Calling all Yellowstone Travelers coming form the EAST

[Jrcoker]

Yellowstone is our most favorite place to camp! We love to dry camp in national forest campgrounds and try to avoid private campgrounds most of the time. Each entrance to yellowstone has it’s own charm. Our favorite is via Cody over Sylvan Pass and around the park to Madison Junction. Second is up through Jackson, spending a few days in the Tetons at Gros Ventre campground, then up to Grants Village for a few, then to Bakers Hole, our most favorite campground a few miles north of West Yellowstone. If you go to Bozeman MT on 90 then south on 191 there are nice forest service campgrounds on the banks of the Gallatin River. Same goes for coming into West Yellowstone through Ennis, MT. Great campgrounds along the Madison River. There aren’t many publicly owned campgrounds between Gardiner and Livingston. We prefer these types of campgrounds for a number of reasons. Cost can’t be best unless it’s free. Our daily fee usually runs between $8-$14. Never any problems with dumping holding tanks or getting water. Generator and propane take care of the rest. Wish we lived closer.

[Ron045]

Thank you so much for all of the information and tips. You have given me much to think about and consider.

vr
Ron

[Ron045]

As a follow up... Just how much planning do we need to do?

I know I need to plan on how many days to get there and what we might want to see along the way.

I know I need to plan and reserve my campsite(s) and decide how many days we are staying in Yellowstone.

Can the planning end there and can the spontaneity start? We are a family that likes to wake up, pour some coffee and say, "what should we do today?" without a schedule and a timetable.

Just wondering if that works at Yellowstone and would the trip still be successful?

Thanks!
Ron

[timfromma]

Unfortunately, the popular tourist areas such as Yellowstone book up months in advance. You can spontaneously wake up and go to Yellowstone if you don't want to camp there. If you like to just get up and go you'll have to stick with more off the beaten path locations.

[djeirlessr]

We just back from an 11 week cross country trip from Virginia going to national parks north and back. We made reservations in advance and put ourselves on a schedule. We would have liked to stay longer in some places but couldn’t because we had to get to the next site. We spent 4 days touring Yellowstone but would have liked to stay longer. We didn’t stay in the parks. We stayed in sites outside the parks. On the way back we just winged it and didn’t have any problems coming back. It was a fantastic trip. We plan to revisit some of the places again at a later time. Our favorite was Yellowstone and the Grand Teton National Park.

[Jrcoker]

Originally Posted by Ron045

As a follow up... Just how much planning do we need to do?



I know I need to plan on how many days to get there and what we might want to see along the way.



I know I need to plan and reserve my campsite(s) and decide how many days we are staying in Yellowstone.



Can the planning end there and can the spontaneity start? We are a family that likes to wake up, pour some coffee and say, "what should we do today?" without a schedule and a timetable.



Just wondering if that works at Yellowstone and would the trip still be successful?



Thanks!

Ron

It depends upon what type of campgrounds you want to stay in, how far you want to drive each day, and what type of things you like to do. There are 5 different types of campgrounds in the Yellowstone area: private, National Park, forest service, state park and dispersed Camping (limited).

[Ron045]

Originally Posted by Jrcoker

It depends upon what type of campgrounds you want to stay in, how far you want to drive each day, and what type of things you like to do. There are 5 different types of campgrounds in the Yellowstone area: private, National Park, forest service, state park and dispersed Camping (limited).

We have to stay private because we want full hookups and have soft tent ends.
We are heavily leaning toward Grizzly RV.

I was going to schedule my time with them and then just wing it for the days in the park without a schedule.

We may also split our time and find a place to camp closer to Teton.

Ron

[JayArras]

Originally Posted by Dp26

This helped me plan...
Road to Yellowstone

Great article!

[Jrcoker]

Grizzly would be my pick if you can get a spot there. Is is very popular.
You can do some good day trips from there.
Are you early risers, early to leave every day? Some of the best times for animal viewing in the park is pre/dawn. We don’t like driving in the park after dark. The bison and bears are dark and often on or near the roads.

[DougW]

The first time we went to Yellowstone we spent 4 days in the park. Not enough time to see even all the highlights. I suggest you get a couple of guides about the park and read up on it so you can prioritize what you consider the Must See items. I also bought a book called "The Geology of Yellowstone" that I found gave the park a lot of new meaning as it has a lot of info about how the park was formed and how the different geysers work. That book is now a couple of decades old so there is is probably a better one available.

Two years ago we spent 4 weeks touring in the west, hitting up a lot of the National Parks. We would call campgrounds near where we were planning to be a couple of days before we got to each area to be sure we could get a campsite. We did not try to get sites in the parks as we knew that would be very difficult. We almost always got a site in our first choice campground so we were near the attractions we wanted to see. We have also, at times, just called ahead in the morning to get a site where we planned to be that night and usually got a site on the first call.

I guess the bottom line is, if staying in a Park or very close to a major National Park, get reservations ahead of time but you can pretty much wing it if you want when not close to the major parks.

[gectisme]

We have been "winging" it 90% of the time across the country and at National Parks. Once we know where we want to go next we start looking at RV Parks anywhere from a day to a few weeks in advance. We just winged Yellowstone a couple of months ago. 1 week before heading there we checked and Fishing bridge had an opening for 1 night. We reserved it and once there, was able to stay 5 days at Fishing Bridge but we had to move each morning. That was fine with us, the kids took the dog on her morning walk and we moved the trailer. Also went on as many Ranger walks as possible and learned a ton about the Park that way. Driving down the road, we have always been able to find an RV Park to stay in. Around 2pm the DW starts looking for places to stay that are 1-3 hrs away and calls them to make sure they have openings.

[ependydad]

Originally Posted by gectisme

We have been "winging" it 90% of the time across the country and at National Parks.

I (heart) you. I get twitchy without plans but feel trapped the moment I make plans!

We change the plan so often that we now just called it our “idea”.

[camaraderie]

With a family trying to see the most popular sites in the country during peak summer camping season, I think you will face many disappointments if you don't get your reservations made many months in advance. The best parks and spots will be unavailable, you'll be driving longer distances from available spots and you won't be able to stay as long as you want to. After Sept 1 things change...but you should definitely make firm reservations now for the places you know are must sees.
Lots of good trip planners out there to help like the GoodSams trip planner or the RV Trip Wizard software. Good luck.

[Jrcoker]

We learned a hard lesson a couple of years ago. Before then we could be spontaneous with our trip planning and not run into problems finding a place to stay...we’ve always had our favorites. We could pop in and stay 2-14 days.
Not so anymore. It’s all us Baby Boomers buying RVs and retiring. Statistically 12,000 per day are turning 60.

[aspengirl]

We just returned from a 7-week, 6400-mile trip and had the entire trip planned, including reservations for each night. However, when we're putting everything together, we plan for short driving days so we can stop at places we might not know about, and spend as much time as we want wherever we want. We're retired so have the luxury of taking our time seeing the country. We just feel better knowing where we'll park every night, yet we are open to whatever the day brings us. Though this type of planning doesn't work for everyone, it's perfect for us.

[Dodge Guy]

You want amazing?!!! Come in through the NE entrance through Red Lodge MT! On the Beartooth hwy. this is very beautiful and rivals Going to the Sun road. Other wise coming in from the east over the Bighorns is nice to. As well as coming from Cody.

I did The Beartooth hwy with my Excursion and 35ft trailer. I won’t say it’s an easy drive, but I will say you don’t want to miss it. And your smaller trailer along with the Navigator shouldn’t have a problem.

As far as planning. I booked Yellowstone a year in advance. I then checked 2 weeks after and there were only a handful of sites available. And those wouldn’t fit my trailer.

[TLAK]

Whether you actually commit to a reservation or not its never a waste of time to call ahead. One time I got shut out of OK City in March because of the NCAA tourney, never even thought about it when we planned in September. My BIL is an amateur astronomer, he wanted to be in South Dakota on a certain date for a meteor shower, but it was Sturgis bike week! They ended up sleeping in the car, and watched the sky one night and got the heck out of there. I still kid him about it, but the lesson is you never know like the locals know.

[twdenman]

Originally Posted by Dp26

This helped me plan...
Road to Yellowstone

We are SO looking forward to returning to YNP next year. We visited the park in 2012, by rental car. Next year will be in RV and personal car. Planning to trade 2012, hotel/airfare, budget on fuel! Based on 2012 figures, fuel will be a lot less. Thank you for the "Road to Yellowstone" information.

[Ron045]

Thanks all for the updates, help and support. The information provided was great.

We decided to visit the Grand Tetons first and take I-80 west.

Then to Yellowstone for a visit and I-90 back East with a stop at Devils Tower and Mt. Rushmore. We have not yet decided on our exit routes from Yellowstone. We may make that a game time decision based on how we all feel and what the weather is like.

We went ahead and booked Colter Bay Village RV and Grizzly RV.

We are so excited for the 2018 season.

Ron

[camaraderie]

Sounds like a good plan! While you're at Rushmore...don't miss Custer State Park...it's better than a lot of national parks!