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If you are pinched on time, you can still cover these parks in less time by being more prudant with your itinerary. We were open ended, so looked and moved on as we wished. We of course had no established pick up or drop off times and no flights or security checks to allow for.
We did little hiking.
We camped five of these nights. That required setting up and packing up, including drying the tent time.
We took time to shop and prepared half of our own meals. Eating out is to an advantage if there's no wait-line.
You can probably find better use of your time and get up at 7AM and sleep when it grows dark.
We had already seen sights from mid-Michigan to Wyoming. Stayed the night at Green Gables Inn, Cody, WY. Now, in one week our road trip will zip through the national parks of Grand Teton, Yellowstone and Glacier. The intention was to see what is out there in this fabulously varied country.
I’ll try to be somewhat detailed to give an idea of how much time it took. Our wake-ups were not to an alarm and we did not rush to get underway.
Day One
- Took a restaurant breakfast then shopped Wal-Mart to replenish our fresh fruit and bottled water supply.
– Left Cody - odometer 196341 and drove westward 6 miles on US-14 for a Must-Stop at Buffalo Bill Dam & the beautiful Shoshone River. If you go, do not pass up a look over the front side of the dam. The gorge below is incredible!
- Made several photo stops and encountered a monstrous road-rebuilding project, and entered Yellowstone East Gate, just 50 miles from Cody. We moved rather quickly through Yellowstone, stopping for 20 minutes to admire Yellowstone Lake… looked at one steamy mud pot… crossed the Continental Divide... paused to grab pictures of pretty Lewis Falls & stream, then out the South Gate at 3:35 PM. Not fast as you can see.
We headed to South Jenny Lake in Teton National Park to grab a campsite. Followed along Jackson Lake with grand views of the mountains as a backdrop. Shortly after the turnoff to Colter Bay Village, we turned right and followed the Teton Park Road to Jenny Lake Road (one way going south) along Jenny Lake to South Jenny Lake Campground. Real pretty that way, looking at mountains across the lakes.
Set up camp and roamed the area looking for firewood for better than a hour. We had spectacular views of the Grand Teton Mountains from camp.
Built a campfire and made a soup & salad meal. We relaxed in our chairs under the very bright moon and stars. No TV, phone, sirens, traffic … No city light to spoil the sky either. This place was so peaceably fantasfabulous.
Day Two
Spent the whole day in Grand Teton NP.
-Fixed breakfast.
- Drove oh so skinny Wilson Road to Teton Village (base of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort). Looked around the ski lodge a bit, and then drove Hwy 22 to poke around in Jackson Hole. Walked Jackson a little…74 degrees at 12:26. Shopped a bit. The town didn’t appear crowded, but we had to hunt for parking. Sat awhile in the city-center park.
- We rode the gentle, very relaxing Dornan’s Float ($50) down Snake River. Saw several eagles, numerous trout and one deer with quite a rack. Took too many photos of the river and spectacular Tetons. Could have skipped the float and camped in Yellowstone.
- Fueled at Moose, bought and ate lunch and browsed post cards.
- Camped South Jenny Lake
The Tetons can be viewed without the river ride. We had wonderful views from every place we ventured.
Day Three
- Fixed breakfast and packed up camp. At 9:54 AM & 196575 we departed South Jenny Lake.
Sighted a couple falls.
Drove around Yellowstone Lake and at West Thumb we went west on Grand Loop Road to observe thermal features, "nature's wonderland”, mud pots and vast burnt over forested mountains.
- We found a parking space at Old Faithful and mingled with the crowd awaiting the famous eruption. We caught a slight glimpse of one as we were driving in. Waited over an hour for the next. Roamed the grounds a bit. There are several geysers near Old Faithful. Humans everywhere, doing the same. Stood in huge line to get a large cone, worked the laptop and observed arriving tour buses.
A lone buffalo meandered through, between the parking lot and Old Faithful. Didn’t seem to mind the people at all.
In its own sweet time, Old Faithful spouted the anticipated splendor. We departed with the crowd… Continued up Grand Loop Road to Norris Canyon Road to Canyon Village. Spent the afternoon viewing Waterfalls - Gibbons River and Waterfalls - VA Cascades.
-Leaving the falls, we drove north on Grand Loop. Ran out of photo-taking daylight by the time we neared Mammoth. Went on up US-89 about 40 miles to Gardiner, MT for lodging- motel $57.78. We chose the old-timey section of Yellowstone River Motel. Such a perfect setting… overlooking the Yellowstone River.
The menu at the Rusty Rail was quite pricey. - $19.92 for 2 Mine Burgers. To not sound negative, I’ll just say… we didn’t go to bed hungry!
MONTANA
Day Four
-Backtracked into Yellowstone to visit Mammoth Hot Springs in the daylight. Many elk were grazing in the little town. Quite a lovely site. That took several hours and fuel. Delayed our trip to GNP. Cost us another overnight stay.
-We departed Yellowstone via the northeast gate at Gardiner (again) and continued on till I-90W. Crossed Bozeman Pass (2:44 PM) and descended into the Gallatin Valley and the city of Bozeman.
Tent Camped in KOA Missoula.
- Shopped WalMart for tarp, sleeping bags, trail mix, groceries:
Day Five
-Leaving Missoula - odometer 197065.7. We did not take the “main drag” to Kalispell. We headed up MT83 through the Seeley – Swan Valley.
- Lunch $16.00 for two. A must on the To Do list... Lunch at HUNGRY BEAR STEAK HOUSE!
Chose a KOA Kabin just south of Whitefish. ($56)
Took a meal at FINNEGANS FAMILY RESTAURANT.
We retired to KOA, relaxed outside awhile, watching the light-of-night changes over the treetops. We were anxious… only 24 miles away from Glacier.
Day Six
Ate complementary self-service buffet breakfast at Buffalo Bob’s.
Did the Going-to-the-Sun in both directions. After refueling and an ice cream at St Mary, we turned around to view the rugged peaks again, in different light. One time through was not enough.
The views were breathtaking. You can travel to the ends of the earth and you won’t find a more beautiful place than Glacier National Park. We only saw a fraction of Glacier’s awesome terrain and beauty.
After our most exciting day, we crashed at Kabin.
Day Seven
I won’t leave out much this day for those of you wanting to travel a lovely byway. If you wish more, see my signature sights.
We took a route viewing more unforgettable country... US-93 northwest out of Whitefish, up through Flathead National Forest to Eureka. Turned south and rode through Kootenai National Forest on MT37, along the east side of Lake Koocanusa. At Libby we picked up US-2 and followed along the Kootenai River downstream to the Kootenai Falls - The last major waterfall on a Northwest river that has not been harnessed to produce electricity..
14 miles west of Libby (US-2), we traveled southward on MT56 for 35 miles through the Ross Creek Scenic Area Giant Cedars.
On MT200W we crossed into IDAHO, drove around Lake Pend Oreille and picked up scenic US-95 heading southward. Somewhere along that lake we found a picnic table and fixed up our lunch sandwiches.
We traveled only a little of the panhandle. We beheld scenic vistas around every turn; emerald green hillsides, timbered mountains and pristine lakes.
Once again, we got unto I-90W where we crossed into WASHINGTON at 7:33pm
We zipped across Spokane to our lodging at Fairchild AFB (just west maybe 15 miles). We rested up right here before heading for Columbia Gorge region and the Oregon Coast.
Now, if I had to get back to a fly out point, I feel we would have lined things up a bit differently and headed across Idaho a whole lot more. IMO, two weeks would allow plenty of time to take in all that we did at a much more relaxing pace.
Signature links (below) have more details under Week Two.
__________________
Trip West@ www.freewebs.com/tripwest/
Photos@ www.picasaweb.google.com/RESORT2ME
We did little hiking.
We camped five of these nights. That required setting up and packing up, including drying the tent time.
We took time to shop and prepared half of our own meals. Eating out is to an advantage if there's no wait-line.
You can probably find better use of your time and get up at 7AM and sleep when it grows dark.
We had already seen sights from mid-Michigan to Wyoming. Stayed the night at Green Gables Inn, Cody, WY. Now, in one week our road trip will zip through the national parks of Grand Teton, Yellowstone and Glacier. The intention was to see what is out there in this fabulously varied country.
I’ll try to be somewhat detailed to give an idea of how much time it took. Our wake-ups were not to an alarm and we did not rush to get underway.
Day One
- Took a restaurant breakfast then shopped Wal-Mart to replenish our fresh fruit and bottled water supply.
– Left Cody - odometer 196341 and drove westward 6 miles on US-14 for a Must-Stop at Buffalo Bill Dam & the beautiful Shoshone River. If you go, do not pass up a look over the front side of the dam. The gorge below is incredible!
- Made several photo stops and encountered a monstrous road-rebuilding project, and entered Yellowstone East Gate, just 50 miles from Cody. We moved rather quickly through Yellowstone, stopping for 20 minutes to admire Yellowstone Lake… looked at one steamy mud pot… crossed the Continental Divide... paused to grab pictures of pretty Lewis Falls & stream, then out the South Gate at 3:35 PM. Not fast as you can see.
We headed to South Jenny Lake in Teton National Park to grab a campsite. Followed along Jackson Lake with grand views of the mountains as a backdrop. Shortly after the turnoff to Colter Bay Village, we turned right and followed the Teton Park Road to Jenny Lake Road (one way going south) along Jenny Lake to South Jenny Lake Campground. Real pretty that way, looking at mountains across the lakes.
Set up camp and roamed the area looking for firewood for better than a hour. We had spectacular views of the Grand Teton Mountains from camp.
Built a campfire and made a soup & salad meal. We relaxed in our chairs under the very bright moon and stars. No TV, phone, sirens, traffic … No city light to spoil the sky either. This place was so peaceably fantasfabulous.
Day Two
Spent the whole day in Grand Teton NP.
-Fixed breakfast.
- Drove oh so skinny Wilson Road to Teton Village (base of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort). Looked around the ski lodge a bit, and then drove Hwy 22 to poke around in Jackson Hole. Walked Jackson a little…74 degrees at 12:26. Shopped a bit. The town didn’t appear crowded, but we had to hunt for parking. Sat awhile in the city-center park.
- We rode the gentle, very relaxing Dornan’s Float ($50) down Snake River. Saw several eagles, numerous trout and one deer with quite a rack. Took too many photos of the river and spectacular Tetons. Could have skipped the float and camped in Yellowstone.
- Fueled at Moose, bought and ate lunch and browsed post cards.
- Camped South Jenny Lake
The Tetons can be viewed without the river ride. We had wonderful views from every place we ventured.
Day Three
- Fixed breakfast and packed up camp. At 9:54 AM & 196575 we departed South Jenny Lake.
Sighted a couple falls.
Drove around Yellowstone Lake and at West Thumb we went west on Grand Loop Road to observe thermal features, "nature's wonderland”, mud pots and vast burnt over forested mountains.
- We found a parking space at Old Faithful and mingled with the crowd awaiting the famous eruption. We caught a slight glimpse of one as we were driving in. Waited over an hour for the next. Roamed the grounds a bit. There are several geysers near Old Faithful. Humans everywhere, doing the same. Stood in huge line to get a large cone, worked the laptop and observed arriving tour buses.
A lone buffalo meandered through, between the parking lot and Old Faithful. Didn’t seem to mind the people at all.
In its own sweet time, Old Faithful spouted the anticipated splendor. We departed with the crowd… Continued up Grand Loop Road to Norris Canyon Road to Canyon Village. Spent the afternoon viewing Waterfalls - Gibbons River and Waterfalls - VA Cascades.
-Leaving the falls, we drove north on Grand Loop. Ran out of photo-taking daylight by the time we neared Mammoth. Went on up US-89 about 40 miles to Gardiner, MT for lodging- motel $57.78. We chose the old-timey section of Yellowstone River Motel. Such a perfect setting… overlooking the Yellowstone River.
The menu at the Rusty Rail was quite pricey. - $19.92 for 2 Mine Burgers. To not sound negative, I’ll just say… we didn’t go to bed hungry!
MONTANA
Day Four
-Backtracked into Yellowstone to visit Mammoth Hot Springs in the daylight. Many elk were grazing in the little town. Quite a lovely site. That took several hours and fuel. Delayed our trip to GNP. Cost us another overnight stay.
-We departed Yellowstone via the northeast gate at Gardiner (again) and continued on till I-90W. Crossed Bozeman Pass (2:44 PM) and descended into the Gallatin Valley and the city of Bozeman.
Tent Camped in KOA Missoula.
- Shopped WalMart for tarp, sleeping bags, trail mix, groceries:
Day Five
-Leaving Missoula - odometer 197065.7. We did not take the “main drag” to Kalispell. We headed up MT83 through the Seeley – Swan Valley.
- Lunch $16.00 for two. A must on the To Do list... Lunch at HUNGRY BEAR STEAK HOUSE!
Chose a KOA Kabin just south of Whitefish. ($56)
Took a meal at FINNEGANS FAMILY RESTAURANT.
We retired to KOA, relaxed outside awhile, watching the light-of-night changes over the treetops. We were anxious… only 24 miles away from Glacier.
Day Six
Ate complementary self-service buffet breakfast at Buffalo Bob’s.
Did the Going-to-the-Sun in both directions. After refueling and an ice cream at St Mary, we turned around to view the rugged peaks again, in different light. One time through was not enough.
The views were breathtaking. You can travel to the ends of the earth and you won’t find a more beautiful place than Glacier National Park. We only saw a fraction of Glacier’s awesome terrain and beauty.
After our most exciting day, we crashed at Kabin.
Day Seven
I won’t leave out much this day for those of you wanting to travel a lovely byway. If you wish more, see my signature sights.
We took a route viewing more unforgettable country... US-93 northwest out of Whitefish, up through Flathead National Forest to Eureka. Turned south and rode through Kootenai National Forest on MT37, along the east side of Lake Koocanusa. At Libby we picked up US-2 and followed along the Kootenai River downstream to the Kootenai Falls - The last major waterfall on a Northwest river that has not been harnessed to produce electricity..
14 miles west of Libby (US-2), we traveled southward on MT56 for 35 miles through the Ross Creek Scenic Area Giant Cedars.
On MT200W we crossed into IDAHO, drove around Lake Pend Oreille and picked up scenic US-95 heading southward. Somewhere along that lake we found a picnic table and fixed up our lunch sandwiches.
We traveled only a little of the panhandle. We beheld scenic vistas around every turn; emerald green hillsides, timbered mountains and pristine lakes.
Once again, we got unto I-90W where we crossed into WASHINGTON at 7:33pm
We zipped across Spokane to our lodging at Fairchild AFB (just west maybe 15 miles). We rested up right here before heading for Columbia Gorge region and the Oregon Coast.
Now, if I had to get back to a fly out point, I feel we would have lined things up a bit differently and headed across Idaho a whole lot more. IMO, two weeks would allow plenty of time to take in all that we did at a much more relaxing pace.
Signature links (below) have more details under Week Two.
__________________
Trip West@ www.freewebs.com/tripwest/
Photos@ www.picasaweb.google.com/RESORT2ME
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