Yellowstone National Park, Montana?

[hope54 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close hope54]

We have been at Yellowstone in July/August. Too hot and too crowded for me. This year we were staying by the north entrance early June. It was lovely. I would like to stay at Mammoth Hot Springs or Roosevelt Lodge if I were to stay in the park. They are not so crowded. We did one of the loops one day - got sun, thunder and lightening, and then snow in the highest point of Yellowstone. Weather can change fast and often; adds to the experience!! It is an amazing place.

An hour or less from the north entrance there is Chico Hot Springs. It is well worth a night there - an old lodge tucked against the mountains. There is a natural hot spring there and the pool at one end is hot and then it cools off as the water gets deeper.

The restaurant there has good food and the grounds are worth just hanging out in.

Hope

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

Trading Places International almost ALWAYS has Island Park in their hot deal section. ESPECIALY non-summer weeks but I have even seen summer on-line.

If you wanted to trade in there it might be your best chance at an exchange.

It's on my "short-list" for 2008.

[gophish Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close gophish]

We were in Yellowstone (tent camping) years ago over Labor Day and we had great weather (cold at night but ok). Like everyone else I will say the benefits of that time of year are small crowds and lots of wildlife. You need to watch the weather tho as they can get some snow during that time also and some of the roads leading in to the park can get a bit dicy.

[Faust Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Faust]

After reading everyone’s information on Yellowstone, I think we will probably go in March when there is still quite a bit of snow high in the mountains and there are plenty of game animals down in Yellowstone. Since we are going to make this into a driving trip, do you think that most of the storms will have passed by this time period and will the roads be okay for automobile travel?

We decided to rent a room and stay in the park.

Thanks everyone for your help.

[mshatty Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close mshatty]

I was listening to the Wyndham Worldwide webcast. One of its new projects will be at West Yellowstone right outside of the park's entrance. The webcast did not indicate which club will own it, Fairfield/Wyndham, Worldmark or Wyndham?

[T. R. Oglodyte Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close T. R. Oglodyte]

After reading everyone’s information on Yellowstone, I think we will probably go in March when there is still quite a bit of snow high in the mountains and there are plenty of game animals down in Yellowstone. Since we are going to make this into a driving trip, do you think that most of the storms will have passed by this time period and will the roads be okay for automobile travel?

We decided to rent a room and stay in the park.

Thanks everyone for your help.

March is still winter in the park.

[muranojo Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close muranojo]

Agree...you'll miss a lot of tourists, but it is still very much winter there. Check it out before you commit.

[hope54 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close hope54]

I would wonder if all the roads would be open in March.

Hope

[Faust Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Faust]

What is a best month for shoulder season ? When there is very few people and the weather is decent for driving.

[muranojo Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close muranojo]

And there's Yellowstone Village, which is actually closer to the W. Yellowstone entrance than Yellowstone Park Village (about 10 min. away). But, it's nothing fancy...they do have a pool and units are 1 bd or 2bd duplexes from what I saw. Resort personnel are very nice...but it's a very basic resort that's hard to snag.

[Sharp Traveler Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Sharp Traveler]

IMO, the best month for shoulder season would be May or September. The crowds are either not there or they have mostly gone. In May you may see the baby animals and in September the elk start rutting(the deer start a little later in Oct.). In Sept. you should be able to hear the elk bugleing. In general all the animals become more active with the cooler weather. The weather in May and Sept. should be fairly warm during the day and probably cool off (a lot, perhaps) at night.
I hope this helps in your decision to visit Yellowstone.



Sharp Traveler.

[T. R. Oglodyte Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close T. R. Oglodyte]

The rivers should be running higher in May, meaning Yellowstone Falls should be nicer.

But the weather is also a bit more unpredictable in May. Summer weather patterns in the wesern US generally prevail through about mid-October. That means less likelihood of storms. May, OTOH, is usually still part of winter weather, though May is usually not as wild as the winter months.

If I had the choice, I would go late September or early October. The later you go towards fall, the more animal life you will get and crowds are progressively less. If you time it right, you should also get fall colors. Mountain aspens in the fall are especially gorgeous.

[Sharp Traveler Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Sharp Traveler]

Thanks Steve, I thought of those valid points as well. Also, since the rivers are running high in May it would be a good time to go white water rafting end of may beginning of June. We went in August, but the water was pretty low. Still fun, however it would be more fun with higher, faster water. We have plans of going end of May beginning of June.

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

This thread is making me sorry about blowing off Yellowstone for England next August.

Maybe I can grab 2 weeks via Trading Places for 2008. One SCal and One Yellowstone. Hmmmm?

[T. R. Oglodyte Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close T. R. Oglodyte]

I would wonder if all the roads would be open in March.

Hope

That depends on what the winter is like and how quickly the snow melts off in the spring. The openings vary from year to year.

*****

One attraction that no one has mentioned yet is the Beartooth Highway (US Highway 212), the northeast route to the park that connects with Red Lodge, MT. The Beartooth Highway is one of the most scenic drives in the world. The Highway spends quite a bit of it's length traversing some of the high Rocky Mountain peaks in Wyoming and Montana - much of the time the road above 10,000 feet elevation, crossing mountain meadows and high plateus. And the descent down the switchbacks before you reach Red Lodge is breathtaking (and vertigo-inducing).

Beartooth Highway is an absolute must to do if you drive to Yellowstone. Even if you are staying in West Yellowstone or in Big Sky, plan your trip to spend the night in Red Lodge, then spend a day traversing the Beartooth Highway into the park. Then pick up your park pass (if you don't have one already) and finish your journey to your accomodations.

Beartooth Highway is closed in the wintertime.