Hello everyoneOffboard faggot here, I'm going to montana in October of this year. Gonna be staying in redlodge, which is an hour away from yellowstoneAnyone have advice about the best spots to visit? It's a huge park and while it won't be the only thing I'll visit, Im definitely going to try to spend maybe 3 or 4 days there. I'm going for 7 in total. I'd also appreciate any suggestions for other things to do in southern montana, mostly, but I am open to seeing parts of wyoming, tooI'd like to be able to see some kind of big lake and go on a boat or something. Hotsprings would be cool. I assume there are atleast some spots as it's a le supervolcanoSome things I've looked up already are>bear tooth senic drive>a couple trails around red lodge>a senic dinner train I couldn't get tickets for :(>a zoo in billings to be able to see all the yellowstone animals in a more controlled and safer settingAny suggestions and advice would be appreciated!
>>2876588I've never been to Yellowstone that late in the season but I know they keep the north valley plowed all winter and I would assume they keep the road south to old faithful plowed pretty late. There's tons of geysers on that road, and also I think the falls lookou is on that road. That's 75% of the must sees. Yellowstone lake will probably be open but that's farther down south. The one big touristy "mountain" hike will probably be snowed in by then. The real fun stuff in Yellowstone is the back country stuff so check with your bougie resort if they do horse trips.
>>2876588Beartooth Highway usually closes around mid October. Meaning you'll be driving much further than you think from Red Lodge to get to the park.
October is a great time as long as the roads stay open since crowds are a fraction of what they are in summer. Try to see other predictable geysers besides Old Faithful, most of them are way better but you might have to wait a few hours. Grand Geyser is probably the best bang for your buck, fairly reliable and super impressive. Imperial Geyser is a nice hike, takes you past the super popular Grand Prismatic overlook and Fairy Falls, but very few continue to the pretty geyser and pool. Lone Star geyser is cool. Can't go wrong with the usual hotspots, Yellowstone Falls, Norris Basin, West Thumb, Mammoth Springs, especially with the smaller crowds. It's a huge park and Red Lodge is actually pretty far, like 3 or 4 hours probably, if Beartooth Pass is open at least it'll be a nice drive and you'll likely be passing Lamar Valley in the morning and evening, which is great for wildlife.Probably way too late in the season for any boat tours or rentals anywhere, just seeing a big lake though Yellowstone Lake is beautiful. Only hot springs I've actually entered in Yellowstone were deep in the backcountry in the Bechler area. Boiling River used to be the accessible place but it's unavailable now due to floods. There are some hot springs near Gardiner, or you can go all the way down to Thermopolis, which is a pretty cool place.consider Bighorn Canyon for a day too.
>>2876629I'll be there 9-16. Hopefully it will be open>>2876634>3-4h, well, the place I'm staying is outside of red lodge more towards it, and google maps says the distance to the entrance to the park is an hour. I assume that it will be 3-4 to get to whatever destination I wanna get to in the park, but surely there's tons of stuff to see on the wayI'll look into those spots and work them into my itinerary. I'm going with family and we're gonna have two separate cars, so planning things will be a bit of a pain, but it should be fun>>2876609Is it really gonna be that snowy already? I live in shitcago and during the fall sometimes I go up to wisconsin in october. That's around when the colors start to change. Dont get snow here until december usually. How much futher north is yellowstone compared to me? Doesn't seem that much on the map
>>2876637Yellowstone is 7-8000 feet higher than wisconsin. Every 1000 feet is like being 300 miles further north.
>>2876637It's high elevation bro. Beartooth pass might be open if you're lucky, but at least the pass being closed wouldn't actually make your drive into most of Yellowstone much if at all longer (time wise) since it's a windy mountain pass. But it's the most convenient and scenic and best for wildlife
>>2876588Early October is the best time. Nice and cool and nobody there.Required: Go to the porcelain basin. If you like animals go to Lamar valley.Walk right by Old Faithful its tourist trash.IDK about boat rides, there's a cool boat ride in Lake Jenny (Tetons) the drive down to the Tetons is pretty too. Staying outside the park will add a lot of driving, camping saves a lot of time.
>>2876654>>2876671Damn that's pretty cool mountains are so fvcking cool bros>>2876672How far away is the tetons? I've heard of that place too when my dad was doing some basic research. Unfortunately I won't be able to camp prolly because half of my group are older (parents and cousin's parents) and none of us really have any experience with it. Especially not wintercamping. If I were alone or just with my cousin we'd be more inclined to try it out
Also, do you guys know of any place I can steal some SAND?this is some sand I stole from the black sand beach in icelandI'd like to steal and collect sand from across the world wherever I go
>>2876674>How far away is the tetons?Yellowstone is a huge park, so it really depends on your itinerary. If you're going down to West Thumb (some cool geysers and a great lake view) then you may as well go to the Tetons and make it a whole day trip. There's also Jackson Hole down there which has plenty of hotels and restaurants. There's a very picturesque farm there to visit as well (Mormon Row). > I won't be able to camp prolly because half of my group are older (parents and cousin's parents)Fair enough, if you have a big group it's probably better to find something in the park or West Yellowstone or something just so that you're not driving the same route every morning.>Especially not wintercamping. I wouldn't call this winter yet really. It'll be a bit chilly bit but no worries about snow especially this year.
>>2876588I was literally just there, the east half is fantastic, grand canyon is sick and especially the lamar valley. bring some good optics/camera. I thought the whole west half was basically lame, geysers suck (smelly steam and you cant see much) and are full of fat people. east half is awesome. the tetons are an hour south and definitely worth checking out, some of the prettiest hikes on earth
>>2876710Well lucky for me I'm staying east of it!
>>2876710I think geysers are extremely cool. Old Faithful is relatively quite lame though.>my geyser rankings that I've seen 1. Great Fountain. even the normal bursts are great but the rare superburst is the coolest thing I've ever seen, especially since the day I saw it the road to it was closed to vehicles and it went off early in the morning and I was the only one there. Also, just the pool is pretty, pic related.2. Beehive. It's like Old Faithful but a million times better, mostly because you can see it from so close, but it's also just bigger and better too.3. Grand. The biggest reliable geyser.4. Fountain. Pretty5. Imperial. "backcountry" geyser, it's almost constantly erupting/bubbling and is situated in a pretty and colorful pool. It's not very powerful though.6. Lone Star. "backcountry" geyser, it's a super easy hike or bike to get there but that's enough to keep most (perhaps all if you're lucky) tourists away7. Cliff. It's cool8. Castle. Good9. Riverside. Scenic10. Anemone. Funny9001. Old Faithful. have to be 400 feet away, surrounded by massive hordes of people, tons of infrastructure around you, nothing feels natural, and the geyser isn't even that big or impressive.Still so many more to see, mostly unpredictable ones though.>tfw first visited Yellowstone in 2018 when Steamboat and Giant were very active (still unpredictable and only like once a week)The two tallest active geysers in the park/world, the me of today would absolutely wait for them for multiple days. I've been visiting Yellowstone pretty regularly since 2021 but as I get more into geysers and willing to wait for them these two have gone back to extremely unpredictable states where they won't go off for months or years, that's a lot harder to wait for.Also, the Bechler area is in the west half and is great, tons of amazing waterfalls, mostly deep in the backcountry and away from any crowds.East half is great too. Fuck I love Yellowstone
>>2876676>sandThose are rocks
>>2876762There's sand under the rocksAlso I have a little bottle with excess sandQuite gay, I know>>2876749Thanks for this yuge listGonna look into these and their locations, hopefully I'll be able to plan an itinerary to get as many of them as I can
I have heard from a source today that glacier national park is better than yellowstoneIs this true??
>>2877108"better" is subjective. Its depends on what you like. Glacier has much more scenic mountains and is much more of a true alpine setting. Yellowstone is not as scenic tho it does have mnts but its does have the largest collection of geysers and thermal features in the world as well the largest collection of fauna as its the center of one of the largest intact temperate ecosystems in the world. They different but both amazing
Bring winter gear just in case. I used to work at Grand Teton to the south. Sometimes October was lovely, other times we would get blizzards.
>>2877144Well it sounds like I would like glacier more lolI'm a sucker for mountains. I don't think I'll be able to reach all the way up there this trip. It's on the other side of the state!>>2877180I'm planning on bringing all fall clothes but also with some underarmor type stuff and boots. I'm not expecting snow, but I'm also not going to be unprepared
New question for any montanachads that live thereWhat's living there like? It seems like a dream to me, but dreams are often divorced from reality. I've been looking at some places on zillow and the prices seem comparable to over here in illinois, which is kinda shocking desu, but the taxes are way way lower. What are job opportunities like? If I were to get a home for me and my parents, around 300k, would I be able to find work as a mostly unskilled dude to support all of us. They're close to retirement and will have pension coming in but I'll be providing everything ontop of that. We are getting more and more distressed about staying in illinois after they retire because taxes are just insane over here. There are places that are 7k yearly for 2b2b townhomes. It's just retarded. Meanwhile I'm seeing taxes at under 1k yearly over in billings and surrounding places. What's the infrastructure like? What are the people like? Tired of being in a city full of "chicagoans" personally... my parents arent even thinking about moving there, their eyes are on t*xas, but who know, maybe after our trip they will think differently about itBeing sandwiched between yellowstone and glaicer sounds like a lovely way to live
>>2877489>What's living there like?depends on where. its a huge state. 4th largest>>2877489>I've been looking at some placeswhere?>What are job opportunities like?Where? Bozeman- good. Malta- terribleThe places you would want to live are not nearly as cheap as you think. Its cold as fuck in the winter (-45F), unless your skilled in contruction, you will be stuck with service jobs like mowing lawns in the summer and plowing driveways in the winter. Please go to Texas
>>2877489There aren't really any high paying jobs, residents hate outsiders and new transplants. You definitely cant afford to live in the western part of the state and you definitely won't fit in culturally. Enjoy tejas.
>>2877525>>2877520DamnThat sucksI guess I'm fated to be a texasfaggotI don't agree with you that I wouldn't fit in with the culture though. I hate chicago/illinois culture and politics and would do my best to assimilate with my surroundings. But I guess living there in any kind of luxurious capacity, which would be the dream, would require me to either have enough money in my dragon hoard or have an extremely rare artist type job, like a best selling author or something... maybe someday...I looked into housing prices for emigrantThat's the dream. One million dollar home surrounded by mountains and freezing to death in december
>>2877520>whereI was mainly looking around billings and the smaller towns outside of it along the highways. When I scrolled west on the map the listings got rarer as they went out of my price range settings. Ideally, though, I'd want to live outside of a town mostly surrounded by nature. Cabin in the woods type feel. But im just dreaming now
>>2877543I thought internet cynicism had killed off your kind. I mocked you once, but now I see you like the elves on the way to the grey havens. Continue on, you delusional vagueposter king.
>>2877544>billingsBillings gets a bad rap but it is the largest city in the State. Its not nearly as gentrified/californicated as BNZ/MSSLA...which means its cheaper but also more sketch. Its location isnt too bad as your only 2hrs to the Beartooth's, 2hrs to the Missouri breaks, 1.5hrs to the Powder river- it has the Yellowstone river flowing thru it. I imagine you could find a decent place with some space out near Laurel for not too bad...If you really want cheap and land- try Lewistown in central montana. You likely could get a job easily cutting hay
>>2877543>I looked into housing prices for emigrantI have property near emmigrant. Most of the land that isnt NF is owned by Arthur Blank. (found of Home depot- owner of the ATL Falcons)
>>2877559I will continue to dream until my reality becomes it, in one way or another, anon>>2877690Billings was the only one I was looking into because I only really knew about that one. Guess I'll get a feel for it when I visit>>2877691>I have property near emigrantNice, anon! From the pictures I've seen that valley looks amazing. Is there a hotspring facility near there? Some place called chicho or something?
>>2877984>Is there a hotspring facility near there? Some place called chicho or something?There are 2 developed hot spring facilities- Chico- old school place with dining and rooms and a newer place - yellowstone hot springs farther south closer to the park. The valley is aptly named but it is only for visiting not staying lol
Guess this is a real slow board lolDidn't expect my thread to still be up desuGonna start doing some actual in-depth looking into places to go now that my trip is only a month away. Thanks again for all your suggestions bros, shall be trying to work some specific geysers into my itinerary
>>2877108>>2877144The East side of Glacier is truly one of the best places in the lower 48 for backcountry hiking and adventuring. The West side has great scenery, but feels a lot like the Old Faithful area. If you ever make it up there, prioritize the Many Glacier Valley and Two Medicine area.For yellowstone, depending on the weather conditions/ closures the Lower Falls hike is pretty accessible, though very steep. If you have the time, Seven Mile Hole/ Glacial Boulder trail takes you into the canyon. I don't quite remember where the bison are in Oct, but Hayden Valley is typically a good spot to see larger herds. Norris is my favorite front country geyser basins because it's quite large, has variety, and strangely the crowds are never as bad there. Swan lake area is beautiful too.If you're just sticking to the road, the Tetons can be seen in about 3/4 of a day stopping at every roadside thing. Which in Oct, you may be forced to do. A short hike that is worth the hill climb is Grand View Point. It's one of the best for getting an elevated panoramic of the range. Schawabacher Landing is popular for a reason too. Kelly Warm Springs behind Mormon Row will probably be a great place to spot wildlife around this time of year. To really give the park justice though, it's worth it have a dedicated trip. GTNP has amazing hikes and extremely accessible high country
>>2879569As for travel time, last summer it took all day + into the night to take my family from GTNP around the yellowstone grand loop and back again, only really stopping at the major points.There's so much in just yellowstone that you won't be able to see it all, but if you want to work it into your trip, Cody is not a bad town with plenty to eat, history to dive into, and a museum that's a day trip in and of itself.Lastly, I'd recommend focusing more on quality than quantity. Breathe in deeply and really take in what's in front of you-- the rest of it will be there waiting for you when you come back. Hope you have a great time with your folks, anon.t. someone who's worked at all three parks.
>>2876588In Yellowstone currently and Im honestly fucking hating it.Been to the Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce Canyon, Dry Tortuga's, and all over Arizona. Place is goddamn stupid boomer central and the sheer accessibility of it all means there's garbage and rude unpleasant boomers in quantities well beyond my experiences at any other national park/general wilderness in the American West. Every single toilet seat in the entire park is shit smeared because of incompetent ass boomers. And God; the litter, made worse by the fact that it cannot be extracted from the hot springs when it gets in there, total boomer death.I'm also staying inside the park and because of Donny's stupid fucking budget cuts eating has been a nightmare for every single meal. Every restaurant is short staffed and food quality is completely hit or missAlso North Yellowstone, the part that's a desert, is genuinely so fucking ugly compared to every desert I have ever been in. Just an endless sea of pale green and unremarkable hills.South Yellowstone is much prettier, but even then, I definitely like several other parks aesthetics way more.At this point I'm genuinely hoping the volcano erupts, because even though it'll kill me, my remains will be flung far, far the fuck away from this national park
>>2880274>the litter, made worse by the fact that it cannot be extracted from the hot springs when it gets in there,not factual lolhttps://www.sfgate.com/national-parks/article/trash-yellowstone-hot-springs-22431175.php>>2880274>the part that's a deserthuh? The Lamar Valley is not a desert. wtf. You seem like a seething tard. Trying leaving the parking lots.
>>2880278Ah ok, so you can harvest it but only occasionally It's still a record breaking amount of trash. It's way grosser than any national park I've ever been to. And I'm frustrated because -I- can't do any garbage picking like I normally do
>>2880274the restaurants and lodges and things are all private concessionaires, most under xanterra, and are unaffected by federal nonsense
>>2880280Really? Well in that case did Xanterra start private equitying the shit out of their stuff in the parks? Im genuinely not spiteful enough to assume it was Yellowstone specific issue I figured it was some enshittification that hit the parks at large
>>2880274>I definitely like several other parks aesthetics way more.no one goes to Yellowstone for "aesthetics"- the Tetons are that way>>>>>Yellowstone is about thermal features and critters not pretty mnts. If you complain about boomers thats on you. 99% of visitors do not go more than a mile from their car. Whats your excuse?
>>2880282>no one goes to Yellowstone for "aesthetics"- the Tetons are that way>>>>> Learned that the hard way lol, the landscape can be pretty but a lot of the times it's just a scaled up ozarks>Yellowstone is about thermal features and critters not pretty mnts. If you complain about boomers thats on you. 99% of visitors do not go more than a mile from their car. Whats your excuse?Tbh I have an injury and my group keeps abandoning me so whereas with Zion I could take the bus route and dabble into whatever route I want on my own, here im just kinda abandoned at the various cabins and hotels because ain't much I walking distance besides boardwalks full of mobility scooters
>>2880278I think he means the Mammoth Springs area, it is definitely drier than the rest of the park to be fair, though hardly a desert. It's my least favorite section of the park too, the springs are kind of neat I guess but not spectacular like the active geysers are. Its just a small area though, just 10 minutes south and you get two of the best hikes in the park to Electric Peak and to Bunsen Peak/Osprey Falls. I do notice litter (or things like hats or sunglasses) sometimes but not crazy often, not any more than at like overlooks at places like the grand canyon or bryce or whatever. And once you get into the backcountry in yellowstone it truly feels more "wild" than the backcountry at virtually any other national park in the lower 48 at least, it's so easy to get away from the crowds at Yellowstone if you want to, and I think it feels wilder because you're always concerned about the wildlife that you may encounter.>>2880282>no one goes to Yellowstone for "aesthetics"nah the open valleys and meadows withe forested hills and mountains in the background are super aesthetic to me. you just posted it >>2880278also the grand canyon of the yellowstone is beautiful. rising steam columns can create a nice aesthetic on a landscape also
>>2880284Yeah it was Mammoth springs. The springs were neat but I found the countryside around to be really drab.The guide we worked for animal spotting referred to it as a high altitude desert so I went off that. The critters were pretty cool, we saw a mountain goat thats way out of his usual ecosystem he'd been tracking for a few days.Wish I wasn't injured I keep missing all the good hikes because of flare ups, and the good hikes would probably aid my opinion of it. But I still maintain the normalfag spaces are way less pleasant than other parks I've been to.
>>2880285yeah the wildlife in that area is pretty good for whatever reason, you often see elk, pronghorn, bighorns and mountain goats while driving between Gardiner and Mammoth. Also there's the elk herd that just always hangs out in Mammoth itself.
>>2880286The mammoth elk herd was pretty cool, went out of my cabin the first morning and this big fucking boy was just eating grass outside
>>2880284>are super aesthetic to mefor sure. me also. this guy seems lame. But still if you are looking for Teton or Glacier-like scenic beauty you will be disappoint. Most of the caldera is just a flat, pine covered plateau. Its all kino tho. I love Mammoth in winter. I rarely visit beween June and early Sept/
>>2880288for me it's Norris, love it especially in the early morning or late evening, it's not crowded at all and I think it's the most "scenic" geothermal area. To be fair going early or late is always the best to avoid crowds, but Norris is practically empty sometimes at those hours
>>2880285>Mammoth springs.There is literally a great hike that starts right behind the hotel. Beaver Ponds loop trail. Lots of griz back there- careful. it is drier in that part of the park but still awesome with Mt Everts being massive and the Yellowstone river running at the base. There used to be swimmable hot springs there along the gardiener river but they got washed away in the floods
>>2880287careful- its the rut and they are mean and ornery- dont be a boomer statistic
>>2880293Oh yeah, playing it super cautious I went nowhere neat them
>>2880281I bet a lot of their workers are foreign seasonals, like at ski resorts, and maybe those have been harder to get under the current adminThe food quality is probably always hit or miss though, if its at a place the mass of public can afford
