We just returned from a 2 week trip from Pennsylvania which included 4 days in Yellowstone.The first night we spent at the Richmond,Indiana KOA. Decent over night stop close to I-70. Pull through sites,friendly staff.2nd night was at Pershing State Park in Missouri. Nice state park,electric hookups and nice restrooms. $19 a night. 3rd night was spent at Ogalalla State Recreation Area in Nebraska. It's about 15 miles off I-70. Very nice setting right by the lake. Lots of trees,plenty of space between the sites,some of which are right on the water.New electric hookups. Showers were coin operated and they could use some work. $18 a night plus $5 for entry.4th night in Boulder,Wyoming at High Trail RV park. Nice private campground with full hookups. Nice bathhouse and laundry. Friendly staff.Good separation between sites.I believe we paid $40.
5th day we were in Yellowstone. Stayed at Madison which was one of 2 campgrounds open while we were there.Decent campground with alot of tall trees. With the America the Beautiful geezer pass,entry to the park was free and camping was $13 a night. While not everything was open,there was still plenty to see. We ate at the Inn at Old Faithful which is beautiful and is supposed to be the biggest log structure in the world. We had dinner in the dinning room. Food good and staff friendly.The next day on the road from Norris to Canyon,we came across a mother grizzly with 3 cubs.They walked right towards our van then past the drivers side and went into the woods. My wife got some good video of them. At the Canyon Visitor Center we showed the video to a ranger and another couple. The other couple said they were in Yellowstone 4 times and never saw a grizzly so I guess we were very lucky. The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone is beautiful.Mammoth Hot Springs has a nice visitor center. The campground there looks very nice. It looks like there is alot more room between the sites than at Madison.The weather was good with no rain or snow. Most days were in the 50's and 60's and sunny. Nights got into the 30's. Glad we had the generator with because the furnace fan really ran down the batteries at night.
I bought several books while there. One was called " Death in Yellowstone". Very interesting. People killed by bears,freezing, murder,falling. In one instance a couple were killed when the woman backed their car through the railing and over the cliff into the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.
We left Yellowstone Saturday, late afternoon and drove through Grand Teton National Park.We stayed at the Long Horn Ranch RV Park and motel. A very nice private campground in Dubois, Wyoming. Nice sites on the wind river.They get an award for best bathrooms.They were like your bathroom at home with toilet,vanity and shower with tile floors.This was the most expensive campground on our trip. $49.50 with tax.The next day we went to Minden, Nebraska because I wanted to see the Harold Warp Pioneer Museum. If you like history or old cars,tractors,trucks,snow mobiles or motorcycles,you need to see the place. They have a campground which isn't the best,but it was ok for one night. The price was $35 but included one pass to the museum.The next night we spent at an Iowa State Park called Wabonsie State Park off I-29 near Nebraska City.Electric hookups,nice bath houses.Only $16 a night. There weren't too many sites for larger trailers but since it was mid week we got one. The next night was in Ramsey State Recreation Area in Illinois. Nice park with electric hookups.Last night was spent in Ohio at Buck Creek State Park. This park was very beautiful.All sites were paved with electric hookups. We could see the lake right from our site. They have a nice store and bath houses were good.
I know alot of people complain about Pennsylvania's roads,but after going through 10 states,Pa's were some of the best. Missouri was good. We got off the interstate and took Missouri State RT 36 across the state. This is a very good highway with 2 state parks along the way ( Pershing and Long Branch Lake). The only downside was get gas where it's available because there are long stretches without a gas station. The worst roads we were on were in Nebraska,Illinois and Ohio.Gas prices ranged form $1.95 to $2.49.
If you've never been to Yellowstone,go. May was a good time.It wasn't crowded at at and the weather was good. I'm sure September would be a good time too.Make sure to do some research before you go and hit the visitor centers while there.
