>>2876588
I'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.

>>2876588
Beartooth 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.

>>2876629
I'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 way
I'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
>>2876609
Is 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

>>2876637
Yellowstone is 7-8000 feet higher than wisconsin. Every 1000 feet is like being 300 miles further north.

>>2876637
It'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

>>2876588
Early 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.

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>>2876654
>>2876671
Damn that's pretty cool mountains are so fvcking cool bros
>>2876672
How 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

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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 iceland
I'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.

>>2876588
I 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

>>2876710
Well lucky for me I'm staying east of it!

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>>2876710
I 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. Pretty
5. 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 away
7. Cliff. It's cool
8. Castle. Good
9. Riverside. Scenic
10. Anemone. Funny
9001. 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
>sand
Those are rocks

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>>2876762
There's sand under the rocks
Also I have a little bottle with excess sand
Quite gay, I know
>>2876749
Thanks for this yuge list
Gonna 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 yellowstone
Is 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.

>>2877144
Well it sounds like I would like glacier more lol
I'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!
>>2877180
I'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

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New question for any montanachads that live there
What'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 it
Being 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 places
where?
>What are job opportunities like?
Where? Bozeman- good. Malta- terrible

The 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

>>2877489
There 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
>>2877520
Damn
That sucks
I guess I'm fated to be a texasfaggot
I 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 emigrant
That's the dream. One million dollar home surrounded by mountains and freezing to death in december

>>2877520
>where
I 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

>>2877543
I 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
>billings
Billings 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 emigrant
I 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)

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>>2877559
I will continue to dream until my reality becomes it, in one way or another, anon
>>2877690
Billings 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 emigrant
Nice, 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 lol
Didn't expect my thread to still be up desu
Gonna 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
>>2877144
The 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

>>2879569
As 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.

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>>2876588
In 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 miss

Also 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

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>>2880274
>the litter, made worse by the fact that it cannot be extracted from the hot springs when it gets in there,

not factual lol

https://www.sfgate.com/national-parks/article/trash-yellowstone-hot-springs-22431175.php

>>2880274
>the part that's a desert
huh? The Lamar Valley is not a desert. wtf.

You seem like a seething tard. Trying leaving the parking lots.

>>2880278
Ah 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

>>2880274
the restaurants and lodges and things are all private concessionaires, most under xanterra, and are unaffected by federal nonsense

>>2880280
Really? 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

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>>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

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>>2880278
I 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 >>2880278
also the grand canyon of the yellowstone is beautiful. rising steam columns can create a nice aesthetic on a landscape also

>>2880284
Yeah 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.

>>2880285
yeah 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.

>>2880286
The mammoth elk herd was pretty cool, went out of my cabin the first morning and this big fucking boy was just eating grass outside

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>>2880284
>are super aesthetic to me
for 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/

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>>2880288
for 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

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>>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

>>2880287
careful- its the rut and they are mean and ornery- dont be a boomer statistic

>>2880293
Oh yeah, playing it super cautious I went nowhere neat them

>>2880281
I bet a lot of their workers are foreign seasonals, like at ski resorts, and maybe those have been harder to get under the current admin
The food quality is probably always hit or miss though, if its at a place the mass of public can afford

Well my trip is in two weeks. Still have yet to actually make a rough itinerary lol.... I'll do it this upcoming weekend or so...

>>2879570
>>2879569
Thanks for all of this, very useful set of points in an orginized fashion. I'm just now working on the rough plan and my basic idea is
>one day hitting up the north loop
>another day driving through the south loop but heading for tetons instead of conpleting it
>a third day cleaning up whatever we want in the south loop
>a fourth day is already locked in at spending in billings for a concert
>fifth day I'd like to try to hit a hotspring facility
>sixth day nothing, just wing it, maybe just sight see in redlodge and enjoy the airbnb
Now that I'm actually planning this thing it feels like 6-7 days isnt enough and I'm sure it won't be lol. But I expect to be back at some point anyways, like you said. I'm not gonna be too upset about having to cut something. And while I've heard alot of good things about tetons, that's likely one of the top candidates for being cut IF something has to be cut just due to the distance from our stay. We can consider grabbing a hotel for one night in jackson, and using that opportunity to see a bit more, save some time, and finish the yellowstone clean up the next day, but idk, that might be a bit complicated, idk

>>2880274
Damn. Guess I gotta cancel my trip now. InjuryAnon said yellowstone sucks elk dick

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YELLOWSTONE
>Yellowstone Falls lookout
>Yellowstone Lake
>Norris Basin* (large area with diverse wildlife)
>West Thumb (drive down to tetons - gysers and lake view on the way)
>Mammoth Springs (more like mid springs - drier landscape - some animals tho like mammoth elk herd)
>Lamar valley (into and out of each day along beartooth highway(I think?))
>Porcelain basin* ("required")
>Lower falls hike (steep hike)
7milehole / glacial boulder trail (canyon)
>Hayden valley (bison herds)
>Osprey Falls/Bunsen Peak, Electric peak (hikes north)
>Beaver ponds loop trail (BEARS - AVOID north)

GAYSERS
>Old faithful (touristy. But it's THE gyser, so I should probably hit it)
>Imerial* (hike - grand prismatic overlook & fairy falls)
>Lone Star (hike)
>Great Fountain* (rare superburst)
>Beehive*
>Grand**
>Fountain
>Cliff, Castle, Riverside, Anemone
>Steamboat & Giant - biggest, but unpredictable / inactive

NOT YELLOWSTONE
>Big Horn Canyon

>>hotsprings
>Chico (oldschool type vibes- emigrant)
>Yellowstone hotsprings (south emigrant)
>apparently there's one closer to red lodge according to my dad's research?
>Bechler area (west - all natural? No facilitie? Probably won't engage with, idk)
>Gardiner (north of ys. Is this the same as emigrant?)
>Thermopolis (city of heat?? Wtf o.O)

>>Tetons
>Grand view point*(short hike)
>Schawabacher landing
>Jackson hole (town)
>Mormon row (farm)
>Kelly warm springs (aminals)
>Lake jenny (potential boat tour)
>one restaurant I saw in a travel vlog my parents were watching on tv in jackson hole where they served bison steak

BILLINGS
>yellowstone zoo
>yellowstone museum
>idk I'm mostly going there for a concert

MISC
>I'd like to spend a day camping. Dunno if I can make that work with my group... look into it..
>fishing or hunting at a outdoorsman guys type lodge, idk, was just an idea my cousin came up with
>chew chew senic train ride (NO TICKETS AVAILABLE ;_;)
>Bear Tooth senic drive (is this different from the highway into the park?)

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>>2882032
So that's my write up of everything you anons have said in quick memearrows. I'd ideally go through and look at the locations of these and organize them so they all on separate days and in an order to hit them efficiently by car, stopping at each along the day. As of now it's just the list to do some further resarch. I've asterisked the ones that anons have said are their favorites, so I'll prioritize them when I organize into a proper itinerary if I can. I should also probably do some of my own research, but honestly I trust you guys more than random ass internet blogger faggots. Especially because most of you have given reasons and/or posted pictures of some places, so I find you trustworthy

A couple of other questions I have
>what does entrance into the park look like. Is there a fee? Is it per car per entry? Or is there a pass I have to get or something
>if I wanted to camp for one night in a controlled and safe environment, like a place that has some infrastructure close by, where would the best place to do that be?
>if I wanted to camp in a dangerous place, where would I go?
>is there anything else you guys recommend to do outside of these two big parks? Something around billings, for instance?
Thanks again for all your help. Presume that this thread will still be alive by the time I get back, and if so, I'll of course post some pictures of my travels and recount my little adventures there.

I went in the middle of summer and it sucked ass. Glad I went as it was a bucket list item (ausfag so it was a long way and part of a bigger trip) but I would not go again in that time. So many gooks and boomers, you couldn't focus on the natural beauty due to the yammering of tourists around.

>>2882034
>>what does entrance into the park look like. Is there a fee? Is it per car per entry? Or is there a pass I have to get or something
I went in to West Yellowstone, there's a park office there, you buy the ticket in that. Then you go to the entry to the park and show them the ticket at the tollbooth and you go inside.

>>2882039
>summer
>australian
Found both of your issues there bruce

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>>2882034
>what does entrance into the park look like. Is there a fee? Is it per car per entry? Or is there a pass I have to get or something
Its $35 per car to enter YNP, that pass last for 7 days. Fee is payable at all 5 entrances.

>>2882032
>Bear Tooth senic drive (is this different from the highway into the park?)
No. Its the Beartooth highway from Red Lodge to the NE entrance. Incredible drive but subject to closure at any moment for snow. Its currently summer-like but supposed to rain and snow on Sunday. picrel

>Gardiner (north of ys. Is this the same as emigrant?)
No. Gardiner is the Northern entrance to the Park. Lost of stuff to do just outside the park right there- Check out Jardine.
Emigrant is 25 miles north of Gardiner in paradise valley. not much there except the Old Saloon and some BBQ

>I'd like to spend a day camping.
lots of good camping/campgrounds around Red Lodge on rock creek/west fork rock creek

>where they served bison steak
a lot of restaurants around the region serve Bison- go for the bison chili.

>>2882039
>So many gooks and boomers, you couldn't focus on the natural beauty due to the yammering of tourists around.
holy fuck you retard. Did you ever leave the parking lot? 99% of visitors do not go more than a mile from their car

>>2882073
Thanks for the answers to those questions. Hopefully I hit good weather while there. I land friday afternoon. Hope that forecast is WRONG

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>>2882078
We expect a post trip recap with pics. Have fun. Sun or snow a beautiful time of the year to be here.

>>2882034
>if I wanted to camp in a dangerous place, where would I go?

Sorry I missed this. Somewhere off the Beartooth highway. There are numerous "roads" (2 track dirt) that go from the highway into the backcountry. tons of dispersed camping along these roads some even on lakes, creeks etc...There are a ton of lakes up there within easy hikes. Also, Sunlight Basin is keeno.

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95% packed bros

>>2882169
please keep your sexual proclivities to yourself. Its ok if you're gay just dont brag about it.

>>2882074
Yes we did, and then it was gooks dressed in fresh gear still yammering in that bug language they have.
Geothermal features aside, almost any of the 30+ other parks we saw were better.
I am glad OP is going now, I will never recommend someone to go in summer

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>>2882214
>Yes we did,
Boardwalks dont count
>hurrdurr foriegners scare me
>thinks yellowstone is just thermal features
you're the tourons we laugh at. and then you try to blame others for being retarded lol.

Beartooth highway is closed
It's over

Red Lodge was never the place to be based out of if visiting Yellowstone, too far, deceptively so given how slow that pass is even at the best of times.

>>2882297
I had no other option
The primary reason for this trip was always a concert in billings anyways

>>2882297
Also, I couldn't find a better airbnb for 8 people than there for the price I got. Everything closer was twice as expensive

well in good news it's not actually any farther (time wise) to take the longer way in via Cody or Gardiner, except to Lamar Valley

>>2882313
Current plan is to go on chief joseph senic drive instead to reach the NE entrance. Doing the north loop on one day and the south loop on another. It's an 7-8h drive like that, only counting the drive. Meaning it'll prolly be a 12h day or so each time. The only way to save time is to either camp there or get a lodge for a night inside, but all I saw were 800 for one night for our party lol. So that's not happening

Here is the condesned list of the route. After making this, I did change up some stuff, but it's all kinda looseform anyways. But this is what I'm gonna use as the general plan

NORTH LOOP
>silver gate north east
>>BTH 2h (closed?)
>>cheif joseph senic byway 2h20m
>barronette peak OL
>lamar valley
>petrified tree
>mammoth springs
>osprey falls/bunsen peak
>big horn pass
>beaver lake picnic and obsidian cliff
>NORRIS BASIN (the center of this day) Porcelain basin - steamboat - norris geyser, etc*
>canyon village
>north, if possible back up to tower
>tower fall and river overlook
>back to red lodge
>8-9h of drive wtf man

DRIVE DOWN TO TETONS
>SE entrance
>fishing bridge
>yellowstone lake
>west thumb geyser basin
>jackson lake overview
>grand viewpoint*
>teton park road
>lake jenny
>schawabacher landing
>mormon row
>kelly warm springs
>stay in jackson for a night 6h drive >return to red lodge 11h lmao no way

>SOUTH LOOP
>return from jackson OR starting from redlodge, either way, get to West Thumb
>lone star geyser trailhead (hike)
>yellowstone caldera
>OLD FAITHFUL
>grand geyser*
>beehive*
>whatever else is here
>black sand basin trailhead
>fairy falls trailhead - prismatic spring - imperial geyser*
>great fountain (closed lol)
>madison junction - through norris - back to canyon village
>lower and upper falls overlook*
>grand view
>hayden valley overlook
>retern to red lodge
>if started from red lodge - 9h
>if from jackson - 10h

>>2882318
What it's ACTUALLY going to look like, after thinking about it, is that we're going to do the east side of the north loop, go down and through the middle, then do the west side of the south loop, on one day. This way I prioritize some stuff in the south loop while also being able to use the middle pass through the mountains that's supposed to close on monday. IF it's not already closed by the time I there. So basically doing an reverse "s" on the loops, entering in NE and exiting SE.
Then, on a second day, do the reverse. Enter SE, exit NE, and do an "s" this time to cover the rest of the park.

This plan is because of two things
>there are parts of the south loop I want to prioritize, specifically imperial and grand/old faithful geysers
>that mountain pass in the north loop supposedly closes monday, so I'd want to make use of it to see what's on it, which won't be possible later in the week
>if the weather is good saturday, everything's good. If it gets worse later on, we may not get a second opportunity to go to the park

Also I checked and boat rentals or tours are off the table. Way too late in the season for it unfortunately. I checked yellowstone, jackson, and jenny.
Also. Tetons in all likelyhood is just going to be dropped from the itinerary completely. It would require staying in jackson for a night to not be stressed on time and travel. It will probably remain for the future...

Lmao
I'm fucked
Seeing rain all weekend there now
LOL

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My life is a comedy

The single week in october that it decides to rain and snow, when this entire year has been hot and dry. That's the week I'm going lmao.

I also can hardly sleep. I always get anxious like this before a trip. This is quite gay. I've only slept 3 hours and my flight is at 10 lol

>>2882318
Every thing takes longer than you think. And there are always distractions- if you see wolves on a carcass you will probably hang around and watch and mess up your schedule…

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Posting from the airbnb's wifi... I'm exhausted. I've been awake since 1am since I was anxious about the trip. The flight was decidedly uncomfy. We had alot of trouble with the car rental. Very long story. We ended up having to drive 2h in basically pitch black because of that. Very stressful drive. Now we're here, and the place feels nice, but there are a few things that are a bit of an issue...
Idk bros. I have no idea how in the hell I will be able to do yellowstone...

>>2882369
Today is transistion day- the snow will be tomorrow and Monday. so get out and enjoy it. Embrace the bad weather as it keeps tourists away and the critters get more active

>>2882391
We cant go today because my cousin missed his flighf and isn't here lol

>>2882398
I am sure there are cool things to do right around you- where are you?

>>2882402
I'm in red lodge

>>2882408
just take a short drive up the west fork of rock creek- some campgrounds and trailheads up there- probably pretty empty. or go check out the ski area. rock dodge

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>>2882409
I may check it out
But today I have to make a long drive to pick up my cousin who fucked up his flights lmao. When he gets here we'll be more able to do more stuff
If anything, I'm still enjoying this area. It's very nice

>>2882411
its quite possible you wake up to snow on the ground - if not tomorrow then monday

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>>2882413
Well, we just got back from a nightdrive all the way from bozeman again. We picked up my cousin, who was late because be retardmaxxed too hard and missed his flight yesterday. It was a fun drive, and afterwards we got into the hottub at around 1am with a few beers and while we were there it started snowing, so it was actually super super cool. I don't have a picture because it would have been too dark to take anything, but it was awesome. So yeah it's snowing here now. It seems like were going to do yellowstone on Wednesday. Maybe tomorrow if the weather clears up by then, I'm assuming they're going to plow the roads immediately, but we just don't know. If our parents don't want to risk it while there's snow here, we wont

>>2876588
Make sure to brush up on your mandarin because there is always bud loads of chinks in Yellowstone who don’t speak a word of English.

>>2882461
Bus*** loads

>>2882461
>nonsensicaltardation
not at this time of year. they are strictly fair weather fans.

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Beautiful landscapes

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>>2882484
IMO and experience, Montana and Idaho are as beautiful as Alaska even without the ocean, and much better places to live than AK. Too bad they're both full however.

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>>2882506

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>>2882507

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>>2882508

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Well, this is it bros
In about 5h I'll be on my way to yellowstone's SE entrance. Thank you for all of your suggestions over the thread. It's been fun to talk about and learn about the park and everything. However, the vast majority of things will have to be skipped, just due to time. We have one day for sure in the park, perhaps we may do a second the next day. But tomorrow, the plan is
>SE entrance
>drive alongside yellowstone lake, potentially stop at a picnic grounds and have breakfast sandwiches there
>old faithful and co.
>grand prismatic and if the hike is not too far, imperial
>norris & Porcelain basin
>yellowstone canyon / upper and lower falls area
>return home through the south loop
Not using the north loop because we're not certain how difficult chief joseph's senic drive would be and my dad feels more comfortable on the highway through cody, especially in the early morning when we're on the way there. Beartooth is closed anyways.
The only thing we're missing, really, is lamar valley and mammoth springs. That were somewhat high on my list as some anons have said. But there will be another valley between the canyon area and the lake that should have pleanty of aminals
Weather looks sunny and 50° during the day, which is basically perfect weather
Had a bison burger today. It was kinda expensive and the patty was a bit thin, but my aunt also made some mici sorta with them (basically just grilled meat sticks)
It tasted very good, but I can't exactly describe the difference between this and a normal cow. It felt very cow-like

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In other news, just got back from the concert which originally spawned this trip. Had an amazing time. After their opening set the basist from my favorite band gave me the set list, his guitar pick, and shook my hand as he left the stage. Pretty kewl