This is the shot I went to Yellowstone to get, Grand Prismatic Spring. I’m high up on a hill behind it so it doesn’t look that big. Look carefully and you’ll see there are boardwalks north of it with lots of little dots on it. Those are people!
No trip to Yellowstone would be complete without a shot of Old Faithful erupting, so here it is!
Castle Geyser with hot springs in front of it.
This is my camp at the south entrance to YNP. It’s Sheffield Campground which cost me $5 a day.
One of the interesting things about Sheffield campground is you had to drive right through this little creek to get into it. Several cars got through it with no problems. It has concrete underneath it so you are at no risk of getting stuck. Cody liked it! You can see it’s pretty shallow.
One of the bloggers I follow is Becky at “Interstellar Orchard” who I admire a great deal because she is a young, single female who has bravely rejected the rat race and is living life on her own term in a Cassita Travel Trailer. She supports herself by being a workamper in the summers and for Amazon in the winter. This summer she is working at Old Faithful in Yellowstone NP. So I emailed her and told her I was headed her way and offered to buy her lunch. Soon she wrote back and said she would love to meet with me. So I headed north to Old Faithful where I met her after work and we went for lunch; it was a real pleasure to finally meet her in person and not just follow her online. I invited her to attend the RTR and even lead a seminar. She wasn’t sure how that would work for her so she is thinking about it. I’d encourage all of you to follow her blog and write her and tell her you would love to meet her at the RTR! You’ll be glad you did.
My favorite geo-thermal feature is the hot pools with their very bright colors. Different bacteria thrive at different temperatures of water and they give the water a different color. Some of them are spectacular!
Because most people love Yellowstone this may make some of you angry or disappointed with me, but I have to say I am not a fan. The southern area is mostly flat and not very pretty at all. The northern areas are mountainous and beautiful but the traffic is crawling along on them so slowly I can’t enjoy the view at all. Yellowstone is known for its wildlife, and there is lots of it, but every time you come across any there will be hundreds of cars parked all over the road and people stopped on the road or just crawling along at 5 mph so you can’t really see them. Again, the frustration level from the traffic ruins the experience of “wild” things for me. The Grand Tetons are much more beautiful, have just as much wildlife, and nowhere near the traffic!
Some of the springs have very deep holes that go far into the earth. The water is clear enough you can see fairly far down them.
So, as far as I’m concerned there is not really anything that warrants going to Yellowstone, except for one thing: the geothermal features. And I have to admit they really are unique and amazing. The geysers, like Old Faithful, are very cool, but if you’ve seen them once that’s about all you need. What I enjoyed a lot more was the hot springs with all their brightly colored bacteria growing in them. The water is extremely warm, but just short of boiling and that allows very brightly colored bacteria to grow in them—the color varies with the temperature of the water. I thought they were very cool and I’m really glad I got photos of many of them.
Me in front of Grand Prismatic Springs.
To get there you take the Fairy Creek Trail until it’s just across from the Grand Prismatic hot spring. You can start climbing up the hill anywhere in there because it’s not an official trail so it’s not obvious. But enough people know about it that there is a faint trail at the bottom of the climb and there was even a traffic cone in the middle of the Fairy Creek Trail to alert people to it. Because it’s not a recognized trail it isn’t cared for, or even a real trail. The day I climbed it I bet there were 50 of us climbing up the side of this mountain and just wandering all over looking for the easiest way through all the downed trees from the 2008 wildfire. It’s fairly steep and all the downed trees make it difficult climbing. I’m surprised no one has been hurt so it seems to me the Park Service should turn it into a safe, groomed trail. I asked at the Visitors Center about it and the Ranger said they knew people climbed it, and it was legal to do so, but they didn’t recognize it as a formal trail.
Even as great as that shot is, unless you have a ton of patience and a very low frustration level, I suggest you skip Yellowstone. If you do go, try to make it as off-season as you can, spring and fall will have the fewest crowds and are the most pleasant; spring is best for wildlife and fall for colorful trees. I’d also plan to spend most of my time at the Grand Tetons and just take a few day-trips into Yellowstone to see its best features, like the Grand Prismatic Hot Spring. I’ll tell you about dispersed campsites just outside the other entrances in a later post. You can camp in them for up to 14 days and take day-trips into Yellowstone every few days—you’ll need a day or two between trips to recover from the frustration of the crowds!
Something else you MUST do while you are there is to drive the Beartooth Highway Scenic Byway. I believe Yellowstone pales in caparison to its incredible beauty! Even if you have limited time, make sure you drive the Beartooth even if you have to skip some of Yellowstone—it’s worth it! I’ll post on it soon.
Castle Geyser
I do indeed have “a ton of patience” if I’m on a bicycle. I’m sure that has its own issues, though, especially if one is tent camping. I have never seen any geothermal features, so I’ll need to work on that.
Calvin, bears are such a big issue, many campgrounds in the area won’t accept tents. I’d double check before I headed out. Another issue is it’s a big park so you’ll be traveling long distances and most roads are very narrow with no shoulder. I think, that’s one reason traffic is so slow, people are afraid of the narrow roads.
Bob
100 percent agree
Thanks Zman!
Bob
I camped one night at Yellowstone in 2012 during a motorcycle trip.
Arrived at Old faithful just in time to see her spout without waiting 40 minutes, and ran to my bike and got out before the crowds.
Saw the colorful hot springs, a bear jam with people gawking at a mother bear and 2 cubs (dangerous).
But the best was seeing herds of buffalo crossing a stream, and also getting surrounded by buffalo in the road while riding towards Beartooth. Was exciting, they are dangerous, they injure more visitors than anything. Had to zoom past one that was giving me the look of death.
Lamar Valley is quite lovely, was hoping to see some wolves.
I loved it, but maybe if I had more than one day, I might have gotten bored.
John, no doubt it is a beautiful and magical place!
Bob
Bob, this may sound like a weird question, but… do they have hot spring pools where people can get a good soak in them ??
My regards, Lucy.
Lucy, just out of Gardiner, MT in Yellowstone, are the Hot Pots. Haven’t been there in a while, but that was where all the locals went to soak (and party)! Very pretty, several little improvised pools, right next to the river. Hope it hasn’t changed!!!
Thanks for the info Marie!
Bob
I’m sorry Lucy, I don’t do hot springs so I didn’t look into that.
Bob
Thanks for the mention Bob! Glad we had the chance to meet up, and if I can do the RTR I’ll let you know. 🙂
As for Yellowstone, you can only see about 2% of it from the roads. There are over 900 miles of hiking trails to explore, and as someone who’s been working here over two months now, I can say these are the best way to get out and see the park. Much less crowded, better chance of seeing wildlife, very peaceful and wild.
My recommendation to visitors is to get up early and see the “touristy” stuff in the morning (Old Faithful doesn’t get crowded until 10-11 am, even now at the busiest time of year), then go hiking in the mid-day to avoid the zoo, then later in the evening visit touristy stuff again.
Thanks for those great tips Becky!
Bob
Bob — I know that one of your goals is to provide information which would be useful to people who may want to visit the places you’ve been. I’m one such.
It would be enormously helpful if you could post the GPS coordinates of campsites you’ve found. Or would that make it too easy for the rest of us. Safe travels, friend!
Richard, I wish I could give you some noble reason why I don’t, but it is sheer laziness. My camera has GPS built-in so every picture gives me the coordinates. I’ll try to do better!
Bob
Bob, I have to agree. I was underwhelmed by Yellowstone (at least the parts you see from the road driving thru) but the Beartooth Highway is where I plan to return to next month. Plenty of boondocking up that way.
Greg
Greg, I don’t know where I will be in a month, but it will be fairly close to here–maybe colorado. When you head out give me an email and maybe we can meet up.
Bob
I agree pretty much, Bob. Great Park at the right time of season. I would add that if you like “Old School” BIG LOG architecture, the main Lodge is a true wonder of design and style. Very much enjoying “riding along” on your adventure.
Colvin, the Lodge is pretty wonderful!
Bob
So, the other day, I was missing my Biological Science studies (particularly Microbiology) and pulled up the Online Textbook of Bacteriology. In the very first chapter, it mentioned Yellowstone’s geo-thermal features, and the bacteria that thrive on them, and had exactly one photo. Can you even imagine how excited I was to see your blog post this morning?!
Thank you again, Bob!
Glad to help T
Bob
Nice story Bob!
In 1963 we visited Yellowstone, I remembered the bears best but I was 10 years old. In 1990 we stopped in Yellowstone for a few days (heading towards the new station in Chicago)and the bears were all gone from the tourist areas. I’d told the kids all about the bears and they were looked at me funny when they were not there. Everybody enjoyed the springs/mud-pots & geysers.
In ’93 we went back, tent camping again. Every day (4) until we left (early) someone stopped at the campsite to threaten me with a $100 fine for something different.
That last time we packed up right after that afternoon’s visit & left.
I really treasure my 1963 visit but have no desire to return.
The Grand Canyon is a different story but I dispersed camped (NF) outside the park, dispersed camped in the NF at Yosemite too.
Rob, they are very strict now not to allow anything to attract bears–and rightfully so, they usually end up killing them when the get too used to humans.
Like you, so far I have been able to find dispersed camping out side all the NPs.
Bob
Bob, I so agree about the Beartooth Hwy. Yellowstone was nice and we enjoyed it, but the Beartooth is just so wonderful!
Linda fortunately we don’t have to choose, they are so close together.
Bob
Once that area goes in a big way we are all goners what i here is that it could go off at any time so bring your hard hat good job on locating the camp site the place is a money pit I don.t go to that area much because of it thanks again for the great photos
Thanks Joe! I’m hoping it doesn’t blow anytime soon!
Bob
and I treasure my 1954 visit. I was 6 yo and remember it like yesterday. Thank you so much for this visit by proxy!
You are very welcome Rita.
Bob
Awesome photos!
I look fw to your visit to the Beartooth mountains,
spring wildflowers for you in the high country!
Beartooth to Glacier…favorite country…
Traveling in NP’s with dogs keeps us flexible, yes?
A friend did a ski trip in Yellowstone and said the tracking was amazing. If I am ever sans dogs, I would like
to return and spend a couple of weeks exploring.
Glad you met with Becky, we ‘blogorinas’ sure appreciate you both!
Thanks Green! What route do you take from Beartooth to Glacier?
Bob
Bob,
Good to see your looking good and healthy this summer. I know it must have broken your heart (and wallet) to have to pay for a campsite! See you this winter on the gravel bar.
Ed
Thanks Ed! It did bother me!! I used to could say I had only spent $10 in 5 years of camping and now it’s up to about $50 in 7 years. I am so ashamed!! 🙂
See you at the RTR!
Bob
I KNEW you would really like and appreciate the Beartooth Highway!!! Isn’t it just amazing? I used to live in Cooke City, so drove it often. It was always awesome: no matter how many times I drove over it!
Thanks Marie, it really is something! It should be on every western itinerary!
Bob
The pics are awsome! Did you see any fire damage that ravaged the park many years ago. I cant remember when they occured. Jeff the nomad.
Jeff, yes, there are many places with dead and down trees from the fire. But nature rejuvenates very quickly so everywhere the fire burned there is plenty of new foliage fulling it in. It’ll be long time before there are big trees but it is already pretty again.
Bob
Hey Bob, I totally agree with Tetons being the better of the 2 parks to spend time in. We went there a few years ago, and it was early enough that the crowds weren’t too bad, but it seemed the rangers wanted to regulate everything to the extreme. I realize they get a lot of visitors, but I’ve been to Yosemite in the summer also – and it didn’t feel nearly as regulated as Yellowstone. One highlight though, was canoeing on Yellowstone Lake early in the morning and sitting 50′ off shore watching a mother wolf and her pup frolic for 15 minutes without another soul around.
I have a logistical question for you. Since none of the national parks will let you take a dog on the trails, what do you do with Cody when you’re out and about? I love traveling with my dog, but it really limited where my son and I could go when we visited Dinosaur National Monument recently.
Doug, I envy you that experience with the wolf–that is amazing!!
As far as dogs in the Park it just hasn’t been a problem for me. I don’t go on long hikes anymore so that isn’t an issue. I don’t go into them when it’s really hot so Cody is fine for 2-4 hours while I’m gone. I did leave Homer in the van once for 6 hours when I hiked Angles Landing in Zion, but it was November and I parked under a tree so he was fine. I did an all-day hike (14 hours) in the Subway in Zion but I was camped with someone else and his wife stayed home while we hiked it and she watched Homer.
I’ve never had a problem with finding a place to take a 10-30 minute walk with my dogs and I never camp in the Park itself so it just isn’t an issue.
Bob
Thanks Bob, I just wish the parks would allow dogs , at least on lease. My husky is very vocal sometimes about being left out of the fun, and I’d hate to get a fine for “cruelty to animals” even though he would be fine if I left him for a short period in the trailer.
I’ve led students on Subway a number of times, it’s a great canyon to start out on, except the hike out. The best thing is, even if you’ve done it before, it can change with each flash flood. One time I took a group through and was really confused as to how far we’d gone – I kept thinking we should have already done a long swim – turned out the last flood had completely filled that set of pools with sand!
Doug, I’ve never done the whole thing, it’s out of my league! We started from the bottom, made it to the Subway proper, then went home.
I really want to do it again, but I’m sure my knee won’t take that hill at the end, up or down.
Bob
I travelled through Yellowstone in the summer of 1989 and fell completely in love with the geysers. I was camping and paying and running out of money. Someone suggested that I see if I could get hired by the consessionaire.
It was mid August and evidently they start needing people around then. They hired me to work in the kitchen of the old faithful inn. I have never since been so carefree. I lived in the employee dorms just behind the inn. Ate in the employee cafeteria. And spent all my free time in the geyser basins. I got to know the Rangers and the other geyser gazers. We tracked the geysers and reported to the Rangers so that they could post predicted eruption times. We got excited about infrequent eruptions. We hiked in to back country geyser basins. So much fun. I worked until the old faithful inn closed mid October. Made money and saved money and got to be near enough to walk or bike to the geysers everyday. Probably the best time of my life so far. The basics of life were so simple. It’s what I am hoping to replicate while van dwelling.
Nancy, you should be able to do it easily! Every summer the National Parks hire thousands of workcampers and you can easily be one of them Becky at InterstellarOrchard has worked at the Dakota Badlands, Zion and now Yellowstone. You can too!
I prefer National Forest campground hosting because they give a free site, but I can easily understand the appeal of being in a NP!!
Bob
Do workcampers in Yellowstone pay for their sites then? When I worked at the old faithful inn I think I paid about $7 a day for room and board. That was probably about 2 hours worth of take home pay for that time and place. 1989. I think that being close to the geyser basins and having life be simple would be important to me. I would happily volunteer a reasonable amount of time. Thanks for inspiring me to look into this. Btw I have noted the Gardiner campsite. IT looks like a great one. So good to get out of the crowds.
Nancy, I believe so, but they are all different and it isn’t that simple so you will have to look into it. Check with Becky since she has been doing it.
http://www.interstellarorchard.com/
Bob
Loved the post; reminded me of my trip in 2006. Took my daughter just before the big crowds, but then put 500 miles on my vehicle in a week driving around … it was an awesome week though.
ps: Love and read Becky at IO too.
Thanks VonG, other than the crowds, Yellowstone is fabulous!
Bob
There’s fresh air, the smell of trees and an opportunity to be one with nature. If you still need some convincing, here are seven reasons why your family should visit a national park for spring break.