Between last weekend's Manhattan marathon and this weekend's ball...this is…
Wedding Wednesday: Yellowstone
The boss signed off on our honeymoon vacation request for 30 days off! And thanks to all your tips, we have a pretty good itinerary planned out. I can’t wait to unplug from work for a full 4 weeks.
Neither of us have ever been to Yellowstone and we have about a week to explore the area…any recommendations?
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are you going to Arizona? If so, I grew up in Northern Arizona and I can tell you all of the amazing places to visit and stay.
what a neat idea!!!
Old Faithful Inn!
We’re going through Arizona to get to the Grand Canyon and Havasu Falls.
I haven’t been in years but Fishing Bridge is where we camped when I was a kid (I don’t think you can camp there now). The lodge there has great ice cream and you have to walk along the black sand shore of Yellowstone Lake (we, mostly my brothers, were crazy enough to swim in that freezing water!). The Yellowstone Grand Canyon is a must and definitely go to some of the ranger talks. They are fascinating.
Jackson Hole, Wyoming… Snake River Lodge and Spa has an amazing spa 🙂
Mesa Falls is not really in Yellowstone Park.. but it was my favorite place on our Yellowstone trip anyway. You wouldn’t call Yellowstone really verdant and I guess being from Utah I really crave that. There are some really interesting geological things about Yellowstone.. but there is this falls just outside the park on the west of Yellowstone that I thought was really pretty called Mesa Falls.. this is the photo that I took
http://loveboxes.blogspot.com/2007/08/where-ive-been.html
I thought it was a very romantic spot myself. Have fun! And, don’t miss Jackson.. there’s lots of yummy food there.
okay. if you have a chance you should drive through Prescott, Arizona and Flagstaff, Arizona. Prescott (or to sound like a local pronounce it Pres-kit) is the cutest town. Check out the old historic downtown area with Whiskey Row and Mount Vernon with all the old Victorian houses. I used to live there and I love it there.
Flagstaff is really cute and on your way to the Grand Canyon. You should probably stay there and then head up to the Canyon the next day. Flagstaff has a great downtown area as well and some cute shopping areas. Awww, so jealous. I love it there!!
Definitely go rafting on the Yellowstone river. It is absolutely amazing!! My family (aunts, uncles, cousins, 10 in all) did this for a whole day–it was a blast. Since the raft is quiet, you can see a ton of wildlife!!
Visit the hot springs, the sulfur pots ( I think that’s what they’re called), and the mountain passes. It is an absolutely breath taking view.
oh, and don’t try to pet the animals. We watched a guy try to place his kid on the back of an elk for a picture. the park mountie guy was like, man, this guy is nuts. We’re not in a zoo!
🙂 Happy happy honeymoon!!
Stay in the park if you can (we stayed near Yellowstone lake) and wake up to a morning with wildlife. If time permits, you can see a band of wild mustangs near Cody, WY.
I was also going to suggest a rafting trip while you’re in Yellowstone.
Personally, I probably wouldn’t spend a whole week there, but then again I’ve never really gotten off the beaten path in that park.
Don’t miss taking some pictures of Grand Teton. You can do it right from the side of the freeway and if the weather is right the reflection off the lake in front of the mountains is breathtaking.
I’m SOOOOOO glad you’re going to Havasu falls!
i love yellowstone! (fast fact–it is the oldest (and, in my opinion, the best) national park.
i would definitely stay at lake hotel for at least one night. it’s a beautiful, historic hotel right on the shores of lake yellowstone. Be sure to do Storm Point walk while you’re there. Elephant Back is also nice, and the ‘Mud Volcanoes’ geyser walk is fun.
A more rustic area is Roosevelt (named after Teddy Roosevelt) where you stay in small cabins that you can see through the holes in the log walls. Rustic, but quiet and calm with waaaay less people. I like to sit on the porch up there on their rocking chairs. 😉 We also like Tower Falls (easy, but beautiful) walk. The 45th parallel is a great place for getting in the water–it’s a point at the river where the hot pots pour into the river for a natural hot tub.
I didn’t read your earlier itinerary, but Zion, Arches and Bryce National Parks in Utah are also amazing.
Have a great time!
Sit in a rocker in the sun room at the Lake Yellowstone Lodge, enjoy a local microbrew (like Moose drool), listen to the piano and take in the view. This is one of my husband’s and my favorite memories from road tripping in the West. And I love your blog – reading old posts is my lunchtime guilty pleasure.