We spent 3 nights in Yellowstone National Park in July, 2006. That was part of a trip through the YNP, Glacier and Seattle, WA. I really liked Glacier but felt like there were things in Yellowstone that I needed to go back for.
I wasn't sure when to go. The advice I got on Yellowstone Chat convinced me to go early. The park starts opening on June 9 but we couldn't get the reservations we wanted then. June 16 seemed like a good compromise. Should be able to see some bears out of hibernation with cubs. Maybe elk and bison with calves. I guess the weather will be unpredictable but that's part of the adventure. We'll get to use some the clothes we bought for the trip last year.
We needed to decide where to stay. Last year was 3 nights at the Old Faithful Inn. That was a lot of fun but we wanted to try something different. We also decided that it does make sense to stay in different parts of the park. The problem with OFI was that its a long way from Hayden Valley. It makes you get up real early or come home for a late dinner. Other than that, we enjoyed it.
My wife and I don't need fancy housing, we just need to be in the park and fairly near the areas we want to be in. If you spend enough time in your room for it to matter that much, you might be vacationing in the wrong park. You can be in nice hotels a lot of places but there aren't many spots like Yellowstone.
Canyon and Roosevelt looked interesting. I wanted Roosevelt first but couldn't make that work out. We have reservations for a cabin at Canyon for the first four nights and Roosevelt for 3 nights. I wanted to stay closer to the airport for the last night. I looked at Jenny Lake Lodge and wrote that one off quickly. Not in my price range or even close. We wound up in a cabin at Jackson Lake Lodge. That should be nice. We'll decide on that Saturday whether to spend the most time in Yellowstone or around the lodge.
I wanted to stay in Canyon because of its proximity to Hayden
Valley. We didn't see wolves last time and I intend to this trip. We
should be able to get down there very early. We'll probably take breakfast
bars so we don't have to worry about the cafeteria at Canyon. Driving to
the geyser basins from Canyon isn't a problem. As you get near Madison,
you frequently see elk and bison so it will be good in any event.
Canyon is also close to Mt. Washburn. We didn't make the hike last year
because I didn't want to spend that much time doing 1 thing when we only had 3
days.
We'll stay in Roosevelt because it looks cool. Its also close to Lamar Valley. Its another attempt to get a little more sleep and still get there early. I must admit that the porch at the restaurant looks inviting too. I wanted a cabin with a shower but got one with a path instead. I guess it will be OK. We're used to camping and primitive cabins. We're even used to needing to decide whether to get up at 3:00AM and put on another log or to just "deal with it".
The cowboy cookout at Roosevelt looked interesting as well. We're going to ride the horses out for it. The dinner is probably OK but the whole notion of it sounded fun. If you do this, you need reservations.
We aren't quite as ignorant this time. We know more about
the geography of the area and how long it can take to travel through beautiful
scenery. We'll fly into Jackson Hole on Saturday and get there around
noon. We'll likely head into Jackson to pick up an ice chest at
Albertson's along with some supplies and sandwich stuff. It worked out
really well having one with us last year. Having sandwich makings lets you
eat lunch when you want rather than trying to get to one of the places at the
park. It probably saves money too but that isn't really the point.
After a shopping excursion, it will be straight to Yellowstone. We may get there a little late but at least we won't be wasting any of Sunday. We may make a short stop at Oxbow Bend in the Tetons. Its worth a stop in any event. Very pretty with a chance of wildlife. From there, we'll cruise to Canyon and get checked in. If we see anything interesting along the way, we'll just get there later than expected.
We've got everything pretty much under control. If the weather cooperates (no blizzards or continual rains), it should be wonderful. We're not making plans for what to do. We'll sort it out when we get there. Sure looking forward to it.