Hez

Ok - so I'm already aware this is an insane itinerary and that we're going to be driving a lot. We have a convertible TT and for us a lot of the fun is the driving. We're also ok with ending our days quite late as we're more night people. We were originally going to fly to Seattle and just do Seattle/Vancouver/Victoria but decided to extend a bit so we could drive. This is the first five days (of a two week trip) which gets us from Boulder, CO through Grand Teton NP, Yellowstone, Glacier NP and North Cascades NP to Vancouver. I'll work on the Vancouver/Seattle/Olympic/Victoria part later.

If you have any hints/suggestions/alternative ideas for us that would be great. I've never been to this area so am open to ideas.

Day 1 - drive from Boulder CO to Jackson WY @8 hours (leaving after work - told you it was going to be crazy!)
Day 2 -
Jackson Hole - just check out the town a bit and buy some sandwiches for lunch (10-11)
Grand Teton NP - Stop at Moose Lake visitor center, take boat shuttle at Jenny Lake and hike to hidden falls, drive to the summit of Signal Mountain. (11-4)
Yellowstone - Fountain Paint Pots, Biscuit Basin, Old Faithful (4-9)
dinner at Old Faithful
overnight at Pioneer Cabins at Lake Lodge
Day 3 -
breakfast at Lake Lodge, take sandwiches for lunch
drive through Hayden Valley (10-12)
Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone - hike down to lip of lower falls & picnic (12-3)
Noris Geyser Basin (3-5)
Mamouth Hot Springs & dinner (5-9)
Drive to Bozeman, MT (9-10:30)
Day 4 -
drive to Glacier NP (9-3)
Going to the Sun Road (3 - 5)
drive to Sandpoint, ID (5-9) *dinner recommendations here or along the way
Day 5 - *I'm really open to suggestions for this leg - even heading up into Canada early - we're looking for scenery!
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&sour...4,9.887695&z=7
drive to North Cascades NP via Selkirk Loop/Flowery trail (9-5)
North Cascades NP (5-8)
drive to Vancouver (8-10)

Many Thanks for any thoughts you have.

Heather

emalloy

Sounds like a fun, crazy trip with lots to see. I hope you already have the cabins at Yellowstone reserved, if not call and keep calling. We did Yellowstone in a convertible and it was great to be able to see all around without the top in the way. Of course when the bison charged out of the woods at the back of the car, a little scary. He didn't make contact but gave us a bit of a rise in pulse rate. Enjoy your trip and don't listen to people who say it's too much driving, we think the ride is one of the fun parts of the trip.

minnehappylis

I don't think the driving is insane, but I might think only 1 day in Yellowstone and 2 hours to cross Glacier are a bit crazy...To each his own. You are certainly going to have a good adventure and see some beautiful places (in a hurry .)
If you have time, go to Park Cafe on the east side of GNP for a piece of pie. MMMmmmmm.
Happy Trails!

Hez

@emalloy - yes - have reserved Pioneer Cabin already. Was surprised I was able to book anything so late. Maybe there was a cancellation.

Have been surrounded by Bison in Custer NP in the TT - definitely a pulse raising experience!

@minnehappylis - mmmmm - pie!!! Thanks for the tip - am definitely adding that to the itinerary.

And thanks to you both for the encouragement.

Grassshopper

I did almost this same trip (in a convertible sports car) in Winter! That was crazy! Only one tip; be sure to get the Golden Eagle card. You'll find some interesting little national parks along the way. Have fun!

starrs

I've done a similar trip and it was a blast! I agree with adding more time in Yellowstone and Glacier if you can.

Be warned - it snowed on us in Glacier on July 4th
Pack some fleece!

Hez

@grasshoper - we have the National Parks Pass as we live near RMNP and tend to hit at least a few more a year. Well worth the $.

@starrs - thanks for the tip on the fleece - I hadn't thought about it potentially snowing.

RuthinHolland

Sounds like a fun trip, we had a TT and had such a good time going on trips in it, sadly it wouldn't take the child seat so it had to go!

Not sure when you're making this trip. The boat shuttle on Jenny Lake can be very busy with long waits (up to an hour each way) especially in the middle of the day. Also, have you checked the roads in Yellowstone, I know they're doing fairly major construction this summer. www.nps.gov/yell/travelalert.htm

Where are you planning to eat at Old Faithful? If you want to eat at the Inn you'll need to make reservations. I wasn't that impressed with the food there, although the lobby is impressive!

If you want to up your chance of seeing wildlife in the Hayden Valley I'd get there a bit earlier than 10. We've had great luck seeing bears and wolves, it would be pretty exciting to see them from a convertible!

Hope you have a great trip.

maj

Just some thoughts.

Day 2 -- continue the hike at Hidden Falls at least to Inspiration Point (won't take much longer -- fantastic view) and even hike a ways along Cascade Canyon trail if you have time.

Day 3 -- It won't take you two hours to drive through Hayden Valley (unless you encounter a buffalo jam or stop to see wildlife for a while -- which may or may not be there as you pass). But that does leave you time to visit Mud Vulcano if you want or do some other hikes at Canyon. I would definitely at least drive the north and south roads to the overlooks at Canyon, especially if you want scenery. I, also, would leave Lake earlier. If you just want a quick breakfast (or soup, cheesburger type food), we love the soda fountains in the general stores at Lake and Canyon.

Again, check the road construction delays. I thought I saw that the road would be closed/delayed from Madison to Norris which would be the route you would take from Canyon to Norris. Unless you are absolutely hooked on seeing Norris, I probably would take the route to Mammoth over Dunraven Pass (maybe with a side trip through Lamar Valley if you have time). Also you will probably see Mammoth in less time. As far as eating there, I think there is only the dining room and a fast food type place. You may want to eat in Gardiner which is only 5 miles away since I assume you will be going in that direction. Look for the mountain sheep on the cliffs from Mammoth to Gardiner.

Have fun!

dfr4848

You've obviously put a lot of throught into this. My only comment isn't so much the driving but the amount of time in GTNP and Yellowstone. If I'm reading this correctly, you've got a total of 2 days in both parks - day 2 & 3. The Tetons are spectacular and Yellowstone is an amazing and a very unique place. I think you'll find you might be shortchanging them and wishing you had more time, and if you have some inclement weather you're schedule is going to be thrown off.

As an aside, if you can squeeze in a meal at Jenny Lake Lodge (not far from the shuttle on the Lake), you won't regret it. Excellent restaurant.

Just some thoughts. Good luck with your planning.

HowardR

Days 2 and 3 are insane! To restrict your time in the Teton to a mere five hours borders on the near tragic! Equally ill-advised is the hurried agenda for Yellowstone. Advice? At least double your time, nd then some, in these two great NPs.

minnehappylis

Hez: My daughter is working at GNP for the 2nd season. Last summer the pass on the top of the Going to the Sun Road didn't open until early July. Guests had to go around the south end of the park to get to the other side. I think they had less snow this winter, but depending upon when you go, it is worth checking to see if the Sun Road is even open. It could affect your route.
Yes, bring fleece! The coldest night I ever spent in a tent was at Glacier one July!!! As I left the park last summer, I picked up the Blackfoot Res radio station out of Browning, MT and listened to PowWow chants as I crossed northern Montana. It was the perfect soundtrack.
Road trips have their own kind of romance, don't they?
Enjoy.

Hez

Wow! Thanks everyone for your help - it's really most appreciated.

@ruthinholland & maj - thanks for the heads up on the road. I'm looking on the map and it looks like we actually bypass that on our route - but do you think it would still be better to go the other way around and go over Dunraven Pass? I think we could stop at Tower Falls that way as well.

@ruthinholland - I guess we'll have to wait and see at Jenny Lake if there's too much of a wait. Do you know if it is worth doing just the 1 hour lake tour if that's a possibility? If not, is there something we should have as a backup idea for that time? I was thinking that we would probably get to Old Faithful Inn so late (after 9pm) we wouldn't necessarily need reservations which would make our schedule a bit more flexible. If we were there earlier we could just do the cafeteria. With the 10am start - my husband is not a morning person at all - if bear and wolves were going to be likely seen around 9am I could probably push the issue but I suspect earlier than that would be recommended.

@maj - thanks for the heads up on Hidden Falls - dh does love waterfalls so that will be great (assuming we don't skip it due to crowds). Will add mud volcano - that looks good. How long do you think driving around the north and south roads will take? thanks for the info on Gardiner (and we'll look up along the way!)- any specific place that are good to eat there?

@ dfr4848 & Howard - I understand how passionately people feel about spending time in these two parks, and know we will want to spend more time. Hopefully sometime in the future we will be able to do so, but for now we have a finite amount of time due to obligations in Vancouver/Seattle which preclude us from taking longer. I would rather see some of these places(and we'll see a lot more from a convertible than others do from closed top cars) than never get to see them at all.

@minnehappylis - good tip on checking if the road is open! Thanks. Would be terrible to get there only to find out it's closed. Oooh - I don't suppose you remember where on the dial that radio station was. Sounds perfect. And yes - road trips definitely have a special kind of romance.

Thanks again everyone for your thoughts.

HowardR

I understand what you're saying, but I still think your plan is not the best one! You say, "I would rather see some of these places....than never get to see them at all." Don't you think you'll ever get a chance to visit this area again? Why not plan on much more meaningful longer stays at fewer sites over the two weeks?
As for your comment that "we'll see a lot more from a convertible than others do do from closed top cars," I really do think you're overestimating the difference!

starrs

"and we'll see a lot more from a convertible than others do from closed top cars)"

Not unless you are talking about star-gazing at night.

maj

There is an interactive map on the following website that tells you approximate miles and driving times in Yellowstone:

http://www.alandsuejohnson.com/yello...ne_top_map.htm

As far as the north and south rims of Canyon -- if you are just driving and stopping at the overlooks it won't take long (and you can always stop if you are running out of time). There are hikes to different overlooks as well as the ones by the road -- you can decide what you want to do when there.

Leaving early AM to see animals is generally at the daybreak time. Our best animal sightings generally occur while driving from place to place (at any time of the day). Right place/right time sort of thing. So -- no 9 instead of 10 won't make a difference. And you really can't be "guaranteed" of seeing bears or wolves at any time.

You also have the option at Jenny Lake of walking around the lake to the Hidden Falls trail (about 2 plus miles). One thing about these parks is to have a plan B because you never know what will occur. That trail can be closed sometimes because there are bears in the area or a thunderstorm can stop the ferry from running for a while. I wouldn't take a boat ride on Jenny Lake with the limited time you have there. It is fun going to the different overlooks along the road (for the views) and checking out Oxbow Bend for the animals. Or you can head up to Yellowstone earlier and stop by West Thumb (also only takes a short time to walk around)

IMO the Dunraven Pass is a more scenic way to go, but depends how much you want to see Norris.

Also, there is a number on the .gov website for road updates for Yellowstone.

I suggested Gardiner because there are more choices there. It is a very small town, but does have a variety of casual restaurants. People have liked this restaurant, but we haven't been there yet.
http://www.gardinerchamber.com/detail.asp?biz_id=491

Hez

@HowardR and @starrs - having done several national parks in both a convertible and a truck I can say for certain that I am not underestimating how much more you see and feel part of the surrounds while driving in a convertible. Further - for us the drive is a big part of the fun.

@HowardR - I don't know if I will ever get to visit this area again - it's a big world out there and I suspect once we move back to Australia in 18 months or so coming back to see the sights in America won't be at the top of our list. As I said, we have certain time constraints - we can leave Boulder on June 26th after work and then need to be in Vancouver on June 30th. What changes to our itinerary would you make to accommodate those constraints? I am open to suggestions - but just telling me I'm doing it wrong is not helpful.

@maj - wow! you're a wealth of information!!! I think we'll do as you suggest and go the other way around. I didn't have my heart set on Norris and Tower Falls looks good as dh is really into water falls and we're always looking for the most scenic way! Thanks for the restaurant info - that place looks good.

HowardR

Hez, my point about the convertible is that I inferred that you felt that riding in a convertible would compensate for(i.e., make up for) the relatively short stay in the parks. From that point of view, I don't think it compensates that much!
Ok, you want suggestions. Well, I'd skip Glacier and spend the one more day in YNP and GTNP!

Hez

anyone else have an opinion on skipping Glacier NP? That would also mean skipping Sandpoint, the Selkirk Loop and the Flowery trail (which looks scenic and super windey - weeeeee!) as those kind of fell into place with going to Glacier.

If we were to skip those, what would be the must do's in GTNP and YNP?

emalloy

Grant Teton is beautiful but if I were to choose, I'd spend the time in Yellowstone. Don't miss for me would be Yellowstone falls, grand canyon of the Yellowstone, Mammoth Hot springs, bubbling mud pots, and lots of the spots where there are lots of animals. We went in June so there were lots of baby bison and baby elk down near the roads, I don't know if they stay down there or head up higher in July.