Yellowstone National Park, WY

If I had known what the night sky was going to look like, I would have forced myself to stay awake well into the night, maybe like Lionel Richie – “All Night Long.” Instead I woke up in the middle of the night, thinking fresh air might be nice since I was inhaling the camping-aroma of 6- and 8-year-old boys and my loving husband. 

Walking into the deep darkness of the dirt-packed road (sans street lights), I looked up. The sky stole my breath. The crystal-clear night sky spread for miles. It was as if I were looking at a National Geographic spread: millions of stars danced against an inky black backdrop. It was amazing! 

I did not, however, forget I was alone in bear country.  None of my family knew where I was.  So, I hustled back to the tent after a few breaths of fresh air with stars in my eyes.  Thus began our memorable trip to Yellowstone National Park.

I grew up in a military family, but toward the end of my dad’s career. That meant I missed all those family trips that happened prior to my blissful arrival, including the trek to Yellowstone. 

I remember sitting in awe of the “Yellowstone Trip” slides when my father presented a slide show for us. (You can probably guess when those trips were based on the fact that we were looking at slides. No, NOT PowerPoint slides.  These were OLD school “Go get the pull-up screen and the projector out after Sunday dinner” slides. And yes, that was a thing.) 

As an adult, those pictures of water gushing up from the ground were singed in my memory as “mission essential”.  I would get there!  SO, my husband, who is generally full of wanderlust, obliged. The first opportunity we had to travel 14 hours to check out the geologic marvel that is Yellowstone, we hit the road.

We visited the park while living at Joint Base Lewis McChord in Washington state.  We took a few days to drive, sight-seeing along the way. This particular night we car camped in the Custer Gallatin National Forest right on US 191. There were several turn-off camping areas along a picturesque creek. They were simple, well-kept camp grounds. 

Our camp site, where I saw the night sky in its truest form for the first (and so far – only) time in my life, was about an hour from the entrance to the park.  It was the perfect launching spot for early morning park adventures.   

Buffalo and Geysers Galore

The following morning, we had reservations to meet with the park ranger to pick up our backcountry pass. We awoke to the cold and crisp morning air. It felt much more like autumn to me than summer, so I bundled up. Once we had breakfast, we took off to Wyoming, by way of West Yellowstone, MT (the town just west of Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming).

Our first stop was Old Faithful. I was so excited, like the first time I remember going to Disney World. But this was way awesomer than Disney. The wildlife and landscapes looked like I nothing I’d seen before, definitely not like the east coast where I grew up.  Herds of buffalo serenely grazed completely ignoring the tourists lined up to take their photos.   Seeing the buffalo close up was so cool. Top that, Disney!  

At Old Faithful, we ate our picnic lunch while awaiting the geyser’s late morning show. There was much anticipation in the air, not just in our own family, but the entire crowd was abuzz.  No one questioned why we all waited and watched a big, dirt hole in the ground. 

The earth was calm. I almost thought I was in the wrong place, because the vastness of dirt was very, well, ordinary. Then we heard what sounded like a large beer bottle full of carbonation exploding or a truck’s loud air brakes. 

My heart jumped and all of our voices called out, “WOW!” “OOH!” “COOL!” There was no containing our amazement with this natural phenomenon. I had never seen such enormous water geyser jump out of the ground. 

While still on our “Old Faithful High”, we visited the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center. It contained an excellent gift shop as well as more opportunities for visitors to speak with rangers and guides. Informational displays also explained the geologic formations in the area. The center had plenty of options to keep a family of all ages entertained. We decided to skip most of the indoor attractions in favor of exploring the natural wonders at Yellowstone.

On the Trail to Adventure

Before we could experience all that Yellowstone had to offer, we took care of a little business.  We picked up our reserve pass and got our camping location at the Ranger Station. Then we met with a Park Ranger for a safety brief. (We weren’t even doing Army that day!) 

We planned to spend three nights in the back country, introducing the boys to backpacking. As we hiked out, enjoying the views, we encountered fewer and fewer people on the trail into the wilderness.

About three and a half miles out, we found a camp site with plenty of space between the eating area and the sleeping (tent) area (key for bear country). We set up camp and relaxed, listening to the wildlife, watching out for big game and soaking up the peaceful scenery. There was not a soul in site of our campsite. We left the crowds and found God’s creation!

We built a lot of favorite memories from those few days at Yellowstone. My husband taught our boys some outdoor skills like bear bagging and tracking. We hiked to a few more geysers like the Lone Star Geyser and explored paths with various types of smaller hydrothermal features. I enjoyed listening to the river near our campsite while warming myself like a turtle on a nearby walking bridge.

While we were able to see and do a lot, it became quite clear why some people return yearly and or stay for weeks at a time. We hit the highlights of what we wanted to see, but our visit left a desire to return to do more!

A Happy Accident

Finally, we left to go home by way of the southern route. Staying on the South Entrance Road all the way out of the park allowed us to stop and see features on our way out that we wouldn’t have seen otherwise, like the collection of pools near Thumb Lake and the marker for the Continental Divide (https://continentaldividetrail.org/).

We thought our National Park experience was finished, but I guess we hadn’t paid attention to the map. Our route landed us right in the midst of Grand Teton National Park.

We ate a picnic lunch next to Jackson Lake, among the black-eyed susans. As much as we wanted to camp just one more day among the majesty of the snow-capped mountains, we had to head home. Duty Called.

Closest Military Installations

MWR Locations Nearby

If You Go:

• Since car camping in the National Park is pretty crowded and requires reservations several months (sometimes a year) in advance, we found a smaller camping area in the Custer Gallatin National Forest. There are small turn-off camping areas in many National Forests in the Northwest. They are convenient little gems along many of the paths you might wish to explore or use as way-stations. https://www.fs.usda.gov/activity/custergallatin/recreation/camping-cabins/?recid=5566&actid=29
• Even for camping in back-country, we needed a permit. We reserved ours online, but there is information online for phone reservations too. All you need to know about how backcountry camping in Yellowstone is here:  https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/backcountryhiking.htm
• There are several lodging options at Yellowstone, from a large lodge to car camping to backcountry camping. So many choices! https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/lodging.htm  or  https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/campgrounds.htm  
• Make sure to plan your trip well enough in advance. This is a seasonal place, as the winter starts early in the season and lasts longer than you might be accustomed to. https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/seasonalhighlights.htm
• You are now in bear country! If you are unfamiliar with bear-country camping, please check out https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/bearsafety.htm
• Arrive at the park early in the morning, because you will need to plan to go slowly as you drive to your destination. Remember, 8 miles doesn’t mean 8 minutes thanks to the volume of people visiting the park.  It might mean 2 hours!  Everyone stops to take copious pictures of buffalo and looks for a place to picnic.
• Plan on the Old Faithful viewing area being crowded. It was still early enough in the season that we found a spot of sidewalk to sit comfortably. As the season gets busier, the guidance is to arrive an hour before Faithful is scheduled to appear.
• When you explore the Yellowstone website (https://www.nps.gov/yell/index.htm) you will notice it looks overwhelming to see and do it all in a one-week visit. Definitely chose what you think will be your favorites and prioritize.  Then come back for a second trip!