Yellowstone for 48 hours enables me to engage with America’s top National Park in a very efficient manner. The site is very easy to navigate, and I used an app obtained from my friends at Viator. We used the Ultimate Audio Tour Yellowstone ($39.99). This also covers the nearby Grand Teton National Park, Banff (Alberta), and Glacier National Parks (Montana). https://www.viator.com/tours/Jackson/Yellowstone-Glacier-and-Grand-Teton-Self-Guided-Audio-Tours-Bundle/d51006-259648P57 The idea is to download and use it at your own pace as the app coordinates with the GPS in your vehicle while the narration describes the area as you approach it. I used this type of app before when touring the battlefield in Gettysburg, PA, last year. https://travelswithsteve.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=3267&action=edit. Other options from my friends at Viator additionally are listed below.
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone is our first national park, established by Congress in 1872 when President Grant signed it into law, and many believe that it is the first national park in the world. It is well known for its geothermal features, wildlife, as well as picturesque scenery. It occupies an area of 3468.4 square miles and moreover stands at an altitude of 8,104 feet. In 2023, Yellowstone attracted 4,501,382 visitors, which surely made it a very popular place. Many animals, including Grizzly Bears, Cougars, Wolves, and Elk, inhabit the park, and additionally, I managed to get a good sighting of a Bison herd. The park is mostly in Wyoming (96%), although there are also small sections in Montana and Idaho.
Old Faithful – Top Tourist Attraction
Old Faithful is Yellowstone’s best-known feature. It is a spectacular cone geyser that erupts every 60 to 90 minutes together with discharging 3,700 to 8,400 gallons of boiling water to an average height of 145 feet. The duration is usually about 1.5 to 5 minutes. Other geysers are in the park, but this is the one to see. Grand Geysers (the world’s tallest predictable geyser) and Giant Geysers (the world’s most voluminous geyser) are other geysers.
Kepler Cascades – Top Tourist Attraction
The Kepler Cascades are very close to Old Faithful (about 2.5 miles). The cascades drop approximately 150 feet, the longest being 50 feet, thus creating a striking effect.
Gibbon Falls – Top Tourist Attraction
Gibbon Falls has a drop of 84 feet and furthermore is quite accessible from the road.
Grand Teton National Park – Top Tourist Attraction
Grand Teton National Park is conveniently very close to Yellowstone. The park is named for Grand Teton (13,775 feet), the tallest mountain in the Teton range. Another feature of the park is the many lakes, including the 15-mile-long Jackson Lake and the mainstream of the Snake River.
Nearby Restaurants:
Pinky G’s Pizzeria / Jackson, WY
Pinkygs.com
The best pizza in Jackson as judged by the website’s resident pizza expert. You could not go wrong with its Pepperoni.
Wonderland Cafe and Lodge / Gardiner, MT
I loved their cheeseburgers
Dad’s Bar and Steakhouse / Thayne, WY
Dads-bar-steakhouse.hub.biz
Bacon-wrapped 8oz filet hit the spot.
Jackson, WY
Jackson ( population 10,760) is the gateway to the two National Parks. It has many restaurants, shops, and hotels. Make sure to relax in its Town Square, which has colorful antler arches.
A Word from Steve
Although the Fairfield Inn in Afton, WY, provided very nice accommodations, I wished we had stayed closer to the parks, like Jackson, WY, which was close to the South Entrance. Afton was about 63 miles, which nevertheless caused some unnecessary driving. For good hotel options near Yellowstone, of course use Booking.com.
Also, for a cheap fare to get from here to there, of course, use CheapOair.
