Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming)
Over two million acres, Yellowstone National Park is larger than Rhode Island and Delaware combined. It contains nearly 10,000 hydrothermal features, including over 500 geysers. In fact, Yellowstone contains half of the geysers on earth. Within a single mile of the Upper Geyser Basin, there are 150 geysers, the most densely concentrated geyser region in the world. Across most of the United States, magma chambers are 21-50 miles below the surface. In the Yellowstone Caldera, the chambers are just 3-7 miles beneath the earth’s crust. When you enter Yellowstone, you are stepping into one of the most unique places on earth.
We visited Yellowstone from May 7-23, 2021, during the “shoulder season” when the park is still not fully opened and much less crowded. We spent most of our time in the north and west and hiked over 80 miles. This page is intended to provide a helpful starting point for others visiting Yellowstone for the first time. The first section covers logistics such as lodging, maps, and driving, as well as practical safety guidance on bears and viewing wildlife. The second section shares our most memorable sights/hikes in each area of the park. The third section contains interesting facts about wildlife in Yellowstone.
Section 1: Logistics & Safety
Lodging
We stayed one week outside the North Entrance in Gardiner, MT and the second week outside the West Entrance in West Yellowstone, MT. In Gardiner, we stayed in a cabin along the Yellowstone River about an 8 minute drive from the entrance along a rough gravel road. In the more developed West Yellowstone, we stayed in an AirBnb condo. We contacted the listings directly and booked for about 25% less than the prices advertised on AirBnb/VRBO. There are 12 campgrounds for car camping throughout the park. Openings do happen with last minute cancellations. (We spent one night in Mammoth campground and another night in Madison campground). Backcountry camping generally requires an application in advance. The NPS has a Backcountry Trip Planner which can be downloaded here. (We spent one night at Campsite 1Y5 from the Blacktail Creek Trailhead 1N5). There are also many lodges throughout the park which generally book out 6-12 months in advance. Lodging accommodations are run by Yellowstone National Park Lodges while campgrounds are split between YNPL and Recreation.gov.
Maps
National Geographic sells a great map of the entire park (1:126,720 scale) and four zoomed in maps of the four quadrants of the park (1:70,000 scale). They can be purchased at any general store inside the park or at Yellowstone Forever near the North Entrance. There is also a National Geographic “Day Hikes” map (1:50,000 scale) that contained many of the hikes we did, however we used the entire park map (#201) and the Mammoth Hot Springs Map (#303) for most of our trip.
Driving
Yellowstone entails a lot of driving so planning ahead is helpful to reduce it to no more than 1.5-3 hours per day. We rented a Jeep Grand Cherokee. I recommend an SUV although you would be fine without one. Good advice I received is to get gas every time you see a gas station. There are gas stations in Gardiner, West Yellowstone, Mammoth Hot Springs, and Old Faithful, and few options outside of that. The mileage map at the top of this page shows distances and travel times between major locations in the park. During our stay we were able to travel faster than the times on the sheet, but in the summer I imagine those times will be accurate. Many people stop in the middle of the road to look at wildlife even though there are signs everywhere saying to pull off the road. Other times bison or elk are in the middle of the road and really do cause traffic jams. Most people get too close to the animals, which leads to this next section:
Bears
It’s super important to carry bear spray, speak to each other the whole hike, and never hike alone. Banging sticks together, bells, whistling, etc can all be misinterpreted by grizzlies as another animal. The only unmistakable sound is the human voice. We talked most of the hikes and whenever we came around a bend we would yell something more loudly like “Hello” and approach the turn slowly to give animals space. You can purchase bear spray from REI in Bozeman and return it if/when it goes unused, which is what we did, or you can rent it inside the park. You wear it on your belt and it’s easy to use and can save a life. We saw 4 black bears on hikes and they were all very docile and beautiful and we either walked in the opposite direction or maintained a very wide distance. We saw 2 grizzlies from the road who were also rather peaceful. Unfortunately, two people were hurt/killed recently so it’s important to be extremely careful. Things usually happen when the bear is surprised, near cubs, near a carcass, or feels threatened because you are too close or blocking its path. They can smell dozens of times better than a dog and they want to avoid us, so encounters are extremely rare. The park suggests 100 yards from bears and bison and 25 yards from all other animals. The more space you give them the better. Sometimes you have to go off trail to avoid them. Sometimes you just turn around and do a different hike. Never turn your back. Just step backwards slowly and speak calmly to them. It’s also important to carry binoculars so you can always see what’s ahead of you.
Wildlife Viewing
The best times to see wildlife from the road is dawn and dusk. There is a website called the “Yellowstone Reports” where amateur and professionals blog daily about wolves and bears and other wildlife sightings and happenings in the northern range. It’s $20 for the year.
Section 2: Hikes & Sights
Here are the highlights divided by entrance and section of the park. Hiking mileage is the total mileage. Most trails are through-hikes which go on for many miles and link to other trails. The descriptions below explain where we turned around when the hike is not a loop trail. Every sight and trail listed below can be found on the National Geographic maps mentioned in Section 1.
NORTH ENTRANCE
Mammoth Hot Springs
Mammoth Hot Springs - Mound Terrace was the most memorable/active. It can be accessed most easily from the 3rd or 4th parking lot heading south from the Liberty Cap. ~10-15 minutes.
Canary Spring - Short boardwalk path to a beautiful hot spring from Upper Terrace Drive parking lot. ~10-15 minutes
Tower/Roosevelt
Hellroaring Creek to River Ford (4 miles roundtrip) - One mile to a suspension bridge, another 0.5 miles to an enchanted forest, then the last 0.5 miles to a glacier pond and the creek. Accidentally startled a bison just before the creek at 10 yards or less. Herd of bison blocked path on exit. Needed to detour wide in rolling sagebrush. Saw elk skeleton in pit. This hike is really worth doing. Just be mindful of bison. Descends I believe 400-600ft to the creek and then turn around. The sagebrush smells amazing if you rub it in your fingers.
Yellowstone River Picnic Area to Specimen Ridge/Agate Creek Junction (~6.2 miles roundtrip) - One of the best hikes we did. Park in the Yellowstone Picnic Area. Follows the Yellowstone River along the northern tip of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Rather than start at the trailhead closer to the road, ascend the ridge behind the picnic tables farthest from the road. You will see a dirt path going up. The trails meet shortly later on but the views along the ridge are substantially better from this latter trail. We saw a herd of pronghorn on the way in. Multiple large bison herds and one herd of pronghorn on way out. Saw two bighorn sheep in the distance. If you ascend the trail to the Specimen Ridge trail and onto the flat plateau and you have a map, you will be able to step off the trail into a clearing to your right and see Tower Falls in the distance and to the left and see the Lamar Valley. It’s a spectacular view. We turned around at the Agate Creek junction.
Slough Creek
Slough Creek Trail to First Meadow/ Lower Slough Creek Patrol Cabin (4 miles roundtrip)- Beautiful hike we did around 8am. Old wagon trail that proceeds through multiple meadows. We hiked 2 miles, to the first meadow, which was breathtaking and peaceful. Saw our first bear on opposite side of an oxbow in Slough Creek. Followed one of the many fishermen’s trails to the creek’s edge and then went up to the patrol cabin and turned around.
WEST ENTRANCE
Norris Geyser Basin
Norris Geyser Basin Back Basin Loop (1.6 mile loop) - Steamboat Geyser was beautiful to watch. Unpredictable geyser that reaches heights of 300ft when it goes off. We saw it bubbling at about 10-20ft. Vixen Geyser also had some activity with about 5-10ft bursts. Very cool boardwalk.
Artist’s Paintpots (1.6 miles roundtrip) - Spectacular flopping mudpools at the top of this boardwalk.
Old Faithful Area
Drive along Firehole Canyon Drive to Firehole Falls. You can park your car at an alcove for a moment and walk to the adjacent viewpoint.
Observation Point to Solitary Geyser Loop (1.8 mile loop) - A great place to watch Old Faithful eruption away from the crowds. Short but steep ascent.
Old Faithful Inn - Closed when we were there but still beautiful to look at from outside. One of the largest all-wooden structures in the world I believe.
Grand Prismatic Spring - Magical. Short boardwalk loop. We went later in the day after a rainstorm and there was no one else there.
Beryl Spring - Cool roadside hot spring.
Black Sand Basin to Upper Geyser Basin to Biscuit Basin Loop Via Boardwalks and Bike Trails (6 mile loop) - Highlights included Giant, Grotto, Riverside Geysers, and Morning Glory Pool. A way to see what people drive to in a more peaceful way with nature. Secluded trails open up intermittently to popular areas with parking lots.
Canyon
Wapiti Lake Trail to Ribbon Lake to Point Sublime to South Rim Loop (9.7 mile loop) - Outstanding way to see Artist’s Point, Lower Falls, and Upper Falls. First 3-4 miles secluded and away from the crowds. Emerge intermittently thereafter to the parking lot areas of the main attractions. Walked for some time with two young park rangers who were clearing downed trees from the trails. One had worked in Olympic and the other in Glacier previously. Cleared 45 trees in a single day the day prior. Said their boss can do even more. They were based out of the South Entrance. Final mile or so of hike is right along Yellowstone River. Absolutely beautiful day. The canyon is amazing. The Yellowstone River is the longest flowing river in the lower 48 states. The Lower Falls (388ft) are higher than Niagara Falls.
Yellowstone Lake / Fishing Bridge
Storm Point (2.3 mile loop) - Yet another trip highlight on our last day of hiking in the park. Yellowstone Lake and the mountains on the horizon were breathtaking. It feels like an ocean. A must see.
Section 3: Yellowstone Wildlife
Grizzly bears numbered 50,000 in the 1800s in the Lower 48. There are now about 1400-1500 all in the Glacier and Yellowstone ecosystems. Grizzly bears can weigh as much as 700lbs and sprint 40mph.
There are over 300 different species of birds inside Yellowstone.
Coyotes are about one-third the size of the wolf.
The elk population in Yellowstone during the summer is 10,000–20,000 across six to seven different herds.
Moose are the largest member of the deer family.
Pronghorn are the fastest land animal in North America, reaching speeds of 60mph!
There are over 5,450 bison/buffalo in Yellowstone. The park’s largest animal is nearly 6ft tall and 2000lbs and can run upwards of 30mph. At one time, millions roamed the plains. They were hunted for their hides to near extinction. In 1902, Yellowstone imported 21 bison to supplement an existing 50. Today it is the largest herd in the world. The wolves and the bison had been Yellowstone’s greatest success stories.
In 1995-1996, 31 wolves were restored to Yellowstone. The Lamar Valley gave them the space to live and their numbers grew into the hundreds. Yellowstone has been one of the greatest places in the world to spot a wolf in the wild. In 2021-2022, certain people and government officials decided it made sense to hunt them again. The wolves wander outside the park’s border and are killed. As of January 2022, 20 of Yellowstone National Park’s gray wolves had been killed, the most in a single season since wolves were reintroduced to the region more than 25 years ago, and only 94 remain. Life sure is precious.