful from the visitor's center
Since we had about forty minutes until the next eruption give or take 10 minutes, we decided to take a little hike around the area to check out all the mini geysers, hot springs and pools that surround Old Faithful. Everywhere you could see steam coming out of the ground and at certain geysers or hot springs, we witnessed mini eruptions or bubbling water. The pools and hot springs look exactly like nature-made saunas and pools. Seriously, you almost expect to see a squirrel sitting in one with a cigar in his mouth, enjoying a nice hot tub after a long day’s work carrying nuts.
Hot springs and pools in Geyser Basin, surrounding Old Faithful
A nature-made sauna
As you walk throughout the area surrounding Old Faithful, you may notice a bit of a funky sulfur smell similar to the smell of rotten eggs. At certain points, it’s quite pungent, and I even saw a small kid crying because the smell was so bad and neither Mr. RN nor myself blamed him!
Au naturel poolNot wanting to sit around waiting for another thirty plus minutes, we decided to take the almost one-mile hike up to Observation Point, which we read was a great place to see Old Faithful erupt. The hike is just under a mile, but it proved to be hard work, as you have to hike up about 200 feet on sometimes steep trails to get there, but once you arrive, you see why people make the effort.
One of the views along the hike to Observation Point
Observation Point provides great panoramic views of the area and especially, Old Faithful, which was now swarmed wtih people awaiting its imminent eruption. Although there were a few people waiting at Observation Point with us, it proved to be a great way to enjoy Old Faithful without feeling like a total tourist.
Old Faithful just before it erupted...
While the eruption is certainly very cool, especially considering there’s so much build up as you wait, I didn’t find it quite as impressive as I had imagined. But perhaps my expectations were too high and I’m sure it’s not quite as impressive from so high-up as it is when you see it up-close.
At last! Old Faithful Erupts! (The view from Observation Point)
Nonetheless, it’s a pretty fun experience that you gotta do at least once. But watch out: It doesn’t last long, so make sure you don’t run to the bathroom if you’re in the ten minute range of its next scheduled eruption. While definitely the place most people visit in Yellowstone and something I think you really just gotta see, I didn’t find it nearly as impressive as I expected nor was it my favorite part of the park. But hey, I may have been jaded by my own expectations, and the bottom line is that it just goes to show how cool Yellowstone is, if this incredible natural wonders isn’t even the best part!
There she blows...a closer look at Old Faithful as it erupts
After Old Faithful, we decided to drive to a different area of the park to check out Tower Falls and the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. But it wasn’t long before we were delayed by our first real wildlife sighting-buffalo eating lunch, not far from the road.
View from the road: A herd of Buffalo grazing
We couldn’t help but join some other spectators who had gotten out of their cars to shoot some pics and rudely interupt these poor guys’ lunch.
A closer look at these beautiful creatures! I felt a little like the paparazzi!
As we drove further, we saw more and more buffalo, including a group that I could practically pet, they were so close to our car.
We were within a few feet of this guy!
Seriously, we were this close to a buffalo! I decided to name him Wooly, because to me, this is a Wooly Mammoth!
Buffalo are really quite spectacular animals and kinda cute and goofy. When you get as close as we did (within feet in some cases), you almost can’t believe they are real! Seeing them in their wild habitats, completely uninhibited, is completely different than seeing these creatures in a zoo.
Along the drive from Old Faithful to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, we passed Mud Volcano and Sulfur Caldron, two more attractions worth stopping at if you have time. At certain points, traffic began to slow, a great indication you might see a bear or other wildlife ahead, especially if you see cars parked on the side of the road and people standing pointing. We encountered this on many occasions and almost always discovered after getting out of our car that we had just missed a grizzly bear sighting. You can’t help but compare these poor grizzly’s to celebrities being stalked by the paparazzi, which sadly enough we had become. But come on, seeing a grizzly bear would be pretty cool! It’s a total bummer to just miss seeing one, like we did on about three different occasions,but it was comforting to see that every time there was a grizzly sighting, park rangers were always there too.
Even if we hadn’t seen a single animal, the scenery on the drive is completely captivating on its own. There is such diverse terrain-from lakes to plains to evergreen forests and woods to mountains to marshes and rivers, all with majestic, snow-tipped mountains in the background.
Some pretty special sceneryThe ever-changing and engaging scenery makes driving a great way to see the park in one day, while still having the chance to encounter wildlife and feel immersed in nature.
Drive just a little further and a it's a completely different scene
Finding our next stops was not easy. The signs and maps point you in the general direction, but they don’t really show you how to get there places. Luckily, the staff at the visitors centers are incredibly helpful, and we were able to find our way to the sites we wanted to see.
Tower Fall, located in Roosevelt Country but quite close to Canyon Country, is a 132-foot waterfall that is definitely worth seeing. It’s a great precursor to the Lower Falls, and there are some great quick hikes you can take to check it out.
Beautiful!
Even though we had seen one the day before and would see another amazing one soon after, the true grandeur and beauty of a waterfall never diminishes, no matter how many times you see them. If you have the time, this is definitely a worthwhile stop along the way to Canyon Country (home of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone).
Located in Canyon Country, Lower Falls and Grand Canyon are in close promixit, so by taking a bit of a hike, we were able to see both (plus some cool things along the way). If you only have time for one stop, I’d go here. Lower Falls is the second largest attraction at Yellowstone after Old Faithful and it’s not hard to see why. As the biggest waterfall (of the over forty) in Yellowstone, it’s a truly one if not the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my entire life.
Lower Falls-pictures cannot even begin to do it justice!
There are several ways to see the Falls including Inspiration Point, Grandview Point, Lookout Point and Artists Point, depending on which side of the Grand Canyon you are on. Most require only a short walk or virtually no walk at all, to see. The trail to the top of the Falls, which is under a mile roundtrip but a bit steep, gives you a chance to pretty much stand over the Falls.
The incredible power of the falls
As we looked down, we saw a rainbow over the falls, as well as incredible views of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, which truly does remind you of the Grand Canyon in Arizona with its multitude of colors, vastness and the rivers that cut thru it below.
Rainbow over the Lower Falls and Grand Canyon
Although there were tons of people around us scrambling to take in the wonder of the falls, the experience was unforgettable and I gotta say, it trumps Old Faithful by far. A waterfall plus Grand Canyon-you can’t really ask for anymore!
Yellowstone's very own Grand Canyon
The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
Another view of the Grand Canyon from the hiking trail
After seeing Lower Falls and the gorgeous Grand Canyon, we decided to take a food break. The hiking and sun had depleted us. Although we did not hike nearly as much as we did in the parks in Southern Utah, taking a short hike at each attraction proves to be a good workout, especially in the steeper areas. At each stop there are places to eat and use the bathroom, which is tres convenient. Rather than sit down for a meal at the restaurant at Canyon Lodge, we chose to grab a quick bite from its cafeteria. The food was surprisingly good-we split a chicken pesto wrap and some fruit, all of which tasted fresh, surprisingly healthy and prefectly refreshing. (They also serve burgers and other hot dishes, but our mini meal hit the spots and was relatively inexpensive.)
Although we could have spent years in Yellowstone, we really were satisfied by our one day tour of the park, which took us almost ten hours. If you only have one day, I would definitely recommend seeing the Grand Canyon and Lower Falls, Yellowstone Lake, Old Faithful and surrounding area and then our final stop, Mammoth Hot Springs. Mammoth Hot Spring was located on the drive out of the park for us, which worked well for us, being that we were pretty exhausted but still had interest in checking it out. Along our long, hour plus drive to the Mammoth area, we saw some truly remarkable and unique sites. The drive thru Yellowstone is truly part of the experience and not just about getting to the next point. It’s a big part of the experience and a chance to really see so much, including if you are lucky, a bear.
A Deer Elk sighting from the road
Arriving at Mammoth, you almost wonder if you’re still in the park. The area was much more packed with tourists and consequently, it seems to cater more to tourists. The hotel in the area looks far nicer than any we had seen and not quite as institutional as the other hotels we saw, but it comes with a price tag. Originally established as a military base, Mammoth has a residential feel, as it still offers military housing, which explains the houses we saw with laundry hanging outside and kids playing soccer. Imagine having Yellowstone as your backyard!
The Mammoth Hot Springs were not quite as majestic as we had anticipated, yet like most places in Yellowstone, it’s still a very beautiful place to visit. Like Old Faithful, the area smells of sulfur and is a tourist magnet. I do think part of their grandeur was taking away by the crowds of people hiking all around it. You can see the springs right from the road and town, so unless you hike far from the road, you don’t exactly feel like you’re in the middle of nature. It’s more like seeing an attraction in the middle of town.
However, I don’t mean to detract from the fact that it is truly an elegant site that almost looks like the earth had been made of glass. In reality, according to our trust pamphlet, the minerals in the hot water from the Earth’s Crust built layers of cascading, terraced stone. I’m not gonna lie, I was slightly tempted to slide down it. There is a pathway you can take to hike around the springs, but if you don’t have time, merely checking it out for a few minutes from below still allows you to revel in the beautiful formations created by nature.
Mammoth Hot Springs
Views of Mammoth We were eager to finish seeing the park and then move on to our next destination, so we didn’t linger long at Mammoth even though we could have stayed for weeks-there’s so much to see it blows your mind. But Mr. RN and I have a habit of feeding off each other-we both have this zest for life and love of exploring and adventure, making us a great, ableit occasionally overambitious pair when traveling. Yellowstone really inspired us to want to see more nature and cooler and cooler places, and suddenly we we found ourselves talking about driving to Alaska. We had the whip (aka the car) and although we weren’t particularly prepared for a week or longer excursion, the spontaneity of it, made it so much more enticing. Unfortunately (or maybe luckily), when we finally got cell service about 30-minutes outside of Yellowstone, we realized that driving to Alaska wasn’t very practical or feasible and we were biting off far more than we could chew. Nonetheless, our lofty ambitions show how truly inspiring Yellowstone can be.
There’s truly an endless amount of things you can do in Yellowstone, dependingo on your group, interests and timing. Had we not been hungry to go to Montana and beyond, I would have loved to stay longer. We would like to return some time during the week as opposed to a weekend. Although it was just a Friday, we were rarely unaware that we were in the presence of other tourists. Nonetheless, the sites, especially the Lower Falls are really indescribable and something you must see in person. Pictures can’t even begin to capture the beauty and grandeur of what you are seeing, nor can they compare to the actual experience. I couldn’t stop snapping everything I saw-it was just so beautiful, but the experience is really what will remain etched in my mind forever.
