After six years and several adventures overseas we decided that 2025 would be a great year to return to a couple of our favorite places: Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. We were a little burned out on air travel (who isn’t?) and wanted a fun roadtrip that wasn’t overly distant from our home in Colorado. And we had a longing for an outdoors experience to test our new hiking and camping equipment.
One thing I didn’t want to do was rush our visit. Our prior trips in 2010, 2017, and 2019 were all relatively short. In May of 2010 we had four days to cover both parks. In 2017 we had five days of camping with three nights in Yellowstone and two in Grand Teton. In 2019 we camped the entire time in Grand Teton and drove into Yellowstone two days, spending the other three in the Tetons.
In every case, we enjoyed ourselves and brought back good memories, but we also spent a lot of time driving and had to forego many activities because of the schedule. This time I gave us eight nights and nine days to see the parks and some of the surrounding areas too. The slower pace gave us time for activities like horseback riding and kayaking, as well as several days of hiking, wildlife viewing, visits to museums and scenic drives.
I also decided that we should try going in June this time. Our trip in May of 2010 was fun, but the weather was pretty cold and many of the trails were still snow covered. I remember crossing Jenny Lake on the ferry boat in falling snow. And the other two trips were scheduled in July around Independence Day. July is the busiest month in both parks and it is especially true around Independence Day.
But June seemed a good chance to see more wildlife (it was pretty active in May of 2010) with more accessible trails and potentially lighter crowds. Well, June turned out to be as good as I hoped. Tons of wildlife, rushing rivers and waterfalls, and maybe a tad fewer people.
We did have one last minute change to our plans, however. We were initially planning two nights of camping in our RBM tent in Yellowstone. But due to a medical issue a week prior to the trip we decided to swap out the camping days for a stay in the Grant Lodge in Yellowstone and an extra day in a cabin in Colter Bay in Grand Teton.
Once we had my truck packed up it was clear that the cargo requirements for the trip with the tent and all the other equipment would have been very challenging. So the lodge stays worked out and kept our itinerary intact.
Day 1: Sheridan
I decided to stop in Sheridan, Wyoming on our first night of the trip so that we could enter the park the following day on a westerly drive across the Bighorn Mountains with a stop in Cody so we could visit the Buffalo Bill Museum of the West.
With that in mind we had a straight 450 mile drive north to make and one that we had done two years prior on our way to Glacier.
We were able to drive at a fairly leisurely pace and decided to make a couple stops along the way.
Fort Fetterman
After a brief lunch stop we wanted to take a break from driving and followed a sign for Fort Fetterman near Douglas, Wyoming.
Fort Fetterman was an outpost at the southern end of the Bozeman Trail that led pioneers and fur traders to Montana. The only buildings at the site today are a reconstructed officers’ quarters and a toolshed. The rest of the site is marked out to indicate where buildings once stood.
The fort didn’t have as much to see and do as we had hoped, but it was interesting nonetheless, and the views across the rugged prairie are a reminder of just how remote and lonely these forts would have been for soldiers stationed there in the 1800s.
On our way back to the I-25 from the fort we saw some pronghorns and I was able to get some photos from my truck.
As most travelers through Wyoming know, pronghorns are fairly common throughout the state. But I was happy to get these photos only a few hours into our trip.
We still had some time to burn and I looked online for museums and historic sites that we could stop at on our route. There are some museums in Sheridan itself, but by the time we arrived there they would have been closed or near to it.
But there was a historic site in Casper we hadn’t yet visited: Fort Caspar.
Fort Caspar Historic Site
Fort Caspar (notice the spelling is different than the modern city of Casper where it’s located) had a much larger museum and more to see and do than Fort Fetterman.
We spent an hour walking through the buildings and learning about the fort and its history. The recreated barracks and officers’ quarters actually looked fairly comfortable and the surrounding landscape more lush and hospitable than the very stark surroundings of Fort Fetterman.
Fort Caspar sat near the North Platte river and was a trading post and pony express station, then was an army outpost to protect emigrants. The fort is a National Park Service site but is operated by the city of Casper, Wyoming, so you cannot pay for admission with your National Parks Pass.
Following our time at Fort Caspar, we continued north to Sheridan. I had reserved a conestoga wagon at the Sheridan KOA Journey and we proceeded there first before looking for some dinner in the town.
After reviewing our options we decided on the Pony Grill and Bar. We found the rustic, low-key atmosphere to be just what we wanted. the food was good, but nothing fancy. We were tired and just wanted some burgers and beers and the Pony Grill delivered.
After dinner we headed back to the KOA and settled into the wagon. Before bed, however, we decided to make use of the fire pit since we had some firewood and s’mores ingredients.
Overall the conestoga wagon was a good way to have some fun for our first night. The reservation was $180 compared to the $250-$300 per night at the hotels in town. It had a private bathroom, a king bed, and bunk bed for our son.
I slept reasonably well, but my wife did struggle to sleep due to the noise of trains passing nearby the campground. Also someone was shooting off fireworks (we think just outside the campground). Definitely not cool.
Day 2: Sheridan to Yellowstone
As I mentioned before, my decision to stop overnight in Sheridan was driven by my interest in entering Yellowstone on a westerly drive through the Bighorn Mountains. And so the next morning we started up Highway 14 and entered the Bighorns Mountains Scenic Byway.
The road ascended quickly with roadsides telling the relative ages of the surrounding rock formations. Interestingly the rock layers grew older the higher we went.
I had been debating whether to follow Highway 14 or it’s alternate route 14A for months (honestly). Highway 14 would take us to the Shell Falls overlook area (which looked really neat), while 14A would be a steeper route with the possibility of stopping at the archaeological site of the Medicine Wheel.
As we approached the fork known as Burgess Junction my wife (who was driving) asked me to make the decision. At the last second I chose the regular Highway 14.
Within minutes we found a whole herd of moose grazing jus off the roadside.
I was still learning the many functions of my new EOS R50 and tis was one of the first moments where I had to really recall all the functions for focusing at a distance and adjusting brightness in dimmer lighting.
I took a few more practice shots of the surrounding mountains then found this healthy marmot waiting nearby the road for a portrait shot.
Shell Falls
As I mentioned, my primary reason for choosing HIghway 14 over 14A was the Shell Falls Interpretive Site. Well,, when we got there it was closed. Seriously.
Rather than simply drive onward, however, we found a pulloff near the site entrance and walked to a spot with some views of the falls. They were spectacular, even if we couldn’t walk down to the primary overlook.
I was happy to get out of the car anyway and hopefully we’ll come back this way when the falls site is fully open. But then again, we need to go the 14A route too.
We drove onward, enjoying our homemade muddy buddies Chex mix until we arrived in Cody. Once there we made our way to the museum I had planned on visiting before, but failed to see in the prior visits to Yellowstone.
Buffalo Bill Center of the West
The BBCOTW encompasses five museums (Natural History, Buffalo Bill, Firearms, Native Americans, and Western Art). I wanted to visit all five but we were too hungry to stay long enough to visit the Western Art Museum (the Buffalo Bill Museum contains impressive western art too).
We first visited the Natural History Museum and perused the exhibits. The focus is on the natural world of the Yellowstone area, which makes it an informative stop before continuing on to the park.
Next we visited the Buffalo Bill museum and learned all about the life and career of the larger than life western hero William Cody. I have been to a few places that were historically significant to Buffalo Bill including the Scout’s Rest Ranch in North Platte, Nebraska and his grave here in Colorado. But I learned more about the man in this museum than I had anywhere else.
Following the Buffalo Bill museum we went to the Firearms museum, which I consider the best of the museums we visited. The collection is just astounding and more than you can imagine. The entire history of firearms of every sort is on display. And you can test your skills in target shooting (without real bullets but a laser target).
The Native American museum was next and it seemed a little sparse in my opinion. I know that many tribes have demanded that artifacts be removed from museum displays, and sadly this makes it harder to learn the history of these tribes and to be educated about their customs and ways of life.
After that, we were starving and decided to head to the exit (with a stop at the gift shop first). We decided on pizza and followed the directions to Wyo Dough. The directions led us to a less atmospheric building the the photos of Wyo Dough on TripAdvisor. This restaurant was called Cody Craft Brewing.
Apparently, Cody Craft Brewing and Wyo Dough were merged int one restaurant. Fair enough. Some good beer would be nice too.
The pizza was very meh. The beer flights were better. But with a continued drive ahead we couldn’t have much. Anyway, it won’t be at the top of our list when we come back to Cody.
Since it was Father’s Day I thought about going to the Irma Restaurant which is in Buffalo Bill’s historic Irma Hotel. But we were in a rush really. So next time.
We got some gas and set off for the entrance to Yellowstone via the Shoshone River Canyon that Theodore Roosevelt considered the most scenic drive in the country. He never saw the Beartooth Mountains road or Going to the Sun Road, but this is certainly a beautiful drive.
Yellowstone National Park
The east entrance to Yellowstone is over Sylvan Pass and right at that moment we saw a bighorn sheep sauntering past us by the roadside.
The bighorn was molting its winter coat with the transition to summer temperatures. But nevertheless, it was a pretty good ndication of just how plentiful wildlife would be in the park.
We proceeded onward along the shores of Yellowstone Lake (and a sadly ugly stand of dead timber from a past fire) to Lake Junction.
Turning north we proceeded into one of the prime wildlife viewing areas of Yellowstone: Hayden Valley.
We saw our first bison of the trip. It’s always good to see the bison herds and to know that indeed you are in the heart of Yellowstone. It was especially cool to see all the bison calves since it was still only June.
We made our way slowly north toward the Canyon area until we came to a car jam and decided to check it out. I’m glad we did. Our first of many black bears.
This is one of my favorite black bear photos that I’ve ever taken, looking directly at the serenely content bear in the woods.
After unjamming ourselves from the car congestion we continued to the south overlooks for the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.
Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
I believe the view of the Lower Falls from Artists Point is one of the most spectacular viewpoints in all of the national parks. I’m pretty sure I’m right.
After taking our photos from Artist’s Point I convinced Shelley and Evan to take a little known trail from the overlook toward Ribbon Lake. Alongthe way there are some beautiful views of the canyon.
Along the way there were also some voracious mosquitoes. With no repellant on, we decided to cut the trail short and made our way onward to the hotel to check-in at the Canyon Lodge.
Our room was in a Western Cabin and it was a nice choice overall. It was tucked back from the busier main lodge area, had ice available for our cooler, and there was a trail to the north rim of the canyon nearby. Xanterra put ridiculous sideways recycling trash bins in the room, which I’ll discuss later.
The Canyon area overall, however, for as large as it is and with it being in one of the prime areas of the park, lacks any good restaurant options.
When we camped at Canyon Campground in 2017, there was a sit-down restaurant in the Canyon Village. This is now gone and the only option is a crowded cafeteria-style eatery with limited menu options. The cafeteria was also running out of ingredients and we didn’t get our side dishes because of it.
The staff looked frustrated too and acknowledged that the cost of the food versus the quality was a total mismatch. The woman at the cash register let us have our drinks for free to make up for the missing side dishes.
Xanterra just isn’t doing a very good job managing the lodges and restaurants in Yellowstone, in my opinion. We visited Glacier National Park in 2023 and the restaurants there are also managed by Xanterra, but the menus seemed better and the staff seemed a bit more relaxed.
I will state unequivocally that Xanterra seems too focused on virtue-signaling efforts for sustainability (like the laughable trash bins) and isn’t putting enough into the overall comfort and quality of the visitor experience.
As I wrote in my review, most visitors are there to hike and enjoy the outdoors. When we return from a long, tiring day and want to celebrate with a good meal, the last thing we want is overpriced cafeteria food or ridiculous woke choices like jerk tofu. Seriously. How about BBQ Mac-n-Cheese like we had in Glacier?
After settling into our room we decided to drive over to the north rim of the canyon. I would actually visit the north rim a few times on the trip since we were nearby.
The Brink of the Lower Falls
We drove over to the North Rim (since we hadn’t yet found the trail from the cabins) and stopped off at the Brink of the Lower Falls trailhead.
Evan and I made our way down the steep switchbacking trail to the bottom where a platform overlooks the Lower Falls. And it was flowing at an incredible rate. Almost too fast and powerful for comfort.
We walked onto the platform to view the falls before feeling like the platform would erode away beneath us. It was cool to see, but just a tad too powerful for comfort.
We hiked back up and felt pretty good about the day’s experiences. We were only at the beginning of the trip and had already seen bears, a moose, a bighorn and some terrific scenery. We had a hike planned for the next day and we wanted to be up early to enjoy a full day in the park.