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Thread: Where to go?

  1. #21
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    Nov 2010
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    Ok, I jumped on a room at Old FaithFul Snow Lodge (I was able to get 3 nights in a row). Now I was wondering if Gardiner is worth staying a few nights in to explore the north park or should we try to stay in the park?

  2. #22
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    I liked staying in west ystone because hotels had pools and TV-- which are big for my kids. And gardener is really close to good sights I think that's a good idea!
    Mom to:
    DS '02
    DS '05
    Percy--the wild furry child!!! 2022----
    Simon--the first King Charles cutie 2009-2022
    RIP Andy, the furry first child, 1996-2012

    "The task of any religion is not to tell us who we are entitled to hate but to teach us who we are required to love."

  3. #23
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    We were not thrilled with park lodging, although it has been nearly 15 years since I have been. I would stay outside the park when feasible.

    Catherine

  4. #24
    mctlaw is offline Platinum level (1000+ posts)
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    I'm late to this thread but just read it and I'm thrilled for you you are focusing on Yellowstone. I love Yellowstone and spent 2 summers working there in college! We are hoping to take DS there when he is a bit older but since we are about to add DS2 we may need to wait a bit longer now. And there is definitely plenty to do there for a week plus if your family is outdoorsy.

    I know you have decided to pick Old Faithful but just wanted to warn you that due to the nature of the big attraction there, IME that area is the most crowded at the entire park. I was going to recommend Grant/Canyon/Lake. Since you will be staying at OF Lodge, just wanted to encourage you to make day trips to the less congested areas to escape the crowds! There is lots of good hiking all over the park as well as many lesser known features of the park in places besides those main tourist destinations.

    Also, I love both Bozeman and Jackson Hole. You can't go wrong in spending time in either place!
    MC

    Fair Queen-Ruler of the House of Boys
    Mom to DS 3/06
    DS 2 6/12
    and a 12 year old (boy) min pin

  5. #25
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    Maybe it was the economy this year but I was amazed at how uncrowded all of Ystone was especially OF. Grant is definitely uncrowded, but only 2 eating choices and we really did not like the lodging there. Canyon is awesome. I think the best idea if you want to do the whole park is to stay somewhere in the south (OF) and somewhere north--like Canyon. West Yellowstone is too far away from main sites to use it as a base to see the park but Gardner should be fine.

    Yes, there will be people there and my kids are not non-whining hikers (m&ms or friends are needed and we hike a lot) so we were not able to get too far off the beaten path. But even OF geyser basin was pretty uncrowded! And we went the first week of August.

    If you walk even a mile off pavement, you will be amazed at how thin the crowds get! I really wanted to hike around the Canyon rim, but there was an active grizzly there at the time so they closed the trails.

    My kids loved every visitors center--I was quite impressed by how much they have improved in 20 years. (ok, loooong time since I worked there :love eyes And, of course, the junior ranger program! The rangers at Madison Junction and the center near Lake/Fishing Bridge were so interactive and fun.
    Mom to:
    DS '02
    DS '05
    Percy--the wild furry child!!! 2022----
    Simon--the first King Charles cutie 2009-2022
    RIP Andy, the furry first child, 1996-2012

    "The task of any religion is not to tell us who we are entitled to hate but to teach us who we are required to love."

  6. #26
    Join Date
    Apr 2002
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    Salt Lake City, Utah.
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    Here is my full trip report on our trip to Yellowstone for anybody who is looking at this post for future reference.

    Day One: SLC (home) to West Yellowstone
    We stopped off in Idaho Falls (sort of the half way point) to see the Museum of Eastern Idaho. They get some great traveling exhibits. We saw the Bodies exhibit. The 8 yo loved it, the 6 yo said no thanks. There were some nice permanent exhibits and a really great kids room. This was a really nice place to break up the drive. In West, we pretty much just hit the pool, they got to watch CABLE TV (whoo hoo), and we got some pizza. I love the 2 book stores in West--they are both awesome.

    Day Two: West to OF
    This was geyser hopping day. First, we visited the Madison River Ranger station to get the Junior Ranger books (an absolute MUST in ANY National Park or monument). We heard a great talk about wolves and walked along the Madison River. The kids loved watching the Uintah ground squirrels. We stopped at Fountain Paint Pots and Midway Geyser basin and took the Firehole River drive and the drive to Ojo Caliente spring. We got to OF and looked around the Inn. Then we went over to the new visitors center which is really, really cool. Got to see OF erupt--fun. Then we walked around to see the Lodge and then check in at the Snow Lodge. We had dinner at the Snow Lodge and it was ok. Nice kids menu.

    Day Three: OF to Grant Village
    We started the day by walking around the OF geyser basin. Tip for parents--you can rent bicycles and ride the bicycle route along the basin, then walk over the river to look at some geysers. I thought this would be a good idea--our kids were really tired of geysers and walking by this point Then we went to West Thumb and walked that basin. At Grant, we looked around the visitors center--lots of neat stuff on the 87 fires and a good movie too.

    Day 4: unplanned side trip to Cody, stayed in Canyon
    It was POURING rain. We stopped at Fishing Bridge visitors center which was neat. But there was no way we were hiking in that deluge just with rain jackets. So we decided to go to Cody. 2 hour drive--kind of long but very pretty. We hit the McDonalds there for lunch--play land is always good after that kind of a drive! The Buffalo Bill museums were AWESOME. We spent 3 hours there. Just so much to see. We all really liked it. We drove through the Hayden valley in the evening, which was great for wildlife watching. Make sure you bring binoculars (even better, a spotting scope) to Yellowstone!!!! The kids really liked all the bison.

    Day 5: Canyon to Jackson
    First stop Canyon visitor center to get the Junior Ranger badges. They have a really great display on the Caldera. I learned a lot. Then we went to ARtist Point. I had intended to hike some of the rim trails but everything was closed due to a recent fatal grizzly mauling. Fine with me--bears and kids, not a good mix!!! We did do a forced march around the mud pots where we saw a bull bison 15 feet from the trail. Yikes. Then we drove straight to Jackson. We were all tired by then and DONE after all the driving. The kids hit the pool in Jackson. My husband walked around town with them and the BEST thing ever was the stage coach ride--and they got to ride on top AND--they got to watch the horse PEE. Seriously. 900+ miles on the road the peeing horse will be their number one memory. That night we got awesome pizza from my fav, fav place--Mountain HIgh Pizza Pie.

    Day 6: Jackson to home
    We started with breakfast at my fav spot--the Bunnery. Then they HAD to have another carriage ride. At that point, I figured we would do Jackson on a long weekend trip, so I consented to go to the Ripleys Believe it or Not museum. The kids loved it. Me? PASS. Then we hit the road for the 5 hour trip home.

    Lodging: In West Yellowstone, we stayed at the Clubhouse Inn. Very nice--one block off the main drag, close to visitors center, pool, fridge, microwave. For Yellowstone--I had called in October 2010 and still could not get 2 nights in the same place!!! At OF, we stayed in the Snow Lodge cabins. I had never stayed in any of the cabins in Yellowstone--always the hotels. Well, I like the cabins! They are roomier than the hotel. They are quieter and there was a deer outside our window in the morning. At Grant, we stayed in Lodge A--small room, only a shower/no bath (not good for my kids). At Canyon--we stayed in the Beaver Creek cabins--very nice, very new. Best place we stayed in Yellowstone. In Jackson, we stayed at the Painted Buffalo Inn. Good enough. Close to town so an easy walk. I think the Antler Inn might have been better--about the same price/locale but a block off the main drag. Things were a bit noisy for us.

    Planning: I am OCD about planning. I spent a lot of time on the www.nps.gov site. I downloaded the park newsletter and the Junior Ranger books so I could really plan each day--e.g. Ranger presentations etc. I made up bingo cards for each day (e.g stuff to look for--raven, marmot, pine tree, etc) based on where we were in the park. The best game in Yellowstone is the License Plate game. We got every state but Hawaii, Vermont, and Maine!

    On not hiking: This is hard for me. I am a pretty hard core backpacker and I grew up in Idaho spending lots of time in Yellowstone. But the 2 mile geyser basin hike was a lot for the kids. And the geysers really do stink. So I sucked it up and we really did the hop in and out of the car tour of Yellowstone. When they are older we can do more trails. I just want them to have fun and love the park as much as I do.
    Mom to:
    DS '02
    DS '05
    Percy--the wild furry child!!! 2022----
    Simon--the first King Charles cutie 2009-2022
    RIP Andy, the furry first child, 1996-2012

    "The task of any religion is not to tell us who we are entitled to hate but to teach us who we are required to love."

  7. #27
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
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    Wow! You guys have provided so much help. I knew I could count on the moms board to give real help. Keep it coming.

    Here is where we are. We've got the 3 days at Old Fathful Snowlodge, we plan to hike that area, maybe bike a day, and explore Grant. From there we are thinking about doing a few days at Grand Teton *maybe* doing a covered wagon trip, then head back to yellowstone to do Canyons for 3 nights to explore that area and Roosevelt/towers area. Also before we do OF we are going to museum of rockies for a day then thinking a couple of days in Mammoth area.

  8. #28
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
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    Ok opinions needed...would you stay OF Snowlodge over 4th July or OF Lodge Frontier Cabin June 5-8? We do car camp as a family, hubby does serious camping, and we are not huge on crowds. Opinions????

  9. #29
    Join Date
    Apr 2002
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    Do you really mean June or did you mean to put July 5-8? Because I wouldn't be camping in Yellowstone in June--too snowy. The only issue with campgrounds, IME, is the noise. It's hard to go to sleep. The other issue for me is that I will not camp in a Yellowstone campground without an RV (thus I never have done it). The bear issue just makes me too nervous. Now I will backpack and sleep in a teeny tent in the middle of bear country, but that is because I am OCD clean when it comes to backpacking--I can't control what food has permeated the soil in a campground!

    We stayed in a cabin vs. the lodge. I really liked the cabins better.
    Last edited by StantonHyde; 01-04-2012 at 03:58 PM.
    Mom to:
    DS '02
    DS '05
    Percy--the wild furry child!!! 2022----
    Simon--the first King Charles cutie 2009-2022
    RIP Andy, the furry first child, 1996-2012

    "The task of any religion is not to tell us who we are entitled to hate but to teach us who we are required to love."

  10. #30
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
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    1,995

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    Quote Originally Posted by StantonHyde View Post
    Maybe it was the economy this year but I was amazed at how uncrowded all of Ystone was especially OF. Grant is definitely uncrowded, but only 2 eating choices and we really did not like the lodging there. Canyon is awesome. I think the best idea if you want to do the whole park is to stay somewhere in the south (OF) and somewhere north--like Canyon. West Yellowstone is too far away from main sites to use it as a base to see the park but Gardner should be fine.

    Yes, there will be people there and my kids are not non-whining hikers (m&ms or friends are needed and we hike a lot) so we were not able to get too far off the beaten path. But even OF geyser basin was pretty uncrowded! And we went the first week of August.

    If you walk even a mile off pavement, you will be amazed at how thin the crowds get! I really wanted to hike around the Canyon rim, but there was an active grizzly there at the time so they closed the trails.

    My kids loved every visitors center--I was quite impressed by how much they have improved in 20 years. (ok, loooong time since I worked there :love eyes And, of course, the junior ranger program! The rangers at Madison Junction and the center near Lake/Fishing Bridge were so interactive and fun.
    Hi. How old were your kids when you visited Yellowstone? In a separate thread I posted about looking for ideas for a vacation for DH, me, two boys 5 and 3, and my parents.
    ETA: I found their ages in one of their posts. Would my kids be too young for this trip?
    Mom to DS1 (3/06) and DS2 (9/08)

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