Yellowstone North - September 2017

After Holly ran the Bozeman Marathon we left the city to spend two nights in the northern part of Yellowstone. It took about two hours to reach the first major attraction - Mammoth Springs. The ranger at the visitor center suggested taking the ten minute walk over vs. struggling to find nearby parking. Taking his advice was probably a mistake since Holly just ran 26.2 miles and it was kind of warm. The hot springs didn't help with comfort levels and the multiple stairs and ramps weren't doing us any favors. Of course, there were several nearby parking spaces. Holly almost died. At least the springs were nice to look at.

 

Enroute to Canyon Lodge (our hotel) we encountered a traffic jam caused by buffalo blocking the road. The buffalo were not as annoying as the stupid tourists in front of us who wouldn't move their cars when the opportunity presented itself. Stop taking your pictures... the thing moved and the road is clear.

Along the way we made a few stops that included Tower Falls and a quick sighting of a bear.

We made it to The Canyon Lodge just before it got dark and met up with Mike and Jan (they left Bozeman when Mike finished the half marathon) for drinks and dinner. The lodge was nice, but nothing was well-marked and all the dining options are in one big food court. The ice cream booth closed way too early.

The next morning the four of us hit the falls. Upper Falls, Lower Falls, and Artist Point. We must have left earlier than most people since we accomplished everything before the food court opened for lunch.

We spent the afternoon heading south to Yellowstone Lake. On the way we stopped to view buffalo and more stinky pits of bubbling mud and steam. Last time we visited Yellowstone Lake we were on the south shore under overcast skies. Today's weather held up much better.

On our way back to Bozeman the next morning we got a chance to see the Roosevelt Arch. Between this trip and last year's trip we saw most of the Yellowstone's highlights.