Yellowstone 6/23-6/26

You can still do both entrances. To go through Ennis from Manhattan you still take the Big Sky/West Yellowstone exit at Belgrade onto US-191 but when you get to the stop light at 4Corners (about 10 miles S of Belgrade)turn right (west) onto MT-84 and US-287S and follow the Madison river to Ennis, on to Quake Lake and into West Yllowstone. You will miss all of the road construction and only add 34 miles.

MTBob wrote:

MTRhino wrote:
A word of caution, drove the road from West Yellowstone to Bozeman yesterday and there is a lot of road construction complete with pilot cars and delays. You may want to go through Ennis as an alternate route.

That's exactly right - they are advertising this construction as a 15 minute delay, but it will be much more, depending on traffic and how you hit the one-way cycle.
If you go through Ennis (down the Madison River valley) you will go through the Quake Lake area & monument to get to West Yellowstone. Be sure to stop and review the Quake Lake visitors center, very interesting geological event.
You may want to consider going in the north entrance at Gardiner, ie. through Bozeman on I-90, turn south on Rt. 89 at Livingston, then to Gardiner.
In any case, as others have said, be prepared for crowds in the park. And, if you plan on staying in a campground, be sure to have reservations.
Bob

Reservations already made for Canyon campground. Thanks for the road construction tip. We are going to be in Manhatten MT so we can choose the North entrance instead of West. We did want to go in one entrance and leave through another as i dont want to see the same sights twice. May rethink that though.

MTRhino wrote:
A word of caution, drove the road from West Yellowstone to Bozeman yesterday and there is a lot of road construction complete with pilot cars and delays. You may want to go through Ennis as an alternate route.

That's exactly right - they are advertising this construction as a 15 minute delay, but it will be much more, depending on traffic and how you hit the one-way cycle.
If you go through Ennis (down the Madison River valley) you will go through the Quake Lake area & monument to get to West Yellowstone. Be sure to stop and review the Quake Lake visitors center, very interesting geological event.
You may want to consider going in the north entrance at Gardiner, ie. through Bozeman on I-90, turn south on Rt. 89 at Livingston, then to Gardiner.
In any case, as others have said, be prepared for crowds in the park. And, if you plan on staying in a campground, be sure to have reservations.
Bob

A word of caution, drove the road from West Yellowstone to Bozeman yesterday and there is a lot of road construction complete with pilot cars and delays. You may want to go through Ennis as an alternate route.

kenzmad wrote:
Wow, thanks for all the advice. I hadnt even thought about a horse ride. Good tip. Great, chinese drivers on winding roads. Sounds like a recipe for disaster.

To be clear, the trailheads I mentioned are not places where you will find outfitters to go on a trail ride. You need to set that up before hand. The trail heads are just the place where you begin a ride. If you want references for trail rides, PM me and I'll give you some guidance.
Happy Trails,
Bob

Heading to Madison CG on the 21st and then Canyon on the 24th. We have an 8 and 10yr old with us. Can't wait!!

H2oSprt wrote:
We will be at Madison from the 22nd-23rd, and then off to Canyon from 24th -26th, and then Bridge Bay on the 27th and 28th. Not sure about the teenage thing as my kids are all under 10 :)

Good Luck!

Will look for you at canyon. My oldest is 15 and my youngest will turn 12 at yellowstone on the 25th. Look for us, easiest thing to spot on the camper is a Bloodydecks fish sticker above right rear taillight. Give a wave or stop in for a beer.

We will be at Madison from the 22nd-23rd, and then off to Canyon from 24th -26th, and then Bridge Bay on the 27th and 28th. Not sure about the teenage thing as my kids are all under 10 :)

Good Luck!

We arrived at our site in Madison, Sunday around 1pm. Lots of traffic coming up from the south. Of course the CG is full. But more of a surprise was the number of sightseers when we went out this morning. Bus after bus of people. Parking lots are full. Cars parked ever where. I don't recall it ever being this crowded at this time of year and we only went from Madison to Old Faithful. It was so crowded around noon, we left and went back home.
Oh well...Maybe tomorrow.

Wow, thanks for all the advice. I hadnt even thought about a horse ride. Good tip. Great, chinese drivers on winding roads. Sounds like a recipe for disaster.