Have traveled extensively for business, 43 states and multiple vacation cruises. Now would like to travel to Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, the Dakotas and see the historic parks. Looking for recommendations on tour companies and can't miss sites. I have been to the South Rim and that's it. Thanks for suggestions.
Trip Advice, Western National Parks
- Thread starter psulongago
- Start date
well, you've got Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons right there. A little northeast and you get Glacier.
Personally, if you book far enough in advance, you can stay at the inns managed by the national parks. For example, the Old Faithfull Inn is awesome. Some google searching will get you some good stuff. What are you looking for? hiking, hunting, fishing, swimming, drive tour?
Personally, if you book far enough in advance, you can stay at the inns managed by the national parks. For example, the Old Faithfull Inn is awesome. Some google searching will get you some good stuff. What are you looking for? hiking, hunting, fishing, swimming, drive tour?
Medora N.D. , the badllands of South Dakota, Mt. Rushmore, and the National Parks of Utah, are all a must see. Have fun.
Regarding tour companies, we did a backroads tour two years ago and loved it if you are at all inclined to activity. They have mixtures of hiking and biking, but the guides, organization, lodging, and food were all great. You do as much or as little as you want.
Beyond that, a few thoughts:
1. Yellowstone. Yellowstone is indeed extraordinary and really warrants several days as there are some distinct regions (the lake area and old faithful, the east where you see the most wildlife, the falls, mammoth hot springs etc.) All amazing and in many ways must sees. BUT, they are really spread out, and for my taste, there is something about yellowstone that really makes it a "stay in your car" kind of park, which sorta defeats the purpose.
2. Glacier, on the other hand, is very much a "get out of your car" kinda place. GTSR is really cool (follow the plowing pics in early spring!), and we had a great time hiking in the east and riding horses in the west. Eat huckleberries every chance you get. We actually stayed in Whitefish, which was far, but not too far, and provided a great variety of options for both lodging and dining.
3. Depending on what the border/covid situation is, if you go to Glacier, think seriously about taking a day or two and crossing the border into Waterton Lakes, which is the Canadian half of Glacier and is spectacularly beautiful while somewhat less crowded. The difference between the Canadian and US parks is interesting in that the us parks' infrastructure was built "as" infrastructure, whereas the Canadian parks' infrastructure was built as towns. As a result, the towns are better to stay in, and the parks are a little wilder.
4. While it's a fair bit to the east in Wyoming, our first national monument -- Devil's Tower -- is always cool.
5. I assume Utah is out of bounds, but Bryce and Zion are great.
6. If you have any interest in flora photography (as oppose to fauna), take a camera with a microlens. There are unbelievable wildflowers in mid summer.
7. Various pics from Alberta - Montana - Wyoming - Utah trips here:
www.flickr.com
Beyond that, a few thoughts:
1. Yellowstone. Yellowstone is indeed extraordinary and really warrants several days as there are some distinct regions (the lake area and old faithful, the east where you see the most wildlife, the falls, mammoth hot springs etc.) All amazing and in many ways must sees. BUT, they are really spread out, and for my taste, there is something about yellowstone that really makes it a "stay in your car" kind of park, which sorta defeats the purpose.
2. Glacier, on the other hand, is very much a "get out of your car" kinda place. GTSR is really cool (follow the plowing pics in early spring!), and we had a great time hiking in the east and riding horses in the west. Eat huckleberries every chance you get. We actually stayed in Whitefish, which was far, but not too far, and provided a great variety of options for both lodging and dining.
3. Depending on what the border/covid situation is, if you go to Glacier, think seriously about taking a day or two and crossing the border into Waterton Lakes, which is the Canadian half of Glacier and is spectacularly beautiful while somewhat less crowded. The difference between the Canadian and US parks is interesting in that the us parks' infrastructure was built "as" infrastructure, whereas the Canadian parks' infrastructure was built as towns. As a result, the towns are better to stay in, and the parks are a little wilder.
4. While it's a fair bit to the east in Wyoming, our first national monument -- Devil's Tower -- is always cool.
5. I assume Utah is out of bounds, but Bryce and Zion are great.
6. If you have any interest in flora photography (as oppose to fauna), take a camera with a microlens. There are unbelievable wildflowers in mid summer.
7. Various pics from Alberta - Montana - Wyoming - Utah trips here:
josephwmetro’s albums | Flickr
www.flickr.com
Thank you, all good,Regarding tour companies, we did a backroads tour two years ago and loved it if you are at all inclined to activity. They have mixtures of hiking and biking, but the guides, organization, lodging, and food were all great. You do as much or as little as you want.
Beyond that, a few thoughts:
1. Yellowstone. Yellowstone is indeed extraordinary and really warrants several days as there are some distinct regions (the lake area and old faithful, the east where you see the most wildlife, the falls, mammoth hot springs etc.) All amazing and in many ways must sees. BUT, they are really spread out, and for my taste, there is something about yellowstone that really makes it a "stay in your car" kind of park, which sorta defeats the purpose.
2. Glacier, on the other hand, is very much a "get out of your car" kinda place. GTSR is really cool (follow the plowing pics in early spring!), and we had a great time hiking in the east and riding horses in the west. Eat huckleberries every chance you get. We actually stayed in Whitefish, which was far, but not too far, and provided a great variety of options for both lodging and dining.
3. Depending on what the border/covid situation is, if you go to Glacier, think seriously about taking a day or two and crossing the border into Waterton Lakes, which is the Canadian half of Glacier and is spectacularly beautiful while somewhat less crowded. The difference between the Canadian and US parks is interesting in that the us parks' infrastructure was built "as" infrastructure, whereas the Canadian parks' infrastructure was built as towns. As a result, the towns are better to stay in, and the parks are a little wilder.
4. While it's a fair bit to the east in Wyoming, our first national monument -- Devil's Tower -- is always cool.
5. I assume Utah is out of bounds, but Bryce and Zion are great.
6. If you have any interest in flora photography (as oppose to fauna), take a camera with a microlens. There are unbelievable wildflowers in mid summer.
7. Various pics from Alberta - Montana - Wyoming - Utah trips here:
josephwmetro’s albums | Flickr
Did Grand Teton and Yellowstone 2 years ago. I would give both of them together a total of at least 3-4 days to go it right. Grand Teton - stay in Jackson, WY. Great little mountain town. Yellowstone - book VERY early, 6-9 months in advance, at one of the inns in the park or stay in West Yellowstone.
If you go btw Mem Day and Labor Day, be prepared for a lot of traffic and tons of people. Yellowstone especially is just jam packed these days between 9am and 6pm. My wife and I did most of the areas either before 9am or after 5pm when crowds were smaller. In mid summer it stays light until about 10pm so you have long days to get a lot of stuff in.
I think they may now do timed and reserved entrance in Glacier and the Sky Road. Just got too crowded. They should do the same for Yellowstone, it is getting overrun.
If you go btw Mem Day and Labor Day, be prepared for a lot of traffic and tons of people. Yellowstone especially is just jam packed these days between 9am and 6pm. My wife and I did most of the areas either before 9am or after 5pm when crowds were smaller. In mid summer it stays light until about 10pm so you have long days to get a lot of stuff in.
I think they may now do timed and reserved entrance in Glacier and the Sky Road. Just got too crowded. They should do the same for Yellowstone, it is getting overrun.
I know that three aren't in the area you mention but my top five parks are Yellowstone, Yosemite, Arches. Grand Canyon and Glacier. Not that others aren't worth a visit, they are. Like another said, i would hit Yellowstone before the end of May or after Labor Day. I've been to Yellowstone six times and it seemed like there were four times the people the last time as opposed to the first time.
All those already mentioned are great. I would add, even though it's CA, if you have not been to see the Giant Sequoia's, add that to your bucket list. There are many beautiful, awe inspiring places in this country....we are so blessed....but like the Grand Canyon, some things seen in pictures don't reveal the beauty, the majesty, the unique and wonderful natural gift they are, unless you see them with your own eyes. To me anyway, that's the Sequoias. Presently, they are under duress due to fires; but, they are inherently well adapted to fire.
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The Bad Lands are awesome. I agree that Utah has the best parks in the country. The parks are packed and the reservation requirement is controversial, but my favorite park is Escalante-Grand Staircas. Little if no crowds, diverse ecosystems, etc. You will thank me afterwards. (Bring water).
If you wish to visit Mount Rushmore, get there before it opens (7-8am). It’s nice and you can chop it off the bucket list, but it is a little underwhelming compared to the school textbook photos we grew up with. Still glad I took the family for the 20-30 minutes.
Grand Teton NP is spectacular. The peaks are stunning. If I could predict the day of my demise, I would plan my final day to begin with sunrise in the Tetons.
Yellowstone NP is wonderful, there really are multiple areas of the park that are unique. If I could hypothetically pick anywhere in the world to live, it might be in Yellowstone. Take a drive on the bear tooth highway. Breathtaking!
Glacier NP is amazing in its own right. My wife and I honeymooned there. It’s just as beautiful as the two I mentioned above, but seems to be less popular. One regret on our honeymoon was that the Going to the Sun road was closed.
we also visited Banff, Jasper, and the Canadian Rockies. These are every bit as worthy as GTNP, YNP, and GNP.
I wouldn’t book an tour for your entire trip, do a little research and there map be some specific individual tours worthwhile. There is a hop on hop off red bus tour in GNP and maybe elsewhere.
I envy you being able to see these sights for the first time.
Enjoy!
Yellowstone NP is wonderful, there really are multiple areas of the park that are unique. If I could hypothetically pick anywhere in the world to live, it might be in Yellowstone. Take a drive on the bear tooth highway. Breathtaking!
Glacier NP is amazing in its own right. My wife and I honeymooned there. It’s just as beautiful as the two I mentioned above, but seems to be less popular. One regret on our honeymoon was that the Going to the Sun road was closed.
we also visited Banff, Jasper, and the Canadian Rockies. These are every bit as worthy as GTNP, YNP, and GNP.
I wouldn’t book an tour for your entire trip, do a little research and there map be some specific individual tours worthwhile. There is a hop on hop off red bus tour in GNP and maybe elsewhere.
I envy you being able to see these sights for the first time.
Enjoy!
If my last day on earth was spent on The Little Firehole River…I would be good with that!
Plus a gazillion on the can parks note. I’ve been twice and would go back in a second. Maybe the only place on earth I’ve actually felt a spiritual connection to.
but their border rules are nasty now.
We are pretty active yet for folks getting older. One recommend I have for everyone whether it be Moab, Grand Tetons, Yellowstone and everywhere else you mention in Big Sky country is find a qualified company that allows you to bust ass all day while they take care of everything else.
We travel with Backroads ( backroads.com) they put together all sorts of guided trips for hiking, biking, rafting etc all over the world. A little expensive but well worth it in the end if you want to spend a decent amount of time outdoors challenging yourself. For instance You don’t need to drive the hour and a half back to where you are staying, they do it for you.
We spent a week this summer hiking in remote parts of Yellowstone and The Grand Tetons while having access to experts on geology, history, flora, fauna weather, etc etc. Many of the hikes were early before anyone else was on the trail which can be eerie for sure.
We travel with Backroads ( backroads.com) they put together all sorts of guided trips for hiking, biking, rafting etc all over the world. A little expensive but well worth it in the end if you want to spend a decent amount of time outdoors challenging yourself. For instance You don’t need to drive the hour and a half back to where you are staying, they do it for you.
We spent a week this summer hiking in remote parts of Yellowstone and The Grand Tetons while having access to experts on geology, history, flora, fauna weather, etc etc. Many of the hikes were early before anyone else was on the trail which can be eerie for sure.
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Never flew into that airport. Did Idaho Springs, JH and Salt Lake. Next fall we may be headed back… will try it then
Just returned from Tetons, Yellowstone, Glacier and Badlands last week.
This is a good time to go - crowds are down. Highlight of trip - ride on the Red Bus (Jammer) on the Goibg
Just returned from Tetons, Yellowstone, Glacier and Badlands last week.
This is a good time to go - crowds are down. Highlight of trip - ride on the Red Bus (Jammer) on the Going to the Sun Road in Glacier (reserve early) - GTSR closes mid-October unless there is an early snow.
Close second - hot air balloon ride at Geand Tetons.
Jackson Lake in the Grand Tetons is at a very low level right now. No boat trips allowed.
If you get to Glacier and are into hiking, make a trip to Waterton Lakes in Canada. The Crypt Lake hike is one of the best anywhere. It actually crosses the border into Montana for a few yards.
If you get to Glacier and are into hiking, make a trip to Waterton Lakes in Canada. The Crypt Lake hike is one of the best anywhere. It actually crosses the border into Montana for a few yards.
Yep. Yellowstone after labor day. Less crowds. Beautiful fall footage, and the animals start coming down into the valleys from up high.
The Badlands. Very simple yet beautiful. Morning and evening the colors and shadows are so different. If it rains... get your butt there... the place comes alive!!!
Mt Rushmore... what can I say. Make sure you sit through some of the educational talks.
Wind Cave... a nice short stop and worth it.
Devil's tower... don't miss. A day trip. Walk around the base.
Good luck and enjoy.
The Badlands. Very simple yet beautiful. Morning and evening the colors and shadows are so different. If it rains... get your butt there... the place comes alive!!!
Mt Rushmore... what can I say. Make sure you sit through some of the educational talks.
Wind Cave... a nice short stop and worth it.
Devil's tower... don't miss. A day trip. Walk around the base.
Good luck and enjoy.
Did Yellowstone in May and it snowed every day just enough to keep the already small crowds even smaller and created some otherworldly settings. We stayed outside Gardiner, MT in the Tom Minor Basin, and it was awesome. Saw lots of bears (from a distance). Then went to the Tetons and it was in the low 60s every day. Highly recommend both, but only in the off or shoulder seasons.
Don't miss the prairie dog colony near the campground. You could spend several hours just watching the critters.
If you are not as spry as you used to be, the AAA has a tour out of Salt Lake that ends in Denver. It takes in most of what everyone has talked about. We had a great guide and learned so much more than when we drove ourselves. Check it out.
Can't help you with those NP's, but Saturday I leave for 13 days in Utah. Fly into Grand Junction, CO then driving to Moab hitting Arches, Canyonlands, Capital Reef, Grand Staircase Escalante, Bryce Canyon and Zion then flying home from Las Vegas.
Hoping we don't have a government shutdown.
Hoping we don't have a government shutdown.
I flew out of Kalispell once, it has connecting flights to Denver and maybe SLC? You're basically at the gates to Glacier from there. Also flew into Spokane, it's a short drive over to MT from there (skinny part of ID).
Or heading east.I've posted this before but it's often overlooked.
I thought "the Little Big Horn Battlefield was one of the most haunting battle fields I have ever been too. The docent was the best speaker/lecturer I have experienced. It's that "Oh shit, moment" that the 7th must have felt that makes it so haunting.
The Little Big Horn is right off the I90 headed west.
I am fascinated by the opening of the West, the Industrial Revolution and the Gilded Age. The Little Big Horn is a point of singularity of all three of those elements of American history.
The year was 1970. Living in Laramie while my dad was pursuing graduate studies over the summer. His sister Ann the cattle rancher from Billings, Montana calls him and tells us to come up to the ranch for the Fourth of July. "How far is it?" he asks. "Just down the road a piece," she replies.
450 miles and 7+ hours later, we pulled up for the fireworks.
Just a couple of quick comments since most of the details were pretty well handled by other posts:
1) My family just completed a Backroads itinerary at YS/GT in late August and it was a great trip. You get what you pay for...
2) Canadian Rockies - absolutely spiritual. We did a 14 day trip thru Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper National Parks. Between LL and JP we used a heli-hiking company Canadian Mountain Holidays to take us on some unbelievable hikes deep/deep in the Canadian Rockies.
Canadian Mountain Holidays
1) My family just completed a Backroads itinerary at YS/GT in late August and it was a great trip. You get what you pay for...
2) Canadian Rockies - absolutely spiritual. We did a 14 day trip thru Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper National Parks. Between LL and JP we used a heli-hiking company Canadian Mountain Holidays to take us on some unbelievable hikes deep/deep in the Canadian Rockies.
Canadian Mountain Holidays
When you enter Montana from North Dakota on Rt 2 the first mile marker you see says 680.
We usually took the more southerly route on the way out, if only to stop at Wall Drug.
Just got back from Yellowstone & Grand Teton NPs last week - spent a week total out there between them & was awesome. If you are pretty mobile, hike up into some of the canyons at Grand Teton and do some of the hikes at Yellowstone, there's ton of good stuff outside the primary tourist stops. For the biggest tourist draws go early; it got crowded at those stops by late morning.
Zion/Bryce great parks also, can combine them w/ a trip to the GC north rim (much different from S rim, but both are very nice).
The Black Hills of SD are one of our favorite places; don't just hit Mt Rushmore, there's lots of great hiking/sightseeing there. Hike to Black Elk Peak if you can (highest point between the Rockies and the Pyrenees Mtns in Europe), beautiful trail, & check out Sylvan Lake & the Needles in Custer State Park. Can easily combine that w/ a trip to the Badlands.
Awesome itinerary. I haven’t been to the first 2, but have been to the rest. Bryce hikes are a bear because you always end the hike with a long climb up and out. Fairyland Loop trail is fantastic. Hit it early given this time of the year and you’ll have it mainly to yourself.
I just did ND and SD in May. Custer State Park is world class - could easily be an NP, but I can see why the state jealously hoards it. Knocked off both state’s high points - ND’s is just off the highway on private land - you make a donation at the mailbox and go through the farm gate.
Saw tons of bison at Teddy Roosevelt NP and lots of Bison and other critters in Wind Cave and Custer. Pronghorns are among my favorite - they’ll be loping along at about 30-40 MPH and then effortlessly go through the gears if they need speed. Saw a bunch of them on the Wildlife Loop rd in Custer.
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