Yellowstone this month

Did you get up to Yellowstone like you were planning? We took a little two-day trip there last week and really enjoyed it. Only drove a car since we were only going two days.

Oakman wrote:

Jim Shoe wrote:
I've been going to YNP since I was a child. On a couple of my last trips after I retired, I found it fascinating to watch folks that think they're in an open air zoo where all the animals are tame.
Saw a woman complaining to a Ranger about the huge dent in her car door. She attempted to drive through a herd of Bison and their babies while they crossed the road. I also spotted a guy, armed with his trusty camera, walk up past the rear end of a male elk so he could get a pic of the elk's head. He was less than a yard away from a rather impressive rack of antlers. Neither human was hurt.
A Ranger that I talked to said that they spend a good part of their day explaining to visitors that they aren't in a petting zoo or are walking around pools of steaming water safe for bathing.
There are people on this earth that are too dumb to live and spend their lives proving it.

Yes, too many people are clueless when it comes to wildlife.

And that's no bull...

Jim Shoe wrote:
I've been going to YNP since I was a child. On a couple of my last trips after I retired, I found it fascinating to watch folks that think they're in an open air zoo where all the animals are tame.
Saw a woman complaining to a Ranger about the huge dent in her car door. She attempted to drive through a herd of Bison and their babies while they crossed the road. I also spotted a guy, armed with his trusty camera, walk up past the rear end of a male elk so he could get a pic of the elk's head. He was less than a yard away from a rather impressive rack of antlers. Neither human was hurt.
A Ranger that I talked to said that they spend a good part of their day explaining to visitors that they aren't in a petting zoo or are walking around pools of steaming water safe for bathing.
There are people on this earth that are too dumb to live and spend their lives proving it.

Yes, too many people are clueless when it comes to wildlife.

newk wrote:
I read today that all the roads in Yellowstone and Teton NP are open except for Dunraven Pass. The story said park employees were back on the job, but they expected it would take 3 days to get everything opened up again, just as it took 3 days to close it down. Then it'll be closed again in a couple weeks.

Weather for the coming week looks pretty good, but keep an eye out for changes. Your escape routes could diminish quickly with a good mountain storm.

Elk should be in rut. That's always fun... just keep a good distance from them, as the bulls can be pretty cantankerous this time of the year. You might also find some good fall colors. Colors are very late arriving in eastern Wyoming this year.

I'd expect most of the Park to be closed by Nov. 1 at the latest. The Black Hills is at a lower elevation, so you might enjoy that if the weather chases you out of Yellowstone. Most of the Hills, except for private tourist attractions, is open all year.

Thanks so much for the on scene report

I've been going to YNP since I was a child. On a couple of my last trips after I retired, I found it fascinating to watch folks that think they're in an open air zoo where all the animals are tame.
Saw a woman complaining to a Ranger about the huge dent in her car door. She attempted to drive through a herd of Bison and their babies while they crossed the road. I also spotted a guy, armed with his trusty camera, walk up past the rear end of a male elk so he could get a pic of the elk's head. He was less than a yard away from a rather impressive rack of antlers. Neither human was hurt.
A Ranger that I talked to said that they spend a good part of their day explaining to visitors that they aren't in a petting zoo or are walking around pools of steaming water safe for bathing.
There are people on this earth that are too dumb to live and spend their lives proving it.

Mammoth campground in the park is open year-round. No hookups though. It's the best area to see elk.

I read today that all the roads in Yellowstone and Teton NP are open except for Dunraven Pass. The story said park employees were back on the job, but they expected it would take 3 days to get everything opened up again, just as it took 3 days to close it down. Then it'll be closed again in a couple weeks.

Weather for the coming week looks pretty good, but keep an eye out for changes. Your escape routes could diminish quickly with a good mountain storm.

Elk should be in rut. That's always fun... just keep a good distance from them, as the bulls can be pretty cantankerous this time of the year. You might also find some good fall colors. Colors are very late arriving in eastern Wyoming this year.

I'd expect most of the Park to be closed by Nov. 1 at the latest. The Black Hills is at a lower elevation, so you might enjoy that if the weather chases you out of Yellowstone. Most of the Hills, except for private tourist attractions, is open all year.

You may well expect snow and road closures. We got to Yellowstone on Halloween a few years ago and within 2 or 3 days it had snowed a good amount and many of the roads in the park had been closed to traffic. It was very cold and windy for most of our visit there as well. Saw very little wildlife. BUT, I wouldn't have missed it for anything - still a Great place to visit.

If you can dodge the snow, autumn is a great time to visit -- very cool temps, no bugs. And the slanting sunlight this time of year is great for photography -- this shot was taken almost exactly two years ago today:

When the snow starts falling, they have a time when most of the Park is closed to vehicle traffic. They then plow the snow so the snow machines can start using the roads for the winter. I do believe that part of the Park, up by Madison and Mammoth is open to vehicle traffic year-round as they don't get quite as much snow as the majority of the Park. Good luck, the Park is a great place to visit, no matter what time of year.