We’re ready for our next 2 week vacation! We went to five national parks, 2 national monuments, a national memorial, and 11 states.
Day 1
We spent the day with our usual road trip trivia, license plate game, and watching/listening to true crime shows. We made the drive from home to Laramie, Wyoming. This is a pretty large town of over 31,000 with plenty of hotel and food options available. We stayed at a Hampton Inn. Right after we checked into the hotel, a storm seemed to come out of nowhere. We watched the hail fall from our room window.
Day 2
We continued our drive for another 5.5 hours to the eastern entrance (Moran entrance) to Grand Teton National Park. Since we only had part of the day, we decided to start on the outer park road (more pullouts, less hikes, panoramic views to soak in). We turned right to head north to our first pullout view at Oxbow Bend. This is a popular photogenic spot of the river in front of Mount Moran. We continued to the Willow Flats Overlook. There is a small decline along various paths to the beautiful views of the Teton range. Our next stop was Colter Bay Village. There are a couple gift shops here and some food options. We walked (or you can drive) past the shops to Lakeshore Trail. There are two loops that almost make a figure-8, making this a 2 mile easy hike. This trail is mostly along the water of Jackson Lake with a small portion through the forest. This trail may look deceptively safe, but be mindful of bear activity! We walked past a tree right along the trail with claw marks at eye level. We continued back south for a walk through Jackson Lake Lodge. There are several gift shops on the second floor and restaurants in the back of the lobby. Be sure to walk out behind the lodge for absolutely stunning views of the mountains. We continued south past the entrance road to the Elk Ranch Flats Turnout. There was a large bison herd in the distance on the east side of the road. On the west side of the road in front of the Tetons was a herd of horses. We stopped at the location of Ansel Adams’ famous photo of the Snake River. The vegetation was higher, so it was a little harder to get the same views. We stopped at Schwabachers Landing, which was down a pot-hole filled gravel road. We were able to navigate the road in our Mini Cooper, but I would not recommend a car with any lower clearance. This was a short half mile out and back hike to see some great reflective views of the mountains in the water. We stopped at the Glacier View Turnout, getting to see 3 remaining glaciers. We stopped at the Blacktail Ponds Overlook. Animals are frequently spotted here, but we didn’t see any. We decided against any hiking here because of the steep initial descent. We continued to Antelope Flats Road to the famous Moulton Barn. This area was very crowded with a small parking lot, so be sure to plan accordingly! On our way out of the park, we saw several cars parked next to a bridge. Tip of the day: if there is a crowd, stop to see what all the commotion is about! We got to see a momma and baby moose in the creek. At different areas in the park, we also got to see elk, ravens, and magpies on this day. We were surprised to complete the outer park road in half a day. We drove to Pinedale, Wyoming to the Sundance Motel. There were fires between Jackson and Pinedale to the east. The motel called to confirm our reservations because several travelers cancelled. There were no warnings or evacuations at the time, so we stayed where we were. Jackson is the town at the south entrance of the park (considered the gateway town for the park), but this area is very popular, busy, and expensive! Be sure to book reservations at least 6-12 months in advance, especially if staying in the area for multiple days.
Day 3
Today was the start of the inner park road. We entered through the Moose Entrance Station. We drove past a couple of pullouts, grabbed a quick photo of the park sign to crop out other visitors for later (I didn’t want to wait in line), and continued to the first trailhead to fight for parking. We ended up having to park a ways down the road, but there is a long paved path to the parking lot and the trailhead. Taggert Lake Trail is 3 miles roundtrip with 270 feet of elevation gain. You can shorten the hike by going right for a more direct route to the lake and can continue back the same way. This is what we decided to do. This quickly became my favorite hike we have yet to do in any park. The beginning has most of the elevation and is rocky and can get slippery. The next part of the trail was walking through vegetation with gorgeous views of the mountains in front of us. We continued through some thin forest and open fields before finally reaching the lake. It was freezing, but I had to get in the water. We ate some snacks and soaked in the sights before heading back down the same way. We continued north to the Jenny Lake area. This area is one of the busiest in the park. It took a while to find parking, but we finally secured a spot. There are many gift shops, food options, kayak rentals, etc in this area. There is a trail that goes around the lake, but it is about 5 miles. The other option is to get a timed shuttle boat ticket (buy on site, runs every 10-15 minutes) to cross the lake. Time this accordingly. Across the lake are several trails and canyons. We decided to save our energy and skip these more difficult trails. We moved on to the Cathedral Group Turnout and the Jenny Lake Scenic Drive. This road is a one-way route that will go back out to the main road and has an overlook spot of the lake. Our next hikes were the String Lake Trail and Leigh Lake Trail. There are many parking lots at the end of this side road, but continue going as far back as possible to get the closest to these trails. There were many people swimming, kayaking, canoeing, etc. These trails are basically the same path along the two different lakes for a total of 1.8 miles with 40 feet of elevation. Many people skip Leigh Lake, but because of this, it was so peaceful and quiet. There was a small hike down an incline to reach the shore, but it was well worth it. After our hike, we had some easier stops at Mountain View Turnout, Mount Moran Turnout, Potholes Turnout (an area where glaciers have melted and changed the landscape), and Jackson Lake Dam. We finished up our day in the park to head toward Jackson. We grabbed some dinner and went downtown to do some souvenir shopping. On the way to the motel, we got text alerts on our phone for the progressing fire. We learned there are 3 levels of fire alerts- ready, set, and go. Ready means to have a plan if evacuation becomes necessary. Set means you should start packing and be ready to go. Go means evacuation is necessary. We were very mindful and alert, checking texts, radio, and local websites. The town planned to have a meeting the next day to discuss possible evacuation. Thankfully we were checking out the next morning. This was such an amazing and exhausting day, but we were quickly falling in love with this national park!
Day 4
We got up early to head back towards Jackson. Before reaching the town, we turned west on Highway 22, then turned north on Moose-Wilson Road. We drove past Teton Village, skipping some shopping and food. Our stop was the Phelps Lake Trail. The parking here is VERY limited, so plan accordingly! A park ranger warned us of a bear on the trail, but thankfully, we never saw it. When we finished the hike and continued north, we saw a bear on the side of the road. There was a pullout overlooking a river where we saw another bear. We continue north to enter Yellowstone National Park. We decided to go ahead and head toward Old Faithful since it was late in the afternoon and we wanted to avoid the heavy crowds. There are shops and food in this area along with information on eruptions times in the visitor center. We got to see the eruption right on schedule and saw many thermal features in the Upper Geyser Basin. We walked the Geyser Hill Loop (up to 2.5 miles) to see Geyser Hill, Beehive Geyser, Spasmodic Geyser, Ear Spring, Castle Geyser, Tardy Geyser, Grand Geyser, Chromatic Pool, Bottomless Pit, etc. There were more trails, but part of the area connecting to Biscuit Basin was closed due to thermal explosions. When we were done, we headed into West Yellowstone to check into the Historic Madison Hotel. There is a hotel and gift shop in this building, but there is a back entrance for those staying in the hotel. Not all of the rooms have their own bathrooms, so be mindful of this when booking here. Thankfully we stayed in a room in the main building with our own bathroom. There is a big variety of restaurants and shops in this area. We walked a couple blocks to get some recommended Wild West Pizza. This pizza was so good!
Day 5
Yellowstone is basically divided into two loops, the upper and lower. West Yellowstone is west along the road that joins the two loops (the bottom of the upper loop and top of the lower loop), and it is a good spot to stay if you’re staying in the park for multiple days and don’t want to switch hotels in the middle of the visit. We planned for one day for the upper, one day for the lower, and one day for anything we didn’t finish. I would recommend another day for most people to have more time to relax and move slower than we normally do. Day 5 we started on the lower loop. (minus the Upper Geyser Basin). We saw a large herd of elk on the road into the park. We wanted to drive Firehole Lake Drive, but the drive was closed due to bear activity. This area included the Lower Geyser Basin. We started at Fountain Paint Pot. This trail was 0.6 miles with little elevation gain. There are several pools and geysers in this area, and it was a nice walk through the morning fog. Our next stop was the Grand Prismatic Spring Area. The parking is competitive here, but thankfully we were early enough to grab a spot. This area is the Midway Geyser Basin Trail, starting across the Firehole River Bridge to see Excelsior Geyser Crater, Grand Prismatic Spring, Opal Pool, Turquoise Pool, etc. It was sprinkling and foggy, so some of these features were hard to fully see. We did get to see a grizzly paw print on the ground next to the boardwalk! We drove a little further along the main road to park at the Fairy Falls Trailhead for the Grand Prismatic Overlook. This was 1.2 miles roundtrip with 105 ft of elevation. Start on the trail crossing the bridge and at 0.6 miles turn left. The end of this hike was steep (or maybe it just felt that way after all of our previous hiking), but this was well worth the effort! The fog wasn’t as thick from this distance, and taking in the spring in its entirety was amazing. The next stop would have been Biscuit Basin, so we continued on to Black Sand Basin. This area includes Pentagonal Spring, Opalescent Pool, Grumbler, Whistle Geyser, Green Spring, Emerald Pool, Rainbow Pool, and Sunset Lake. The colors and changes in the ground were so neat to observe. The next stop was Kepler Cascades, a 150 ft waterfall along the Firehole River. There is a small parking area here, but the falls are right off the road. We continued, passing the Continental Divide at Craig Pass (8262 ft elevation), passing Shoshone Lake Overlook (too foggy to see), and on to the West Thumb Geyser Basin. There is a large parking area here, but it definitely fills up fast. This area is about one mile of boardwalk with less than 100 ft of elevation gain. This area includes Bluebell Pool, Lakeshore Geyser, Big Cone, Abyss Pool, Black Pool, Hillside Geyser, Painted Pool, etc. Yellowstone Lake is so large it felt like the ocean. We continued on to the Fishing Bridge area. We hiked the Pelican Creek Nature Trail, a 1 mile loop through a wooded area to the beaches of the lake. Also in this area is the Storm Point Trail. This trail is 2.3 miles with 95 ft of elevation gain. There is a small parking area here. Start through the field to Indian Pond. Continue through a wooded area. Be sure to take bear spray! On the other side of the woods are cliffs on the edge of Yellowstone Lake. We got to see a few marmots here on the rocks! We continued through the sand and beaches to more woods before it met up with the beginning of the trail. We ran into a couple of ladies who stated that a ranger had reported bear activity on the trail, but thankfully we never came across any. We saw lots of evidence of bison in the area, but we only saw one near the trailhead. We got back on the loop road to stop at LeHardy Rapids. This isn’t a long walk, but there is some elevation change, especially with tired legs. Since we were here in the fall, the rapids weren’t as large, but they were really cool to watch. Our next stop was the Mud Volcano Area. I think this may have been one of our favorite spots. The trails are about 0.8 miles here, but there are very steep parts. This area is the youngest part of Yellowstone, forming in about 1870. This area included Dragon’s Mouth Spring, Mud Volcano, Grizzly Fumarole, Black Dragon’s Caldron, Churning Caldron, Sizzling Basin, Mud Caldron, etc. Sulphur Caldron is also near here with a pullout off the road. This is the most acidic feature in the park. We drove through Hayden Valley, getting caught in our first bison jam! We got to see bison fighting, baby bison, bison rolling in the dirt, and bison crossing the river. This was such a neat experience! The next area along the loop is the Canyon Area. From the main road, turn right/east on South Rim Drive to the parking area at the end. There are trails in this area, but they were a little too steep for us. We walked to the end of the main walk to see Artist Point and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, giving the park its namesake. Nearby is also Upper Yellowstone River Falls, a 109 ft waterfall with a small walk to stand at the edge. We were exhausted and okay with not seeing the waterfall from this spot, so we skipped this. There is also a spot at the end of North Rim Drive to Lookout Point and Grand View, but we skipped this area as well. The trails can get confusing here, so be careful. We drove through Canyon Village (gas, bathrooms, food, etc here), turning onto Norris Canyon Road to complete the loop (we skipped this section for the day) and headed back to the hotel.
Elk along our drive into the park
Day 6
Our first stop was the Artist Paintpots Trail. This trail is about one mile with 101 ft elevation gain. The elevation is mostly all toward the back of the loop. If able to complete it, I highly recommend the climb. There is a really cool spitting mud pit here, but be careful, the mud can fly! We continued the drive north, passing many pullout areas including Caldera Rim and Iron Springs (be careful, the steam was blocking views of the road). We stopped for pictures, but we didn’t spend any time at these spots. We almost got t-boned by a bison exiting the trees, so be sure to be watchful and go slow. We drove past Nymph Lake, Bijah Spring, Twin Lakes, Roaring Mountain, Semi-Centennial Geyser, Beaver Lake (we saw a black bear cross the road!), Obsidian Cliffs, and Apollinaris Spring. We drove through the Upper Terrace Drive, seeing unique rock formations and overlooking the town of Mammoth (Grassy Spring, Cupid Spring, Main Terrace Overlook, Orange Spring Mound, Little Burper Spring, White Elephant Back Terrace, etc). This is a one-way drive with a very small parking area if you want to take some trails. We drove down into Mammoth, stopping at gift shops and getting some bison bratwursts. We visited Fort Yellowstone and the Albright Visitor Center, seeing elk in the town lawn. We continued east on the loop road. We stopped at Undine Falls, a pullout where you can see a 60 ft waterfall. Our next stop was Wraith Falls Trail. This trail was 0.9 miles with 65 ft elevation gain to see a 79 ft waterfall. There is a small parking area just past Lava Creek. Continuing on the main road, there is a side road on the right to see the Petrified Tree. We continued east toward Tower Junction, and we got to see 3 moose in a lake from the main road. We continued on to Devils Den to Tower Falls, a 132 ft waterfall. The overlook is about 100 yards from the general store/restrooms. Past this area is Dunraven Pass, the highest point in the park. Mt Washburn is to the east. Since there is not much else past Devils Den, we turned back on the main road. We stopped at Calcite Springs Overlook. We drove back to Highway 212/Beartooth Highway to drive through Lamar Valley. There are a few trails (Lamar River Trail and Trout Lake Trail) we were thinking about doing, but we decided to save our energy. We drove past Soda Butte. We pulled over at a crowd of people who had seen wolves eating a bison carcass, but we weren’t that lucky. We got to drive through so many bison in the valley! It was lightly raining, but it didn’t deter from the experience! This highway is very long, so see as much as you want before turning back around (or you can take this in its entirety if entering the park from Cody, WY). We also saw several pronghorn on our way out of the Valley. We had time to stop at the Norris Geyser Basin. Norris has a large parking area and even has overflow parking available. Norris is the hottest part of the park. There is a museum in this area. The complete boardwalk loop is 2.9 miles with 180 ft of elevation. There are many thermal features in this area, but one of the most impressive is Steamboat Geyser. This is the largest geyser in the park, but the eruptions are very sporadic, the last one 4 months before we were there. Ice Lake Trail is along Norris Canyon Road (an easy hike to the lake with parking next to the road), but we decided to skip this hike. We headed back to West Yellowstone to do some souvenir shopping and grab some food.
Day 7
The morning was spent finishing up Yellowstone. We started at the Terrace Spring Trail. There is a parking lot here for a 0.2 mile trail with no elevation. This was a peaceful hike in the morning, but I would say it can be skipped if you are running out of time. We drove next to Gibbon Falls Wildlife Trail, a half mile hike with 32 ft of elevation to a 84 ft waterfall. This was my husband’s favorite waterfall in the park. We continued north, passing through Mammoth again. Instead of turning east toward Tower Junction, this time we continued out of the north exit of the park, stopping to get photos and see Roosevelt Arch (built in 1903). We had a calm drive to I-90 and to the Battle of Little Bighorn Monument. Thankfully we hit at the right time, because it is only open 3-4 days a week. There is a very small visitor center here, but it looks like they are building a bigger building. The parking lot is in front of the cemetery. There are many tombs through the rolling hills. There are two different sections. In between the sections is private land, so the gates are subject to closing at any time. There are many interpretive signs along the drive. There is a monument to the American soldiers at the end of the drive. There is a monument to the Native Americans along the drive as well. If you see cloths tied in the bushes, these are prayer cloths left by Native Americans. There are white markers indicating where American soldiers fell during battle. Recently there are added brown markers where Natives fell during battle. The information provided did a great job at painting the scene among the hills. It was a surreal feeling to stand on the grounds. We stopped at a nearby gift shop. Our next stop was Devils Tower National Monument. This was the first national monument. The science and legends of this unique feature make this place even more mysterious. Since this is considered a sacred place, there are many prayer cloths here too. We hiked the Tower Trail, a 1.3 mile loop with 150 ft elevation gain. I highly recommend this trail. The monument looks different from every angle. We got to see bison, prairie dogs, deer, woodpeckers, turkeys, and peregrine falcons. We also saw a few rock climbers making their way to the top. After our hike, we stopped past the campground to see the Circle of Sacred Smoke Sculpture. This is such an amazing piece of art. There is a bench, and when sitting, the sculpture perfectly frames the tower. We drove through a rainstorm to stay at a Hampton Inn in Spearfish, SD for the night. We ate some amazing Mexican food at a place called Guadalajara.
Day 8
We drove through Spearfish Canyon on Highway 14A for a more scenic drive. We stopped to see Bridal Veil Falls. Again, we skipped some trails (Iron Creek, Spearfish Falls, and Roughlock Falls) due to higher elevation gain and tired legs. We drove through historic Deadwood, SD, passing the site of the shooting of Wild Bill Hickok. We went to Rapid City to visit Reptile Gardens. This was a small, but fun ‘zoo’. There are many reptiles and amphibians, including alligators and snakes. Our favorite parts were the free roaming Aldabra Tortoises, the prairie dog towns, and the King Vulture. Our next stop was the National Presidential Wax Museum, getting to tour through scenes of each president. We revisited Mount Rushmore National Memorial. On this visit, we had time to get some ice cream from Thomas Jefferson’s original recipe. It was so good! Since we had extra time, we also went to revisit the Crazy Horse Memorial. This memorial is being made with private donations. It was really cool to see how much progress had been completed since we had been there seven years before. We stayed at the Cambria Hotel. It wasn’t very centrally located to all of the sites, but it was a good hotel that was available for a last minute booking. We had time to enjoy the pool and hot tub as well!
King Vulture; Giant Tortoise
Day 9
We started the day at the opening of one of our favorites, Bear Country USA! This is a drive through safari park, but unlike others, this one has elk, bison, wolves, and so many bears! Opening is the best time to visit because that’s when the animals are fed and closer to the road. Our next stop was Sylvan Lake, part of Custer State Park. The lake had a peaceful trail around it, but it’s not a full loop due to construction/renovations. This lake was so beautiful! We continued driving south along Highway 87 and the Needles Highway. Features along the drive include the Iron Creek Tunnel, Needles Scenic View, Cathedral Spires Pullout, Needles Eye Tunnel, and Hood Tunnel. We continued south to The Mammoth Site. This place was so unique. There are many mammoth remains that were left on site for people to see and learn about. There was a skull with both tusks still attached. There was another skeleton that was almost fully intact with a spine, legs, hips, etc. We enjoyed a nice picnic while we were there. We hit Highway 16A and drove north on Iron Mountain Road. We drove through Scoval Johnson Tunnel, Norbeck Overlook, CC Gideon Tunnel, and Doane Robinson Tunnel. When going from south to north, these tunnels frame Mount Rushmore in the background, making wonderful pictures. We had enough time to go back to the hotel to enjoy the pool and hot tub again!
Day 10
We started at the Visitor Center of Wind Cave National Park. We had pre-bought tickets (highly recommended; they were turning people away) for the Garden of Eden Tour. This was an hour long, ¼ mile tour. This is the least strenuous of the tours. This cave has unique boxwork in the walls. The natural entrance is right outside the back of the visitor center. We got to see a lot of wildlife as we drove through the park. Along Highway 87 is a pigtail bride. Be sure to be careful as you are driving. We drove along the Wildlife Loop Road in Custer State Park. This park has an entrance fee that is NOT covered by an America the Beautiful Pass. We were hoping to see some of the feral burros, bighorn sheep, and mountain goats (a gift from Canada, but they escaped), but we did not see any while we were there. We did get to see a massive amount of bison and got stuck in another bison jam! We headed back towards Rapid City to play at Putz N Glo Mini Golf. We also stopped at Rushmore Candy Company for some snacks. We had time to swim at the hotel again.
Day 11
We drove about an hour to Badlands National Park. This was another revisit, but this park is one of our favorites and so underrated! We started at the Pinnacles Entrance. We saw Hay Butte Overlook, Badlands Wilderness Overlook, Roberts Prairie Dog Town, and Sage Creek Basin Overlook. We stopped at the Ben Reifel Visitor Center where they do active fossil work. We hiked the Door Trail and The Window, 0.75 miles roundtrip. We didn’t do the whole trail because it was hot outside on this day. We also hiked the Fossil Exhibit Trail, an easy hike along the boardwalk. We continued on the large loop to see many of the overlooks, our favorite being Yellow Mounds Overlook with the color variations. We then went to the Wall Drug Store for some shopping and to eat a hot beef sandwich and milkshakes. It was so good! Our next stop was the Badlands Ranch Store where we bought some souvenirs and got to feed peanuts to prairie dogs. I got one to eat a peanut right out of my hand, and we even saw a white prairie dog! We found a hotel to stay at in Dickinson, ND, so we continued on. We drove north, passing through the Enchanted Highway. This was in between Highway 21 and I-94 with metal art sculptures on the sides of the road.
Day 12
We were back to Theodore Roosevelt National Park for a more in-depth visit. This park has two different sections, and they are in different time zones! The north section is a 14 mile out and back scenic drive. We hiked the Little Mo Nature Trail. This was 1.1 miles along the river bottom. There was a pamphlet at the beginning of the trail to follow the numbered posts to explore the plants, wildlife, and geology of the park. We stopped at the Cannonball Concretions Pullout to see these unique formations. At the end of the drive, we stopped at Sperati Point for a beautiful overlook. The south section is a 36 mile drive that starts in the town of Medora. There are many overlooks and pullouts on the road. We hiked the Skyline Vista Trail (0.2 miles with 16 ft elevation) and the Wind Canyon Trail (0.4 miles). There was construction on the main road, so we weren’t able to hike the Old East Entrance Trail (0.9 miles with 26 ft elevation). We got to see prairie dogs, pronghorn, bison, and wild horses! When we got done in the park, we started on our drive home. We stayed in Fargo, ND.
We didn’t stop at any sites on the drive home. We were definitely ready to be home after a wonderful and exhausting trip!
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