Yellowstone!

Call us vain and picky, but despite the beauty of Glacier, we found ourselves yearning for the unique and familiar experience of Yellowstone. We did not originally plan to visit Yellowstone on this trip. We had instead planned to visit Lewis and Clark Caverns for a cave hike. But the animal-free Glacier experience cemented a growing urge to visit Yellowstone while in the neighborhood (ish). We left Glacier early, cancelled our reservations at Lewis and Clark Caverns, and made our way southeast from Glacier to Yellowstone.

We have visited Yellowstone many times over the years and it remains one of our favorites. You might think repetition would fade the wonderment, yet somehow not. Like Ravel’s Bolero, each repetition’s varied tone and intensity enhances the experience despite being identical in nearly every other respect.

So we found ourselves driving from Glacier to Yellowstone past the Montana mountains and lakes, reminiscing about prior visits to Yellowstone and all the unique experiences with family and friends over the years past.

We hoped to stay inside the park for all three nights, but last-minute reservations at the end of summer tend to be elusive. Nevertheless, Micki’s tenacity yielded two nights at a KOA just outside the park followed by one night at Fishing Bridge inside the park.

Yellowstone offers a wide variety of sights and experiences, including strange landscapes, boiling pools, steam vents, geysers, and animals everywhere. Most of these experiences are not easily replicated elsewhere, so we looked forward to taking in as much as possible.

However, Yellowstone is massive at 2.2 million acres, meaning it is more than twice the size of Glacier. Although roads and accessibility are dramatically better in Yellowstone than Glacier, driving the park consumes a great deal of time. If you were to complete the “Great Loop” road around the park with no stops, you would likely spend five to seven hours of your life only for the privilege of feeling like you missed most of the park by not stopping anywhere.

We had two full days in the park plus one evening and one morning, so we planned accordingly. Even with that planning, the hours of driving left us road-weary at the end of each day. The combined effect of all these long driving days left us wanting a vacation from our vacation. We’ll be back to the daily work schedule and the slower pace next week, but we were determined to soak in as much as possible until then.

Fair warning: This post includes many photos and videos, starting with the scenery and then proceeding to the animals. I wouldn’t blame you for skimming, but if you’re so inclined, let me urge you to pause on the short vides of the bugling elk and the black bear with her two cubs below.

first the scenery, starting with the West Thumb Geyser Basin, which is a geothermal area that rests on the shore of Yellowstone Lake, creating a strange contrast of hot and cold.

We skipped Old Faithful due to time constraints, but the Norris Geyser Basin is another geothermal area that offers a more engaging and surreal experience. We visited early in the morning with very few others present, and the steam rising against the cold sunrise air created a unique serenity.

We also visited Mammoth Terrace toward the north end of the park, which is a geothermal area with a distinctly post-apocalyptic vibe.

We also saw many other beautiful landscapes, waterfalls, and natural beauty, which are typical for Yellowstone.

Most important on this trip were the animals. If you saw our most recent post about Glacier National Park, you will recall our disappointment in not seeing much wildlife.

Yellowstone stepped right up and said, “hold my beer.” We saw massive elk, bison, bears, several unique birds, and something that looked like a coyote or wolf (we can’t be sure). Pictures below grouped by animal.

Elk

The elk were out in force this year and it was rutting season, meaning we were lucky enough to hear several of them bugle fairly close.

Bears

We saw bears! Despite the Yogi Bear phenomenon and the general perception that bears are everywhere in Yellowstone, bears mostly stay hidden. Seeing them is uncommon. We have seen bears previously – including one notable incident where a momma grizzly walked right in front of our truck and stood up to peer inside – but most visit go entirely bearless. This time we chanced to see a momma black bear and her three cubs from a safe distance, which I caught on video.

Bison.

We saw many bison but photographed very few. Bison are often willing to crowd the roadway in Yellowstone, and we have past pictures aplenty. This time they remained mostly distant, which is unusual, so the pictures are few.

Coyote or Wolf or something else?

Early one morning just after dawn we saw a couple other cars stopped, so of course we pulled off and saw this particular confident predator prowling near the pull-off. The picture is grainy because the light was dim and I kept my distance, but this was another very rare sight!