Same interesting things I Learned on my Yellowstone Trip.........

[FinanceDude]

In no real order:

1)Yellowstone needs to be on EVERYONE's bucket list. If you have not been there, you need to go. It is that spectacular!!

2)Little Bighorn Battlefield is a surreal place. It was very quiet and eerie there. You can really use your imagination and create the battle and what happened in your mind.

3)The people of Montana and Wyoming and South Dakota I met are hardworking, nice, no-nonsense folks. A true breath of fresh air.

4)I saw more Subarus and 4WD diesel pickups than you can shake a stick at!

5)Grand Tetons were breathtaking, another place noone should miss.

6)Wall, SD, is a LONG way from home. I found that out, 808 miles and 14 hours later.......

7)Al's Oasis Inn in Chamberlain, SD is a must stop. Rustic decor, real buffalo burgers, and a great salad bar, what else do you need?

8)The geyser area is overrated. Go north to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and places like that, unbelieveable!!

9)I heard VERY LITTLE english while out there. I heard a LOT of Korean, Chinese, Japansese, Hungarian, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguse spoken, however......

10)Idiots exist everywhere. I saw two guys walk right up to a full grown bull buffalo and take flash pictures. Sounds like a death wish to me.

11)There are NO $5 footlongs at Subway in West Yellowstone, MT, try $8.50!!

12)Gas mileage is really good in a minivan when the max speed limit is 45 mph.......

13)Full grown elk are HUGE animals!!

14)A long zoom on a camera is a must!

15)Mountain rivers have COLD water in them!

16)High altitude hiking makes you appreciate low altitude oxygen......

17)Bears and moose are elusive animals

18)They have chipmunks and squirrels out there that can run 40mph, I swear!!

19) An osprey is a majestic creature.

20)I will never underestimate the power of Suri (Iphone) and my GPS ever again!

 

[NW-Bound]

Yep, lots of foreigners come to these places, and they have to spend thousands of dollars.

For years, I have neglected our NPs, and am now making up for that mistake with multiple RV trips a year, each of at least a month-long duration.

 

[rodi]

Sounds like your summer vacation was similar to mine. We drove to Glacier and spent 4 days there, then to Yellowstone for 6 nights, then 2 in Grand Teton. Hindsight - we should have added another day to Grand Teton... Truly stunning, and some great hikes. (Like around Moose Pond near Jenny Lake... unfortunately, no Moose sightings.) We did see bears - in Yellowstone and Grand Teton. Baby bears with their mamas. Totally agree about the elk awesomeness. Saw quite a few in Yellowstone. The kids had to adjust to no tv, no wifi, etc. But they adjusted and mastered the skill of skipping rocks into lakes. That's a good life skill to have.

 

[RitaR551]

DD and I leave Saturday for Yellowstone. It will be my third trip and her first. Can't wait to show it to her!

We like to travel after school has started. Places are a little more quiet and a little less crowded.

 

[boatfishandnature]

Definitely on my list to visit soon after I FIRE ( hopefully in a few months...), even more so after your ringing endorsement.

 

[Alan]

We made our first visits to Yellowstone and Grand Tetons this year, spending a week in each place. Awesome. We need to go back soon.

We did see plenty of moose in Grand Tetons plus black bears with cubs, and we saw bears including Grizzlies in Yellowstone. Incredible numbers of buffalo everywhere, and idiots getting their kids to stand close so they could get the 'perfect' shot.

We spent quite a while one day walking around the geyser area near to Old Faithful and we were so fortunate to see several of them erupt. They were all much better than Old Faithful as the noise and motion was so much better, just incredible. There was one hot spring that was serene and beautiful as we passed it on the way out on our walk, but as we came back it started erupting and went on for a long time. It was like a fireworks display, sometimes with big explosions firing plumes of water into the air, sometimes like many fireworks going off in very quick succession each with a loud boom. Incredible.

If you are fit then definitely get out and do some hiking, there are many places with well marked trails, and it doesn't take long before you are mostly by yourself, and this was end of June and first week of July.

 

[NW-Bound]

We were fortunate to be there when the Grand Geyser erupted. It just went on and on.

The right underground rock formation for the geysers to exist is very rare and only exists in a few places in the world. I was told that Iceland's tapping of thermal energy has caused many of their geysers to extinguish. I'd rather implement solar farms and leave the geysers alone, wouldn't you?

 

[Tom52]

Walk the foot path around Jenny Lake in the Grand Tetons and you know you have been on a hike!

 

[Alan]

Walk the foot path around Jenny Lake in the Grand Tetons and you know you have been on a hike!

+1

Past Hidden Falls and up to Inspiration Point.

 

[Brat]

We had a time share at Jackson Hole (Teton Pines) for years. Husband would take son fishing on Jackson Lake, daughter loved to climb. We had 2 weeks just before the 4th of July and got out before the tourists. The locals describe it as magnificent poverty.

 

[obgyn65]

I have never been to Yellowstone but would love to when time permits.