Yellowstone in October
1 - 20 of 24 Posts
Thats the plan, I am deploying in December for the Gulf. I am moving the family out to KC, MO, and then renting a car to drive the rest of the way to Everett, WA. I figure, I have 10 days to make the drive, so I am gonna see Rushmore, Yellowstone and whatever else I can along the way!
It is going to be cold though. The average high is 50 and the average low is 22 for that time of the year. I have the gear for that range, I just did Cold Mountain in Asheville in Feb. That was cold!
It is going to be cold though. The average high is 50 and the average low is 22 for that time of the year. I have the gear for that range, I just did Cold Mountain in Asheville in Feb. That was cold!
I've been all over Yellowstone many, many times.
October is a good time of year, the bugs are gone by then, just be prepared for snow.
My best advice to enjoy Yellowstone is to get off the beaten path as much as possible. Don't just so the "car-tourist" thing, driving from one roadside attraction to the other. Get out and hike some trails (or paddle some lakes/streams if you have a canoe or kayak) get into the backcountry away from the crowds, the coolest stuff in Yellowstone can't be seen from the road anyway.
October is a good time of year, the bugs are gone by then, just be prepared for snow.
My best advice to enjoy Yellowstone is to get off the beaten path as much as possible. Don't just so the "car-tourist" thing, driving from one roadside attraction to the other. Get out and hike some trails (or paddle some lakes/streams if you have a canoe or kayak) get into the backcountry away from the crowds, the coolest stuff in Yellowstone can't be seen from the road anyway.
I plan on doing a 2 day hike. No car for me. Just gotta find a good spot, say a 15-20 mile round trip on foot. I will probably end up winging it and just finding something that looks interesting. Depends if anyone else wants to tag along. Snow should be no problem, I have cold weather gear, just means I am in for some cold nights. Its the mornings that suck, awfully hard to get out of the bag when its 20 degrees outside and you have to break camp :shock:
If I can make one recommendation my all time favorite Yellowstone trip is Bechler Canyon, best trip ever if you like waterfalls. It's in the SW corner of the park, trailhead is at the Bechler ranger station.marlin said:
If you have 2 nights you could do Bechler Ranger station up to a campsite on the river in the canyon (you have to stay at designated campsites in Yellowstone). From there you can check out some of the waterfalls in the canyon like Iris Falls, and Colonnade Falls. The next day you could head back down the canyon, and through the meadows to a campsite that is right by Dunanda Falls.
Dunanda falls has a hot spring right at the base of it. So you can sit there in the river at the bottom of the falls in 100° water just like a hot tub, with the ice cold river dumping on top of you. It's awesome!!
Then around the other side of the meadows back to the ranger station. With 1 night it might be difficult to pull off, maybe just Dunanda falls and back, depends how far your willing to hike in a day.
Some pics from my last trip there.
Colonnade Falls
Iris Falls
Dunanda Falls
Anyway, don't let me influence you.
Wherever you decide to go, you DO have to plan ahead. Since you HAVE TO reserve campsites, and pay the $20 entrance fee wherever you go, and listen to the Rangers little 20 minute safety spiel. I think I heard that they now require bearspray too, not sure.Another fun trip I've done is from Old Faithful, down to the north side of Shoshone Lake, up to the other end of the lake and back. There are some really neat thermal features around the lake, and if you fish you won't find anyplace better.
Sorry I don't have any pics of that trip online at the moment.
That sounds awesome, and nope, no 20 fee for me, active duty on orders are free! As far as planning ahead, from what I found, you have to register when you get there, if you do it in advance there are even higher fees (which makes no sense in my mind)
As for the campsites, it says once it starts snowing, you can camp anywhere you want (except not within 100yards of water and so on). Not sure if there where will be that much snow in Oct?
That waterfall trip sounds awesome! I probably won't be fishing, anything I take with me has to make it onto the ship with me or get UPSed back home before I deploy in December.
I will be carrying a little Taurus 357, and probably pick up a can of bear mace. Did you know its a felony to spray a person with bear mace, no matter the situation? I would get in less trouble for shooting a person with a gun than I would using bear spray...lol.
I am going to look up your mentioned trails, get some GPS coordinates and so on. Sounds like its coming together.
Now I have to figure out whether I want to camp at Rushmore or just pay for the hotel. Its off season, so it should be cheaper...lol.
As for the campsites, it says once it starts snowing, you can camp anywhere you want (except not within 100yards of water and so on). Not sure if there where will be that much snow in Oct?
That waterfall trip sounds awesome! I probably won't be fishing, anything I take with me has to make it onto the ship with me or get UPSed back home before I deploy in December.
I will be carrying a little Taurus 357, and probably pick up a can of bear mace. Did you know its a felony to spray a person with bear mace, no matter the situation? I would get in less trouble for shooting a person with a gun than I would using bear spray...lol.
I am going to look up your mentioned trails, get some GPS coordinates and so on. Sounds like its coming together.
Now I have to figure out whether I want to camp at Rushmore or just pay for the hotel. Its off season, so it should be cheaper...lol.
I did some research, looks like I am sold on the Dunanda falls trip. Looks like it is a decent hike, easily accessible, if the weather gets terrible, I can head back fairly easily! Plus, waterfalls are awesome, might take a little ultra light fishing pole for killing time if needed.
Thanks for the info, I really had no idea, I was just gonna poke around the net until something popped up. I am surprised there are no apps for yellowstone maps/hikes?
Thanks for the info, I really had no idea, I was just gonna poke around the net until something popped up. I am surprised there are no apps for yellowstone maps/hikes?
Joined
·
2,442 Posts
Movin' to Everett? Going to commute to Oak Harbor I take it then... Yellowstone sounds really fun, I'll talk it over with a couple people see if they wanna plan something
I am only gonna be there for about 7 weeks, the ship deploys in December, and is headed to Norfolk,VA for refueling the reactors. That takes 3-5 years.Mediamonkey11 said:Movin' to Everett? Going to commute to Oak Harbor I take it then... Yellowstone sounds really fun, I'll talk it over with a couple people see if they wanna plan something
Unfortunately I will be without the VX or the trooper while I am there, navy won't pay for me to move my vehicles
I really wanted to do some wheeling up in that area too.
Joined
·
2,707 Posts
I'm sure you could ride shotgun on some trails up here in the PNW, or just pay for a tandem axle trailer rental, & slap it b refund the uhaul they rent u.
~psguardian
~psguardian
We did the Grand Canyon last cross country trip. This is our 4th coast to coast move. Gotta love burning tax payers dollars, they could just pick a coast and leave me there, but that would be too easy. Norfolk to San Diego, back to Norfolk, then to Guam, then to San Diego, now in Charleston, and next up Everett, then back to Norfolk again. I don't wanna know how many thousands this costs. As long as I don't go back to San Diego again, I am fine. I hated that place, both times...Cronk said:
Well, I am super excited about hiking. We are going to wheel in Hocking Hills, Ohio in the first week of Oct, then Kansas Rocks a few weeks later, then I get to hit Yellowstone! One sweet vacation.
Joined
·
4,646 Posts
Hocking Hills!!!! OMG! come visit me after ward! i am about an hour from there!
1 - 20 of 24 Posts
Join the discussion
