The nation parks in the northwest corner of Wyoming are famous for a reason. The “Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem” is incredibly scenic, full of large charismatic animals and deeply wild…. all despite the gazillions of people who visit each year.
I’ve visited this area several times over the years, starting when I was a teenager. In my 20’s, I worked in the service industry around Jackson, Wyoming.
We camped here at least three different times on family trips, and twice as empty-nesters in our camper van. We’ve done it several different ways and in several seasons, making memories…. and many mistakes
Though pressed for time, we couldn’t pass up the chance to visit yet again. In mid-May. During bouts of rain and snow.
Is it possible to enjoy a speedy, budget-friendly, time-crunched visit to Wyoming National Parks in rough weather? Um… Maybe/sort of?
Our latest visit fell more into the “don’t do this” variety of travel. But we still had a wonderful time.
And, in the interest of sparing you some of the challenges we faced, we’ve put together a list of things you ought NOT to do when visiting Wyoming’s biggest national parks.
Cram your visit into a few days
Usually, our travels are leisurely. We amble and mosey and zigzag. Generally, we have no more than a vague direction, a rendezvous with family or friends a few months off. But this time around we had less than two weeks to drive from Salt Lake City to Olympia, Washington.
We could have done the drive in a few days time…. but it wouldn’t have been great. Interstates are rough when driving a big ol’ brick of a vehicle.
So, we took the scenic route up into Western Wyoming and north through the parks.
Also, we just had to stop in Kemmerer (WY) to do a little fossil hunting.
….Which turned into a three day proposition, as the Fossil Fishing season hadn’t opened yet. We camped nearby, enduring some wild Wyoming weather.
Turns out, that was a harbinger of things to come.
On opening day of the season, we hustled over to Fossil Lake Safari, one of several Wyoming fossil digging sites. Though it was 40 degrees (Fahrenheit) and damp, I had a blast finding fossil fish. (We made a video about our experiences camping and hunting fish fossils in Kemmerer. It’s here.)
This little adventure ate up three days. The time crunch began.
But we can be a little stubborn about our travel modes. And, regardless of time, we planned to take it slow and avoid interstates as much as possible.
And so, we reached the national parks in Wyoming’s northwest corner in a bit of a time crunch.
Our Advice: Give yourself lots of time to explore these parks. They’re big (HUGE, actually) and driving within and between them will eat up hours. If we weren’t in a hurry, we’d have spent a few weeks in the area.
…which is totally how you should do it. If you try to see these parks in a day or two you’ll be frazzled and road weary. And all that amazing will be a blur of viewpoints and visitor centers and crowds.
Expect warm, sunny days
When we arrived in mid-May, the Wyoming weather was all over the place. In the span of one afternoon, we experienced heavy rain, wind, clouds, hail… and bright sunshine.
Also, a beautiful rainbow that stretched across the horizon. Overnight temperatures were in the low 20’s. And we awoke to an inch or two of heavy wet snow.
So yeah, the weather in Wyoming is intense. Even in summer, the weather can flip flop like this.
Our advice: Prepare for weather, lots of it. When you visit these parks, make sure to bring many layers of clothing. Rain gear, a puffy coat, a warm wool cap, umbrella and gloves, shorts and a t-shirt. Believe me, you will be glad you did. It’s a bummer to miss out on activities because you are too cold or hot or wet to enjoy them.
Wing it
Winging it is something we pretty well always do. We generally visit places that are less visited and more remote. And it works out just fine. We rarely reserve campsites, and never plan more than a day or two ahead.
Often, we decide what we’ll do an hour or two before we do it, stop randomly, and explore along the way.
But this is NOT how to visit Yellowstone and Grand Teton. These parks are crowded — deservedly so — and campgrounds fill up fast. Overlooks and visitor centers are crowded, many shorter hiking trails too. This is all especially true in summer months.
When we arrived in May, the Gros Ventre campground in GTNP had just opened. The weather was lousy. AND it was still kinda busy. We were lucky to get a spot. And to tour the park without a ton of traffic. (Thanks, bad weather… I guess.)
The next day, we thought we’d try our luck camping inside Yellowstone, but nope.
Despite a few feet of snow on the ground and freezing temperatures, the campgrounds were full up. They are pretty well always full up. And many of the national forest campgrounds and dispersed sites in the area will fill up too. Especially in the summer months.
Our advice: Plan ahead. Yeah, this is pretty strange coming from us. But winging it is NOT the way to see Yellowstone or Grand Teton National Parks. When arriving in the area, you should already know where you’ll be sleeping and what you’ll be doing. Research camping options and activities ahead of time and highlight the ones you plan to do.
And if you plan to stay at non-reservable NF campgrounds or dispersed sites, arrive early in the day, mid week. Basically, be an organized, proactive traveler.
Plan to camp inside the parks
Yellowstone and Grand Teton have several campgrounds. They are typical national park campgrounds: convenient, and in a scenic location. Many have trails leaving right from camp, and stores, lodges, showers, etc.
But national park campgrounds are crowded, with little space between sites. And they’re kinda pricey, too.
In May, we stayed at Gros Ventre Campground at the southern edge of Grand Teton. And with our half price pass, camping here was $30 a night, with no hook-ups or showers. So yeah, not that affordable an option. But we did it. Because the muddy, snowy weather made nearby dispersed sites a bit iffy for our van.
Our advice: Stay in the parks if you want to. But know there are other, free and affordable camping spots in the area. The parks are surrounded by national forest lands that allow dispersed camping. But to snag a spot, you’ll need to arrive early in the day and (preferably) mid week. These are are popular, well-known options, as the hundreds of reviews on iOverlander can attest.
On a previous visit to this area, we stayed at Granite Creek Campground in the beautiful Bridger-Teton National Forest. This was a great option. It was less crowded and just as scenic, with views, hiking and hot springs close by. And there were several lovely dispersed sites along Granite Creek Road as well.
There are also some national forest campgrounds and dispersed sites in the strip of national forest land between the two parks. This is a super convenient area for exploring. A few years back, we were lucky, to park up at Sheffield Campground late in the day. (All the designated dispersed sites nearby were full.) This spot proved a great jumping off point for a beautiful sunrise visit to Yellowstone Park.
We’ve dispersed camped with the kids In the Bridger Teton Forest east of the tiny town of Kelly. And also just past the National Elk Refuge in Jackson.
And we’ve camped Pinnacles Campground between Moran Junction and Dubois. The kids loved this spot.
We’ve also camped near the northeast entrance, near Cooke City, and close to the west entrance near West Yellowstone.
Some of these areas allow only “hard sided” camping due to bear activity. So, If you are tent camping, you may want to call the ranger stations and double check.
Stay on the pavement
On our last visit to the parks, we stuck pretty close to the van. Between the awful weather, closed trails, and our travel time crunch, it was all we could manage. And boy o’ boy did we miss out. Trust me: This is not the way to experience these parks.
Yeah, we saw some animals and some great geologic features. But we missed out on immersing ourselves in the last truly wild place in the lower 48.
Our advice: Plan to do at least a few miles of hiking. These parks are most amazing on foot… far from crowded roadside stops. Hard to believe, but few miles off the pavement, they are big, wild and empty.
If you choose a trail that’s longer than a mile or two, it probably won’t be busy at all. We’ve hiked easy trails with the kids and encountered only a few other folks.
Another way to escape the crowds is to hike off trail. We have explored off trail along the Firehole River and across the broad Lamar Valley this way, two Ocean creek and the Lamar River, and felt a bit of solitude.
More advice: If you hike off trail, make sure you know how to find your way back to your car. And how to avoid encounters with bears, bison, moose and elk. Carry bear spray and avoid thick brush where you might surprise a large at close range. They’re out there.
Not sure where to hike? There are many great resources out there. We have a few Yellowstone Trail Guides in the van. But we always supplement these with real-time information at the visitor centers. Check in with the park rangers, they’ll will give you trail suggestions that match your skill and stamina.
Drive straight through
Yes, these parks are big. And yes, at some point you will be maxed out on “scenic.” But don’t do what we did our last time at Yellowstone and spend your day driving, driving, driving. By the end of our most recent trip through the west side of Yellowstone, we were soooo done.
This sort of zippy touring is exhausting. And it’s pretty well the opposite of the immersive park experience we all want. For us, our time crunch, and lack of planning prompted our long driving day. But it doesn’t have to be that way for you.
Even under the best of circumstances, we reach a point where we just can’t take in any more park. We become impatient with the crowds and crazy and just zip by all the things. This might happen to you too. But before that point, stop and see the sights.
Our advice: Plan your days to maximize time outside of the car. Picnics, exploring off trail, hiking, even hanging out with the many roadside wolf and bear watchers. Get out of the car. And stop at all the the turnouts and points of interest along the way. These may be crowded, but they’re still interesting and educational and beautiful.
Fast food all the way!
Affordable, healthy meals are hard to come by in Yellowstone and Grand Teton Parks. There are park concessions at major visitor centers with the usual fast food options. But why do that?
Even on our most recent whirlwind visit, we managed to eat a healthy, peaceful meal while exploring the park. And you can too.
Our advice: If you can, do yourself a favor and avoid those park concessions. They are loud, crowded, expensive time sinks. Pack your own meals, and stop at one of the many picnic areas along the way.
This is where having a van (or RV) really helps. One early morning visit, we were treated to a bison parade as we cooked our oatmeal in the early morning light. Another time, we watched a herd of elk wander down the mountainside nearby while we cooked up some burritos.
This time around, we set up our camp stove in the snow and made a full on breakfast scramble. It was a nice break from driving and soooo much better than fighting the crowds for an overpriced burger.
Even if you don’t carry your kitchen, you can stop at a grocery store or cafe and buy the makings of a healthy meal. The easy sandwich above was straight out of a grocery store: bagel, cheese, turkey slices, arugula. Done!
Visit The parks mid-day
There are times when a mid day visit is unavoidable. On our most recent stop, we woke up to snow. and by the time we’d warmed up, packed up and filled our water tanks, it was mid morning.
An hour or two later, we entered Yellowstone Park. Exactly around noon… which is the worst time to visit. Mid day is most crowded. The light is flat and harsh. And it’s also the time you are least likely to see those exciting large animals.
Our advice: Plan to visit the parks in early morning or dusk. Animals are more active at these times of the day and there are less people on the roads. Though we flubbed most of our recent visit, we did manage an early evening drive through Grand Teton National Park. And we saw two black bears, a moose and many elk.
On a previous morning visit, we caught the most amazing sunrise over one of Yellowstone’s geyser basin. There were only a few other folks around at that time. And we felt a sense of connectedness that just doesn’t happen on those boardwalks in crowded parts of the day.
Spend all of your time in town
The towns on all sides of these parks are set up for tourism. Lots of tourism. And that can be kind of fun.
When the kids were little, we stood in the street with hundreds of other people, and watched the fake gunfight in Jackson. They loved it!
And we shopped for faux western souvenirs, ate overpriced barbecue, and treated ourselves to ice cream in the park.
It was fun. But we wasted a lot of time (and money) doing things that — for the most part — we could have done at home.
And we did it again a few years back with Milo. He wasn’t as impressed with the town and threw up in the doorway of a Jackson real estate office(!) We ended up eating expensive take out in the grass with a busload of Japanese tourists. Memorable, but not in the best way.
This time around, we wised up. We did some quick grocery shopping and laundry, and sped right through crowded, overpriced downtown Jackson without stopping once. And we didn’t feel like we missed out at all. At the end a long day of driving, we treated ourselves to a couple of beers in town.
Our advice: If you do go to Jackson, or West Yellowstone, Gardner, Cody, or Cooke City, plan ahead. Know what you want to see and do, and don’t get caught up window shopping, snacking and shopping. Unless that’s your thing of course, which is perfectly fine.
Don’t leave the park boundaries
There are so many wonderful places in this neck of the woods, many of them outside the park boundaries. It’d be a shame to miss them.
In our visits to Northwest Wyoming, we have really enjoyed hiking and exploring in the surrounding national forests. These spots are less crowded and still full of wildlife and beauty.
Here are a few close by spots that are worth considering:
The Beartooth Highway
This scenic route takes you high above treeline to a spectacularly scenic part of the Yellowstone Ecosystem. There are a few national forest campgrounds along the way, a TON of wonderful hikes, and lots of big animals.
While camped at Island Lake Campground, we watched a young grizzly hunting for ground squirrels. All without the traffic and chaos of animal sightings within the parks.
Shoshone National Forest Near Dubois, WY
This is another less crowded but beautiful area. When the kids were little, we car camped at The Pinnacles Campground, which was lovely (though busy by our current standards). One morning, we crawled out of our tent to a small crowd gathered nearby. Evidently, a grizzly sow and cub were fishing in the river beside our tent. We’d slept right through their visit!
More recently, we ventured north of the town of Dubois (“Dew-boys” in Wyoming speak) and spent close to a week camping in the national forest there. There are two NF campgrounds here and many opportunities for boondocking.
If you are a rockhound, you can hunt for Wiggins Fork Petrified Wood waaaay up in this forest. If not, there are many opportunities to hike and explore here as well.
Pinedale and Lander
There are similar national forest adventures to the southwest, north and west of the parks. And, if you are up for a drive, Lander and Pinedale are great towns to visit. They’re welcoming in summer, but not quite as much of a scene as the towns closer to the parks.
We enjoyed camping and hiking in the Wind River range outside both of these towns. As the pictures below can attest.
Regardless of how you do it, it will be awesome
Really, there’s no horrible way to visit northwestern Wyoming. Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks are awesome. And no matter how you do it, a visit to will be just that: awesome, and memorable too.
You’ll definitely see wildlife, geologic features and beautiful vistas. Crowds, costly food options, and unpredictable weather, too.
But don’t let that stop you. Take it from us, even a rushed, rainy, unplanned trip to these national parks will be full of excitement and great memories.
_______
Hey there! We made a video of our most recent visit to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. It’s HERE if you’d like to check it out.
Discover more from Crazy Brave Adventure
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.