AboutSue Mecham Expertise Hello! I have all the necessary brochures for booking vacations in Yellowstone National Park and have been there MANY, MANY times!
Expert: Sue Mecham Date: 3/29/2008 Subject: Yellowstone - How to plan my week
Question Hello Sue,
I'm going to Yellowstone for the first time with my boyfriend during the last week of May. We are staying at a budget hotel in West Yellowstone. We have at least 4 full says to spend touring the park - the only trouble is that we have to return to West Yellowstone at night to sleep. Can you suggest an itinerary? What's the best way to spend our time and see as much as possible? Thank you SO much!!
Answer You could spend three days in Yellowstone and the 4th day either going south to Teton National Park or north to Virgina and Nevada city in Montana.
If you'll notice, the roads inside the park look like an "8"
after going into the park and getting to Madison Junction, head north one day towards Mammoth. Take your time and watch for moose, elk, and other wildlife. Then go east to Tower Falls. One option is to take the road to Cooke City and travel on the "Beartooth highway"... and have lunch in Cooke City. If it's lunch time and you are still around Mammoth, head out of the park to Gardiner (watch for antelope) and have a HUGE buffalo burger - watch for the drive in on the left after you cross over the downtown bridge. There's a store there also for inexpensive soft drinks. If you go on to Tower Falls, you could keep going over Dunraven Pass and drop down into Canyon, then cut across the middle of the "8" back over to Madison and then back to West Yellowstone.
The next day you could go through the middle of the park, stopping at Virginia Falls, then on over to Canyon, then south to Artist's Point. If you continue south and go through Hayden Valley, be sure to watch for wolves - they jog along at a fast clip, sometimes crossing the road! Coyotes don't care about humans watching them and you could probably get some good photos of them. You'll see buffalo here too - be sure you don't antagonize them... they have been known to get upset and charge into cars. You could stop by the mud pots and then visit the Lake district. You'll see brown pelicans along the river here if you are observant.
This might be a good day to have one dinner in one of the restaurants in the park - at the Lake Hotel. It's a special occasion and a little pricey but consider it an "experience"...
Drive straigt back to West Yellowstone for the night.
The next day go to Madison Jct, then turn south. Take the boardwalk tours, and stop in Old Faithful for an eruption. The building farthest away from the Inn has a nice cafeteria where you can pick which ethnic food you like and watch old faithful through the big windows.
If you decide to go to Teton National Park, continue on south to Jackson for lunch. Walking on the boardwalks and visiting the stores is unique! There's a K-mart if you continue south in case you need anything for your trip.
If you decide to go north and visit Virginia City and Nevada City, you'll be transported back 100 years and get a feel what it was like for the miners. You go through Ennis and turn west to get there.
I can give you more detail if you'd like to know more about anything in particular - like photographing animals, the beartooth highway, etc.
Also, one of the good place to eat breakfast in West Yellowstone is the Three Bears (unless it burned down during the winter)...Also, the mornings and evenings will be COLD - bring a COAT!
Hope you'll contact me again with any questions or clarifications that I can do. If not, hope you have an enjoyable trip!
