I once heard … “what is indescribable is best left that way”! For the most part I guess that is true because I am not sure how anyone can adequately describe the national treasure that is Yellowstone National Park! What follows is my best attempt to share the experience that my wife, myself, our 36 year old son and two oldest (6 and 8 years old) grandsons were blessed to enjoy over a roughly 72 hour timeframe.

In order to try and cover it all in as much depth as possible and with as much accuracy as possible I am going to lay it all out in chronological order. At the end of each day I am going to add a handful of Pro Tips that we learned along the way that would definitely alter the way we would visit the park in the future. We visited Yellowstone on June 25th, 26th and 27th of 2021!

Yellowstone Day 1

Friday June 25th, 2021 … Christie and I arrived in West Yellowstone around 5p on Friday and checked into the Grey Wolf Inn and Suites while Jason, our son, and two grandsons arrived about an hour later. After getting squared away in the room we decided to jump in the truck and go make the most of that evening since the sun wasn’t scheduled to set until 9:45pm!

This was a great decision! Grey Wolf is only about a half mile from the entrance and when we got to the gates there was no one, not a single automobile in line. We took our obligatory pics by the Yellowstone National Parks sign and using my life time pass headed down the West Entrance road to Madison Junction which is a 14 mile and roughly 20 minute drive from the gates.

While Christie and I have been to Yellowstone before this was Jason’s, and of course the grands, first trip. He was immediately in awe as the beautiful Madison River crisscrossed the road and ran its course alongside our route! Everyone was already on high alert as viewing the park’s wildlife was on everyone’s agenda!

Elk! There are two elk! No, wait, looks like 6, no 7 elk right beside the road! Our first sighting and we were less that half an hour into the trip. Before reaching Madison Junction we ran into a traffic jam, also known as a wildlife jam, as a pair of the park’s stately Bison were feeding just off the road as well! BOOM … two must see items already checked off of the list! Little did we know there would be many, many more to come. More about that later!

As we made our way to Madison Junction we decided to make a right and head straight for “Old Faithful”. A quick check of https://geysertimes.org/ told us we had just the right amount of time to get there, get parked and witness one of the coolest natural phenomenons on planet earth. We arrived, parked the truck, strolled over to the viewing area and experienced why this geyser is named “Old Faithful”. We stood in awe as millions have done through the years! I was trying to imagine what it was like to be the first person to see Old Faithful erupt? Mind blowing I bet!

From “Old Faithful” we took a left hand turn and headed out to see as much of the Grand Loop, the southernmost of the parks two loops, before we lost daylight. We were just able to make it to the Hayden Valley area and catch a glimpse of a huge herd of Bison in the fading light of Day 1. Along the way we were mesmerized by the beauty of Lake Yellowstone and stopped at a couple of the many vantage points and pull outs and took some amazing pictures!

We were exhausted by the days travels just to get to Yellowstone but we were pumped for what we anticipated was in store for us the next two days!

Day 1 Pro Tips!

Pro Tip #1 … we call “bonus time”! We have traveled more than our fair share in life and a while back we began to make sure we did something to take advantage of whatever time is left of our travel day. We, like most, would arrive at our destination at rest up for the day ahead. Not anymore and in Yellowstone it paid huge dividends!

Pro Tip #2 … every day we were in Yellowstone we stayed until it got dark before leaving for our hotel room. The last few hours of the day the park is almost empty and, the wildlife are out in full force!

Pro Tip #3 … you can see Old Faithful at any time. There is more than enough parking space and viewing room that there is no need to make it a focus of your plans. Go and see it when it is convenient to your itinerary! Bonus tip … always view Old Faithful from the upwind side of the geyser. You don’t want to get caught viewing it through all of the steam it puts off! Just sayin …

Yellowstone Day 2

An interesting day to say the least! Without a lot of explanation, Christie and Jason got up early, very early, to go see Old Faithful again … at sunrise! Do you have any idea how early that is? While I stayed behind with my two grandsons, slept in, played some games in the room and walked next door to grab breakfast at McDonalds! Christie and Jason, of course, felt like they had the better experience. I will concede they probably did, but I would do it all over again 100 times if presented the opportunity!

On their early morning quest Jason and Christie did indeed see Old Faithful erupt at dawn and … they did a grand tour of the rest of the Upper Geyser Basin. This walk included seeing eruptions at Grand Geyser and Riverside Geyser and completing the boardwalk tour at Morning Glory Pool!

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Their accounts were ecstatic enough that Jason and I took the boys back later that same day to see it for ourselves! While Grand and Riverside, along with Castle and Daisy, do not erupt as often as Old Faithful there times are predicted at https://geysertimes.org/ and they will erupt for anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes in duration! The boardwalk to and from these geysers is well constructed and well maintained with a lot of places to sit and rest and watch the geysers do their thing! It is a fascinating area to check out.

Our plan for the rest of Day 2 was to make the drive to visit Grand Teton National Park! Yes, we are there to see Yellowstone but so many people recommended we make our way to GTNP and so we did! It was a GREAT choice!

Leaving the Upper Geyser Basin and Old Faithful, we turn left and follow the Grand Loop again until we get to West Thumb where we take a right turn on the road leading to the park’s South Entrance. Here the road turns into the John D Rockefeller Memorial Parkway and we follow it to Grand Teton National park!

I have not mentioned the Gypsy app before now because we didn’t use it at all on Day 1 but we began listening to it this morning and the information, insights and history it shares along the way is well worth the $14.99 investment required. Because the park has very little cell signal the app is GPS driven and the narration is triggered as you pass various points of interest along the way. We loved the added info and bet you will too!

It is a pretty lengthy drive to the Grand Tetons so we stayed moving with quick stops here and there to see points of interest, take photos or just stretch our legs. The Gypsy app did an awesome job of explaining the geology behind the Grand Tetons and adding a lot to our experience there!

The John D Rockefeller Memorial Parkway, or Hwy 191, takes you along the shores of beautiful Lake Jackson where you will often get some amazing previews and glimpses of the Tetons! That being what it is, a right turn onto Jenny Lake Scenic Drive is going to take you right to the base of these unique mountains and you will definitely want to find a place to get out and take some unforgettable pictures.

We head back toward Yellowstone by taking a left off of Jenny Lake Scenic Drive, back onto Hwy 191 and retrace our steps toward home. Clearly there is a lot to still see and do on our way home but one of the trips top 5 highlights lay ahead in the next few minutes! After a pretty full day of travel we were hungry and Jason remembered a sign at Leek’s Marina saying “pizzeria”. So, we stopped and wow!

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We ordered our food and ate it on the beach there at Jackson Lake staring over the water looking at the majestic Grand Tetons! Wow … the pizza was excellent but the dining room was to die for. These pics will be looked back on for years to come!

If you make the trek to the Grand Tetons take the time to stop at Leek’s Marina and Pizzeria. And make sure you dine on the beach just below the restaurant itself. You will not soon forget it!

Day 2 Pro Tips!

Pro Tip #4 … while we didn’t use the Gypsy app right off the bat once we did it added so much to our trip! It narrated points of interest as we drove along, told us about things that were coming up ahead of us and it provided insights into the park we would not have ever known without using it. Click Here to check it out!

Pro Tip #5 … be sure and invest in a good pair of binoculars, or even a spotting scope, before you go. There are so many vast spaces in Yellowstone having a great pair of “eyes” allows you to close the distance on some beautiful sights!

Pro Tip #6 … you are going to want to take a ton of pictures! Whether you use your cell phone, a nice digital camera, a GoPro or whatever you choose, know this! Later when you go back to look at them or share them with others you will linger on the photos that have yourself and/or your friends and family in them while you will blow by the ones that are of just the scenery … no matter how spectacular it is!

Yellowstone Day 3

We are up and at it early again here on Day 3, grab some breakfast and make our way, once again, into Yellowstone National Park. Our goal this morning is to make it to another of Yellowstone’s favorite attractions “Grand Prismatic Spring”! Our goal to be the crowd worked out as we hit a half full parking lot, bailed out and made our way around the boardwalk to get a close look at this, the largest natural hot spring in the US and third largest in the world.

Old Faithful may be more famous, but the Grand Prismatic Hot Spring lays claim to being the most photographed thermal feature in Yellowstone. That’s because of its crazy-bright colors and enormous size. As amazing as this area is be sure and check out Pro Tip #7 to make sure you get the most out of it!

Our end goal for Day 3 was to be able to see as many animals as possible before the sun went down on our trip for the last time. To that end we decided we needed to be in Lamar Valley mid to late afternoon. That meant a lot of driving because the road from Canyon Village to Tower Roosevelt was closed. That meant we would have to go the long way around via Norris and Mammoth Hot Springs to get to Tower Roosevelt and eventually the incredibly scenic Lamar Valley area. At this point driving long distances was a given and heck, the scenery was breathtaking so off we went!

Along the way we did take the time to check out a couple of really cool places! They were:

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• The Fishing Bridge area of Yellowstone – this is kind of a quaint area of the park with beautiful waters, lots of camping areas, fishing areas and a really cool park store where we did our best to contribute to the parks economy in a big way. We bought the boys some cool stuff, something to take back home to the girls (our daughter in law Caitlyn and our granddaughter Decker), a couple of T Shirts for Christie and I and … a Yeti cooler decorated with all things Yellowstone! It was quite a haul for sure!
• The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone – this area of the park is spectacular! We did get to spend a good amount of time here but is one area we definitely will make our way back to for an extended visit in the future. One of the outstanding features you will find in Yellowstone is how easy they have made it to access the park’s features. We made our way to the ample parking lot and had less than 200 yards to walk to a number of great viewpoints of the waterfall and the canyon itself. We took a ton of pictures and then took some time to stop in at Canyon Village for some lunch, fueling up our bodies for the drive to Lamar Valley!

• Mammoth Hot Springs – while we didn’t stop here our drive through made it clear that this is another place worth spending some time in and around! The area itself has been described “as if a giant cave had been turned inside out”!
• Roosevelt Lodge – what a quiet, hidden gem this place is! Roosevelt Lodge Cabins, built in 1920 near Yellowstone’s Tower Falls area, is located near a campsite once used by President Theodore Roosevelt. The front porch rocking chairs gave us an opportunity to rest a bit while waiting for our table in the restaurant and “awaken our Old West spirit.” Our waiter Zach gave us the inside info on what we were looking for that afternoon … bison, bears and wolves! He was spot on!

After a great meal at The Roosevelt Lodge, I highly recommend the Bison Burger, we headed out for Lamar Valley. Zack had told us that there were some folks sitting on and watching a den of wolves on Slough Creek Road not far from the lodge and that farther up in Lamar Valley they were seeing wolves visiting the carcass of some dead animals in the valley near the Lamar River across from the Yellowstone Association Institute!

We set out and quickly came to Slough Creek Road and yes, there were folks there set up with spotting scopes watching a den of wolves. With the naked eye you couldn’t see a thing since I am guesstimating we were at 1,000+ yards. With our binoculars, a good pair, you could make out some spots and the movement but with their spotting scopes you could see a wolf pup and some adult wolves moving about. How cool!

We are now off to Lamar Valley proper and the area near the institute! This valley is, again, spectacular and is home to thousands of bison, tons of elk, pronghorn antelope, bears and wolves. We saw them all that afternoon and it was amazing! A couple of the highlights were …

• We saw thousands of bison … some at point blank range!
• We saw a bear meandering its way up a hillside. When you come upon a bear you will know it because they bring traffic to a standstill!
• We saw elk and antelope by the hundreds!
• But, the highlight of the trip came when we watched a lone black wolf make its way the entire length of the valley, from our right to our left, as it made its way to feed on the carcasses left there in the area. It was an incredible sight! If you go to our Facebook page JoyHauling With Team Jacobus you can see the video!

As the sun began to fade our time in Yellowstone was fading as well! We were tired, sleepy yet energized by the “land of 1,000 wows”! Our drive back to West Yellowstone was spent recounting each of our favorite moments of which there were many. Yet, there was still so much to see and do and to explore close up, and that we will! Yes, that we will!!!

Day 3 Pro Tips!

Pro Tip #7 … I promised this earlier in the Day 3 recap and it has to do with the Grand Prismatic Spring area. We had a great plan to get up early and beat the crowds there and indeed we did! The problem was it was a very cool morning and what happens when hot warm humid air meets cold air? Steam! Lots of steam! So much steam you could barely get a glimpse of the springs beautiful colors! Lesson learned.

Pro Tip #8 … make getting to and taking the time to thoroughly check out “The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone”! This is an amazing area and it deserves to be taken in from as many available vantage points as possible!

Pro Tip #9 … bring some lawn chairs with you! Whether it is Hayden Valley or Lamar Valley, I could have sat, in a lawn chair, with my binoculars and watched the wildlife for hours on end and would never have gotten bored!

Pro Tip #10 … this was a real surprise to us but the many different areas in the park overseen by The National Park Service are actually run very well! There are a ton of services, amenities, gas stations, food stores and restaurants available inside the park. We ate twice at a couple of their cafes and the food was very good! And, the shops have a wide variety of souvenirs and memorabilia sure to please everyone and at every price point!

So, there you have it! While we didn’t even come close to seeing it all we saw a ton! While I haven’t the time, or the memory, to exhaust our experience there in this blog I have shared some of our fondest memories. That said, if you have any questions about how you can make the most of your trip to Yellowstone feel free to reach out to us by:

• Responding in the comments section below …
• Respond to this blog as it is posted on our Facebook page JoyHauling With Team Jacobus
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We look forward to hearing from you and thank you for reading our blog posts! We invite you to subscribe below to get all of the latest as we live out our full time RV lifestyle! We enjoy having you on the journey with us.

Jim and Christie … Team Jacobus