We were now in our itinerary to visit Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. I know you have heard of them but if you are not familiar with their actual location or are not an amateur cartologist, they sit in the far northwestern corner of Wyoming. And the east entrance to Yellowstone is only about 50 miles from Cody. So, an easy and scenic drive over to the park.
We also had heard a lot about the park entrances being backed up with cars waiting to enter so we decided to stay in the park and not drive in and out every day. There is only one campground with full RV hookups in the whole park, and I had made a reservation to stay there back in October 2025. It is located near the center of the park in Fishing Bridge. This part of the park is near the Yellowstone River crossing and there is a bridge across the river. (Interestingly, it is called Fishing Bridge, but the sign says, “No Fishing”! There must be a story there somewhere.) Our plan was to stay there and explore the park daily in the Jeep.
An added surprise for this stop was that Charlotte and Larry, friends for Florida who now live in San Diego, had contacted us with interest in coming to Yellowstone for a couple of days while we were there. We gladly said sure, come along! They had confirmed a hotel room at the Lake Yellowstone Hotel on the lake close to the RV park. So, we made plans to go sightseeing with them for two days. After we got hooked up and they arrived from their flight into Bozeman, we met for a nice dinner at the hotel to make plans.
We had just 2 days, so we decided to visit the most popular sites. The next morning, we piled into the Jeep and first headed to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone to see the falls! This is the large waterfall that you will normally see in the park advertising literature and/or a friend’s photo when they are showing you what they saw!
On the way, we stopped a couple of times. First for a short hike around the Mud Volcano flats that features several bubbling mud pots and (my favorite) the Black Dragon’s Caldron. And this was just the first stop! Just up the road we had to stop for our first bison viewing! And believe it, there were more to come!
On to the waterfall, there is a walking trail that has several overlook stops where you get a different view of the falls as the water plumets over 300 ft to the river. There is a viewing point right near the edge of the where the falls plunge into the river but the trail down drops 600 ft so we decide to pass and just view from the upper trail! Either way, the falls do not disappoint.
We stopped in the Visitor Center and shared a bison burger at the snack bar where Gail also got to try a Huckleberry float. The soda was huckleberry but not the ice cream so it was a bit different!
Heading back to the RV, we stopped at the Norris Basin which has all types of the park features like Fumaroles, mud pots, geysers and hot springs. To see them all, there is a short hiking loop.
After a dinner of nice appetizers and a bit of relaxation at the RV, we made plans to get together the next day to go see Old Faithful which, of course, is also a major part of the park literature! We did get up that night to look at the sky and it did not disappoint. Can you make out the big dipper?
Old Faithful is so “faithful” (vs “old somewhat reliable”) that the park posts the eruption times so everyone can plan their day. Currently the eruptions are about 90 minutes or so apart. It used to be on the hour and hence the faithful name. But due to shifts in the underground structure, it is now longer. There is a bit of an amphitheater near the geyser bed and people come early to get a seat. Some will wait for the whole hour. I volunteered to go get a seat as the others walked around the visitor center first. I didn’t have to wait an hour, but I did get good seats!
Finally, we all gathered with about 1000 other people, both seated and standing, and waited patiently. Or not so patiently as every time the geyser would spew a little steam and spray, everyone would raise their phones and start taking photos. Then they stopped as they realized it was not time yet for the big one. This happened about 6-7 times. I started taking photos of the people! Finally, the spurt became higher and higher as she proved to be Old Faithful again. And we all got good photos and/or videos! And, as advertised, she didn’t disappoint either!
Next on the list, and probably third on everyone must see list, is the Grand Prismatic Pool. It’s a short drive from one to the other and we headed out. The Grand Prismatic Pool is the largest hot spring in the US and, at 300 ft in diameter (and about 190 deg temperature), is renowned for its dark blue color in the center and bright red, orange, yellow and green rings around the outer edges. The outer colors are caused by “thermophiles that thrive in the hydrothermal environment. There is a raised boardwalk around the pool and, as you walk around, you are blasted with hot, moist air from the pool and then, as you pass, shocked a bit by the cool air coming off the hills. And it really is a gorgeous site!
Our last stop for the day was at another basin near the hotel. Called the West Thumb basin it runs along the bank of the Lake. In fact, some of the hot springs and mud pots are actually in the lake. Story goes that the natives would catch fish in the lake and cook them in the hot water!
We met again at the hotel for a light dinner and said our goodbyes as they had an early flight again at the Bozeman airport the next day. We really enjoyed sharing our travel stories and our tour of the park with them. But we still had 3 days left and were making plans to fill in those days with more cool (and/or hot!) things to see.
Without going into a lot of details, I am listing what we did see and adding photos! Otherwise, this could really go on and on. And we did take the tops off the Jeep for better viewing for the day!
First on our list was to revisit the Falls but take the longer South Rim Trail all the way to Artists Point. We determined that it provided a better view than the north rim.
Then we drove up to Mt Washburn on a short dirt road for a 360 view of the park.
Then to Tower Falls, which are rock formations above the Yellowstone River. Nice view and got our photo taken together!
After a frustrating 45-minute delay in a traffic stop for construction, we headed on to Mammoth Hot Springs. This area is famous for its terraces formed by the hot springs leaving a salted reside behind as the water evaporates. There just happened to be a large bull elk munching around near the terraces and licking on the salt.
Finished exploring for the day, we headed back to Fishing Bridge through Canyon Village again and got stuck in a buffalo herd doing its road crossing thing! Over 100 in the herd, they had the traffic stopped and people getting out of their cars. The herd started going one way and then decided to cross back to the other side! We had seen this before and although interesting, we just wanted to get home!
Another day exploring, we headed to see the Grand Prismatic Pool from the overlook above the park. The trail up is quite steep but wide and smooth enough. There were a lot of people going up and coming back down. But the view from the platform was stunning! The colors of the pool really stood out. And I’m colorblind!
And on the way home, we drove the road to Firehole Canyon Falls. This is a narrow road along a small canyon with the Firehole River and cascades.
Our last day and we went back to Old Faithful to walk the whole field and see a second eruption from different viewpoint. The walk is about 4 miles when you go all the way to the end and the famous Morning Glory Pool.
And there are several almost famous geysers along the walk like The Beehive, The Castle, and Grand Geyser. As it was getting closer to the Old Faithful time, we headed back and made it buy this time almost 180 deg across from the other viewing area. And just before Old Faithful, the Beehive geyser went off in a spectacular display.
So much more that we say but just can’t elaborate on in limited space. And there is so much we didn’t see! The park is huge and I think we put almost 500 miles on the Jeep driving around over the 5 days. But we gave it our best and were rewarded with whole majesty of the park!
There was so much to see here and, so much more to see in the next few days that we have decided to split this in two posts. So, hang in there and we’ll be right back!
