hikrchick

Hi Fodorites and Yellowstone experts -- my DH and I decided last week to plan a 10-day trip in mid- to late-September for Grand Tetons/Yellowstone, arriving Jackson Sept. 19 and flying home to NYC area on Sept. 28. We know we're late coming at the planning for the lodging, because a lot is sold out already.

At this late date, after staying the first night in Jackson area (not sure if we'll do Jackson the town or Jackson Hole area such as the Alpenhof) we can get 2 nights at Colter Bay in GT, and then 3 nights in Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel (with a shared bathroom) and then 3 nights either in Grant Village Lodge or Lake Lodge Cabins. Then the final night in Jackson town so we can catch a morning flight.

I've started doing a lot of reading here and there's a wealth of information to plow through but I wanted to ask if there is something else we should think about in terms of dividing up those 6 mights in Yellowstone proper. It seems the only thing available in the upper loop is Mammoth with a shared bath, and we're OK with that. It just needs to be clean. I've read here that it's a good idea to keep calling once you book, in case someone cancels. We would love the Old Faithful area. But I can't count on that kind of good fortune, right? ;-)

About us, we are in our mid-40s, relatively active -- last trip was Sept 2011 hiking in the Dolomites/Italian Alps -- but haven't gone away since then so we're a bit creaky and rusty... We're very eager to get out on the trails and do some nice hiking for several hours and some good photography.

Any suggestions are welcome. I'll keep doing research. We know we have to get those hotels booked by the end of the week.

Thanks!

spirobulldog

Sounds like a decent plan. I would cut one night from Mammoth and add it to the lower loop if possible. And yes, if you can get a day or two at any of the OF lodges, then do so.

I think if you keep at it you are more likely to find something than not in the OF area.

Just so you know. The airport is really in Jackson Hole. It is just a few miles to Jackson(the town) and then a few miles the other way to the entrance of Grand Tetons.

Myer

The airport is between the town and GTNP. They are all very close to each other. Unless you specifically want to see the town I would go directly to park lodging. What time does your plane arrive?

Mammoth is my least favorite area. Probably because when we were there it was dry.

People book lodging a year ahead. Needless to say they're booking without having any idea whether or not they'll be able to take the trip. Eventually reality sets in and they want their deposits back. That's when they start to cancel.

There will be cancelations. There always are.

In OF there is the Inn and two lodges with cabins. Some shared bathroom / showers and some private.

When I was there I spent 2 nights at OF lodge and 3 nights at Canyon lodge. Then a few nights at Signal Mtn Lodge in GTNP.

If you're into photography as you mentioned you definitely want to be inpark as wildlife is most active early and late and you want to minimize / avoid much night driving and take a chance on hitting something moving.

Always wildlife (bison) at Hayden Valley just below Canyon and Lamar Valley just east of Tower.

The OF area isn't just Old Faithful. I expected OF to be a consumer attraction. It's truly impressive. You have Geyser Loop and the whole Upper basin. There are 5 predictable geysers. OF is the easiest as it errupts app every 90 minutes. Some that are predictable errupt twice a day so not so easy.

There's a viewing boardwalk for OF. There's also a hike up to Observation Point to get an elevated view. You can also watch it errupt from the other side. There are benches near Plume Geyser.

You can walk thru the Basin at different times of the day and it looks completely different. Like an Alfred Hitchcock movie just before sunset.

Morning Glory is right near Grand & Riverside Geysers. Both of these are predictable. When I was there I lucked out as one errupted 30 minutes after the other.

A couple of miles up the road is the trail for Mystic Falls. About a mile each way. Nice waterfall.

Also a few miles up the road is Grand Prismatic Spring (GPS). There's a viewing boardwalk for this but the best view isn't there.

Drive a mile back towards OF to the Fairly Falls trailhead. Hike about a mile (easy on a dirt road) until you get to GPS on your right and look for an unofficial trail path up a hill on your left. Fantastic views.

Probably the signature hike in Yellowstone is Mt Washburn. It's a few miles up the road from Canyon.

It's about 3 miles up to a ranger station. The trail is a very easy dirt road that's used to bring supplies up to the station. The road is smooth and not steep at all.

The problem is that the hike starts at 8,800 ft and ends at 10,230 ft. No oxygen. Walk slowly, rest and drink water. You could see prong horn on the way.

The big waterfalls is at Canyon. The Lower Yellowstone Falls is over 300 ft high. There are several places to view them from either side of the canyon.

In GTNP there are several hikes. The most popular is to take the boat across Jenny Lake and do the hike to the Falls and beyond from there.

You can click my name and read my detailed trip report.

You can see my photos at:
www.travelwalks.com

Hang20

Definitely keep trying for OF. We cancelled on a Saturday night in the middle of the summer. Plans change. We really liked the Canyon area. Mammoth was dry and disappointing. I am posting my trip report as I type this. We stayed in Jackson the first night to stock up. Arrived about 8:30 and didn't want to drive to Canyon in the dark. Jackson was only a few miles from the airport. I would try for Signal Mountain over Coulter Bay in GTNP. Our room in Coulter Bay was freezing in July, not heat in the bathroom but plenty of mouse traps. The skies and lake were beautiful there though. Book anything you can now and change it as your research gives you a better idea of what you want to do. Have a great trip!

hikrchick

Oh my, thank you for the wealth of information! You wouldn't believe it, but after I posted this last night I went on the Xanterra site and lo and behold there are a few rooms in OFInn -- in the old house wing. It's got bathroom down the hall, but still! It sounds much nicer than the other two lower-loop choices we have.

Re: cancellations: I told my DH what was suggested here about constantly checking as the date gets closer for cancellations, and he looked at the website and it said there's a fee for cancelling/changing? Did he read that right? He got a bit nervous last night about waiting too long, and we booked the Colter Bay in GT, only because he thought it was the only lodging available for our dates.

The Old Faithful area sounds a lot like Rotorua, in New Zealand, which I loved. My photos from the Te Puia cultural center, with the bubbling mud pots, are otherworldly. I would imagine this is in the same genre?

We googled the airport to Albertson's in Jackson and then to Teton Village for the first night, so my DH could see that it's just 20 minutes each way. So we're staying the first and last nights at the Alpenhof (which is $109 on Sept. 28). I love that the price includes breakfast and it looks lovely.

We're taking American Airlines from EWR through Dallas up to JAC and it gets in at 6:30 p.m., so I wouldn't think there would be any problems getting to Teton Village at 8 p.m. after stopping at Albertson's and getting food supplies for the week. It's a highway, right? with lights? Not a crazy road in the pitch black?

OH -- one more, important thing -- I am allergic to bee and wasp stings and when we go on a trip in warmer weather I carry an Epi-pen. Does anyone know, in the autumn at that elevation, is it cold enough that the bees and wasps have hibernated/died for the season? Otherwise I'll get an Epi-pen. But I hate to carry medicine if I don't need it.

Again, thanks for your help. It's invaluable.
best,
hikrchick

hikrchick

Myer, thank you so much for the hiking suggestions. About 10 years ago I did an Outward Bound class for adults in Colorado, which started at 9,000 feet, and then we climbed a 13-er, but I'm not conditioned enough right now to even try it. It's an excellent goal, though, for my summer exercise! I'll have to go to REI and get some trail maps.

Myer

I'm sure these roads don't have lights and are probably one lane each way. Could be two as I don't really remember. In that area they're pretty level so no ups, downs and curves. Just drive slowly and look out for animals. Shouldn't be a problem.

I've never paid for a change or cancellation. But if they charge it won't be more than a few dollars. It's worth it to have a backup and then go for better. Compared to the cost of the trip this is nothing.

I think Glacier also indicates that they charge and I made several changes for a trip this August. Didn't get charged for anything.

Good that you got OG lodging. You still want to call and not just look at the web site. It takes time for them to update the site.

1JAR

Meyer has the road description right. Dark, one lane roads. You need to remember Yellowstone & GTNP are in a RURAL area and wild animals are frequent and often hit by collison with cars. Check your car ins before you go.

Re: allergy. Seriously: If you are allergic you need to carry your epi-pen at all times. Otherwise with anaphalatic shock you are dead in 5-10 minutes. You need to be self reliant with safety/health needs.

Medivacs to Salt Lake, Cody, Denver, Billings are commen and you pay for it.

Servcies, (Park EMTs, Emergency/Hospitals are few and many miles away. Cell phone service, gas stations etc. are all limited. If you need a tow or have a flat tire you should consider AAA with 100 mile towing. (Rental car cos will tell you it is your responsibility and will charge you for the flat tire.)

spirobulldog

TAKE YOUR EPIPEN!!!

We liked Colter Village Cabin just fine. Sounds like things are falling into place for you.

Dallas airport has just added a ton of new eating options.

There is another little store called Dornan's. It is very close to the airport and is towards GTNP(direction you would be headed). Anyway, it is a little deli/store and is well stocked. I assume you just want drinks, sandwich making materials, etc. It is not a full grocery store, but has much more than the average C store.

spirobulldog

O, Dornan's also has a place to eat and lodging too. We had breakfast there and they have a coffee cart that makes a full range of coffees. I think maybe they serve pizza and pasta upstairs. We had our breakfast made outside.

spirobulldog

I can't remember for certain, but I think they did have some meat and produce items.

kayd

Since you will drive through GTNP twice between Jackson and Yellowstone, be sure to make one trip via the outer road (US 119) and the other via Teton Park Road. The park road splits off from 119 near Dornan's.

hikrchick

Thanks, Spirobulldog. Dornan's sounds like a good option for stuff for the trail, too. I'm a vegetarian (kosher at home) so as long as there's peanut butter and apples and crackers (and chocolate for the trail...) I'm good to go.

When DH (then fiance) and I went to Alaska in August 2009 a helpful Fodors poster mentioned how expensive groceries are there and to bring dried goods like pasta and packaged oatmeal and PB with us (we were in an RV), which we did and were grateful for the budget-friendly tip. Are groceries also costly in Jackson because Albertson's is the only game in town and they're catering to tourists or shouldn't I be worried about a massive grocery bill?

and yes, I will get a scrip for an epi-pen. I'm very careful about bees and wasps and very responsible about this aspect of my health, it's just that I would hate to get the TSA stink-eye over a needle (even if in a box with a prescription). Those guys get me all cranky.

thanks again!

hikrchick

Thanks, kayd, for the suggestion -- into the file folder it goes!

Myer

I stopped at Dornan's. I don't think it replaces a real store. Sparse.

I didn't want to get into the roads in GTNP yet until you had that part of the trip squared away. But since kayd broached the topic....

GTNP has two north-south roads. They meet a little above the airport and then meet again near the top of GTNP near Oxbow Bend (this is a prime spot for very early morning and late afternoon photography. Also some wildlife could be near.

The left or west road is the inside road and the right or east road is the outside road.

If you were going directly from jackson to YNP with no intention of stopping in GTNP you would take the outside road as the speed limit is higher.

I will digress for a minute. As with all parks for every 50 yards you stray off a main road or away from the car you lose 50% of the people you saw at the start.

So very few people will go somewhere that's not right at the road. Therefore people will stop at viewpoints but not go off the main road.

You want to do this very early for best photographs.

Mormon Row. Two old barns about 1/4 mile off the outside road. Turn east at Antelope Flats Rd. Then at Mormon Row Rd turn north or south. There's one on either side. You may find 5 people there photographing the old barns with the Teton Mountains in the background.

Schwabacker Landing. Any stops you make at viewpoints will show a nice view of the Tetons. However they won't be like Schwabacher Landing the the Tetons reflecting in the Snake River. Only you and a very few other people will have that.

A bit further up from Mormon Row on the outside road you'll see a sign (be careful as the sign is too close to the turnoff) for Schwabacher Landing on the west side of the road. You drive about a half mile down a dirt road and park in a small parking lot. You'll see the Tetons in the background with the river in the foreground. Early in the morning the water will be still and you'll get good reflections.

I gave you my web site above. There are photos of both places there.

When I describe these two parks to people I explain that YNP is an attraction park with geysers, waterfalls, springs, wildlife. However, it doesn't have the scenery that GTNP has.

kayd

Yes, yes, yes re Mormon Row and Schwabacker Landing! Very much worth the time and effort to get off the highway.

starrs

Dornan's is amazing. You could eat every meal in Grand Teton there. I know we spent more time there than in Jackson. We missed their chuckwagon breakfast (we went to church in the little chapel and didn't realize they wouldn't still be serving when we got out). Their restaurant with full wall of windows facing the Tetons had wonderful food. Their little wine shop was well stocked and we picked up some nice bottles from there. The grocery store is small but has a little bit of everything you might need. The little deli in the store makes sandwiches to go with quality ingredients. We liked the gourmet market in Jackson too. The only bad meal we had was at a restaurant in Jackson. When I go back, my first stop will be the restaurant at Dornan's, I liked it that much.

spirobulldog

I remember it being small but very good and some better quality stuff there. Like interesting cheeses and meats in the deli.

spirobulldog

Groceries will be higher, but nothing like Alaska. I would seriously have to own my on cow, etc if I lived i AK.

hikrchick

wow, everyone, thank you so much. We are so looking forward to this trip -- we didn't have an opportunity to travel in 2012 so I am feeling like a schoolchild doing the countdown to summer. Lovely cheeses and wines at Dornan's sounds like heaven to me.

Myer, your photography tips make me want to do a happy-dance. You're right, I'm not *quite* ready to get into that topic, but I'm so glad to have some idea of what to anticipate. I've seen it happen, too, where there's a crowd right at the pull-off point and then just 5 minutes' walk on the trail, you're all alone. Those poor sheepy-people, not knowing what splendors are just around the bend -- because they won't go around that bend. Well, that just means more room for me to get the shot I want and drink in all that Nature.