Left the Devils Tower KOA and it was on to the Paradise Valley KOA in Montana. I was so excited to head into the mountains and was excited to see the snow capped mountains along the drive. It was my longest day of driving/towing so I was grateful for a good audiobook and beautiful scenery to enjoy. As I turned on the last stretch of road from Livingston, I agreed with the name of paradise valley. The campsite was on the Yellowstone River and had beautiful mountain views. Unfortunately the heat wave continued so I was leaving Wolfie in 100+ degree temperatures while I explored Yellowstone.
I wanted to do Yellowstone right and not have to worry about anything, so I booked with REI Adventures and joined a group tour of Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. I was so excited and lucky to have an amazing guide and group. We drove down from Bozeman, entered the north entrance and had lunch in the Mammoth Hot Springs area. We enjoyed lunch and lounged in the sun with the elk while getting fully briefed on how not to die by grizzly bear attack and how to use bear spray.
It was then on to our first hike around Beaver Ponds. We got a little practice in putting on and taking off rain gear until the sun decided to stay out the rest of the hike. We actually saw beavers at beaver pond. My first impressions of Yellowstone were that it was a whole lot bigger than I thought it was and amazed by the diversity and how quickly the landscape changes.
An evening drive before heading to our room at the Canyon Lodge resulted in our first and only grizzly siting. I was grateful to watch him from the safety of the van. What a beautiful creature. Other evenings were spent in Hayden Valley spotting and watching wildlife. While we were hoping for a wolf siting we did see a really large coyote that had many people thinking it was a wolf.
The next day was all things geothermal as we explored the Upper Geyser Basin. It was a cooler, foggier, and rainy morning which resulted in it feeling like another world experience with all of the steam coming off the water. We viewed Grand Prismatic Spring from the ground level as well as hiked up for a better view. It was then on to the main event, Old Faithful Geyser. After watching it erupt we explored more, huddling near some geysers for warmth as we continued to battle cold rain. It is definitely worth the walk to Morning Glory Pool at the end of the boardwalk. Then I think we enjoyed watching the Riverside Geyser erupt more than Old Faithful.
Another day was spent exploring the West Thumb Geyser Basin along the banks of Yellowstone Lake. We entertained ourselves on the drives around the park by listening to the audiobook Death in Yellowstone and all the ways not so bright tourist died in Yellowstone Park due to geothermal, bears, etc.
Got away from the boardwalks and hundreds of tourist for a beautiful morning hike on the Wapiti Lake Trail to Clear Lake. We then headed to the South Rim Trail and got our first view of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. By the time we hit Artist Point we were back with the crowds as we enjoyed lunch and amazing views of the Upper Falls. We continued on to Lower Falls and then it was off to buy ice cream as our hiking reward.
Our most significant hiking achievement on this trip was hiking Avalanche Peak Trail. Despite it being a dry day we were all slipping and falling on the gravel trail to the peak. Luckily there are some small rock walls at the summit so we could hide from the wind and enjoy lunch while the ground squirrels made multiple attempts to join us.
Another day we explored Lamar Valley for more wildlife viewing. We were lucky enough to see a momma bear with two cubs and then further down the road yet another mamma bear with two cubs as well. We had a close encounter with a bison along the road and were able to see some really large herds of bison. We stretched our legs with a hike around Trout Lake.
Grand Tetons National Park. We continued our listening of death in Yellowstone as we drove down to Grand Tetons National Park. I once visited the Grand Tetons in the middle of winter to see the herds of elk. It was so cold, windy and snowy that the Tetons were covered in fog and I did not get a good look at them. I definitely got a good look at them this time. Enjoyed a scenic float down the Snake River to enjoy them from the peace and quiet of the river.
After surviving the traffic we arrived in Jackson for dinner and a little shopping. After a long time quarantining during the pandemic we dealt with the record setting crowds at Yellowstone and Grand Tetons. Luckily the park is big enough to always find peace out in nature when you want it.
