suggested route for the loop road

need some help with planning a route through yellowstone. we%26#39;re arriving from bozeman on our first day in the park and staying in Mammoth that night. our second night will be in lake village and we%26#39;re continuing on to grand teton on the third day. I could do with some suggestions for covering as much as possible of the loop road and still leave a little time for short hikes.

suggested route for the loop road

Hi islaforster,

This is a short amount of time, but you still will be able to see much of the park.

Day 1 You have around a 2 hour drive from the airport to the park. Check in. Drive east to Lamar Valley. A great place to see wild life and if you lucky, hear the wolves. If you arrive late have dinner and vist the old Fort Yellowstone.

Day 2 Check out and stop at Terraces of Mammoth Hot Springs. Drive south to Norris Geyser Basin. Then on to Canyon. Stop for lunch and a short drive to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. Two large falls and nice short hikes. Then south following Hayden Valley. All along the road is great places to stop and watch the animals. Then south to Lake Village.

Day 3 Check out head south to Old Faithful. Be sure to check out the Old Faithful Inn. Also some nice hikes here. The head south to GT. If time stop at West Thumb Geyser Basin.

I am sure that the other members will have more great ideas for you. Enjoy your trip!

suggested route for the loop road

Thanks for your suggestion. I%26#39;m glad we will be able to see most things even if it is very fast. We%26#39;re touring the northwest from Seattle airport and Yellowstone is sort of in the middle of the trip. To stay longer here (which would be great) would mean longer drives on the other days. I%26#39;ll keep it in mind as an option.

I hope you can stretch for a third night in the park; it is vast, contains many points of interest - waterfalls, canyons, volcanic events, etc. - plus the wildlife is highly visible, but more visible at different times of day. So, you might wish to return to some locations at different times. With a 3rd night, you can relax a bit...

You can%26#39;t go all the way from Ireland to have just two nights in the park! There is so much to see it just pulls you back.

We spent three full days in Yellowstone and two in Grand Teton three years ago and are going back again in June for ten full days. I don%26#39;t believe in visiting the same place more than once as USA is a huge country with so much to see and do, but as said previously Yellowstone is calling us back and I can%26#39;t wait for June.

I%26#39;ve been checking availability in old faithful lodge for a potential third night and i%26#39;m considering that - i should be able to change the reservation in grand teton to the following night there is less to see on the return leg of our trip heading back to seattle, so i wont mind covering a bit more road for a few days if i have had a great time in yellowstone

Here are some links to articles that you may help you. They describe the two ';loops'; in the park that form the interior roads, what to see, and what to do. Plus a little bit of history and background!

Traveling Yellowstone%26#39;s Figure 8

www.thebigskysun.com/article.cfm…

Completing the Lower Loopr

www.thebigskysun.com/article.cfm…

Starting the Upper Loop

(Link is broken on this one, I%26#39;ll email it to you!)

Completing the Upper Loop

www.thebigskysun.com/article.cfm…

thanks yellowstonefan!

happily i have taken all your great advice and decided to stay another night in the park, and shoved our night in Teton on to the next night. Which means we have 4 nights now in the yellostone / teton area! Cant wait!