Yellowstone in a Weekend

Yellowstone is an amazing place to visit no matter the time of the year. Although I would recommend going in the early spring into summer if you want to see lots of cute baby critters, or in late Septmeber early October if you want to see some serious animal action. But if you only have a weekend or a handfull of days to explore Yellowstone, these are my suggestions.

My husband and I roadtripped across the US this past September and spent a whole month exploring, we stopped at anything that looked interesting and we couldn't miss the chance to spend more time in Yellowstone. On our first visit there a couple of years ago, we did the most notable things - Yellowstone River, Old Faithful, the Old Faithful Inn...just to name a few. We staying in the cute little town of West Yellowstone - first tip, book your hotel in advanced! When we first visited we didn't have a hotel room when we pulled in and we spent the next two hours stopping at each place looking for a room. The next time we booked in advanced and our next visit we are going to stay in the park. Traffic was awful leaving at the end of the day.

Old Faithful

Of course you have to check out Old Faithful - and they really mean faithful. It's the one gyser that erupts within a predicted time with 10-15 min +/- window, there are a few other gysers that are somewhat on a schedule but nothing like Old Faithful. It's located right next to the Old Faithful Inn and Lodge that's centered towards the southwest part of the park, there's only really one main road so you cant miss it. Make sure you check the schedule at the Lodge and gift shop, they have helpful TV's posted everywhere with the schedule for the whole day. I would also recommend walking out on the boardwalk that's behind the gyser, there's usually less people and a better view. No matter the time of the year, Yellowstone will always be busy.

Wolf & Grizzly Center

This next one isn't actually in the park but located in the town of West Yellowstone. It's the Wolf & Grizzly Center and is right outside the West Gate to Yellowstone. It's definitely a must see if you have kids with you...whether they're young or your partner is young at heart. The musuem that's located there goes into the history of the wolf and grizzlies and what part they play in the ecosystem of Yellowstone. They also have wolves and grizzles you can get up close and personal to see as well as birds of prey, they just started building an Otter enclosure when we were last there and was said to be completed in a year or two.

The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

Another can't miss is The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. Bet you thought the only Grand Canyon was in Arizona huh? Nope! We missed this amazing view the first time we visited and when we went back for the weekend we just had to stop and check it out for ourselves. And what a great view! The road takes you right to a parking lot (be paitent because it's going to be busy!) and you walk about a quarter of a mile on a paved trail to the lookout point. Yellowstone got it's name from the surrounding rocks which have a yellow tint to them. There are mulitple pullout stops along this road but most of them were under construction when we visited them but the view at the end was so worth it!

Bull Elk

If you want to see some amazing animals outside of a fence, then look no further than Yellowstone. Animals here have the run of the place and you have to resepct their space. A few days before we got in, there was an incident where a park goer got a little too close to a Bull Elk that was fighting with another Bull and he was ran over. If you're going in the spring or fall - this is Elk season, spring for babies and fall for rut. They're amazing creatures but remeber to respect their space! These guys look like lawn orniments all over Mammoth Springs, they have the complete right away in the roads and we were even stuck leaving one night for close to an hour due to a couple of Bison hanging out in the road. Not to mention Mammoth Springs was just gorgeous!

Mammoth Hot Springs

My last recommendation would be to check out Lamar Valley, this is the best spot to see wildlife! I would recommend either very early in the morning or right around dusk, this is when the animals are the most active. We saw all kinds- Elk, Bison, Big Horn Sheep, Moose, you name it and we probably saw it. It's at the top of the park so in the northeast corner, you could kill a whole day in the area checking out all the different animals. Make sure you bring a camera with a long range lense or some good binoculars, and don't be surprised when there's Bison hanging out along side the road. I would recommend to be extreamly cautious when driving, no matter the time of the year Yellowstone is alway busy and sometimes people stop suddenly in the middle of the road.

Bison in Lamar

No matter the time of the year or how long you visit, there is always going to be new things to see or do. The National Park Service are constantly repairing or adding new trails and activities for guests to do. But always remember, the best way to enjoy to park is to plan your visit in advanced, and I would highly recommend staying inside the park - you'll beat a lot of traffic coming in and out each day. Plus you'll have some amazing views to wake up to!

Madison River