yellowstone and tetons
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2022-08-16 10:38:39
yellowstone and tetons
The journey begins in Bozeman, Montana, and ends in Jackson, Wyoming, across the western edge of Yellowstone. You'll see erupting geysers, including Old Faithful, in the snow-covered meadows. Herds of bison forage in the snowy landscape, sometimes following hungry gray wolves. Activities such as snowshoeing, dog sledding and ice skating are great for families and adults, sports fitness .
1. Preface and Precautions
The official website of Yellowstone Park https://www.nps.gov/yell/index.htm, I like the page of the highway very much. I will check it before departure every day to avoid road closures and delays in travel.
Roads: https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/parkroads.htm.
Part of the reference is to Google the first link of the travel guide in Yellowstone, which feels pretty good.
http://travel.sina.com/article/post/12351
1.1 Tickets for Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park are $35 per car, free to pass through the park gates within seven days. You can buy tickets offline when you enter the park. When buying tickets online, be sure to pay attention to the email sent to your mailbox. There is a QR code in the attachment. If managers have to look at ticket information, this attachment means everything. (Prepare in advance. Generally, there is no signal at the entrance of the park. If you can’t load it, you can’t download it again. Buying tickets online is really troublesome.)
1.2 There may be changes in the roads in the park. For example, if a certain door is not open, it is recommended to take a look at the park road map on the official website before setting out every day.
1.3 The roads in the park are quite open. The east, north and south sides of the park are relatively steep, and the roads on the south and north sides are older, so you need to be careful when driving.
1.4 Since the road is easy to drive, you don't necessarily need an SUV or a "big car", and a small car is no problem. But it's really cool to drive a powerful car. Enjoy driving!
1.5 Note that there are many precautions in the park. Be sure to take a look at the official website. For example, I remember that if there is a bison, you will not be allowed to get off the car, and you cannot approach the bear for 100 meters.
1.6 There is no signal in the park, there are only a few places where you can make calls, and there is no traffic (no traffic at all, unless you connect to the local hotel's Wifi). But don't worry, navigation can be turned on. Note that you should use Google Maps to download offline maps of the park and surrounding areas in advance, so that you can see the route when navigating. (The map that comes with the Apple mobile phone cannot be downloaded offline)
1.7 It is recommended to bring a thicker piece of clothing, preferably a down jacket. However, you can investigate the temperature first. It may not be cold in August. Anyway, think about the problem of clothes, the wind is blowing in the mountains, and it is very cold.
1.8 It is recommended to bring a little water and food in the car. If the car breaks down, you can hold on for a while and wait for rescue. Police support in the park is fast, but be prepared. But there is no need for two cars to move together, and one car is more comfortable.
1.9 I didn't see a place to buy food in the park, and I didn't seem to have anything to drink, so on the basis of preparing extra food and water, I went to buy lunch and water every day before departure, and arrange for drinks, coffee, etc. Otherwise you will be hungry.
1.10 This article is just for fun, don't scold me if anything goes wrong. I'm writing this "suggestion" based on what I've seen, heard, and thought. It's perfectly normal for you to have a different opinion. Isn't the charm of travel lies in the uncertainty and the search for a wonderful feeling that is unique to you? In short, go out and play or take responsibility for yourself.
2. Where the plane landed
If you drive directly in, you can skip this section and just watch the accommodation.
Figure 1. Map location of Yellowstone Teton Park and the surrounding three towns (Google Maps)
Figure 1 shows the relationship between the three towns and Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park. The three towns refer to West Yellowstone, Cody, and Jackson. The big red circle at the top refers to the approximate area of Yellowstone Park, and the small red circle at the bottom refers to the approximate area of Grand Teton Park.
If you fly there by plane, most of them fly to West Yellowstone, but the ticket price is slightly more expensive; or to Cody, the ticket price is slightly cheaper, which is also very recommended; but I don’t think there is any flight to Jackson, maybe I didn’t find it. .
To arrive near Yellowstone by plane from all over the United States, most of the combined tickets are to fly to Salt Lake City or Denver to transfer, and then arrive at the small airports in the three small towns above. So there is another way, that is, fly to Salt Lake City, rent a car and drive over, and Denver is the same. But it takes 4 hours to get to Yellowstone from Salt Lake City (Google Maps Navigation shows) and 8 hours from Denver. Friends who need to stop by Denver and Salt Lake City for a turn can also arrange this. but! but! There is a very bad disadvantage here. Car rental companies around Yellowstone Park may ask to rent it back on the spot! For example, the car we rented in Cody needs to be driven back to the original car rental point after the journey, otherwise the car rental company will not rent it. So be sure to investigate!
ps: The above statement is not very sure, it is recommended to confirm it yourself. For example, our rental car is from Budget company, which is located at Cody Airport. It is not allowed to change cars in different places (otherwise you will be fined), so it is very likely that there is no such thing as "renting a car from Salt Lake City to start the trip and end the car return in Cody". That way, if you rent a car from Salt Lake City or Denver, you end up driving back. So we didn't choose to fly to Salt Lake City, we flew directly to Cody, and ended up flying home from Cody. Cody's Hertz is the same and cannot be changed in different places. As for the policy of the car rental company in West Yellowstone, we do not know, but it is estimated that it is similar.
The most important thing is that you must rent a car when the plane lands, otherwise it will be very troublesome to arrive at the booked hotel. There are no uber, takeout, and public transportation. The town is very small, so you can only drive there to eat and buy things. Unless you want to walk 40 minutes on the road in the dark like we did to get to the hotel, then rent a car when you land.
3. Where to stay, eat and shop
3.1 It is highly recommended to live in West Yellowstone because it is very close. West Yellowstone Town is just outside the south gate of the park. From here, it is easy to reach the attractions on the west side of Yellowstone Park, and the main attractions of the park are distributed on the west side. The town is quite small, and it was built purely for tourism (in my humble opinion), and there is nothing delicious, but it has everything, and the small supermarket can buy everything necessary.
3.2 Cody, although the small town is bigger than West Yellowstone, and there is a big Walmart, but it is not big enough to have a bus and an uber. It takes at least an hour to drive from Cody to the east gate of the park, plus there are actually no major attractions on the east side, and it takes another hour to drive from the east gate to the lake, so it is not recommended to live in Cody. But Cody is indeed cheaper and has more houses.
3.3 Jackson (Jackson), with Grand Teton Park is very good, a town with a very artistic sense, that is, things are very expensive, and there are many luxury jewelry stores that buy leather, jewelry and art. It is said that it is the meeting place of the financial summit. It is very suitable as a base camp for old Americans to ski, fish, raft and boat. It's beautiful anyway, but it's not necessary unless you go to Grand Teton Park. Housing is not cheap.
3.4 Hotel in Yellowstone Park: I didn't book it at all anyway, haha, it's very popular and quite expensive.
3.5 Camping: Camping is also possible inside Yellowstone Park, and there are many camps available. But be sure to go to the official website to see if the camp is open.
4. Time, travel itinerary and route planning, including introduction of attractions and recommended play time
I think it takes two days to visit Yellowstone Park. In one day, you can only see three or four spots such as the most famous Grand Prism, but there are about six must-see spots in this park. Nature lovers feel that it is difficult to choose one day.
But if I give Huangshi three days and go around as much as possible, I feel a little numb again. After all, it is famous for its springs and volcanic geology. I am tired of watching too much. Many Basins are really repetitive. However, three days is very suitable for the "nothing to do" play method. The real and correct way to open it is three days, about two to three o'clock every day, and then drive the car. Wherever you see a good scenery, stop to take pictures or enjoy it, it is very comfortable . Especially in the morning, you can get up late, and then play until seven o'clock in the evening before returning (the latitude is high, and it is still bright at nine o'clock).
It is recommended to consider the Grand Teton National Park, which is very close to the south. It is worth visiting. It only takes a day and it is very profitable. We went in mid-to-late May, so Yellowstone can also see the snow-capped mountains, but if we go in August and September, most of the snow in Yellowstone will melt, and if you want to see the snow-capped mountains, you have to go to Grand Teton.
4.1 Recommended itinerary:
My own trip (compact essence version): 3 days in Yellowstone, 1 day in Grand Teton.
Day 1 - Cody: Fly to Cody and stay.
Day 2 - Yellowstone: Enter through the east gate, look at Yellowstone Lake, then go to Mud Volcano, Hayden Valley, Artists Paintpots, then go out west gate to live in West Yellowstone. (This day is not a must-see attraction)
Day 3 - Yellowstone: Mammoth hot spring, Norris Geyser Basin, Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, overnight stay in West Yellowstone.
Day 4 - Yellowstone: Fountain Paint Pot, Grand Prismatic Spring, Old Faithful, West Thumb Geyser Basin. Then drive two hours south to the town of Jackson.
Day 5 - Grand Teton: Climb the mountains, take pictures by the lakes, and see the snow-capped mountains. Then return to Cody Town.
Day 6 - Cody: Fly home
I recommend that I can remove the itinerary of the second day, and the attractions of the second day are optional. The three points on the third day are scattered, and it takes some time to drive, but in general, the third day is relatively easy, and the fourth day is the hardest, but it is really fun, essence. I feel that three, four, five days is the best travel process. As long as the route is arranged according to the landing location of your own plane, there is no problem.
You can refer to this picture of Meilutong, which is very clear. But the "playable time" on this graph is a bit exaggerated.
4.2 Recommended attractions in Yellowstone Park
4.2.1 Grand Prismatic Spring. Must-see attractions. The tour time is 0.5-1 hour. Spa category.
The strongest cards in Yellowstone Park, there is no one. Nearby roads are good for driving, the only downside is that there are too many people going, the parking lot is small, and it is likely to wait for a parking space, or park on both sides of the road.
Here's a little trick: the best viewing spot for the Grand Prism is on a trail. As shown in Figure 3, you need to drive up from the Fairy Falls Trail, and there is a semi-overlook viewing point. I didn't go because the trail was closed for my time.
4.2.2 Old Faithful. Must-see attractions. Tour time is 2 hours. Geyser class.
The only two strongest cards in Yellowstone Park. There is a visitor's hall where you can buy souvenirs and accommodation, but I didn't see any food shops. At the entrance of the visitor hall, the park predicted the next eruption time of Old Faithful Geyser, which is generally expected to be quite accurate, but my eruption was 5 minutes later than the predicted time. So it may be an hour to wait, you can take a look at the Basin around, which is also quite good. But definitely don't "write down Old Faithful's forecast time and drive somewhere else, wait until it's almost time and go back", I don't think it's too late or necessary.
There are quite a few basins on the way from Grand Prism to Old Faithful, such as Biscuit Basin and Black Sand Basin. We went to the biscuit basin and it was ok. But since you will probably go to Norris and West Thumb, there will be a feeling of repetition, and the aesthetics will be fatigued, so you may not go. The key is nothing special. Norris and West Thumb have their own characteristics.
There is a Morning Glory Pond in the northernmost part of the Old Faithful Scenic Spot, which is actually worth a visit.
4.2.3 Morning Glory Pool. You may or may not go to attractions. Tour time is 1.5 hours. Spa category.
But it takes a lot of time to walk there, whether it is a trail from north to south or a scenic walk from south to north. We walked over to see it, and the impression was quite ordinary, just a pool. Although the structure is wonderful, we can only look at it, but we cannot see the cross section of the pool. So in fact, "it's worth a visit", but if you are in a hurry, "you can go or not".
4.2.4 Fountain Paint Pot of Fountain Paint Pot. Worth a visit. Tour time is 0.5 hours. Spa category.
The location is north of the Grand Prism, very close, and it is easy to be confused if you don't remember the English name (tear eyes, I am confused, I didn't go to the Grand Prism in sunny weather, and then I went to the Grand Prism only on cloudy days).
4.2.5 Mammoth Hot Spring. Worth a visit. Tour time is 1.5 hours. Hot springs, geology.
In fact, it is also a must-see attraction, but it is slightly worse than the card surface. The best part of the attraction is below, but you can drive up the hill, park and turn around. It's good to walk a little more without moving the car.
Figure 4, Mammoth Springs drives up the mountain to park, you can walk a little less
PS: The road on the north side of Mammoth Springs is a little more difficult to drive. Some of them are really mountain roads, but it is not a big problem. There may be traffic jams as bison herds cross the road.
4.2.6 Yellowstone Grand Canyon Grand Canyon. Worth a visit. Tour time is 1-1.5 hours. Geology and landscape.
Yellow Grand Canyon. The good point is that the most beautiful scenery supports "drive through". You can drive completely, get off the car and watch the scenery, and then get on the car to the next viewing platform. So you can drive to the north and south sides of the canyon, and each viewing platform is very interesting. There is no need to climb a mountain, of course there are trails in the mountains if you want to.
4.2.7 Norris Geyser Basin. Worth a visit. Tour time is 1-2 hours. fountain class.
The best looking geyser basin in my opinion. It takes 1 hour to play only the essence part, and it takes at least two hours to read all the geyser.
4.2.8 West Thumb Geyser Basin. value
