Part of the reason we landed on SLC as our temporary home away from home was its proximity to different parts of the country that we wanted to see. Back home, when you hop in your car and drive five hours the landscape isn’t all that different. Here we can basically pick a direction and later that day we find ourselves in the desert, the forest, the mountains, you name it. So over the past two years we’ve made good use of our national parks pass. It’s been the best part of living here, by far.
Our most recent trip was to Yellowstone. We didn’t do much research before hand or have many expectations for it. It was one we felt we should go to just because, you know…it’s Yellowstone, the first national park. Now we both agree that it’s our favorite of all the parks we’ve been to so far (at least until we go to the next one, which will then become our new favorite). Aside from the scale of the park, the whole place just feels wild and alive. There are the animals, yes, but the land itself seems to be in a constant state of flux — hissing, bubbling, exploding. It’s a really special place.
People watching is always one of my favorite parts of these trips. You see some dummies, sure, and people don’t always follow the campsite rule of leaving things better than you found them, but the fact that so many people flock to these places makes me feel a little less cynical about things in general.
Like many people, my feelings on what it means to be American are complicated and have soured greatly in adulthood as my illusions have been handily dismantled, one after another. On their website, Yellowstone Forever states that, “the National Park Service recognizes 27 individual Tribes with historic and modern-day ties to Yellowstone,” but it’s unclear to me what this recognition actually means. Not much, I suspect and that history isn’t one that’s really surfaced on the informational placards.
The beauty, though, is undeniable. It’s immediately apparent why this park is such a huge draw. We overheard too many languages to count and spotted license plates from Mexico, a few Canadian provinces, and 44 states (Wisconsin was well represented). I’m certain we would’ve gotten all 50 if we’d started looking on our first day instead of half way through the trip.
Anyway, here’s how we spent our days.
Day 1
We entered through West Yellowstone and drove to Canyon campground to check into our site. It takes about 40 minutes to drive from one main hub within the park to the next, so this took some time, but there’s plenty to look at on the way.
After stretching our legs at the site, we went over to Artist’s Point to see the “Grand Canyon of Yellowstone” which is where I put two and two together on why it’s called Yellowstone. Duh. After taking in the main view we bopped down to the upper and lower brinks to get a closer look at the falls. It was a perfect introduction to the park.
The light was fading so we went back to the site for a quick dinner and fire before calling it a night, carefully packing all our food, water, and “bear attractants” into the site’s bear box. As a chronically cold person, I was excited to try my wearable sleeping bag, which I’m happy to report kept me warm and cozy and swaddled like a baby.
Day 2
Our map told us that Hayden Valley was where bison could reliably be found, so we started the day with a leisurely drive through the valley where we did indeed see plenty of bison. Turns out we didn’t have to really seek them out, though, as bison were literally everywhere and such a delight. From there we spent a few hours at Mammoth Hot Springs. There’s no way to describe how otherworldly this place is, with its strange colors, smells, and noises.
It started to rain pretty heavily so we hid out at the site for a bit and by the time it stopped we had enough daylight left to hit one more feature — the Grand Prismatic Spring. The time of day and dropping temperature meant the spring was extra hazy, obscuring the brilliant colors promised in all the pamphlets, but honestly I preferred it that way. It was so moody and dreamy and I hope I never forget it.
Day 3
We got up and out before the sun and headed to Old Faithful. It was chilly and there was a layer of frost that made everything around us glitter as the sun came up. Old Faithful did its thing and we oo’d and ah’d with the rest of the early morning crowd. From there we scooted over to West Thumb and walked the winding paths through various springs, each colorful and bubbling in its own way.
Ben really wanted to see some bears and wolves (I was less enthusiastic about it) so. we set out for Lamar Valley hoping to find them but kept getting stuck in traffic for one reason or another and ended up accidentally spending about 4 hours in the car. We abandoned that plan and headed back to the Grand Prismatic Spring instead. We hiked up to the overlook from the Fairy Falls trailhead and I was, admittedly, a little grumpy from the traffic and all the people jostling to get a look. But the colors were on full display this time and it’s hard to be a grump when you’re looking down at something like that.
We were pretty beat and the sun was on its way down, so we went back to the site for one last meal and one last fire. By the next afternoon we were nestled back on the couch with Otis, already thinking about when we might be able to get back there.