Yellowstone National Park 5 day Itinerary suggestions

[DeanRIowa]

We will be in Yellowstone in mid July 2015 and looking for a 5 day itinerary for sites to visit, with Fishing Bridge RV park as our home base.

Wants:

• Since home base at Fishing Bridge, I would like to go in the opposite direction of most travelers that stay outside of the park.
• A couple of hours of minor fishing for kids 2 days or so would be nice(easy access).
• Lunch picnic during days

Notes:

• 3 adults, 3 kids ages 9 to 75
• First trip for everyone to Yellowstone
• 2 adults/3 kids < 2 miles hiking round trip possible
• 2 days afterwards in Grand Tetons

I see lots to do but organizing them into daily doable drives has been my struggle. Any secrets would be great.

I found a map that might help me.

[kknowlton]

What I have started to do it list the top things for our must see and with the map listing those locations, I am getting some good ideas for our days.

Day 1 - Up early - Old Faithful area, geysers, hotel tour,..
Day 2 - Hayden Valley, Upper/Lower Falls and Grand Canyon
Day 3 - Lamar Valley, Tower Falls
Day 4 - Norris Area and Geyser/Falls going south
Day 4 - Up early - Mammoth Hot Spring Area, Roosevelt Arch
Day 5 - ?

Sounds like a good plan to start with. You might not want to plan day 5 ahead - leave it for things you missed, or want to spend more time visiting. I did notice that you left out West Thumb and Lake - perhaps you could do those on the 5th day. They are a different part of Yellowstone (and West Thumb is a thermal area with the prettiest backdrop ever!) From Fishing Bridge, they're quite close. You also mentioned fishing - perhaps you could spend some time that day for that. As others have mentioned, you will undoubtedly feel you want to go back someday, and see what you missed! A lot of folks feel that way, even after much longer visits. 🙂

[CloudDriver]

Your plan above looks reasonable.

A couple of thoughts - At Mammoth Hot Springs there are often Elk grazing in the grassy area across from the Hotel. The Visitor Center there is in one of the buildings dating back to the 1800's when the army was stationed to patrol the park.

When you drive from Mammoth to the Roosevelt Arch and back again check the hillsides for Bighorn Sheep. We have seen them a couple of times. IIRC there are signs along the road that it's a sheep conservation area.

The Lamar Valley is the most remote portion of the Park with little in the way of facilities. There are toilets just beyond the junction of Soda Butte Creek and the Lamar River and also at the turn off for the Pebble Creek Campground.

If you are interested and have the time, we usually see Mountain Goats on the sides of Barronette Peak beyond the Lamar Valley up near the Northeast Entrance. Binoculars are a must - otherwise they are just white dots against the gray cliffs.

There are 5 Mountain Goats in this picture. Mother with two kids upper center and mother with one kid lower right.


Forgot one other important thing. Be very careful if you need to drive after dark to get back to the campground. The Bison in particular like to walk the roads, especially in places where the level surface makes travel easier for them.

[Tracus]

Lots of great suggestions here and I concur with just about every one of them. Utmost importance is the children's safety. If this is your first visit to Yellowstone and I assume it's theirs, also; patience will be your best friend. The animals don't use a time clock, the geysers aren't on any schedule but their own. You may have to wait a while for an eruption or for a herd of elk or bison to appear. What do you have in store for the kids to do while you wait? The Junior Ranger program is excellent. If you have an inexpensive digital camera, let them take lots of pictures. Bad shots can always be deleted. Knowing some history of the park can also be entertaining. For example, the U.S. Army was stationed there to protect the park before the NPS was created. The original barracks and stables are at Mammoth. Imagine patrolling the park, about the size of Connecticut on horseback before there were roads. Now imagine doing the same patrol during the winter. (We've been there twice in the winter.)

I assume that you have a dinghy for transportation. Tower Falls and Beartooth Pass are worth a trip if time allows. My wife and I spent five days at the West Yellowstone KOA and we saw enough to say we were there, but left enough that we'll have to go back. I believe you feel the same way when you pack up for home.

[DeanRIowa]

Beautiful pictures and some good ideas!

What I have started to do it list the top things for our must see and with the map listing those locations, I am getting some good ideas for our days.

• Day 1 - Up early - Old Faithful area, geysers, hotel tour,..
• Day 2 - Hayden Valley, Upper/Lower Falls and Grand Canyon
• Day 3 - Lamar Valley, Tower Falls
• Day 4 - Norris Area and Geyser/Falls going south
• Day 4 - Up early - Mammoth Hot Spring Area, Roosevelt Arch
• Day 5 - ?

I will define the must see list per day in more detail, but thoughts on this high level?

thanks,
Dean

[Army11Bravo]

Five days at YNP is good, but for your first trip, you may find yourself spending most of the time at the roadside attractions. But that's just fine, because there are so many quality sights to see, you'll enjoy stopping every couple miles and exploring.

You may want to go in the opposite direction of other vacationers, but there's no path less traveled. Just bring plenty of water and snacks, and plan to have long days exploring.

Here are some of my favorite spots....

Fire Hole Geyser


Tower Falls


Undine Falls


Kepler Cascades

[2gypsies1]

Explore this official Yellowstone Nat'l Park web site for lots of good information on what to do and maps.

Yellowstone - What To Do?

By the way...all the national parks have a web site like this. 🙂

[morley]

One of the most important things about touring Yellowstone is that allow yourself plenty of time, especially check the road maintenance schedules and road closures within the park each day as the crews do lots of upgrade construction work during the summer months. All of the responses you have received so far are all good ones, Yellowstone is awesome, enjoy all of it that you can.

[bee_46]

We spent 3 1/2 days in Yellowstone this past summer. Stayed in Fishing Bridge RV Park and toured from there. Since we arrived at Fishing Bridge around noon the first half day in the park we did the Mud Volcano area and drove through Hayden Valley. Perhaps drifted through Hayden Valley was more like it. Bison everywhere.
The next full day we drove the lower loop. We are not hikers so we did not walk all of the geyser basins, but hit the highlights.
The second day we did the upper loop timing our trip so we ended up at the Roosevelt Lodge area to go on the Chuck Wagon dinner.
The third day we drove through Lemar Valley on the search for animals.

With five days you would have time for some hikes and still hit many of the must sees in the park.

The details of where we went and what we did are in the blog link below "Arches, Geysers, and Canyons.

[time2roll]

Be sure to allow time to visit the historic hotels.

Need a day for each the lower loop and the upper loop. A lot of driving so maybe a day to rest between and just do something close such as Grand Canyon and/or Lake Yellowstone Hotel.

[bobjogone]

Make sure kids do junior ranger or junior scientist
Each visitor center has unique exhibits
West thumb is unique area
rent rowboat or take boat tour from bridge bay marina
take ranger led programs

[CloudDriver]

Just in case you haven't seen it already, fishing info for Yellowstone is here.

Driving around the Park, we have seen most fishing being done in the Firehole River between the Old Faithful area and Madison Junction and again in the Madison River between Madison Junction and the West Entrance. Lots of folks doing fly fishing.

At Canyon, stop at the first parking area on the North Rim Drive and hike down the the brink of the Lower Falls. Spectacular to look over the railing and watch and listen to the roar of the water falling some 300 feet into the mist below. All of the pull offs on both the north and south sides of the canyon are worth a stop. A nice new Visitor Center at Canyon too.

Plan on a full day at the Old Faithful area. Lots of trails/boardwalks there and lots more thermal features that just the Old Faithful geyser. Stop in the Visitor Center to get the estimated times of the predictable geysers to help plan your route. Have lunch in the Old Faithful Inn (less expensive than dinner). Stop at Black Sand Basin and Biscuit Basin while in the area.

You will see Bison all around the Park, but in our experience the largest herd is in the Lamar Valley toward the Northeast Entrance. That's also the only place we have seen Wolves. Wolf, Eagle and Bear sightings are pretty much a matter of being in the right place at the right time, so luck is involved. The Rangers can probably advise on recent sightings. If you see folks on the side of the road with spotting scopes, you will know something is going on. Hopefully you are bringing binoculars, although folks will spotting scopes will often let you look.

You will have no problem filling 5 days with activities in this unique place.

[kknowlton]

You've gotten some good advice so far. I especially like BJ's suggestions. I would add that, since you are in the vicinity, you visit Lake area; it's quieter. If you want a cook's night out that won't totally break the bank, have a meal at Lake Lodge cafeteria; the food is quite good and - for Yellowstone - not too pricey. Nice view from the rustic dining room too.

You're in a perfect spot for a nice, short trail: Storm Point. It takes off from the park road a few miles east of Fishing Bridge. DO ask about bear conditions before you go, as this trail is near Pelican Creek, which is grizzly habitat. I'd advise buying some bear spray (expensive but effective) at the General Store there at Fishing Bridge. If you are hiking/walking for exercise, remember to pace yourself; the park is at high altitude, most of it between 7000-8000 feet elevation. Talk to the folks at the FB campground and who work in the store; also to those working at the Yellowstone Association store at FB - they'll all have good suggestions for you & your family. Fishing requires a license for those over a certain age (15?) - make sure to inquire. There are short-term licenses that are inexpensive.

Another good way to get some fishing in, though a little more expensive, is to go out on Yellowstone Lake with a fishing guide. Check the Xanterra website, or the Yellowstone one at npr.gov, for more specific information. You can keep all the lake trout you want.

There is no "rush hour" from outside the park on the east side, as most people staying outside the park come in from the west. As previously mentioned, traffic is slow throughout much of the park and will be heavy in some locations. Animal jams are frequent and make great photo ops (but stay in your car if the animals are right on or alongside the road). Spending time in the evening in a pulloff in Hayden Valley, watching animals or even just the sunset, is a delight; you're in the perfect spot for that too, and I recommend it.

Plan on driving lots of miles and having plenty of scenery, wildlife and other tourists to watch. 🙂 You have lots of walking opportunities in the various thermal areas - Old Faithful is just the tip of the iceberg - with all the boardwalks in those areas. Make sure the kids STAY ON the boardwalks!!!!!!!!! Can't emphasize this enough. You'll get a park newspaper when you enter the park - READ IT. It prescribes the distance you need to keep from the various animals, plus lots of other helpful and important information. Park visitors who end up in trouble invariably did not read & heed what's in there.

I suggest spending one full day visiting the Old Faithful area, walking around the geyser area (as much as your party wants). If only some want to walk, there are plenty of places for the others to wait and relax. (Relatively) inexpensive food at the General Store or Snow Lodge's "grill," and the ice cream at the General Store can't be beat. West Thumb is worth at least an hour or two, Canyon at least 1/2 day, Mammoth and Norris at least several hours each. Lamar Valley, the northeast section of the park, is a prime wildlife area and where you are most likely to spot a wolf (never guaranteed - I've been to the park umpteen times and still haven't). Look for a group of people off the side of the road with spotting scopes on tripods. 🙂

If you're on a stricter budget, as mentioned there are lots of picnic areas around. And for the elderly and similarly challenged, lots of toilets (pit, primarily, but NPS keeps them pretty clean), both in picnic areas and by themselves.

Have fun and enjoy! Look at the traffic slowdowns as good opportunities to enjoy the scenery, get a good long look at buffalo (often close-up), etc. Five days will be enough for you to hit the highlights, especially since you plan a couple days in the Tetons in addition.

[BillMFl]

You can't go wrong in any direction but expect lots of traffic and big crowds in July. In addition to the geothermal sites my first choice would be Yellowstone Falls and canyon. Get an early start in the AM before vistors pour in from outside. Evenings are a good time to park by the prairie where Wolves are sometime seen. Keep kids well clear of the Buffalo and Elk. They are generally very peaceful unless approached too closely. The Madison is a great trout stream easy to get too but not easy to fish for youngsters. July can be hot so am and pm are nicer and less crowded. If you want a nice day hike up one of the taller peaks there is a trail head parking at Dunraven Pass area with a smooth trail up to an observation post at the top of Mt Washburn. The trail starts at about 8000' and is over 11,000ft at the top. Great view of the whole park from there. Take water wherever you go and pack a lunch.

[DeanRIowa]

Good idea with the newspaper, and I added a map link I found as well.