Idaho/Wyoming/Montana
 

We have trip a planned for mid-May. Here's our itinerary:<BR><BR>Arriving in Salt Lake City<BR>1 night Fish Haven (Bear Lake), ID<BR>2 nights Jackson Hole,WY<BR>1 night Gardnier, MT (Yellowstone)<BR>2 nights Bozeman, MT<BR>2 nights Missoula, MT<BR>1 night Pocatello, ID<BR>1 night Salt Lake City<BR><BR>We have room reservations, but were looking for "things not to miss" and places for casual dinners. The only planned event we have so far is a float trip in Jackson.<BR><BR>Would appreciate any suggestions.<BR><BR>Thanks!!<BR><BR>

Bear Lake is a neat place. Hope their raspberry shakes are in season.<BR><BR>Float trip is a great idea. If you do an evening float there is a great chance of seeing wildlife.<BR><BR>I hope you will think about spending less time other places and more time in Yellowstone. There is no way one night will do it justice. I would spend one night in Jackson. Gardiner is not a very upscale. The best meal I can recommend is the hamburgers at the Buffalo Burger joint. They have beef burgers too and they are excellent. The lady that runs the place is a hoot.<BR><BR>I would recommend West Yellowstone instead. The drive into themain attractions of Yellowstone are closer, the town is nicer and the drive to Bozeman from W.Y. is the best--through Galliton Canyon.<BR><BR>You could do Bozeman in a couple of hours. The downtown area is very nice to shop. There is a neat hunting good store and the Pickle Barrel is a great place to get deli sandwiches.<BR><BR>Missoula , IMO, isn't worth your short time. I would spend those nights in Yellowstone or go on up go Glacier. <BR><BR>It seems like you are missing the best the area has to offer--Yellowstone and Glacier.

I'm with Connie. Unless you have family in Bozeman, Missoula, and Pocatello, I would skip them all and spend all your time in Yellowstone & Jackson. It takes a good week to see Yellowstone properly. There is a lot more to Yellowstone than just Old Faithful! <BR><BR>If you want to do a fun event in Yellowstone they have a stagecoach ride and cook out from Roosevelt Lodge that was a lot of fun. <BR><BR>If you want to take a beautiful drive go out the northeast entrance of Yellowstone and go over the scenic Beartooth Highway to Red Lodge, Montana. I guarentee you will not see anything as spectular on the trip you have planned. I've been to all those areas. <BR><BR>The drive from Salt Lake to Fish Haven is a pretty drive, but Bear Lake is just that BARE! <BR><BR>Utahtea <BR><BR>

This trip plan baffles me totally.<BR>I see no reason to even do it.<BR>I wouldn't.<BR>It looks like there is only a drive through of Yellowstone, and Glacier is omitted. A total of 4 nights for Bozeman and Missoula? The Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman is good for perhaps 3 hours. <BR><BR>The Beartooth Highway from Yellowstone to Red Lodge does not usually open until late May, but even so, there is more to Yellowstone than a drive through.<BR><BR>I don't mind being critical here because the emphasis, based on the information given, is strange to say the least. <BR>

If you are staying in Missoula, drive over to Flathead Lake. You can rent boats, take a tour, just drive around the lake. Or you can float down the Flathead River.

Hi Dennis! I have to agree with the other Utahtea & Bob. I cannot understand your plan. The states you are visiting are known for their wilderness areas, scenery, Natl Parks - not for the cities you mention.<BR><BR>Bear Lake is OK, but the drive to jackson is about 4 1/2 hours from the SLC airport, so you could go straight there. If you are coming in later in the day, Park City, UT or beautiful Star Valley, WY would be a better place to spend the night.<BR><BR>Share your rationale & you'll get lots of suggestions.

The problem with mid-May is that many roads in the most scenic areas will still be closed.

Thanks for all of the imput. I guess I neglected to mention the main reason we are visiting the area. We are considering retiring to either Bozeman or Missoula (we have fiiends in the area who just love it). I agree with everyone we are missing alot, but again our main focus is to visit Bozeman and Missoula. Now that I've cleared that up--any other suggestions?<BR><BR>Thanks!!

OK Dennis! Now all becomes clear! I would think that your friends & local residents could give you lots of ideas. They should be your very best resource. Also, you could contact the Chambers of Commerce. Many Chambers have reclocation packages that give lots of great info/statistics for prospective residents.<BR><BR>Good luck!

Thanks, Dayle! We're still trying to switch some things around and stay two nights in West Yellowstone instead of the one night in Gardnier. I'll let you know how it works out.<BR><BR>Thanks again!

I'm glad to hear you are considering two nights in W. Yellowstone.<BR><BR>I know this isn't on the subject of travel, but if you are considering retiring in the area I would visit it in the winter before making the final decision.<BR><BR>Utahtea

Good idea, Utahtea! If we like what we see this spring we are definitely planning to go back to see what the winters are like. <BR><BR>Thanks for all your input!

We have a friend who vacationed in Montana close to 30 years ago and never came back to Texas (except to pack up his stuff)<BR><BR>He lives in Bozeman and still loves it. Yes, he gets tired of the long winters but boy do he and his three high school sons enjoy the winter activities.<BR><BR>We go up to visit them every summer and love the summer activities as well. <BR><BR>We went up this winter and found that even though there was a lot of snow we had no problem getting around. I also found it to be true that cold in a dry climate just doesn't feel as cold as where it is more humid.<BR><BR>Bozeman has a downtowon that is fun to walk around in and a very nice university. It's only an hour down the gorgeous Gallatin Canyon to Yellowstone, within 30 minutes of two ski areas, and in the center of fabulous rivers (Yellowstone, Madison, Missouri, Jefferson, and Gallatin)<BR><BR>If I didn't have family ties I would moved there in a heartbeat.

I live in Wyoming. A few months ago, my husband and I traveled to Pocatello via 1-80. About an hour from Pocatell is a place called Lava Hot Springs, it's a wonderful natural springs park. The drive was absolutely gorgeous. I didn't have a clue of what to do, but we sure did enjoy ourselves. Near Bozeman, is a place called Chico Hot Springs, it's like Lava, nestled in the woods and it's worth stopping by. <BR><BR>Be sure to drive by Yellowstone Lake. IT's gorgeous. I would skip Jackson and go to Cody WY, and visit the Buffalo Bill Museum. <BR><BR>But then again, one night in Jackson will be scenic too. Be careful though, our Wyoming winters don't end till June so the nights do get chilly! We even get snow sometimes in June!!!