Beartooth Highway dilemma
 

I have been reading these helpful & informative posts(thank you!) for several months while planning our family vacation to the Yellowstones and GTNP. Our trip is plannned for the middle of Aug. The itinerary below was booked in Febraury...originally decided to leave out the Beartooth Hghwy and just concentrate and enjoy the 2 parks, but after further research,I feel that to miss Beartooth would be a mistake. My dilemma is where to fit it in??? Should i cancel a night in GTNP(cry!) and head out east to Cody, sleep overnite, and make the loop to Red Lodge and back to the NE entrance of Yellowstone? But then our first 2 nites are at OF and THEN Canyon,and we would be bactracking. Or should I just make a day trip from the NE entrance to Red Lodge and back again on the same road?? And giving time up in YNP. Here's our current plan:
Arrive at Salt Lake Cty, get to Jackson by 5 ish, catch the rodeo, do a whitewater rafting out of Jackson the next morning and head to GTNP that afernoon, so its:
Nite 1..Trapper Inn, Jackson
Nite 2.. Signal Mtn Lodge, GTNP
Nite 3.. "
Nite 4 "
Nite 5 Old Faitful Inn, YNP
Nite 6 "
Nite 7 Canyon Lodge, YNP
Nite 8 "
Day 9 finish up YNP and drive back to SLC, late plane to NY(home)

I wouldn't cut any time from Yellowstone. If you don't want to give up a day at the Grand Tetons, then I'd forget the Beartooth Highway.

Utahtea

Accommodations are hard to change around this time of year in those two parks.

If you gave up a night at Signal Mountain Lodge, you might need to compromise on where you went that night.

I have driven the Beartooth as a day trip.
If you go to the top of the pass and turn around, it can be done as part of a long day in Yellowstone.

I have several pet "least preference" places to visit in Yellowstone and Mammoth is one of them. In my view, you would be ahead of the game to sacrifice Mammoth Hot Springs and apply the time to a drive out the northeast entrance and up to the summit of the Bearthooth.

You could do it from Canyon fairly easily. If you got an early start and put in a longer than average day, I think you would enjoy the experience.

We drove it one year the day after it opened. The snow banks were still piled high along the road.

Hi Joan. My family is traveling to GTNP and YNP in two weeks, spending two days in GT and five days in YNP. I'm having the same dilemma about missing out on Beartooth Highway. While we're in YNP we are renting a house in West Yellowstone and realize that to visit Beartooth means trekking across Yellowstone and out the east entrance (which I understand is a SLOW drive), but we plan to devote the whole day to driving through to the east side and driving some of the Beartooth until we need to turn around and head back.

I've posted about this idea before and have been told it is possible to do, but expect a long day. I am hoping that is correct.

Anyway, have a great vacation and maybe we'll see you out there!!!

Thanks all for the input. Brookwood Can you tell me what you least like about Mammoth??? Its three weeks and counting... we are getting sooo excited!!!

I would definately give up an extra night at GTNP for Beartooth (or even OF)--you won't regret it. YNP is less driving than (I believe) you think it is. Backtracking is ok! But, don't give up Mammoth--it is unique and beautiful (and every time we go there it has changed--at least once a year!).

Okay, so now I'm thinking maybe we should skip the whitewater rafting in Jackson the first morning, so as not to waste(?)a half day there, and head straight to GTNP. Then I'd be willing to give up at Signal Mtn., since we'd have 2- 2/2 days exploring the Tetons. Maybe do whitewater out of Cody??? Any ideas about rafting? especially in mid August? is the water high enough to have fun?

Joan, there's another recent thread on rafting that area. Also, you might want to start a new thread about whitewater rafting in the Tetons and/or Cody. Maybe you should include both areas to get more info. Good luck!