Can You Experience Yellowstone National Park in Less Than 48 Hours?
Plus, My Final Day in Grand Teton National Park
Wrapping Up: My Last Day in Grand Teton
You’ll recall from my Grand Teton post that I’d pushed myself a little too hard in Grand Teton the first two days of my three-day plan. But after the afternoon at the beach I was feeling a bit better, and I’d loved everything I’d seen in Grand Teton so far, and I wasn’t about to let a little pain stop me from seeing some more.
I decided, thanks to a recommendation from my friend Austin (you’ll remember his photos from my Great Basin post) to tackle Garnet Canyon.
Holy hot potatoes, it was incredible.
The trail is steep, and winds back and forth across the mountainside, offering ever-more spectacular views of the valley and lake below. About three miles up, the trail branches off toward other lakes and viewpoints which I can only assume are as spectacular as the rest of the park. But I took the fork to continue on to Garnet Canyon, and the trail drew rockier as it continued up, traversing the cliffs to venture along the canyon to a boulder field nestled in the crease between two peaks, water pouring over and between the rock to create a picturesque fall down into the canyon.
I stopped for lunch there and stuck my toes in the icy water.
I’d allotted the entire day for this endeavor, but I got an early start. Already tired from the hikes the past couple days, I decided to just focus on getting back down the mountain quickly so I could get back to Colter Bay for ice cream and a shower.
And as I was power-marching down the trail, barely restraining myself from jogging, I got this idea into my head that, instead of starting fresh tomorrow, I could just start on Yellowstone that afternoon. After all, it was only about 2 o’clock. There was plenty of daylight left. And anything that I saw or did that day was something that I wouldn’t have to cram into the four days I’d allotted for the massive park.
Of course, the closer I got to the foot of the mountain (and the more pain I pounded into my legs by tromping unceremoniously down the path) the worse that idea sounded. I didn’t really want to do anything, let alone start on a whole new park.
So I wrapped up my hike and drove to Colter Bay. Of course, the twenty minutes I spent in the drivers seat were enough for the exertion of my three compounded days of hiking to catch up with me, and I was severely limping by the time I got there. It was pretty bad, guys, and really made me realize how completely out of shape I’ve gotten. But hey, that’s what hiking is for, right?
Why I Put My Yellowstone Plans on Fast Forward
I got my ice cream and took my shower, and then got to thinking about hitting Yellowstone again.
What could it hurt, right? At the very least, I could drive in that direction, and maybe I’d find somewhere to stop for the night on the way.
This seemed like a totally ingenious idea, so I clambered back into the drivers seat and got on my way.
There are several things I didn’t realize about Yellowstone. First of all, it’s so close to Grand Teton they’re practically on top of one another. There was no “driving in that direction.” I drove a little ways and boom, I was there.
Second, this place is massive. Incomparably massive. 3,472 square miles, 466 miles of roads, 15 miles of boardwalk, about 1,000 miles of backcountry trails, 25 National Historic Places, more than 900 historic buildings and 720,000 historic items, and 11 visitors centers “massive.” And it was completely packed. There would be no finding somewhere to stay in the park (also because I’m cheap (or frugal, if you’re feeling generous), and if I’m going to pay for campgrounds I might as well get an apartment and pay rent). Which meant, since overnight parking is not allowed in National Parks, that I had to get out of the park before I could sleep.
Which, given the 3,472-square-miles-and-466-miles-of-roads thing, was a feat in and of itself.
Third, it was crammed full of people, and since Yellowstone is towards the bottom of the reopening list, there wasn’t much in the way of crowd control or guidance on the COVID front. There were crowds at all the major sights — Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic Spring, Liberty Cap, wildlife viewing in Hayden Valley — and there were always people not wearing masks.
Anyway, with the surplus of people and deficit of safety measures, in addition to the sprawling area which made finding an overnight parking spot difficult, I decided to toss my four-day plan out the window and just try to do as much of Yellowstone as I could in as short a time as I could.
It was a whirlwind 48 hours.
Night 1: The South Entrance and West Thumb
I entered the park from the South Entrance just after 6 pm that Wednesday. It’s a beautiful drive, gaining altitude and traversing steep, rocky hillsides and plunging canyons. There are a number of waterfalls in this area, and some stunning wetlands. I stopped a few times to take in the views.
The road splits near West Thumb. I stopped at West Thumb Geyser Basin at 7pm, too late to snag a stamp at the Grant Village visitor center for my National Parks Passport, but luckily the trails are open 24 hours. I walked the Geyser Basin boardwalk, which has excellent views of Yellowstone Lake and a variety of hot springs, mudpots, and fumaroles.
I continued on Grant Loop Road, past Old Faithful and Grand Prismatic, planning to backtrack and check those out in the morning. But I did stop a few more times on my way out the west entrance — the main attraction was Kepler Cascades, an incredible series of smaller falls that amount to a 150-foot drop.
By the time I found a spot to park in West Yellowstone, Montana, a tourist town whose nightlife was active even on a Wednesday, it was after 10 pm. I headed straight to bed, determined to get to Old Faithful long before the crowds started to accumulate around 9 am. Since I was an hour and a half from the geyser and had no idea when it was scheduled to erupt, I decided to set my alarm for 6 am and made sure the van was ready to drive before I crawled into bed.
Morning 1: The Classic West Yellowstone
Come 6 am, I was dragging myself out of bed and into the drivers seat. I stopped for gas, still in my pajamas, and was back in the park before 6:30. The plan was to make a beeline for Old Faithful, maybe stopping once at one of the rest areas to get dressed and use the restroom (which I did at the Madison picnic area — awesome facilities there), but as anyone who knows me can attest, I’m easily distracted. Especially by pretty things.
And the steam curling in the morning air, bubbling ponds glimmering in the morning light, silicates and algae and extremophiles forming an artist’s palette of bright colors spread across the ground… well, that was a very pretty thing.
So I stopped and walked the Fountain Paint Pots boardwalk, enjoying the scenery and the fresh morning air (valiantly ignoring the severe stench of sulfur) before continuing on. I passed Grand Prismatic Spring, planning to check it off the list on my way back up towards the north end of the park, because it was already nearly eight am, and I figured it getting Old Faithful done before the crowds hit was the better plan.
Solid logic. Bad execution.
I missed the Old Faithful eruption by minutes (yeah, I blame the car I was stuck behind going five-to-ten under the speed limit the last forty minutes of the drive). Which isn’t a big deal, because it erupts every hour/hour-and-a-half (giving me time to attempt to find a stamp for my National Parks Passport and fail miserably because the visitors center was closed), but it meant that I was hanging around the Old Faithful complex until 9:30… by which point the crowds had set in. And where do you think the huge crowd at Old Faithful goes immediately after it erupts?
Bingo. Grand Prismatic Spring.
So while I saw those two hallmarks of American symbolism, I was definitely eager to get through them quickly. They’re both beautiful, and absolutely deserve the hype, but I probably won’t be chomping at the bit to visit them again. There are plenty of quieter areas of Yellowstone which are more my speed. Lots of more private geysers to sit around for hours waiting to see them erupt. Dozens of rainbow-colored hot springs hidden in less traveled areas of the park. None of these geysers are old faithful, and none of these springs are Grand Prismatic, and I think they’re definitely worth seeing at least once — but for me, once is probably enough.
There was actually a line of cars totally backing up traffic just trying to get a parking spot to see Grand Prismatic. The road itself was lined on either side with parked cars (which you really aren’t supposed to do, but I guess Yellowstone is so overwhelmed with visitors that they’ve decided there are bigger things to worry about). I waited in the line of cars, not eager to accidentally tip Danica over parking on a slope, and managed to just barely squeeze into a narrow space that opened up.
After Grand Prismatic, Firehole Lake Drive looked interesting, and apparently has one of the largest geysers in the park along it (which only blows twice a day, so I was hoping I’d get lucky). It was a fun drive, quieter than the main road, with pretty views. The geyser, though, wasn’t supposed to erupt until between 8 pm and midnight (it wasn’t yet noon, so I quickly dismissed that idea).
I had a list of spots that I wanted to stop at in Yellowstone (generated by me looking at the Yellowstone app on my phone and basically scribbling down anything with a cool name — which is a lot), so from Grand Prismatic I headed north again, this time passing up the road to West Yellowstone. I stopped for a view of Gibbon Falls, and then was on the lookout for Artists’ Paintpots.
Yeah, this one was packed, too. There was another long line of cars just to get in the parking lot, and since I’d already seen several dozen thermal features of various types and sizes (and, honestly, I was getting tired of them), I spent about a minute in line before deciding I’d really rather just turn around.
So I quickly executed an impressive five-point-turn on the narrow road (and I know it was impressive because of the looks the people in the cars behind me were giving me — complete with dropped jaws), and moved on with my life.
Afternoon 1: The North Entrance
Despite growing weary of sulfur and blurbling mud, I’d heard Norris Geyser Basin had some of the best thermal features in the park, so I headed in that direction.
Traffic was moving slowly but steadily through the parking lot and, still hurting from my three days of hiking, I knew I wasn’t going to go too far, so I just grabbed my phone and keys and water bottle and started toward the basin trails.
I didn’t get far, though. About halfway between the parking lot and the official trailhead was a small gift shop, book store, and information center. It was open — and it had National Parks Passport stamps.
I sprinted back to the van, pain temporarily forgotten, because I was so excited. I snagged my passport and went back to the little shop for my Yellowstone stamp.
Of course, there are usually 17 available in the park to collect, but these are strange times. I was just happy to have some record of my visit to the park in the book.
I got to chatting with the lady working the desk, which caused another woman to pipe in when she heard I was living out of my van — turns out she’s just starting the conversation process.
Which is how I learned to never go anywhere without a business card.
Anyway, I did the shorter loop through Norris Basin and then continued toward the north entrance.
There’s a cool little town in the Mammoth Hot Springs area, and Albright Visitors Center, which was also closed but had a couple rangers sitting at a table out front. They were handing out passport stamps on little pieces of scrap paper (but I’ve become a stamp purist and only want them if I can put them directly in my little book) and maps and answering questions.
However, Mammoth Hot Springs was so crowded that it made my morning visits to Old Faithful and Grand Prismatic look desolate. It didn’t seem worth it to fight for breathing room or spend an hour standing in line for a gift shop I probably wouldn’t buy anything from anyway (I’d taken care of my souvenir needs during my enforced hour-and-a-half break in the Old Faithful Complex).
My plan was to continue east, through one of the best wildlife viewing areas in the park, but as I was turning around I caught sight of a sign that mentioned the Roosevelt Gate.
Well, that sounded pretty cool, and besides — this way I would be able to say I went through every entrance in the park.
So I headed North, exited the park, drove through the town of Gardiner, and conducted a brief photoshoot with Danica in front of the impressive and inspiring Roosevelt Gate.
This brings me up to about 2:30 pm — 24 hours since I finished my last hike in Grand Teton.
You can read about the rest of my Yellowstone Super Tour in my next post. Hear the story behind my front-row view of a bison fight, see famous Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, and find out once and for all — can you really “do” Yellowstone in 48 hours?
I actually wrote out the first half of my Yellowstone experience months ago, when it was still fresh in my mind, which is great because you’ll get the full experience. Unfortunately, I never got around to writing out the second half of it, so I’m going to have to try to put myself back in those moments and that frame of mind to write it. It might feel a little different than the first half of the story, as a result. Apologies, and please bear with me!
Thanks for reading!
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