With a few days left here in Rexburg, Idaho we decided that we should make a trip over to Yellowstone National Park or Teton National Park. When I looked at the mileage it looked like the thing to do was to go see both parks. This would be our largest one day loop trip ever but the allure of seeing two spectacular National Parks in the same day convinced us to think, why not?
I woke Sharon way earlier than she would prefer and we hit the road going north to West Yellowstone. We entered Yellowstone and the visual extravaganza began with one scenic vista after another. We have visited both of these parks in the past prior to buying our motorhome so we were delighted to have the opportunity to revisit such grand places.
Needless to say we didn’t do any extensive hiking and we mostly stopped to see things we missed the last time we visited these parks. Therefore we completely avoided Old Faithful and enjoyed mostly the outer reaches of the parks. As a result we were treated with eye dropping Mammoth Hot Springs as well as gorgeous valleys and a splendid array of wildlife. We even saw what appeared to be a young adolescent black bear wandering and munching his way through a flower filled meadow. It appeared to us that he/she was eating the flower heads off all the plants that were blooming. Indeed fun to watch…
With over 300 miles of a long and extended loop we saw a lot of National Parkland and it was interesting to see how the landscape was responding to the over 700,000 acres burned back in 1988. The park looked pretty good and it appears as if the vegetation is filling in rather nicely.We also saw deer, elk and buffalo as well as one lone Bald Eagle and lots of Geese and Swans. After our lengthy drive through Yellowstone and through the eastern part of the Tetons we decided it best to visit Jackson Hole where we stopped at the Q Roadhouse & Brewing Co. We sat at the bar enjoying their complimentary roasted peanuts and we could hear live music drifting in from the patio.
As we still had over 100 miles to get back home we had one beer with our tasty peanuts. We met a really nice couple from Florida and really wanted to stay to chat with them some more but it was time to head west… As we made it over Teton Pass we stopped at a turnout to enjoy the view of the Jackson Valley below. We pulled out our chairs to pause and enjoy the magnificent vista .
As we were driving through Victor, Idaho I saw a sign for the Grand Teton Brewery so I figured we could grab dinner there… We pulled into the place and noticed all the patrons lounging in Adirondack chairs near a food truck vendor. After all the driving we did we decided to have one more tasty beverage and ordered up some really good tacos with quinoa salad as a side. We relaxed in our chairs outside on he grassy lawn for about an hour enjoying the views of the mountains and watching the locals enjoy the day…
We made the drive back without any issues and after our 13 hour day we slept like babies that night. We left Rexburg this morning and are heading to a park near Dillon, Montana where we will only spend one night…
I think any chance to visit Yellowstone is worth it!
ReplyDeleteQuite a drive. But isn't it great to have the option of driving a 13 hour loop!
ReplyDeleteThat is an extremely long day.
ReplyDeleteYellowstone has so many hidden beauties. We enjoyed getting off the path well worn also.
Wow that is a long day - we spent 4 days doing what you did in one. I hope you made it to Big Springs and Mesa Falls as well.
ReplyDeleteAnd I thought we had taken some long one-day trips.
ReplyDeleteNow that is a great day trip!
ReplyDeleteTwo gorgeous parks for sure:) Well worth the miles driven!
ReplyDeleteWow that was a long loop, we don't usually travel that far in our coach in one day.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a great day though.
Gorgeous photos you took of what we like to call our backyard.
ReplyDelete10 hours is our worst day, 13 is incredible.
ReplyDeleteWow, when I read you were doing both parks in one day, I thought you are two energetic souls. They are two of our favorite parks. Love your photos!
ReplyDeleteLast month we drove the Yellowstone loop while in Cody. Made for a very long day. Never did go to Teton. Can understand bypassing Old Faithful. Sort of overrated, isn't it.
ReplyDeleteYellowstone is beautiful but it does involve a lot of driving. I drove in the northern part one day and took a 9 hour tour of the Circle of Fire the 2nd day. There are still areas in the park that I want to hike someday.
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