Yellowstone in a day

We are going to Meeteetsee, WY the first week of August. If we only spend
one day in Yellowstone, what are the must - see places? What are other one
day trips we can take. We're already planning to spend a day in Cody.We've
been there before but want to go to the Cody Museum again. Also, can you get
to the Beartooth pass on the way to Red Lodge or is the road closed?

Chris wrote:
We are going to Meeteetsee, WY the first week of August. If we only spend
one day in Yellowstone, what are the must - see places? What are other one
day trips we can take. We're already planning to spend a day in Cody.We've
been there before but want to go to the Cody Museum again. Also, can you get
to the Beartooth pass on the way to Red Lodge or is the road closed?

Can't speak to Beartooth in early August but at the end of the month
last year it was open. And well worth the trip. There was a fair
amount of snow off the sides of the road. I would imagine conditions
change a fair amount from year to year, so it may be worth inquiring
locally (MT Highway Patrol?) before leaving.

I would say the Old Faithful Geyser Basin is the one thing you MUST see
in the park. The famous geyser itself really isn't (IMHO) the most
impressive thing in the area. You should allow yourself an hour or two
to wander around the other thermal features nearby.

--
Doug Smith W9WI
Pleasant View (Nashville), TN EM66
http://www.w9wi.com

Doug Smith W9WI a écrit:

I would say the Old Faithful Geyser Basin is the one thing you MUST see
in the park. The famous geyser itself really isn't (IMHO) the most
impressive thing in the area. You should allow yourself an hour or two
to wander around the other thermal features nearby.

Old Faithful Geyser Basin gives a good idea of what geysers are. For
someone who has limited time, this can allow to skip the other geyser
basins.
I could also suggest Mammoth Hot Springs
http://groups.msn.com/MichelTalbotPh...to&PhotoID=340
and/or the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
http://groups.msn.com/MichelTalbotPh...to&PhotoID=337
The road between Canyon Junction and Fishing Bridge gives good
opportunities to se buffalos.
http://groups.msn.com/MichelTalbotPh...to&PhotoID=335

Doing all this in one day can require a lot of driving. When I went
there last year, I drove one half of the Grand Loop road each day:
Day 1: Canyon - Norris - Mammoth - Tower Falls - Chittenden Road and
back to Canyon the same way.
Day 2: Canyon - Norris - Madison - Old Faithful - West Thumb - Fishing
Bridge - Canyon.
I always made it back to Canyon before sunset.
Considering I don't get up early (I always left the campground around
10), I stopped many times for all thermal features and for photos, I
think you can do it in one day.

Michel Talbot
Montreal

Formula One Photo Database: http://www.F1Pics.net

Chris wrote:
We are going to Meeteetsee, WY the first week of August. If we only spend
one day in Yellowstone, what are the must - see places? What are other one
day trips we can take. We're already planning to spend a day in Cody.We've
been there before but want to go to the Cody Museum again. Also, can you get
to the Beartooth pass on the way to Red Lodge or is the road closed?

Somehow, I can't even begin to imagine Yellowstone in one day. It's a
little like trying to get a comprehensive look at New York City in 3
hours. :-)

www.nps.gov/yell
is the web site for Yellowstone National Park. There's a link for road
conditions that you'll want to check. As of today, you can not take
the Beartooth Highway through to Red Lodge.

Michel Talbot wrote:
Doing all this in one day can require a lot of driving. When I went
there last year, I drove one half of the Grand Loop road each day:
Day 1: Canyon - Norris - Mammoth - Tower Falls - Chittenden Road and
back to Canyon the same way.
Day 2: Canyon - Norris - Madison - Old Faithful - West Thumb - Fishing
Bridge - Canyon.
I always made it back to Canyon before sunset.
Considering I don't get up early (I always left the campground around
10), I stopped many times for all thermal features and for photos, I
think you can do it in one day.

No, I think one day for both loops is unreasonable, particularly if
you've got to drive all the way in from Meeteetse, first. Also, the
road from Chittenden to Canyon will be closed until August 19th, so the
"upper loop" can't be done.

If you've got a lot of driving to do just to get there, a lot could be
said for just spending the half-day or so you will have walking around
the boardwalks of the Upper Geyser Basin. If you've got a little more
time, then drive on up to Mammoth. Personally, I like to be there at
sunset, when the tavertine gets all lit up by the alpenglow. But if
you can't be there for sunset, then go instead to the Grand Canyon of
the Yellowstone. That's the other "classic" area of the park. In
fact, it seemed that most of the paintings from the recent "Drawn to
Yellowstone" exhibit was comprised of paintings and photos of the Grand
Canyon of the Yellowstone. Also, it'll mean a little bit less driving
back to Meeteetse at the end of the day.

TK

"Chris" wrote:

We are going to Meeteetsee, WY the first week of August. If we only spend
one day in Yellowstone, what are the must - see places? What are other one
day trips we can take. We're already planning to spend a day in Cody.We've
been there before but want to go to the Cody Museum again. Also, can you get
to the Beartooth pass on the way to Red Lodge or is the road closed?


Have you any flexibility in your plans. When we went there, I started
with a number of places to visit but eliminated. We decided to
eliminate Cody for more time in Yellowstone.
Are you aware of the distances involved? The roads in Yellowstone are
two lane and get jammed especially when animals are spotted. The first
day we were pulling off to see a bison at a distance; later on it was,
"Oh another buffalo." We still found it interesting at Custer State
Park when the buffalo surrounded the car.
From what I've read the pass will be closed into September but that
was a while ago and it may be open earlier. The highway authority or
whatever it's called there should have more up to date information.

Brian wrote:
From what I've read the pass will be closed into September but that
was a while ago and it may be open earlier. The highway authority or
whatever it's called there should have more up to date information.

The following link contains info on the latest info on the Beartooth
Highway (212) and other Montana roads:

http://www.mdt.state.mt.us/travinfo/

We traveled through Yellowstone about three weeks ago and wanted to take
the Beartooth Highway but it was closed and was expected to be closed
possibly even into October. It was big news in the area (impacts tourism
some) and was going to cost something like $20 million to repair. Here's
the story we saw in the local paper:

http://www.helenair.com/articles/200...1060105_03.txt

We ended up taking the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway out of the park toward
Cody and it was indeed a very scenic highway. So that would be a possible
route into the park from Cody that might be worthwhile on such a short day
trip.

Chris wrote:
We are going to Meeteetsee, WY

Don't know where that is but . . .

Yellowstone, what are the must - see places?

.. . . my choice is the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.
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Icono Clast wrote:
Chris wrote:

We are going to Meeteetsee, WY


Don't know where that is but . . .

It's east of Yellowstone and southeast of Cody. Used to be on a main
route to Yellowstone before the landscape was encumbered by Interstate
highways.