We headed west from Wibaux, MT (pronounced WeeBo) with intention of checking out some state parks, as we have Montana park passes. After a couple of stops, however, it was determined that the gumbo mud problem that plagued us in Theodore Roosevelt National Park was also a problem in Montana.
That was enough to send us on to Billings, MT with the intention of proceeding on to Yellowstone National Park. We did make a short side trip to Pictograph Cave State Park
Don’t plan on any big hiking opportunities here, but it’s worth a look especially when it’s free.
We continued on to Billings, MT and visited By All Means Brew Lab. It was a bit highbrow for my taste, so we moved on to Canyon Creek Brewing. Great place with a huge parking lot next door. Turned out they were Harvest Hosts, so I finagled permission to camp there. After a laundry stop, we were on our way to Gardiner, MT and the north entrance to Yellowstone National Park. The drive down is very scenic and Gardiner is definitely a tourist town catering to Yellowstone visitors. I would not expect much in the way of luxury. We ended up stealth camping on the street for a couple of nights with no problems. The highlight was a visit to the local grocery store that had a Montana state liquor store inside. For you bourbon aficionados, I present:
Not pictured; 4 bottles of Blantons.
We moved into Yellowstone National Park through the north entrance near Mammoth Hot Springs. After gathering information at the visitors center, we hiked the nearby Beaver Ponds Loop Trail. Nice easy 5-6 mile loop with a fair amount of wildlife.
Mammoth Hot Springs is an interesting, albeit crowded, geological formation at the end of the hike.
We street camped in Gardiner, MT with no problems and checked out Iron Horse Bar & Grill as well as Two Bit Saloon/Red’s Blue Goose Stage. Pretty rustic!
Big day of hiking the next day with Bunsen Peak Trail, Lost Lake Loop Trail, Yellowstone River Picnic Area Loop Trail and Wraith Falls Trail.
The lower left photo shows a geothermal feature on the bank of the Yellowstone River that deposits molten sulphur into the river.
We moved to the northeast side of the park and camped on a forest service road a few miles outside the park.
I highly recommend the Lamar Valley in the northeast section of the park for wildlife viewing. We saw a black bear & cubs, many bison, pronghorn antelope and wolves at a great distance. We hiked Slough Creek Trail in and out. Very popular with fly fisherman, duly noted for future reference.
We moved south and hiked Mount Washburn via Dunraven Pass, Point Sublime via Artist Point and Artists Paintpots Trail. Mount Washburn is the highest point in the park. Very windy, awesome views and a suprise weather station at the top with an indoor viewing area to eat your lunch.
We moved on to West Yellowstone, MT and decided to take a day off. We were easily able to stealth camp on the street for a couple of nights and use the library to catch up on this blog and finances. We ate twice at Firehole BBQ Co. Don’t miss this one and go early if you want brisket. Trust me, you want the brisket. Yellowstone Beer Co is a great stop as well with good bar food and a more upscale restaurant next door.
We moved into the more heavily traveled area of the park and hiked Fairy Falls Trail, Mystic Falls Trail, Old Faithful Geyser Loop Trail and Lone Star Geyser Trail. The Fairy Falls Trail offers a detour to an elevated viewing area of the Grand Prismatic, which I highly recommend.
This was probably my least favorite part of the park due to the crowds. Crowds at a hockey game, no problem. Crowds in the great outdoors, not so much.
We decided to move on at the end of the day through the south entrance of the park. Through the various apps we use to find boondocking campsites, it appeared that people were having success camping in a roadside pullout just south of the park entrance. We set up there for a drink and cooked dinner, but the park rangers let us and a couple of others know that we wouldn’t be sleeping there for the night. The National Park Service has jurisdiction from the north entrance of Yellowstone to the south entrance of Grand Teton National Park, so boondock camping can be tough here. We drove south (at night) looking for a suitable spot and snuck into Leek’s Marina parking lot. Made it through the night without a knock on the door and even got a shower in. This was the view the next morning.
We hiked the Colter Bay Lakeshore Trail and Grand View Point Trail. Great views all around!
We spent the evening with our friends Jerry and Nancy G who were our neighbors in Florida but went full time RV in 2008. They now spend their summers volunteering on the Grand Teton National Park Wildlife Brigade. We had a great dinner and ended up camping on their campsite.
We hiked the Cascade Canyon Trail, which is a must do when at Grand Teton. 14 mile out and back, stunning scenery and tons of moose!
We moved on to Jackson Hole, WY and ended up spending a couple of days there. No need to stealth camp as there were probably 10 vans parked around the downtown park each night we were there. Great resort town with pickleball and lots of nightlife!
We spent some time at Snake River Brewery as well as Roadhouse Pub & Eatery. Good craft beer and plenty of interesting people to talk to.
We decided to head south based upon weather to the Park City, UT, but ended up continuing on to Heber City, UT. We promptly visited Heber Valley Brewing Co. Good beer and lots of locals. We visited Wasatch Mountain State Park the next day and hiked the Crows Nest via Huber Grove to Epperson Trail. Basically a spider web of trails, but some good views.
After the hike, we made the executive decision to head for home ahead of hot weather moving in. Better to be home in the a/c.
103 days, 9,500 miles, 24 states, 10 national parks, many state parks, many miles hiked and many beers drunk. And we’re still alive and married!
As I finish this entry, I’m preparing to travel back to Mesquite from Florida. I’ll be having eye surgery in December and then we’ll be hitting the road for small trips after New Years. Next summers trip, now in the planning stages, will be to Alaska from May to September.
Stay tuned!
Breathtaking photos!