sudhisrinu

Hello All, I am planning a trip to Yellow Stone/Grand Teton for 5 days towards the end of September 2021. I read a lot in these forums about what to see and where to stay and all the logistics of travelling/planning. I am planning to stay at Lake House [email protected] 15475 Hebgen Lake Road , West Yellowstone, for 4 days. Is this place is good base for visiting west yellow stone as well as North Yellow stone visiting spots?.for my return flight i am planning to take from Cody regional airport. the reason being, I wanted to drive thru Lamar valley from yellow stone to cody airport on the day of my flight or thru Bear tooth Highyway to cody airport. is this possible. please advise. i have never been there before...

oldemalloy

The location you have picked is about 20 minutes from the west edge of the park. Without traffic it would be over an hour to get to Old Faithful area and much longer to get to other parts of the park. There are often times in the park when traffic is very slow or stopped for animals so you may be spending most of your time in the car rather than enjoying the park.

if this is meant to be a trip to view the park from your car then the location will be fine, but I would still try to get lodging in the park. People do make reservations way in advanced and cancel when the time is close and they find they can not make the trip. The park lodging for the most part, is very basic, you are paying for the location.

Patty

Looks like you're about 20 minutes drive from the West Yellowstone entrance.

What time is your flight out of Cody? Do you have another night in Cody before your flight? The shortest, most direct route from your accommodation through Yellowstone and exiting the east entrance to Cody is a 4 hour drive. If you drive up to Mammoth Hot Springs, then across the northern road through Lamar Valley, out the northeast entrance to the Chief Joseph Hwy (296) to Cody, that's a 5 hour drive and that doesn't include the most scenic parts of the Beartooth Hwy. You could continue on the Beartooth all the way to Red Lodge and then down to Cody but that's 6 hours total. These are drive times without stops or accounting for traffic/bison jams so your day is likely to be much longer.

You also have to factor in weather at the end of September which might mean snow. All routes from West Yellowstone to Cody involve passes which may temporarily close. I don't think it's a great idea unless you're very flexible and have extra time to get to Cody.

Nelson

Depends on what time your flight is of course. At the minimum, you'd need to leave West Yellowstone about 5-6 hours before your flight to drive through Lamar Valley. You'd be much better off getting a room in Cooke City for your last night so you could spend the full day going leisurely through the Park.

sudhisrinu

Thank you, yes it is 16 mile away. But all lodges inside the park are sold out. and this lodge i booked is on a lake.

sudhisrinu

My flight is at 3:30pm. i am thinking of starting around 8am from Gardiner on the day of my flight.

janisj

But as Oldmalloy posted - "but I would still try to get lodging in the park. People do make reservations way in advanced and cancel when the time is close and they find they can not make the trip.".

People often book rooms in the Park a year or more ahead. Things change, life happens, people booked months ago when they just assumed covid would no longer be affecting their travel plans. So definitely try to get lodging inside the park. Phone every day to see if a cancellation becomes available. (this is of course assuming your current hotel has a reasonable cancellation policy)

Patty

I think it's a good idea to position yourself closer on the last night whether that's Gardiner or Cooke City. I'd probably choose the latter and you can spend the previous day going through Lamar Valley and the Beartooth if you have time. The following day you can take the Chief Joseph to Cody which is also a beautiful drive and less likely to have weather related closures. There are some hairpin sections on the Chief Joseph as well but the overall elevation is lower. If you stay in Gardiner and there are weather issues, it's possible to drive to Cody outside of the park in about 4 hours which is what we had to do to get to Red Lodge once during a similar time of year.

sudhisrinu

Thank you so much. I just called and there is one room at MAMMOTH HOTEL. but a bit expensive. is this a good location and worth staying inside by paying a premium price?

Patty

There isn't a huge difference in distance between staying at Mammoth Hot Springs vs Gardiner (15 minutes drive) so it depends on what your options are in Gardiner.

sudhisrinu

Gardiner vs Mammoth hotel there is $162 difference for two nights. I pay more staying at Mammoth hotel.

Nelson

Yes, Mammoth is more expensive but the elk bugling rut will be in full swing then and Mammoth is one of the epicenters. I would say go to Mammoth for that reason alone (and there are others) if it’s within your splurge budget. Have a good trip.

Patty

Elk are prevalent in Gardiner as well. Be careful exiting your accommodation and driving (same goes throughout the park). Bull elk in rut have been known to charge at vehicles in Mammoth.

mrwunrfl

There was snow on the road at the high point of the road I took from Yellowstone to Red Lodge. I think that was the Beartooth Highway and it was around September 12 a few years ago. The rental car fishtailed briefly on a tight turn going up and then it kind of slid just a bit right at the top of the mountain. It was not fun. If I ever make that drive again it is going to be July and definitely not end of Sept.

sudhisrinu

that is scary. is it getting a all wheel drive is a good thing. is that road that bad ? i am now having second thoughts. I like to drive that highway, but now i am kind of scared.

tomfuller

All wheel drive is not necessary as long as the tires and brakes are good. Instead of a small rental car you would be a bit safer IMO in an SUV.
While driving across the big bridge in Gardiner one evening, I met an elk going the opposite direction. Earlier in the day I met a large bison inside the park on the highway. Stay put if you have overnight snow and leave about noon as long as it is not snowing at that time. Obey the 45MPH speed limits inside the park and pull completely off the road if you park to observe wildlife.

Patty

The road is fine when dry but the weather starts to get iffy at that time of year. Don't drive the Beartooth if there's snow in the forecast. AWD helps but if you don't have experience driving in snow it's better to wait it out.

mrwunrfl

Good advice. Change "in the forecast" to "on the road" and it would be perfect. I would want a current weather report more than, or as well as, a forecast. I am guessing that there are regular road condition reports for roads at high elevation.

The snow I drove on was on a short stretch at the summit. Maybe a mile. Maybe a half-mile. It was enough, I have a lot of experience driving in snow but it was not recent. I really would want to know that it was clear and dry on the road. I would be happy to know that it was so cold that snow on the side of the road couldn't melt onto the road in the sun, freeze overnight, and turn to sheet of ice in the morning.

Patty

The Beartooth is in both WY and MT so you can check both states' Department of Transportation websites. You can also check with the park service even though it's not in the park, they'll have updates. Or the visitor center in Cooke City which has maps for the drive. The summit is at 10,947 ft and if it's raining at lower elevations it could be snowing at the summit. There's no cell service on most of this drive.

sudhisrinu

Hello Dear All travelers , Just returned from my trip to 4 national parks. Thank you so much for all your valuable and insightful ideas/opinions and personal experiences. It really helped me to plan and execute the trip as planned. Enjoyed every park, and was able to see whatever I wanted to see. Did drove thru Beartooth highway into cody as planned for my flight on the last day. It did took 5 hrs with quick stops in between. weather was perfect and sunny. I did see the elk bugling rut at Mammoth and lot Elks roaming around including my airbnb. Did drove thru Lamar valley three times and saw all kinds of animals, including a black bear on a tree, on my last day driving back to cody airport. It was fantastic and i loved the drive. All the credit goes to you guys for giving me all kinds heads up, and places to visit, which I even never heard of or known before. the trip couldn't be successful and meaningful without your insights. Once again thank you from bottom of my heart.