If I have a day or two to visit Yellowstone..,.

[RedJeep]

Hello friends. We're from Portland but are in New Mexico with my family (wife & 11 yo kids). We have a 35' class A towing a car. Our schedule is a bit unpredictable but at the end of July we'll be heading back to Portland. We typically drive through Moab, SLC, Boise to get home. We are considering a drive through Yellowstone. My questions:

Is it even possible to visit Yellowstone on short notice? Is it too crowded to bother? Zero chance of finding a place to park/camp w/ a 35' Class A?

What would you see if you only had an afternoon or a day or two to visit?

Is it possible to just drive through and see a few things and then camp outside the park?

We did a similar sort of excursion last summer at the Grand Canyon. No reservations. Found a RV campground in Williams and then drove into the Grand Canyon for the day. That worked fine for us, but I am familiar with that area.

I realize more time is required to fully appreciate a location like Yellowstone, but schedules sometimes don't afford us many days to play.

Thanks all!

[Kavoom]

CA Traveler wrote:
Our biggest "bear jam" was a buffy sleeping on "his" road. We stayed in the car enjoying the scenery. Also wondered if he might decide to skewer one of the tourist out taking pictures!

You should follow them at 1 mph on a snowy road in January for 30 minutes in the dark on the hilly part out of Mammoth. As you finally inch by one or two they give you a dirty look and you know all they gotta do is swing their head and you gotta call State Farm...

My favorite way of dealing with them is the way they do it in Custer State Park in South Dakota. The ranger comes driving around all the stopped traffic in his pick up and runs right at them stepping on the gas and honking the horn. A couple turned to face him and he just backed up and came at them again, honking his horn and they all got out of the way quickly. They appeared to know the drill was my impression.

I guess the National Park Service is more "respectful.' We were laughing our behinds off in SD. Very efficient and didn't seem to really affect the Buffs except for their dignity.

[CA_Traveler]

Our biggest "bear jam" was a buffy sleeping on "his" road. We stayed in the car enjoying the scenery. Also wondered if he might decide to skewer one of the tourist out taking pictures!

[Kavoom]

I agree on avoiding the coach as your "toad." You can do it, but the traffic jams are a real bear (usually caused by a bear) and your big rig will just add to the jammed up mess. People lose their minds when they see wild life. They park anywhere including in your way right in the middle of the fricking road and so you can't get by them and because of your size no one can get by you and so on.

It is so weird to see how people act. Crazy people. And why Montanans wait till the tourists are all gone... PLEASE...don't be one of them.

[Braces]

Addition to previous post. RENT ANOTHER CAR to do the Tower- Lamar Valley - Mammoth area, your coach will severely handicap you. Any more specifics please ask. HAVE FUN.

[Braces]

If I had 3 nites I would come in through Grand Tetons staying at Gros Ventre CG where you can almost always get a site. Spend the rest of the arrival day in the Tetons and part of the next day and then drive to West Yellowstone or Gardiner and stay in a commercial CG. Probably can't get" in the park" reservations this late but get as close to Lamar Valley as possible and make a long (daylight to dark)day your last day in Lamar Valley area to see wildlife and ride up toward Beartooth Pass to see the great scenery and eat lunch in the little sidewalk cafe in Cooke City. Research the route from Tetons north to see where road construction is lightest on the YNP website. It will be about a 4 - 6 hr drive from GT to north YNP.Use your toad as much as possible to be able to park at parking lots or pull off the road for bear or bison jams. If you really want to see critters there are some really good guides that can help you in Gardiner area. Price maybe about $400 day. Cara McGarry (check spelling) was super nice and knowledgeable and showed us much more than we would have seen on our own even though we have our own scopes and binocs and have been there a few times. We have seen the geothermal sites several times but like the critters better. You could go by Old Faithful and through a lot of the geothermal area on the trip north from GT. Try to add another day and make the GT part of the trip a full day on the second day.. Research both parks and try to have ideas as to what you want to see.

[CA_Traveler]

RedJeep wrote:
OP here with an update. Turns out we have a couple more family members going with us. More folks in the RV than can fit in the toad so it looks like the RV will be our toad. ??

I appreciate all the advice so far!

In that case rent a car so that everyone can have a good experience assuming there are 2 drivers.

Or check to see if there are any tours offered.

[GeoBoy]

RedJeep wrote:
OP here with an update. Turns out we have a couple more family members going with us. More folks in the RV than can fit in the toad so it looks like the RV will be our toad. ??

I appreciate all the advice so far!

You can rent a car in the town of West Yellowstone. If you stay at Grizzly RV Park the car rental for the extra people would be convenient.

[2chiefsRus]

RedJeep wrote:
OP here with an update. Turns out we have a couple more family members going with us. More folks in the RV than can fit in the toad so it looks like the RV will be our toad. ??

I appreciate all the advice so far!

It has been a while since our last trip there (we have spent more than 5 weeks at Yellowstone in total) but if I recall correctly, I would avoid driving the rv in the north east corner of the park because the roads were pretty narrow in the section north of the Canyon on the east side. Maybe that section has been made wider since we have been there. The Canyon section itself is my favorite part. The Canyon Section really is one place that you need to be able to park and get out of the RV to see.

[Lexx]

Getting off the beaten path is a worthwhile exercise if you can do it. Otherwise you really can see a lot of stuff just driving the two loops.

IMO Old Faithful is over-rated and not worth the time if you're in a time crunch. The crowds and wait made it decidedly unappealing to me.

[RedJeep]

OP here with an update. Turns out we have a couple more family members going with us. More folks in the RV than can fit in the toad so it looks like the RV will be our toad. ??

I appreciate all the advice so far!

[Executive45]

1. Check for a site at Grizzly RV Park.
2. Yellowstone is simply a figure eight. Northern circle has the most wildlife. Southern circle has the most geysers.
3. Plan on going the northern circle at dawn and/or sunset for best opportunity to see wildlife.
4. If I were planning what you are, I'd leave early, do half the northern circle, hit the southern one during the afternoon and then the rest of the northern circle at dusk. It'll be busy and time consuming, but doable....Dennis

[Kavoom]

Might try the headwaters at Flagg Ranch. It is located between the Tetons and Yellowstone and can take your unit with water electric. https://www.gtlc.com/rv/headwaters-campground

It is a good base camp. If you have one day, you could see the highlights along with roughly another hundred thousand people. I'd do a loop and hit Old Faithful and Canyon and/or try to make the run to Cooke City particularly if you like animals as not much on geyser stuff that way. Canyon area is a must imho. You can also hit the West Thumb area from the South easy. IF you have the time, there are "side roads" in Yellowstone. Those are the most interesting, dirt roads fewer people. We like the "Lake" area. Try to end your day there and if you are at Flagg, it would be about an hour from there or so but if you do, you can sit on the porch with an adult beverage of your choice with you feet kicked up and it is beautiful. Decent food buffet style least expensive in the park.

[CA_Traveler]

Good suggestions above.

Unless you get a site at Fishing Bridge W Yellowstone is close to both loops.

[memtb]

If, you’ coming thru Cody, there are 2 or 3 National Forest CG’s near ( one is probably 15 or more miles from the gate) the east entrance that can handle your rig. Then, you could use your “toad” for your sightseeing!
Though, you will be boondocking.....no RV hook-ups.

Several years ago we parked our 40+ foot, 5th wheel for several days, while we “did the park”!