Yellowstone National Park - One week visit, May 2023
Jun 11th, 2023, 05:31 PM
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Yellowstone National Park - One week visit, May 2023
We flew into Bozeman Airport from Seattle on Sunday, May 21 for a one week visit. Our first visit was in 2018 and we loved it so much we wanted to return. The smoke from the Canadian wildfires was so thick in Bozeman that we were worried it was going to be this way in Yellowstone. There was no signs of smoke when we drove through the West Entrance.
There is West Yellowstone town right outside the west entrance and we stopped to have dinner at a barbecue place. Several souvenirs shops and places to eat. I’m sure there are less expensive hotel reservations then staying in the park.
There wasn’t a car in line at 7:30pm when we stopped at the park’s entrance.
Our lodging was for 4 nights at Old Faithful location at the Snow Lodge and 3 nights at the Lake Hotel. Snow Lodge is a modern lodge about 5 minutes walk from Old Faithful Lodge. We have stayed here before on our first visit. There is no WIFI so you should be prepared to not have any. Occasionally, you might get on for a few minutes when you are in the Snow Lodge lobby but it’s intermittent so bring a good book. Also, I was surprised to see a traveler who had NO reservations trying to see if there were rooms available. If you want to visit Yellowstone National Park you should plan on making accommodations a year in advance, especially if you want to stay inside the park.
You definitely have to make dinner reservations on line as soon as you are allowed to. I only got dinner reservation for one night as the other times that were left available was like 9pm for the Old Faithful restaurant. I didn’t have any problems getting reservations at the Lake Hotel. I found out that you can go to the host at the Old Faithful restaurant at 3pm to see if there are any cancellations for that day but the host was able to get us in if we ate at 5:00. They were short on staff so the dinners were buffet style. The food was surprisingly good and there were 3 choices for entrees, side dishes. I overheard someone at our lodge say it wasn’t worth it but I thought it was a good deal for soup, salad, entree, dessert w/ coffee or tea, for the $40 per person charge. We ate one night at the Obsidian Grill that was in the Snow Lodge. It doesn’t take reservations and the food wasn’t as good as in Old Faithful restaurant. Again, you have to be open to eating early otherwise some guests were waiting for an hour and half for a later time.
They also take about 8 guests up to the rooftop of Old Faithful Lodge for the flag changing ceremony. You need to make this reservation months in advance. You have a fantastic view from the rooftop but if you aren’t into climbing stairs there is a bar/lounge where you can get cocktails and see Old Faithful erupt from the mezzanine. The seating is more like in pews and I didn’t see any individual tables. The beauty of staying here is you have several times during the day to see Old Faithful erupt as they have the times noted in the lodges. It is amazing they have this down to the times but a couple of times, Old Faithful wasn’t faithful and maybe the timing was off by 10-15 minutes. There are plenty of advantages to see the eruptions. Besides the board walks around the lodge there is a nice little trail called Observation Point where you have a really nice view of the the lodge and surrounding grounds.
What we found out during our visit was there is no housekeeping so if you wanted fresh towels, etc. you have to go to the front desk at both lodges. I know this is the sign of the times (post-Covid) but the front desk people acted like they never heard of housekeeping.
We wanted to go on longer hikes but all the trails were closed due to bear maintenance. Bears are coming out of hibernation and are hungry so they want them to find their food without any human interference. The trails are off limit during Spring. Now they are open.
We did see 4 sightings of grizzlies and black bears. Two times were Mamma bear with 2 cubs. If you see lots of cars and photographers parked off the road there is sure a sighting of wildlife.
In one spot the Park Rangers were directing the traffic and making sure no cars didn’t stopped in the middle of the road.
We only encountered one area Midway Geyser Basin (Grand Prismatic Spring) that the parking lot was full and the line of cars were so long that we decided to try the next day. There still was no spaces on our second attempt but the line of parked cars off the road wasn’t too bad so we parked behind about 20 cars and walked in. This was worth it as the geysers are very pretty here. One day we went up to Norris which has lots of geysers and springs and a nice boardwalk throughout most of the trail. We stopped also at West Thumb and Grants Village. Grants Village Visitor Center was closed (there isn’t really much to see at Grants Village) unless you are camping in this area. There was one tiny souvenir/minimart opened and a public restroom available in Grant Village.
The weather at Lake Hotel is always cooler than Old Faithful area. The nice thing is that the restaurant here had a menu (limited but a menu) which was nice. The breakfast was a buffet which we had on our last day but they also have a smaller deli where you could get a lighter breakfast.
We went to Lamar valley which we didn’t do on our first visit. The road to Tower-Roosevelt had just opened so it was a more direct route to take.
The Lamar valley is called the Serengeti of our country. We started early in the morning. There was road construction along the way but the wait wasn’t too bad. We saw tons of buffalos, few grizzlies and black bears, pronghorn antelopes, elks, Northern Goshawk bird and a coyote crossed the road. I didn’t see any wolves but later I met a woman who did say she saw them at one of their stops they did. It is very scenic drive.
We did a couple of short hikes near the Fishing Bridge area. No bear encounters but we did have one buffalo on the trail so we had to walk around him. Then a second buffalo appeared out of the bushes and was walking towards us (like 15 ft away). These are huge creatures so we got out of his way quickly. You need to be away at least 25 yards and 100 yards from bears and wolves.
We stopped at the Grand Tetons Lodge (1 1/2 hr drive away) one day since we were near Yellowstone's South entrance. When we stayed at the Grand Tetons Lodge several years ago, the temperature was 40 degrees and it was so cold. It was warmer this time as the lodge’s huge thermometer read 50 degrees. The view here from this lodge is amazing.
There is one short hike we did at Coulter Bay called the Lakeshore trail and you are hiking along the water with the view of the Grand Tetons. Spectacular!
We left Yellowstone through the North entrance so we could stop at Mammoth area. I was also curious to see the state of the conditions after the disastrous flood that occurred in June, 2022 where heavy rains dumped a total of 7.5-9 inches of rain in one day. There wasn’t any visible signs that we could see of damage when we were driving through. It was just amazing how the Park was able to turn a single lane dirt service road into a two-lane paved road in only five months after the flood last year.
On our last day, we were met by a herd of buffalos on the road. Amazing encounter!
It was an easy to return to the Bozeman Airport once you are on the main highway. If you have some time, the Western Cafe is a good place to eat for breakfast or lunch. It’s on your way to the airport.
It was a magical time.
Stop when you see photographers - Pull over to the side of the road.
Mama grizzly and her two cubs.
Another Grizzly
Morning Glory Geyser
Gran Prismatic Spring at Midway Geyser Basin
Encounter on our last day
Lamar Valley
Lamar Valley
Yellowstone's Grand Canyon
Lake Shore trail in Grand Tetons National Park - Coulter Bay
Grand Tetons from Grand Tetons Lodge
There is West Yellowstone town right outside the west entrance and we stopped to have dinner at a barbecue place. Several souvenirs shops and places to eat. I’m sure there are less expensive hotel reservations then staying in the park.
There wasn’t a car in line at 7:30pm when we stopped at the park’s entrance.
Our lodging was for 4 nights at Old Faithful location at the Snow Lodge and 3 nights at the Lake Hotel. Snow Lodge is a modern lodge about 5 minutes walk from Old Faithful Lodge. We have stayed here before on our first visit. There is no WIFI so you should be prepared to not have any. Occasionally, you might get on for a few minutes when you are in the Snow Lodge lobby but it’s intermittent so bring a good book. Also, I was surprised to see a traveler who had NO reservations trying to see if there were rooms available. If you want to visit Yellowstone National Park you should plan on making accommodations a year in advance, especially if you want to stay inside the park.
You definitely have to make dinner reservations on line as soon as you are allowed to. I only got dinner reservation for one night as the other times that were left available was like 9pm for the Old Faithful restaurant. I didn’t have any problems getting reservations at the Lake Hotel. I found out that you can go to the host at the Old Faithful restaurant at 3pm to see if there are any cancellations for that day but the host was able to get us in if we ate at 5:00. They were short on staff so the dinners were buffet style. The food was surprisingly good and there were 3 choices for entrees, side dishes. I overheard someone at our lodge say it wasn’t worth it but I thought it was a good deal for soup, salad, entree, dessert w/ coffee or tea, for the $40 per person charge. We ate one night at the Obsidian Grill that was in the Snow Lodge. It doesn’t take reservations and the food wasn’t as good as in Old Faithful restaurant. Again, you have to be open to eating early otherwise some guests were waiting for an hour and half for a later time.
They also take about 8 guests up to the rooftop of Old Faithful Lodge for the flag changing ceremony. You need to make this reservation months in advance. You have a fantastic view from the rooftop but if you aren’t into climbing stairs there is a bar/lounge where you can get cocktails and see Old Faithful erupt from the mezzanine. The seating is more like in pews and I didn’t see any individual tables. The beauty of staying here is you have several times during the day to see Old Faithful erupt as they have the times noted in the lodges. It is amazing they have this down to the times but a couple of times, Old Faithful wasn’t faithful and maybe the timing was off by 10-15 minutes. There are plenty of advantages to see the eruptions. Besides the board walks around the lodge there is a nice little trail called Observation Point where you have a really nice view of the the lodge and surrounding grounds.
What we found out during our visit was there is no housekeeping so if you wanted fresh towels, etc. you have to go to the front desk at both lodges. I know this is the sign of the times (post-Covid) but the front desk people acted like they never heard of housekeeping.
We wanted to go on longer hikes but all the trails were closed due to bear maintenance. Bears are coming out of hibernation and are hungry so they want them to find their food without any human interference. The trails are off limit during Spring. Now they are open.
We did see 4 sightings of grizzlies and black bears. Two times were Mamma bear with 2 cubs. If you see lots of cars and photographers parked off the road there is sure a sighting of wildlife.
In one spot the Park Rangers were directing the traffic and making sure no cars didn’t stopped in the middle of the road.
We only encountered one area Midway Geyser Basin (Grand Prismatic Spring) that the parking lot was full and the line of cars were so long that we decided to try the next day. There still was no spaces on our second attempt but the line of parked cars off the road wasn’t too bad so we parked behind about 20 cars and walked in. This was worth it as the geysers are very pretty here. One day we went up to Norris which has lots of geysers and springs and a nice boardwalk throughout most of the trail. We stopped also at West Thumb and Grants Village. Grants Village Visitor Center was closed (there isn’t really much to see at Grants Village) unless you are camping in this area. There was one tiny souvenir/minimart opened and a public restroom available in Grant Village.
The weather at Lake Hotel is always cooler than Old Faithful area. The nice thing is that the restaurant here had a menu (limited but a menu) which was nice. The breakfast was a buffet which we had on our last day but they also have a smaller deli where you could get a lighter breakfast.
We went to Lamar valley which we didn’t do on our first visit. The road to Tower-Roosevelt had just opened so it was a more direct route to take.
The Lamar valley is called the Serengeti of our country. We started early in the morning. There was road construction along the way but the wait wasn’t too bad. We saw tons of buffalos, few grizzlies and black bears, pronghorn antelopes, elks, Northern Goshawk bird and a coyote crossed the road. I didn’t see any wolves but later I met a woman who did say she saw them at one of their stops they did. It is very scenic drive.
We did a couple of short hikes near the Fishing Bridge area. No bear encounters but we did have one buffalo on the trail so we had to walk around him. Then a second buffalo appeared out of the bushes and was walking towards us (like 15 ft away). These are huge creatures so we got out of his way quickly. You need to be away at least 25 yards and 100 yards from bears and wolves.
We stopped at the Grand Tetons Lodge (1 1/2 hr drive away) one day since we were near Yellowstone's South entrance. When we stayed at the Grand Tetons Lodge several years ago, the temperature was 40 degrees and it was so cold. It was warmer this time as the lodge’s huge thermometer read 50 degrees. The view here from this lodge is amazing.
There is one short hike we did at Coulter Bay called the Lakeshore trail and you are hiking along the water with the view of the Grand Tetons. Spectacular!
We left Yellowstone through the North entrance so we could stop at Mammoth area. I was also curious to see the state of the conditions after the disastrous flood that occurred in June, 2022 where heavy rains dumped a total of 7.5-9 inches of rain in one day. There wasn’t any visible signs that we could see of damage when we were driving through. It was just amazing how the Park was able to turn a single lane dirt service road into a two-lane paved road in only five months after the flood last year.
On our last day, we were met by a herd of buffalos on the road. Amazing encounter!
It was an easy to return to the Bozeman Airport once you are on the main highway. If you have some time, the Western Cafe is a good place to eat for breakfast or lunch. It’s on your way to the airport.
It was a magical time.
Stop when you see photographers - Pull over to the side of the road.
Mama grizzly and her two cubs.
Another Grizzly
Morning Glory Geyser
Gran Prismatic Spring at Midway Geyser Basin
Encounter on our last day
Lamar Valley
Lamar Valley
Yellowstone's Grand Canyon
Lake Shore trail in Grand Tetons National Park - Coulter Bay
Grand Tetons from Grand Tetons Lodge
Jun 15th, 2023, 02:48 AM
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That sounds like a wonderful trip. We had to cancel our return trip due to covid, but were able to score a walk in cancellation at Lake Hotel cabins on our first trip. Getting that set ahead of the trip is a very good idea but if you ask there are often cancellations since plans often change when you make reservations a year ahead.
Thanks for the report.
Thanks for the report.
Jun 28th, 2023, 11:44 AM
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Thank you for your kind responses.
Prairie Hiker, I'm glad that we weren't the only ones who didn't know the longer trails were closed in the Spring. Upon reading further on the trails we wanted to do, they did note it on the bottom in tiny text but we didn't see it until after we returned home. However, we were able to do many of the boardwalks and shorter hikes so all was good. Thank you for your compliment on my photos. I don't know how the one of the Grand Canyons was larger than the others but I amazed of the photos I get with my Samsung phone.
Prairie Hiker, I'm glad that we weren't the only ones who didn't know the longer trails were closed in the Spring. Upon reading further on the trails we wanted to do, they did note it on the bottom in tiny text but we didn't see it until after we returned home. However, we were able to do many of the boardwalks and shorter hikes so all was good. Thank you for your compliment on my photos. I don't know how the one of the Grand Canyons was larger than the others but I amazed of the photos I get with my Samsung phone.
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