US Road Trip - May 2023 - Day 17

Day 17

Up early (not the best night’s sleep - the mattresses definitely need replacing) and back on the road for the relatively quick journey to Yellowstone National Park and the part of the road trip I have been looking forward to the most. We were quickly within Targhee National Forest where there was still snow amongst the trees and deer peering out from amongst the branches.  Yellowstone is in both Montana and Wyoming and we drove from Idaho to Montana to Wyoming today.

We arrived at West Yellowstone around 10.30 am and headed straight for the West Entrance. It costs $35 entrance fee and you’re good to come and go as you please for 7 days, 24 hours per day. Our plan for the first day was to drive the first half of the bottom loop down to Old Faithful and then back up again. We went via Madison Junction, driving along the banks of Madison River and stopping at a number of places along the way, including the Lower Geyser Basin.

The snows have been melting over the last couple of weeks and all the rivers are a lot fuller than they have been. I love watching them rush over all the rocks as they flow to wherever they are going.

We saw a fair few bison along the drive and as we were walking around Old Faithful, a couple decided they were going to cross the bridge in front of us! They are such huge, amazing creatures and have been in Yellowstone National Park since prehistoric times.

We checked into Wagon Wheel Hotel, which is brand new and seems really comfortable. We headed into West Yellowstone for dinner. A purpose-built town, especially for the tourist trade, but made just like a Wild West town. We went to Bullwinkles, had a couple of beers, a hot dog and burger and just soaked up the atmosphere.

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