Glacier national park is one of my favorite national parks I’ve been to yet. It has stunning mountain views, incredible hikes, and so many opportunities to see unique wildlife. I visited the park for the first time last summer and was completely blown away! Here are some incredible things I’d recommend doing while visiting Glacier national park.
1. Drive the Going to the Sun Road
This is a must do while visiting Glacier! This iconic road is the main road that connects most areas of the park. It gives you stunning views of the mountains and scenery within the park and offers several pull off areas to stop and soak in the views further. Our favorite pull off area was “Big Bend” which isn’t really marked but it’s the point on the road that really opens up and gives you an incredible view of the mountains. Note, the going to the sun road is typically only open from late June/early July through October. The park posts each year on their website when the road opens for the season and it varies depending on the amount of snow that year.
2. Take a Hike
Glacier has so many incredible hikes! The best part of the hikes within the park is the mountain views you’re able to see from most trails. Some of my favorite that we did include:
The Highline trail
Avalanche Lake trail
Grinnell glacier viewpoint trail
Hidden lake overlook trail
I’d recommend downloading the All Trails app to learn more about these hikes, the difficulty level, length, and reviews from other hikers. There’s also the ability to download a map of the trail in advance so you have a guide while hiking, which is helpful because there’s barely any cell service in Glacier!
Views along the high line trailThe weather was super cloudy and rainy when we attempted the high line trailViews along the hidden lake overlook trailViews along the Avalanche lake trail
3. Visit the Many Glacier Area
This area is located on the east side of the park and is home to the Many Glacier hotel. This area truly felt like I was transported to Switzerland, it was so unique! There’s several incredible hikes to check out here too including Grinnel Glacier overlook trail. Keep in mind, this area of the park requires it’s own timed entry reservation if visiting during peak season which can be purchased on the park’s website.
The Many Glacier hotelDock area near the hotel
4. Try Huckleberry Ice Cream
Huckleberry is extremely popular in the Wyoming and Montana areas! It is similar to a blueberry but a more tart and so good! There are so many huckleberry treats within the area and you’ll find it all over the park at every general store. I’d recommend trying the ice cream especially in the summer!
5. Swim in Lake Mcdonald
Take a swim in one of the most iconic lakes in the park. The water is super clear and has beautiful colored rocks to coat the bottom. It’s also possible to kayak in this lake which also seems like a great option!
Lake McDonald
6. Check out Goose Island
This island can be seen along the going to the sun road, there’s a pull off spot. This island truly looks like a goose! It has become an iconic photo location for visitors and definitely worth a stop!
7. Take a Drive to Polebridge
This area is technically outside of the park but close enough for a drive if you have extra time in your trip. It’s known for the Polebridge general store that has camp goods, foods, coffee, souvenirs and pastries. We stopped and got huckleberry pastries and coffee, it was delicious!
Polebridge general store
8. Go Fly Fishing
Glacier national park is well known for prime areas to fly fish. Areas outside of the park require a Montana fishing license which can be purchased at a flying fishing store or most general stores. I’d recommend speaking to a park ranger within the park or someone at a fly fishing store to gain more information on certain restrictions and regulations while fishing in the park or just within Montana.
9. Take Photos of the Wildlife within the park
We were stunned with how much wildlife we saw throughout our trip to Glacier! We loved seeing mountain goats, moose, bears, big horn sheep and much more. Most of this wildlife we saw was seen during hikes and drives throughout the park. Be sure to always carry bear spray and bear bells with you while hiking in the park and maintain a safe distance from these animals.
10. Watch the Sunset
Watching the sunset within the park is an incredible thing to do! We loved watching the sunset along the going to the sun road or by Mcdonald lake.
One of my favorite road trips I’ve ever done was exploring the national parks throughout Wyoming. Two of the most popular national parks in the country are also located here, Grand Teton and Yellowstone! These two parks are very close to each other which makes road tripping between the two convenient. In this guide, I’ll be sharing tips I gathered throughout my own experience from visiting these two incredible parks.
Things to Know Before Visiting
Best time of year to visit
It seems like the ideal time of year to visit either of these parks is the Summer or Fall. I also think Spring and Winter would be beautiful, but access to the park may be limited due to snow. By Summer time (May-August) the snow has melted, it’s warmer throughout the day, and the majority of the park is open.
Wildlife
Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks are well known for their incredible wildlife. It’s important to respect the wildlife you may see by observing from a safe distance. The national park recommends you keep a 100 yard distance from bears and wolves, and 25 yards from bison and other animals. Both of the parks are also home to grizzly bears. And while this can seem scary, usually bears aren’t searching for you. However, if you plan to hike there’s a chance you may see or encounter a bear. If you can, it’s recommended you hike in small groups of three or more and carry bear spray or bells at all times. When we hiked, we also played music on some remote parts. The park also recommends making noise from the bells, music, or by talking to fellow hikers, this way, bears will know humans are in the area and will likely avoid that area.
Where to stay
If you like to camp, there are various campgrounds within the Grand Teton national park as well as free spots to camp for the night as well. Throughout our trip, we stayed at Jenny Lake campground and a few free camp spots I found on Campendium. Throughout the summer months there are also cabins and lodges within the park, check out here. Yellowstone national park also has a variety of campgrounds spread across the park. While we were in Yellowstone, we stayed at Canyon campground and loved it! There was laundry and shower amenities included in the reservation as well which was amazing. If you aren’t a camper, luckily, Grand Teton is close to Jackson Hole which is an amazing town with plenty of overnight accommodations. Similarly, Yellowstone has a variety of lodging options! As always, I’d recommend making any sleeping accommodations as far in advance as you can since the summer is peak season for both parks.
Park passes
I’d recommended buying the America the Beautiful park pass if you plan to visit both parks. Especially if you plan to continue on to other national parks nearby. The pass is $80 and gets you into national parks for a year. Otherwise it’s $35 to enter each park.
What to pack
Hiking shoes. Hiking boots or shoes will work best for the trails and long walks you’ll be taking while visiting both parks.
Hiking poles. These definitely come in handy when hiking up steep trails.
Layers. Even in the summer, the mornings and nights at both parks were chilly.
Backpack. This is handy when hiking or walking around to various sights.
Camera. A phone is great for this but if you do have a camera, bring it along too! There’s so much to capture on film while visiting both parks.
Navigation. I’d recommend downloading maps a head of time, both parks have limited cell service within the park. We love using google maps and park wolfe (free maps of the national parks that don’t require wifi or cell service to see) to navigate routes throughout the parks and AllTrails to download hikes in advance to follow the trail via your phone (helpful if you get lost or turned around on a trail!).
Headlamp. We love our headlamps for early morning hikes or adventures.
Water bottle.
Sunscreen.
Bug spay.
National park passor entrance passes.
Camping or lodging reservations.
Itinerary Outline
Starting the trip will depend on where you are coming from. Since we were driving in from the East, we started our trip at Grand Teton. If you fly in, you can decide which location you’d rather start at (you can’t go wrong either!). For this itinerary, I’ll be sharing things to do in the Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks based off our experience and I’lll also be adding a few stops and sights we didn’t get to see but I’d recommend!
Grand Teton National Park
Grand Teton national park is one of my favorite parks I’ve visited yet. There’s so much to see and do while visiting and I loved how close the park is to Jackson Hole. We spent about four days throughout the park which I thought was the perfect amount of time, but you definitely could see most highlights in two to three days if that’s all you have.
Must Do’s in the Tetons
Wake up early to catch a sunrise. Grand Teton was my favorite place to watch the sunrise. There was something so magical about the way the Teton mountains changed colors while the sun came up. A few great places to catch the sunrise are:
Mormon Row
Schwabacher Landing
Oxbox bend
Take a drive on the scenic roads within the park. Grand Teton offers two scenic routes, the outer road, also known as Highway 191 and the inner road, also known as the Teton Park road. See the map above for reference.
Inner road pull off spots to see:
Windy point turnout
Teton Glacier turnout
Jenny Lake overlook
Cascade Canyon turnout
Mountain View turnout
Mount Moran turnout
Potholes turnout
Oxbow Bend turnout
Outer road pull off spots to see:
Elk ranch flats turnout
Snake river overlook
Teton point turnout
Schwabacher landing road
Glacier view turnout
Take a hike! The Grand Tetons has some incredible hikes that offer some of the best views! A few hikes I’d recommend are:
Hiking to Hidden falls and Inspiration point. There’s a boat shuttle available you can take from Jenny Lake that drops you right near the trail head to hike up to hidden falls. If you feel up for a longer hike, continue on past Inspiration point and hike towards Cascade Canyon. This is a long hike but it’s worth doing parts of it!
Cascade Canyon. This is a long hike but we were able to hike parts of it and combined it with the Jenny lake loop so we could also see hidden falls and inspiration point like I mentioned above.
Delta lake. This is a stunning but strenuous hike that takes you to delta lake. We attempted to hike this trail but had to turn around after a few miles due to Patrick getting elevation sickness. Make sure you go prepared with plenty of water and snacks as well as giving yourself time to adjust to the elevation in the area.
Taggart Lake. This is a fairly moderate 4 mile hike that takes you to Taggart Lake. The views along this trail were beautiful and gives you another lake to spend time at within the park.
Stop by the Jenny Lake visitor’s center for some park souvenirs.
Drive the scenic Jenny Lake road and take a walk along the lake. This was such a hidden gem! It was such a special view of Jenny Lake, and both times we stopped by, there were barely other people there.
Spend time in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Such a great town with a fun western vibe!
Drive to the Cotler Bay village area and spend time by the water. There’s also options to kayak or swim here.
Sunrise at Mormon RowOxbox Bend pull off spot along scenic “inner” roadMountain View turnout spot along scenic roadViews along trail towards Cascade CanyonHidden fallsSunrise at Schwabacher landingDowntown Jackson HoleCowboy Bar in Jackson HoleJenny Lake scenic area
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National park is so big, it’s technically in three different states (Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho!). For this guide, I’m recommending things we did on our trip that were mostly in Wyoming. We spent two days exploring but I’d recommend at least three to full experience the park. Yellowstone is divided into two loops: the northern and southern. If you can, I’d recommend spending part of the trip in the north loop and the other in the south loop if you want to cut down on driving time per day. We ended up driving back and forth between the loops throughout our trip and it was doable but more time consuming to get to various points so keep that in mind. For this guide, I’ve divided activities into the north and south loops to make it easier to plan and follow.
Must Do’s in Yellowstone
North Loop must do’s
Drive to Hayden or Lamar valley to watch wildlife. These are two valleys the park recommends that usually have bison and other wild life grazing. We had so much luck at Hayden valley, it was so incredible to see bison up close! We were able to marvel at these beautiful animals for the safe distance within our car. Hayden valley is closer to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and Lamar is more north on the northern loop of the park.
Check out the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. This was one of my favorite experiences while visiting the park, it’s stunning and there are multiple few points to give different perspectives of the canyon. Our favorite few points to check out:
South Rim drive: Artist’s point and upper falls lookout point.
North Rim drive: brink of lower falls, inspiration point, grand view point, and lookout point
Stop by Tower Falls. We didn’t have the chance to see this but I’ve heard it’s a great spot to add on your Yellowstone itinerary.
Drive to see Mammoth hot springs. The lower terrace of the hot springs was so unique and stunning we were in shock. This is a fairly quick stop but I’d say it’s a must see while visiting Yellowstone.
Spend time exploring the Norris Geyser Basin area to see more beautiful geysers and springs. This area is similar to the old faithful area, with boardwalks that lead you to view points of the various geysers and springs.
South Loop must do’s
Stop by Gibbon Falls. Around this area is also the Gibbon river which is a nice spot to fish if that’s your thing!
See ‘Old Faithful’ erupt! This is one of the most popular geysers to see, mostly because it erupts consistently every 60-90 minutes. We used the website, geyser times, to check in advance when the next predicted time frame was for Old Faithful to erupt so we didn’t have to wait too long.
See other geysers and pools in the old faithful area. There’s so many geysers and spring pools in this area connected by boardwalks which make it easy to site see. Some other geysers or pools I’d recommend checking on in this area:
Castle geyser
Daisy geyser
Spa geyser
Morning Glory pool
Grotto geyser
Grand geyser
Beauty pool
Check out the Grand Prismatic spring. This is another iconic spot in the park that is a must see! We drove to the fairy falls trailhead to hike to the overlook which gives you an above view of the spring. The hike to the overlook is about 1.5mile and a bit steep at times, but the view is definitely worth it! There’s also the option of viewing the grand prismatic at ground level, but I’ve heard this angle makes it harder to see all of the vibrant colors.
Watch the sunset. I’d recommend watching the sunset back at Hayden valley, which is what we did, and it was beautiful!
Stop at any ‘Yellowstone General Store.’ While we visited, there were so many of these stores throughout the park that offer restrooms, souvenirs, and food options.
Old Faithful viewing areaSpring poolsBison! Grand Spring PrismaticMammoth Hot SpringsGeyser poolsGrand Canyon of YellowstoneExploring geysers and poolsMorning glory Bison at Hayden Valley
This past weekend, Patrick and I crossed another national park off our list, Mammoth Cave! Mammoth Cave national park is located an hour and a half south of Louisville, Kentucky. It is an underrated park in my opinion, I was amazed with how incredible Mammoth Cave was! We only spent one day exploring which I think was enough to experience the highlights but I’d recommend at least a weekend to fully explore the park. Here’s a quick guide to tips and things I’d recommend checking out while visiting.
Things to Know About Mammoth Cave
Mammoth Cave national park is FREE to enter, there are no entrance fees required to access the park.
Cave tours are the most popular thing to do while visiting the park, tours vary in length and difficulty level.
I’d recommend booking a cave tour in advance. You have the option to buy a ticket on site at the visitor’s center, but even in February, certain cave tours were sold out!
After exiting any cave tour, the park requires you to walk across a station with soap to clean the bottom of your shoes. This is to prevent the spread of White Nose Syndrome which is a fungal disease that has been impacting bat populations across the country.
The park has great lodging options if you desire to stay within the park:
Sunset Terrance hotel
Historic Cottages (closed in the winter)
Woodland Cottages (closed in the winter, these cottages don’t have A/C or heat)
Maple Springs campground (10 minutes from visitor’s center)
Houchin Ferry campground (20 minutes from visitors center, tent only).
Airbnb’s and hotels in surrounding areas (Brownsville, KY + Cave City, KY).
Things to Do
Cave tour. When visiting Mammoth Cave, you have to take a cave tour! It’s an incredible experience having the opportunity to explore the caves. The national parks system has done an amazing job making the tours enjoyable and informative. There are several cave tour options that you can learn more about on the park’s website.
We decided to take the Frozen Niagara cave tour and it was incredible! This tour was an hour and 15 minutes. It’s the shortest cave tour in time and distance, we only walked about .25 mile on this tour.
Other popular tours many visitors choose include:
Historic Tour (2 hours, $20 per adult)
Domes and Dripstones tour (2 hours, $21 per adult)
Gothic Avenue tour (2 hours, $19 per adult)
*Starting March 1st, 2024, the park will be increasing the prices of cave tour tickets, learn more on the park’s website.
Visit the visitor’s center. We were surprised with how big the visitor’s center was! For a smaller national park, this was great to see. The visitor’s center had a small museum like feel inside giving visitors information and history on the cave.
Go for a hike. There were surprisingly lots of different hikes within the park. Our favorites were:
Sunset point trail
Cedar sink trail
Floyd Collins trail
Green river bluff, echo river springs, sinkhole, and heritage trail (combined is 4.3mi round trip)
Stop by the historic entrance. This is an iconic spot in the park to stop by. It is the largest natural opening of the cave and it was originally the first entrance to the cave when it was discovered.
Take a picture at the entrance sign.There are two entrance signs for the park, one if you’re entering from Cave City and one if entering from Brownsville.
Stop by Cave City. We didn’t explore too much here but we’ve heard there are great restaurants and shops in this area.
Entering Mammoth Cave View of Crystal Lake during Frozen Niagara tourHistoric EntranceDetails within cave Visitor’s Center History facts at the visitor’s centerViews on the trailsViews along hiking trails
Throughout the last few years, the national park system has changed the way visitors can access certain areas within the parks during peak seasons. Certain parks now require reservations for specific areas to limit crowds and enhance visitor’s overall experience. As of this year, there are 9 national parks that require some type of reservation when visiting. If you’ve read other national park posts I’ve written, you know I’m frequently recommending planning at least 6+ months in advance, especially for popular parks. While I know this isn’t always possible or convenient, due to the changes with national parks, planning in advance is almost essential if you want to fully access and experience the parks as it’s not possible to purchase these reservations upon entering the park, they must be reserved in advance..
Types of Reservations that may be Required
Timed Entry Reservation. This kind of reservation requires visitors to reserve a ticket for a time period (ex. 6am-4pm). These kind of reservations may give you access to one section of the park, the entirety of the park, a road within the park, etc, depending on the park. If you aren’t able to access a timed entry reservation (if you’re planning a last minute visit) there are ways around this. If the time slot is 6am-4pm, that means if you enter the park BEFORE 6am, you’ll be able to get in. However, if you leave the park at any point before 4pm, you won’t be able to get back in until after 4pm. Similarly, you could access the park after 4pm.
Vehicle Reservation. This kind of reservation may be for a specific area in the park. For example, in Acadia National park, you need a vehicle reservation to drive up to Cadillac mountain.
Hiking Permit. This kind of reservation is necessary if you want to hike a particular trail in the park that requires a permit. For example, Old Rag trail in Shenandoah national park now requires a permit to access.
Parks that Require Reservations
*As of December 2023*
Acadia National Park, Maine– requires a vehicle reservation to access Cadillac mountain if visiting between May-October. This reservation costs $6 and can be purchased on the park’s website.
Arches National Park, Utah– requires a timed entry reservation (7am-4pm) between April-October. This reservation costs $2 per vehicle. Learn more on the park’s website.
Glacier National Park, Montana– requires a vehicle reservation (6am-3pm).
Due to Glacier’s popularity, the park has split the major areas of the park into three sections that ALL require reservations if you plan to visit. All sections require a reservation between the hours of 6am-3pm during the months of May-October. The sections within the park that all need a reservation include:
Going to the sun Road
North Fork
Many Glacier
Haleakala National Park, Hawaii– requires a vehicle reservation (3am-7am) that costs $1 per vehicle to watch the sun rise above the clouds at Haleakala Summit. Learn more on the park’s website.
Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado-requires a timed entry ticket from May through October. RMNP has split the timed entry tickets into two sections:
Bear Lake corridor, timed entry reservation required to access the bear lake trails + access to the rest of the park, costs $2. Timed entry from 5am-6pm.
Rest of the park, timed entry reservation for the Rocky Mountains national park, excluding the bear lake trails, costs $2. Timed entry from 9am-2pm.
Shenandoah National Park, Virginia– requires a day use hiking permit if you desire to hike ‘Old Rag trail’ which is one the most popular trails in the park. Reservation required from March-November and costs $1 (each person is required to have a ticket). Learn more on the park’s website.
Yosemite National Park, California– requires a timed entry ticket to access areas in the park and a hiking permit for the Half Dome trail. The park has different types of reservations if you plan to visit this year:
Horsetail Fall reservation– ticketed entry during the months of February on the weekends of February 10–11, February 17–19, and February 25–26, 2024. Note, this reservation is only required if you plan to visit on the listed days in February. This is a big attraction during the month of February in the park, so the reservations are listed for the weekends. This reservation costs $2 and is per vehicle. Purchase tickets on the park’s website.
Peak Hour Plus reservation– timed entry ticket valid to enter the park from 5am-4pm and good for 3 conservative days! This reservation is required during the months of April-October. It’s $2 and per vehicle. Purchase tickets on the park’s website.
Half Dome hiking permit– this popular trail now requires a permit to hike as an attempt to reduce crowds. Learn more about how to obtain a permit through the park’s lottery system here.
Zion National Park, Utah– requires hiking permits for Angel’s Landing, Subway, and the Narrows from top-down.
Angel’s Landing– the park now requires a permit to hike the entirety of this trail (without a permit you can hike all the way to “scout lookout”). Similarly to Yosemite, permits are selected by a lottery system. It costs $6 to apply and if selected it’s $3 per person to hike this trail. Learn more on the park’s website.
The Subway- this hike requires a permit if you plan to hike it between the months of April-October and is selected through a lottery system as well. Learn more here.
The Narrows from top down– the narrows is one of the most incredible hiking experiences within the park! Many visitors hike this from the bottom up (I did!) but if you wish to hike the trail from the top down (16miles total), you’ll need a wilderness permit. Learn more here.
Muir Woods, California– requires a parking reservation to access this national monument. Learn more here.
Tips & Things to Know
Book the reservations as soon as you are able. On the park’s websites, there will be a time when you are able to book. Some parks allow you to book a couple months in advance, and if you miss out, they reopen more reservations 1-2 days before your visit for additional chance. It can definitely be stressful so I recommend logging on to purchase tickets as soon as the window opens (for example, most tickets become available on the park’s website at 10am).
Usually if you book a reservation for a campground within the park, the park counts this as your reservation for timed entry or vehicle reservations, depending on the park. Be sure to check exceptions to purchasing reservation tickets if you have a campground booked in the park.
If you can’t purchase timed entry tickets, find ways to experience the park outside of the timed restrictions (i.e., if timed entry reservations start at 6am, enter the park before then).
Do some research to determine which areas, activities, and hikes you may want to do that require reservations.
Throughout the last few years I’ve been able to visit several national parks while road tripping within the United States. Although I’ve only been to 13 National Parks so far, I wanted to share my top 5 favorite parks as of now. Of course this may change as I explore and visit more parks, so this is based only on the parks I’ve already been to. Be sure to check out my detailed guides on the parks mentioned if you’re planning a trip anytime soon!
1. Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming
It was challenging picking my top national park so far but I chose Grand Teton because of the park’s stunning views, accessibility, proximity to a town, and the overall feeling I experienced while visiting. Grand Teton was unlike any other park I’ve been to (so far!), it’s extremely close to Jackson Hole which was a rare perk that offered plenty of restaurants and shopping spots.
Biggest tip: Watch every sunrise in the Tetons during your visit
Favorite experience: Hiking parts of the Cascade Canyon trail
Must do/see: Visit Mormon row and Schwabacher landing for sunrise or sunset
Sunrise at Schwabacher LandingSunrise at Mormon RowJackson Hole, WyomingViews along scenic road
2. Glacier National Park, Montana
Glacier national park is hands down one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been to. It’s often called the crown jewel of the continent and is well known for the vast mountain views seen along the ‘Going to the Sun’ Road. Although Glacier is stunning, I gave it number two due to the crowds we experienced while visiting and because of it’s remote location.
Biggest tip: Get to trail heads early to beat crowds!
Favorite experience: Hiking parts of the high line trail
Must do/see: Drive along the Going to the Sun Road
Hiking in the clouds along the High Line trailExploring the Many Glacier areaHiking parts of the Grinnel glacier trailHigh Line trail
3. Rocky Mountains National Park, Colorado
The Rocky Mountains national park will always hold a special place in my heart. It was one of the first national parks I’ve ever visited and my first experience there was magical. I love where the park is located, right outside the charming mountain town, Estes Park, and the incredible views and wildlife the park offers.
Biggest tip: Drive along the Trail Ridge Road
Favorite experience: Hiking parts of Mount Ida.
Must do/see: Hike the bear lake trails!
Views en route to Dream LakeViews along the Trail Ridge RoadMountain views within the parkViews along the Mount Ida trail
4. Zion National Park, Utah
Zion national park truly feels like you’re on a different planet. The mountainous views, desert like feel, and the collection of red and orange rock colors made an impression on me. Zion definitely succeeded all of my expectations. It’s one of those parks that’s always talked about and it did not disappoint!
Biggest tip: If visiting during the summer, find accommodations with A/C! Zion is so hot in the summer, it was not realistic (for us) to camp.
Favorite experience: Watching the sunrise at Canyon Overlook
Must do/see: The Narrows hike!
Views at Observation PointCanyon Overlook at sunriseHiking in the NarrowsAt the top of Observation point
5. Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
Bryce Canyon national park is an underrated park in my opinion! It’s on the smaller side with less major hikes and activities to do but the landscape is so incredibly unique, it had to be included on my top 5 list. We only spent one day while visiting Bryce but we were able to see the main highlights.
Biggest tip: Watch the sunrise in the park to see the hoodoos light up!
Favorite experience: Exploring and hiking the Navajo loop trail
Must do/see: Visiting inspiration point to view the hoodoos from above
Views along the Navajo loop trailHoo doos!View at ‘sunset’ pointViews along the Navajo trail feel like a different planet!
Glacier National Park is one of the most magical places I’ve ever been to. Glacier has been named the “crown jewel of the continent” for good reason. We were able to spend three full days in Glacier national park and experienced some of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen. Here’s a quick guide and overview of our time in Glacier.
Things to Know Before Visiting Glacier
Glacier national park is in the middle of nowhere! The park has done a nice job creating souvenir shops, mini grocery stores, and resturants but it’s limited.
During peak season (May-September), the park requires a reservation pass for four sections of the park. This includes Going to the Sun Road, North Fork, Many Glacier, Two Medicine areas. Learn more on the park’s website.
There are several options if you plan to camp in Glacier. As always, I’d recommended booking these at least 6 months in advance. Glacier was the one park we almost didn’t secure a camping spot due to popularity.
Be prepared to drive. Glacier is a large spread out park and most of the park is only accessible by one road.
Check 0n the park’s website for updates. When we visited there was a lot of road construction and trail closures due to wild life.
Must See Spots in Glacier
Going to the Sun Road
This is the top “must see” in Glacier. The going to the sun road is an iconic road that has several look out points and incredible mountain views that will leave you speechless! Here are some stops along the way:
The Loop– Hair pin turn on the road that allows views of stunning mountains
Weeping Wall– Named after a cliffside that has water dripping from snowmelt onto the road and your car!
Big Bend – Located just after the Weeping Wall, the best spot for photos or to watch the sunset :)
Logan Pass – The highest point on the road, also where the visitor’s center is located
Jackson Glacier Overlook– Pull off area to view Jackson Glacier
Saint Mary Falls – Trail head for Saint Mary Falls starts at this pull off
Wild Goose Island – Stop here to get a photograph of the famous island in the middle of Saint Mary lake!
Rising Sun– Cute area to stop in for a restroom break or snacks
Big bend stop off the ‘going to the sun’ road
Polebridge area
Polebridge is technically a mile outside of Glacier national park, but it’s still a neat spot to add to your itinerary if you have time! The town offers a sweet old fashion western feel and is home to the Polebridge Mercantile. This cute general shop has souvenirs, homemade eats and sweets and is definitely a must stop while driving through Polebridge. I’d recommend trying any of the huckleberry pastries!
Polebridge Mercantile storeInstead the general store
Many Glacier area
The Many Glacier area is a quieter side of the park that offers stunning mountain views, wildlife, and iconic spots to see. We spent part of one day exploring this area and it did not disappoint! One of the main spots to check out while visiting is the Many Glacier hotel. The hotel has a swish chalet inspired design that truly allows you to feel like you are in a different country! We spent time exploring the inside of the hotel and the grounds. A popular hike in this area is grinnel glacier overlook. We hiked a portion but unfortunately didn’t have enough daylight to hike the entire trail. It’s still worth attempting even if you can’t finish to the top, the views were incredible! There’s also a boat from the hotel that takes you to various points on the trail if you don’t want to drive over to the trailhead, which also seems like a fun experience.
View of Many Glacier hotelViews along Grinnel Glacier trail
Must Do Hikes in Glacier
The high line trail
The high line trail is by far the most memorable hiking experience I’ve had in any national park. It’s accessible from the Logan pass visitor center. The high line trail a challenging and long hike but the views make it all worth it. It was surprisingly open when we visited the park in early July, typically it opens mid to late July due to snow melt. We weren’t able to finish the entire hike unfortunately due to weather conditions, we were able to hike about 8 miles round trip. Due to the weather conditions, there were times we were hiking through the clouds— that’s how high the trail is! Definitely be prepared for high elevation and altitude changes. Even if you don’t intend to hike the entirety of the high line trail, I’d recommend hiking part of it just to experience some incredible views!
Avalanche Lake trail
Avalanche lake trail ended up being one of our favorite hikes during our time in Glacier! It’s an out and back 4 mile hike that takes you to Avalanche lake. The trail starts with the trail of the cedars which is a beautiful paved path through the forest. The trail of the cedars can also be a 1 mile loop trail but if you’re going to the avalanche lake trail turn off, you’ll walk about .5 miles to the start of the lake trailhead. This is the one hike we saw a grizzly bear from a distance once we reached the lake, so go prepared with bear spray and bells, and travel in a pack with other hikers if possible.
Grinnel Glacier overlook trail
Grinnel Glacier overlook trail is accessible from the Many Glaciers area of the park. This trail is 11 miles round trip out and back. It’s pretty challenging but the views are incredible! Patrick and I weren’t able to hike the entirety of this hike due to time constraints but we did hike the first few miles and definitely plan to attempt the full hike someday in the future.
Hidden Overlook trail
Hidden overlook trail was the hike I was most looking forward to while researching Glacier! It’s accessible from the Logan pass visitor center. The trail has board walks that take you up a hill in order to see a hidden glacier lake. The views from this trail are some of the best from a short trail. When we visited we were only able to hike to the look out point of the trail and not the last half mile down to the lake due to bear activity. The park monitors wildlife activity and will close trails because of it. Luckily, we were still able to enjoy almost the entire hike! If you plan to hike hidden lake, I’d recommend starting early. The parking lot at Logan’s pass fills up incredibly fast and there’s limited parking. Since hidden lake is a fairly short hike, this is also popular for many visitors.
Other Tips for Visiting Glacier National Park
If you plan to visit several areas in the park, I’d suggest booking different campgrounds. I wish we would’ve done this but while I was researching, I didn’t realize how large Glacier is and how spread out the various sections are from each other. We stayed at Fish creek campground which is close to the main entrance of the park so there were days we drove 1-2 hours each way.
Research any permits or reservations you need in advance. As I mentioned, due to the popularity Glacier continues to have, the park has several reservations and permit requirements for specific areas and trails that aren’t available for purchase on the spot.
Be flexible with plans! The weather changes quickly in Glacier due to the higher elevations and location. It may rain, snow or hail even in the summer!
Always have bear spray and bells. Glacier is grizzly bear country and it’s essential to be prepared on hikes. The park will usually close a trail if there’s a lot of reported bear activity but it is still possible to have a run in with a bear on any trail.
Start early! This tip really applies to any big national park, but especially Glacier. It was one of the most crowded parks we’ve ever been to. By 7am, most trails and roads are flooded with visitors.
Fill up on gas and food. Although some of the campgrounds have lounges with food options, it’s not much so it’s important to be prepared for meals. Similarly with gas, there’s one gas station when you’re about to enter the main entrance of the park. Otherwise, you’ll have to drive 15-20 minutes outside of the park for restaurants and gas stations.
Over the summer, Patrick and I explored four national parks within a two week road trip. It was definitely one of my favorite trips we’ve ever taken so I wanted to share the itinerary I created. Of course with any big trip, plans can change so we didn’t get to everything listed on this itinerary, but most! I’m mentioning it here to give various ideas if you are planning a similar trip! We wanted to have options and back up plans which is why some days are packed. Combining these locations across a two week trip is convenient and makes for a perfect road trip! I mention the campgrounds we stayed at for reference and those that I’d recommend. Keep in mind, most campgrounds within the parks book up quickly, typically up to 6 months in advance so be prepared if you plan to camp! We also used the app campendium to find free campsites.
Check out my other blog posts to prepare and plan for a national park trip if you are looking for more tips.
Badlands National Park & Wall Drug Store, South Dakota
day one 🚐
After driving in from the East, we officially started our trip in South Dakota with the intent of spending time in Badlands National Park. We only planned for one full day within the park and while we could stayed for longer, it was doable to see most highlights within a day.
Badlands highlights in one day:
Take a picture at the Badlands national park sign upon entering the park
Stop at big badlands overlook
Hike notch trail (1.3mi) *be sure to get here early if you want to experience this hike with less people!
Hike window trail (.3mi) same parking lot as notch
Hike door trail (.8mi) same parking lot as notch
Stop by visitor’s center
Drive badlands loop road and view overlooks
yellow mounds
pinnacles overlook
On the way out of the park, stop by Wall Drug store and check out some iconic historical highlights:
free ice water
5 cent coffee
Drive to Center Lake campground (1.5 hr from wall drug)
We spent four days in Grand Teton national park. This was by far one of our favorite parks we’ve ever been to. Since there’s so much to see and do between the park and the nearest town, Jackson Hole, I’d allow at least three days to fully explore. To save a little money, we stayed at a free campsite for a couple nights before going to a campground. The free campsites in the area are primitive and aren’t reservable so there’s no guarantee you’ll find a spot each night which can add stress, but the benefit is it’s a safe and free place to sleep!
Sunrise at schwabacher landing (wear layers in the early mornings, it’s cold even in the summer!)
Drive into Jackson hole and stop by cowboy coffee for coffee and breakfast
Drive along the Teton park road and see outlook areas for wildlife:
Oxbow Bend Turnout
Cascade Canyon Turnout
Teton Glacier Turnout
Glacier View Turnout
*Schwabacher Landing
Teton Point Turnout
Snake River Overlook
Elk Ranch Flats Turnout
Stop at visitor’s center
Spend time exploring Jackson Hole
Dinner in town: hand fire pizza
🌛 Upper Teton View – Toppings Lake Dispersed Campsites
Sunrise at schwabacher landing
day four 🏔
Watch sunrise at mormon row
Hike to Delta lake (9 mi roundtrip) via lupine meadows access
We unfortunately didn’t get to finish this hike because Patrick got altitude sickness in the middle of the hike! Learn from our mistake and prep yourself with plenty of snacks, water, and time to adjust to the altitude in the area before taking on a big hike.
Drive along scenic highway and stop at pull off spots
our favorite was mountain view turnout :)
Sunset at schwabacher landing
🌛 Upper Teton View – Toppings Lake Dispersed Campsite
🚿 Showers are available at Colter Bay, Signal Mountain, and Headwaters at Flagg Ranch.
Mormon row at sunrise
day five 🥾
Wake up early to hike parts of cascade canyon (we started at string lake)
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho
day seven ⛲️
We spent a day and a half exploring Yellowstone. We definitely could have spent much more time exploring, Yellowstone is massive! However, we were able to see some nice highlights throughout our short but sweet time in park. One thing to note about Yellowstone is you will spend a lot of time driving to various spots (especially if your time is limited like ours was) but the views while driving are stunning and worth being in the car!
Drive to Yellowstone NP (2 hr from Grand Teton)
Explore the old faithful area
See old faithful erupt (you can look up predicted eruption times online) this iconic geyser does erupt every 60-90 minutes!
Walk along boardwalks to see other geysers and pools in the area. Some of our favorites:
Castle geyser
Daisy geyser
Spa geyser
Morning Glory pool
Grotto geyser
Grand geyser
Beauty pool
Stop by visitor’s center
Drive to grand prismatic spring and hike to overlook (1.5mi)
Wake up early and drive to Hayden valley to watch bison! (our favorite experience in the park)
Drive to see the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and stop by various look out points:
park in South Rim Rd to see view with Artist Point
drive to North Rim Rd to see lower Lookout Point
drive down the road to Grand View
inspiration point to see a farther view
Drive to Lamar valley to view more wildlife. We unfortunately didn’t see many bison in this area due to the construction occurring in the park at the time.
Drive to see mammoth hot springs to see minerva terrace
Drive to camp for dinner
Catch the sunset back at Hayden valley (we ended up seeing a bison herd commuting to find a place to rest for the night, such an amazing experience to witness).
🌛 Canyon Campground
Bison in Hayden valley
Glacier National Park, Montana
We ended our two week road trip with our last few days in Glacier national park. This part of the trip offered us some of the most incredible views we’ve ever seen! Glacier is extremely popular and crowded so it requires advance planning to ensure you book vehicle reservations (needed during peak season) and campgrounds. During peak season, the park is separated into four sections that require reservation tickets to enter during designated time periods as an attempt to limits crowds. More information on this can be found on the park’s website. Also, be sure to have bear spray on every hike in Glacier!
day nine 🚐
Drive to Glacier national park (7 hours from Yellowstone)
Walk the trail of the cedars nature trail (1mi loop) continue hiking to avalanche lake (4.5 mi round trip)
Drive and stop along the ‘going to the sun’ road
Stop to see look out points along the way to take pics:
The Loop– Hair pin turn on the road that allows views of stunning mountains
Weeping Wall– Named after a cliffside that has water dripping from snowmelt onto the road and your car!
Big Bend – Located just after the Weeping Wall, the best spot for photos or to watch the sunset :)
Logan Pass – The highest point on the road, also where the visitor’s center is located
Jackson Glacier Overlook– Pull off area to view Jackson Glacier
Saint Mary Falls – Trail head for Saint Mary Falls starts at this pull off
Wild Goose Island – Stop here to get a photograph of the famous island in the middle of Saint Mary lake!
Rising Sun– Cute area to stop in for a restroom break or snacks
Get huckleberry ice cream as a reward!
Check into camp
🌛 Fishcreek campground
Avalanche lake!
day eleven 🏔
Wake up early to drive to logan pass visitor’s center to hike the high line trail (parking lot here fills up extremely quickly!)
Hike the high line trail (~14 mi round trip)
Due to extreme rainy and snowy weather conditions, we weren’t able to finish the entire hike but it was still one of the best experiences we had while visiting the park! We were hiking within the clouds at times! These kinds of weather conditions are typical while hiking in higher altitude, be sure to check the weather before hiking in some areas.
The high line trail is definitely worth trying even if you only plan to hike for a few miles, the views are incredible!
Stop by lake McDonald and go for a swim to relax after a long hike.
🌛 Fishcreek campground
Views along the highline trail
day twelve 🥞
Sleep in and enjoy breakfast at camp
Drive to Polebridge area of the park
Explore the area, check out the Polebridge general store (super cute and has amazing pastries!)
Drive back up to the going to the sun road to explore pull off areas
Watch sunset at big bend
🌛 Fishcreek campground
Big bend stop along the ‘going to the sun’ road
day thirteen 🥾
Drive to logan pass visitor’s center to park
Hike to hike hidden lake overlook trail (2.7 mi)
We were only able to hike to the overlook area and not down to the lake due to bear activity. Be sure to look up park closures in advance before planning certain hikes!
Drive to the Many Glacier area
Explore and stop in the Many Glacier hotel
Hike the grinnell glacier viewpoint trail (10 mi roundtrip)
After a long last day of exploring and hiking, get some huckleberry ice cream!
The Grand Teton national park will hold a top spot on my favorite national parks lists. I finally had the chance to visit this incredible park and I was in awe with its beauty. We spent a few days in the park and we were able to see most of the highlights. Here’s an overview of what we did and some tips I learned from after our experience.
Things to Know About the Grand Teton National Park
The park requires an entrance fee. It’s $35 for a 7 day period. I’d highly recommend purchasing the America the Beautiful pass if you plan to visit multiple national parks at once (like combining the Tetons and Yellowstone into one trip). The annual pass is $80 and gets you into any national park for a year!
The Grand Teton’s closet town is Jackson Hole, Wyoming. I would recommend spending time in Jackson, it’s about 30-40 minutes outside of the park, depending on the area you’re staying in. There’s plenty of restaurants, stores, and accommodations if you’re unable to stay inside the park.
The Grand Teton is about an hour and a half from the southern part of Yellowstone national park, which is why many people travel to both these parks in the same trip!
There are six established campgrounds within the GTNP which are all conveniently located throughout the park. As always, I’d suggest making a reservation well in advance if you plan to camp. We stayed at Jenny Lake campground which is tent only and this was a very central location. Be sure to research on where in the park you’d like to be, the campgrounds are spread across the entire park.
Other than campgrounds, there were a decent amount of free camp spots which was a nice surprise! We stayed at a free spot for three nights before moving to our campground. These free camp spots were definitely more crowded then others we’ve stayed at but it was nice to have a free sleep!
There are camp showers available for $6 at Signal Mountain and Colter Bay campgrounds. We went to Signal Mountain every day until we checked into Jenny Lake campground, which also has showers. Signal Mountain and Colter Bay areas also have laundry services available for use.
The Grand Teton is a relatively small national park and there’s two sides to it, one is highway 191 (outer road) and the other is the scenic drive (inner road) which includes many beautiful look out points and access to popular trails. Interestingly, if you stay on the side of highway 191, you don’t have to pay an entrance fee even though you’re technically in the park!
Things to Do in GTNP:
Day One
Overview:
Sunrise at Mormon Row
Stop at Cowboy Coffee
Explore Jackson
Fishing stop at Pacific creek
Drive along Teton park road
On our first full day in the park, we started the morning bright and early for sunrise at Mormon Row. This was by far one of the most beautiful sunrises I’ve ever seen. The one take away I had from our time in the Tetons was to never miss a sunrise. Mormon row was full of other people even at 5am waiting to watch the sun come over the Tetons. The lighting in the morning changed so fast here, the pink sky only lasted for a few minutes which made the experience even more magical. After sunrise, we drove into Jackson for coffee and breakfast. One of our favorite spots in Jackson was Cowboy Coffee. It’s a popular place for good reason!
After breakfast we walked around Jackson before driving back into the park. Most of the afternoon we spent time at Pacific Creek because Patrick wanted to fly fish. There were some great spots for fly fishing if that’s your thing too! While Patrick fished, I spent time exploring nearby areas and taking photos. We ended our first day driving along the Teton park road (the “inner” road of the park). After a beautiful first day, we went to our free camp spot for the night, which I found using the campendium app.
Sunrise at Mormon RowExploring JacksonCowboy CoffeeExploring JacksonSunrise view of the Tetons at Mormon Row
Day Two
Overview:
Sunrise at schwabacher landing
Hike part of Cascade Canyon
Spend the afternoon in Jackson souvenir shopping
Dinner at Hand Fire Pizza
Day two was on of our favorite days in the park! We started the morning at another well known sunrise spot, Schwabacher landing. This spot is on the “outer” road of the park, along highway 191. There were a lot of other people here for sunrise, but we still managed to have a great view to watch the sun rise over the Tetons. We spent a couple hours here before heading back to the car to make breakfast and coffee. After some fuel, we headed to the String Lake area to access the Cascade Canyon trail. There are a few different ways to access this trial. We started at String Lake and walked along Jenny lake before connecting to the Cascade Canyon trail head. We didn’t plan to hike the entirety of cascade canyon but total we hiked about 8 miles. This was a stunning hike and we were able to see some famous spots in the park along this trail such as:
Inspiration point
Hidden Falls
Jenny Lake loop
After a full afternoon hiking, we stopped by signal mountain camp area to shower. Showers here are available for $6 and it gives you 7 minutes to shower. The showers here were extremely clean and lots of room which was a luxury compared to other public showers we’ve used. We then drove into Jackson for dinner and souvenir shopping. We decided to have dinner at Hand Fire Pizza which was amazing! After dinner we headed back into the park to set up camp for our first night at Jenny Lake campground.
Sunrise at Schwabacher landingMorning coffeeSunrise at Schwabacher landingView along Cascade Canyon trailViews along Cascade Canyon trailViews along Cascade Canyon trailViews along Cascade Canyon trailHidden Falls
Day Three
Overview:
Sunrise exploring scenic highway
Breakfast at Jenny Lake visitor’s center
Taggart Lake
Jenny Lake scenic drive
On our last full day in the tetons, we woke up bright and early. Patrick wanted to fish again so I dropped him off at Pacific Creek. For the rest of the morning I explored parts of the scenic drive, pulling over for photos as the sun rose over the tetons. I made my way back to camp and walked around the Jenny Lake visitor’s center area. Inside one of the general store’s in this area, they serve coffee and breakfast sandwiches. It started for campers but is now available for anyone stopping by the area in the morning. The breakfast sandwich was delicious and just what I need after an early morning. Once Patrick was done fishing, we went for a short hike at Taggart Lake. This is a brief loop trail that takes you around Taggart Lake. It’s a fairly moderate hike that can be completed in a couple of hours or less. We took showers at our campground, Jenny Lake, and it was $5 for 6 minutes.
For our last night in the Grand Teton national park, we drove along the Jenny Lake scenic drive. This drive is so beautiful and perfectly hidden from the main road, we were one of the only ones there exploring. Along the drive there’s some pull off areas for hikes accessed from this road and parking for the Jenny Lake lodge. Our favorite part of this scenic drive was the look out point for Jenny lake. There’s a path where you can walk along the water and take in the views of Jenny lake. It’s such a sweet spot, I would definitely add this to your itinerary while visiting the park. We spent our last night at camp cooking dinner before heading to bed.
Stop along scenic highwayStop along scenic drive, Oxbow BendPath along Jenny Lake accessed from scenic drivePath along Jenny lakeViews along tagart lake trail
Patrick and I recently returned home from another out west national park trip! One of the most memorable national parks we visited on this trip was Yellowstone. Yellowstone national park is the first national park in the country, established in 1872 and the charm and western feel of the park is still alive today. We had two full days in the park and we focused on seeing the major highlights. Here is an overview of how we spent our time in Yellowstone.
Things to know about Yellowstone
Yellowstone is huge! It’s separated into two loops, the northern and the southern. In hindsight, it would make sense to spend part of the trip in the north loop and part in the south loop to reduce drive time during the day. We ended up driving back and forth between the loops throughout the two days which is doable but plan to spend lots of time driving!
There are so many bisons! We were so surprised with how comfortable the bison are within the park. There were bison on the sides of the road throughout most of the park!
Yellowstone national park requires a fee for entrance into the park. It’s $35 for a 7 day period. As always, I’d highly recommend purchasing the America the Beautiful pass. It’s $80 and gets you into national parks for a year!
Day One
On our first day in the park, we decided to start at the most famous geyser, Old Faithful. Old Faithful is one of the oldest erupting geysers in the park and it erupts consistently every hour to hour and a half. We used a website called geyser times to check in on the old faithful’s next predicted eruption before showing up. This was helpful to have a gauge on how much time we would have to wait. After watching Old Faithful, we walked along the boardwalk (upper geyser trail) that takes you to many other geysers and pools in the park. This was a pleasant walk and we went all the way to morning glory pool and back which was about 3 miles total. There is so much to see in this part of the park so make it your own! Some geysers or pools I’d recommend are:
Old Faithful
Castle geyser
Daisy geyser
Spa geyser
Morning Glory pool
Grotto geyser
Grand geyser
Beauty pool
After exploring this part of the park, we took a 15 minute drive to the fairy falls trailhead to hike to the overlook of Grand Prismatic spring. This is an iconic spring because it’s colors are so vibrant. There is access to see this spring up close but we preferred the overlook to see the spring from above. The hike to the overlook is about 1.5mile and a bit steep at times, but the view is definitely worth it!
We stayed at Canyon Campground while visiting Yellowstone and it was wonderful! The reservation here covered a shower a day for each camper and they had laundry facilities for campground guests.
Exploring geysersSpring from along the boardwalk trailCanyon CampgroundGeyser along upper geyser trailMorning Glory poolGrand Prismatic spring via fairy falls overlook trailCrowds at Old FaithfulGeyser along upper geyser trail
Day Two
Day two in Yellowstone started at Hayden valley to watch bison! Hayden valley is a well known spot in the park to capture an up close view of bison. I was hopeful we’d see some bison but I was in awe of how many bison we did see and how comfortable they all were walking near the road! Please respect the bisons home and space, we were able to see these incredible animals up close from the safety of our car, it’s not necessary to get out of the car. It’s also not safe to do so, these are wild animals after all.
After a beautiful morning in Hayden valley, we headed to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone is such an underrated spot in my opinion! This was a stunning canyon different than others I’ve seen before. I appreciated that the park had several different viewpoints of the canyon and waterfall that are all well marked while driving through this area. We started along the south rim drive at Artist’s point which was beautiful and probably my favorite of all the view points. I’d also recommend:
South Rim drive: Artist’s point and upper falls lookout point.
North Rim drive: brink of lower falls, inspiration point, grand view point, and lookout point
After spending time exploring the various view points of the grand canyon, we headed towards the northern loop of the park to drive through Lamar valley, another famous valley where bison are known to graze. The drive to this part of the park was beautiful, there were so many scenic pull off areas with mountain views. Unfortunately when we reached Lamar valley, there weren’t many bison at all which we believed was due to the construction going on. Regardless, it was still a beautiful drive.
From here, we continued driving to another famous spot in the park, Mammoth Hot springs. This was a crowded spot for good reason! The lower terrace of the hot springs was so unique and stunning we were in shock. This is a fairly quick stop but I’d say it’s a must see while visiting Yellowstone. From here, we continued around the northern loop and stopped at the Norris Geyser Basin area to see more beautiful geysers and springs. This area is similar to the old faithful area, with boardwalks that lead you to view points of the various geysers and springs.
After a busy second day, we ended our last night in Yellowstone by cooking dinner at camp before heading back to Hayden valley for sunset. One of our favorite parts of the park was watching the bison! When we went back to Hayden valley after dinner, there were herds of bison moving together. It was so magical to watch the animals in their natural habit settle for the night. We parked the car on the side of the road and had a front row seat!
Bison!Grand canyon of YellowstoneArtist’s view lookoutupper falls look outNorris Geyser basin Bison in Hayden ValleyMammoth hot springs
Yellowstone Tips
Book a campground early if you plan to camp! There are several campgrounds within the park, all of which seem to fill up pretty quickly. I can’t speak for the other campgrounds in the park but we were very impressed with canyon campground! I’d recommended picking a campground close to sites you’d like to see since the park is so large.
You will do a lot of driving! Regardless of where you stay within the park, if you plan to see many of the park’s highlights, be prepared to drive a lot during the day.
Look up Old Faithful’s eruption times prior to stopping by
Pack your own food. There are several restaurants and “general stores” at major sites in Yellowstone, but the food wasn’t the best and it was pretty expensive.
Check out the park’s website for closures and construction zones. When we visited, there were several spots under construction which caused delays.
skylarbeck.com 