Monday, September 16, 2024

Yellowstone and Bozeman MT, Family Trip (Aug)

 Family of 4, parents are 44-45, kids 7 and 9 yo.


Day 1 - Friday:

  • Landed in Bozeman, MT, 12:30pm

  • Picked up the car

  • Lunch at Mr. Burrito - not recommended

  • Drove to Big Sky resort

  • Stayed at Shoshone hotel

  • Dinner from chet - not recommended

  • Sleep

Day 2 - Saturday

  • Free breakfast @ chet

  • Lone Peak Expedition, 11,160 feet summit

    • Lift and gondola

  • Base camp activities

    • Bungee trampoline

    • Giant swing 

    • Marble run

  • Outdoor Pool

  • Cooked pasta in room

Day 3 - Sunday:

  • Free breakfast @ chet

  • Packing

  • Ousel Falls

  • Zipline above Gallatin River

  • Drove to Bozeman

  • C’mon in

    • Hot tub!

  • Outback steakhouse

Day 4 - Monday:

  • Chill day at the hotel

  • Went to Walmart to buy a few stuff, like a thermal shirt for elad. 116 dollars later..

  • On the way we noticed our front wheel had lost more air (we’ve had issues with it almost instantly after picking up the car from the airport).

  • Went back to the airport to replace our car

  • Lunch at Bourbon, BBQ, was nice though the kids didn’t like the food

  • Back to the hotel for R&R

  • Montana Science Museum: thought the kids are too old for it but we’ve had a great time.

  • Next door: Board game store. Enjoyed exploring and tried to learn how to play Photosynthesis… weren’t so successful.

  • Quiet night at the hotel.

Day 5 - Tuesday:

  • Lewis and Clark Caverns

  • Virginia City MT - can probably skip.

    • Show, like mini broadway

  • Vast empty fields, madison river was beautiful 

  • Laundry night

  • Collected things for RV and made lists

Day 6 - Wednesday

  • American museum of computers and robotics - mixed family reviews on this one

  • Return car at airport

  • Meet friends who joined our RV trip.

  • Big boys toys, RV pickup

  • Walmart - from 3:30 - 8pm, including lunch stop

  • Yellowstone, gardiner, 10pm-ish, 1.5 hour drive

    • Was scary to drive the RV at night for the first time 

Day 7 - Thursday

  • Made sandwiches for the first hike

  • Entered Yellowstone park for the first time

    • 4th grader free park entrance 

  • Bunsen peak

    • 4.2 mile (?), 1300 FT elevation

    • 9:30-ish - 12 to the top, enjoyed the views, sandwiches, down by 2

    • 7 yo complained most of the way

  • Mammoth springs, walked the boardwalk, 3 stops

  • Dinner @ parking lot

  • Dumped RV water (grey - sink, black - toilet)

    • Did it wrong

    • Husband was impacted :) 

  • Yellowstone Hot springs (8 min from RV camp) - 

    • beautiful, warm, hot cold water walk, cold plunge 66F, hot tub 106F

Day 8 - Friday

  • 9am, Rafting @ yellowstone river, 8 mile, pretty, not that cold 

  • Dumped RV water

  • Lunch @ Yellowstone RV park

  • Upper falls view, grand canyon of yellowstone 

  • Short hike towards something lake, really nice views of the huge canyon and the cyan water

  • Checked in at Canyon Village RV park

    • No hookups (no electricity, no clean water for the RV)

    • No wifi, no data (in most of the park)

    • Showers allotment, 2 per RV, per day :O (can buy for $5)

    • Bears - were told they smell toothpaste

  • Bought family postcards to send abroad 

  • Steak dinner on BBQ

  • Bought wood, lit a bonfire 

  • Smores with the kiddos

  • Went to sleep before 10pm!

Day 9 - Saturday

  • Skipped Dunraven Pass Overlook Trail : https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/wyoming/dunraven-pass-to-mt-washburn-trail 

    • Smart move in hind sight, it was harder then the first hike where we went up to Bunsen Summit

  • Worked on writing postcards to mail our family abroad

  • Stopped by visitor center to get ideas for smaller, easier trails (that Alma will survive)

    • Visited the museum

  • Drove to “the brink of the upper falls”, enjoyed the view and walked until the “Canyon Bridge”

    • Beautiful views

  • Drove to “the brink of the lower falls” - went down and up the 10 switch backs

  • Reconnected with Moriel around 6pm in the campground

  • Sleep: Canyon Village RV park

Day 10 - Sunday

  • Went to the post office to send the family postcards, only to find out it’s closed on Sunday 

  • North Rim (of grand canyon of yellowstone) trail

    • Left an RV at Inspiration point

    • Drove to Waktipi lake - where we left our RV

    • Passed through “Canyon bridge” that we visited yesterday

    • “the brink of the upper falls” - skipped this time

    • “the brink of the lower falls” - waited for Moriel to do the 10 switch backs

    • Lookout point

    • Grand view

    • Inspiration point

    • Picked up RV and drove to pickup the other 

  • Saw mud volcanoes along the route

  • Sivan was feeling sick, sore throat etc

  • Dinner: Lake hotel dining hall @ 5:30pm 

    • Nothing to write home to, $160 per 4 person family, but the food was meh.

  • Sleep: Grant RV park

    • Got here at 8pm

Day 11 - Monday

  • Lazy morning

  • West thumb geyser basin

  • Fun on the lake

    • Rented a motor boat and spent 1.5 hours driving around. 

      • Was very nice except for the way back when the water were choppy and our butts were aching. 

  • Dinner: Grant dining hall 

    • Canceled and cooked our own dinner

  • Sleep: Grant RV park

Day 12 - Tuesday

  • Old faithful

  • Midway basin

    • It rained prior so the scenery was half obscured and very unique 

  • Cooked light lunch in the parking lot 

  • Drive back to bozeman - 2.5 hours

    • Random stop along the route

    • Was so so windy that the RV felt like it’s shifting

  • Walmart stop to return unused items (including food cans 😂)

  • Fuel - prep to return RV

  • The RV park included free entrance to the hot springs

    • Spent 8-10pm enjoying the water and showers

  • Last trip drink on the picnic table 

  • Sleep: Bozeman hot springs

Day 13 - Wed 

  • Pack RV

  • Propane refill

  • Got to RV return around 10am

  • Got to airport at 11:11 (11 min too late for bag drop for the 11:45am flight)

    • Got rescheduled for a 12:45pm flight, through ORD


Original plan/ Itinerary:

08/28 - Day 1

Shopping: Walmart / Costco 

Sleep @ Yellowstone RV Park, near Gardiner here 


Activity: Yellowstone Hot Springs, 8 min drive from RV park

08/29 - Day 2

Leave after breakfast, do:

Mammoth Hot Springs: https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/wyoming/mammoth-terraces


Upper Terrace Loop Drive: https://www.alltrails.com/ar/trail/us/montana/upper-terrace-scenic-drive-loop


Bunsen Peak: https://www.alltrails.com/ar/trail/us/wyoming/bunsen-peak


Arrive back around 5:

Dinner: somewhere around gardiner

[Activity: Yellowstone Hot Springs, 8 min drive from RV park]


Sleep @ Yellowstone RV Park, near Gardiner here 

08/30

Leave after breakfast

Rafting (booked 9:00-11:00)


Back at gardiner

[Activity: Yellowstone Hot Springs, 8 min drive from RV park]


Lunch of some kind in gardiner


Drive to canyon village: 

Dunraven Pass Overlook Trail (or day after): https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/wyoming/dunraven-pass-to-mt-washburn-trail


Sleep

  • Canyon Village campground

    • Ordered 2xSites 


08/31

North Rim trail

https://www.alltrails.com/ar/trail/us/wyoming/north-rim-trail-red-rock-point-lookout-point-grand-view

https://www.alltrails.com/ar/trail/us/wyoming/yellowstone-falls-crystal-falls-and-inspiration-point-via-north-rim-trail


Scenic drive - South Rim Drive - multiple spots to stop 

— Grand Canyon of Yellowstone ( got a recommendation), link

Artist Point: Renowned for its breathtaking views of the canyon, especially in the morning light.

Upper Falls Viewpoint: Located along the South Rim Drive, this spot provides a great view of the 109-foot Upper Falls.



Sleep

  • Canyon Village campground - 

    • Ordered 2xSites 

09/01

Sleep: Grant Village


Dinner: Lake hotel dining hall  5:30pm 8 guests - booked 


09/02

Old faithful: https://www.alltrails.com/ar/trail/us/wyoming/observation-point-loop-trail


West Thumb Geyser Basin Trail: https://www.alltrails.com/ar/trail/us/wyoming/west-thumb-geyser-basin


Fun on the lake!


Dinner: Lake hotel dining hall  5:30pm 8 guests - booked 


Sleep: Grant Village


09/03

Long drive (3 hours) to Bozeman


Sleep: Bozeman hot springs

09/04

Fly back to NY, 11:45 am