Yellowstone Honeymoon Musts

[F.D.V.]

Wife and I have decided on three weeks in Yellowstone, car camping, for the honeymoon!

Yes, I know, my wife ROCKS!

Anyway, what are some "musts" that we should hit up? We are trying to avoid the crowds (as much as possible, though we know this will be difficult) and see a lot of sites. We are also looking for some quality climbing, either trad or sport, in that area. I have been searching the DB on rockclimbing.com and have been coming up short. Planning on driving from Steamboat to Jackson and then north and west from there.

Also, what does one do about bears? Bear spray, Tim Treadwell style, or should I just pack my .40 XD ?

[OSECS]

Wife and I have decided on three weeks in Yellowstone, car camping, for the honeymoon!

Yes, I know, my wife ROCKS!

Anyway, what are some "musts" that we should hit up? We are trying to avoid the crowds (as much as possible, though we know this will be difficult) and see a lot of sites. We are also looking for some quality climbing, either trad or sport, in that area. I have been searching the DB on rockclimbing.com and have been coming up short.

Also, what does one do about bears? Bear spray, Tim Treadwell style, or should I just pack my .40 XD ?

Spend one night in the Old Faithful Inn. If you have an appreciation for architecture it's akin to stepping into a 12th century medieval cathedral. At least do a drive through and spend an hour soaking up the space. The space and scale is amazing for a timber framed structure.

[F.D.V.]

Yeah, we are on a waiting list for it! A year in advance at least is what they told us!

Spend one night in the Old Faithful Inn. If you have an appreciation for architecture it's akin to stepping into a 12th century medieval cathedral. At least do a drive through and spend an hour soaking up the space. The space and scale is amazing for a timber framed structure.

[Sirshredalot]

Spend some time over in the beartooths outside of cooke city. If you want to make an overnight bid for Granite Peak, that's really cool.

If you fish, you should go fishin'.

There's some nice multi-pitch trad climbing out in the gallatin canyon.

[OSECS]

Yeah, we are on a waiting list for it! A year in advance at least is what they told us!

Yeah it's a hard ticket. It really is amazing. I was awed by the space. The size, the 4 sided multi story stone fireplace, the 3 story pendulum clock.

Old faithful and the geyser field around the inn are worth the trip anyway. You can spend a day hiking the area, have dinner in the restaurant. Old faithfuls gotta be like the Niagra falls of the west.

Gongrats on the upcoming nuptials !!!

[oftpiste]

We'll all be looking forward to the honeymoon pics.

[F.D.V.]

^^^While the wife is cool, overnight summit bagging missions are not on her agenda! Fishin' is DEFINETLY going to happen, as we are starting the trip in Steamboat with a float trip down the Yampa!

Thanks for the tips in the Gallatin Canyon!

[F.D.V.]

Nuptials done and over with last June. We wanted to make sure the marriage was going to last before we dumped a bunch of money into the honeymoon!

Gongrats on the upcoming nuptials !!!

[Skipig25]

Boiling River. Awesome hot spring mixes with river, northern jellystone. great soak

[Diesel]

If you're down near Old Faithful and the Lodge, take a couple of hours and make the hike to Fairy Falls and Imperial Geyser. It's true that most people never stray 300 yards from their cars in national parks, and you may see a handful of other people.

Imperial Geyser is one of the coolest things I've ever seen...I think just because it was such a surprise to stumble across it out in the middle of nowhere. At its highest, the geyser reached about 25 ft in the air.



And the Grand Prismatic is worth a scramble up the hillside. (Both of these are within walking distance of each other)

[Tye 1on]

Might get some good climbing in on your way thru jackson. A couple nights camping at Jenny Lake would rock. If car camping, eventually make it up to Pebble or Slough Creek campgrounds, on the road from mammoth to cooked city. Fun fishing and classic hiking. Hit the K-Bar in Gardiner for some local color. If you have time to get north of there, camp up Tom Miner Basin, or bag Emigrant Peak.

East side climb Avalanche Peak. Just cuz. For an amazing backcountry geyser basin, check out the one behind Artist Paint Pots. Buy Scott Bryan's book to get schooled on geysers. More just around Old Faithful than the whole rest of the world combined.

What month are you planning this for? And yes, bear spray. But that's a whole can of controversy...

[idiot]

On an off note, I watched an older lady drive her car up the staircase through the front doors of the inn at old faithful. Quite a site as she broke both front door glass pieces and into the second doors.

[senior researcher]

7 mile? hike -from Old Faithful to the S. W. to Mr. Bubble, Hot spring. And Dunanda Falls they are about 70'& run hot and cold-in S.W. corner of Park. Lots of GREAT fishing if you walk. Go camping away from the roads,cars,most people.

[freezorburn]

Bear spray:

My wife was a animal control officer. She would trap and release bear all the time. The only spray they used was "Counter Assault" the bears would not react to anything else.

Even at that, She would have to get close and Spray it in there Eyes.

(They spray the Bears before releasing them. The logic being the bear remembers he had a really bad time when he hung out with humans.)


P.S.

Yes your honeymoon Vacation ROCKS! I always had the most fun with the simpler vacations. I suggest get a top of the line inflatable air mattress so much better then sleeping on foam. Worth packing IMO.

[plugboots]

Some of our faves:
Second meadow of Slough creek to fly fish.
Uncle Tom's hike to get near the falls.
Black Dragon's Couldron short hike.
Paint pots to laugh at the mud.
Dinner or a cocktail at Old Faithful Inn if you can't stay there, (they also have espresso there).
The short hike to an intermittent geyser that looks down on Old Faithful, (best view of it).

[butterscotch]

x2 on the boiling river.

My favorite day hike that I've done in Yellowstone is Seven Mile Hole.

Definitely spend a little time in Grand Teton -- tons of good hiking. I can only imagine that you could find some climbing there as well.

Considering driving out Cooke City and over the Beartooth Pass on your way home.

All the restaurants inside the park suck.

Yes, bring bear spray.

[butterscotch]

Hit the K-Bar in Gardiner for some local color. .

K-Bar was so much more fun before they renovated it. I still love that place though.

There's also the Miner's Saloon in Cooke City.

[plugboots]

X3 on boiling river. I think people try to imitate the look of the place with their back yard hot tubs.

[gorms]

you must do your wife....

the rest is all just filler on the honeymoon

[PNWbrit]

This place is going to the dogs....

Poopenhausen!

[carvedog]

On an off note, I watched an older lady drive her car up the staircase through the front doors of the inn at old faithful. Quite a site as she broke both front door glass pieces and into the second doors.

Pictures? When? That sounds just crazy. Bet it was a Toyota.

To the OP: Huckleberry Hot Springs at Flagg Ranch. North ? side of Teton park. Bring a foam pad to sit on, I didn't and sacrificed some gloves - it was worth it the place is awesome.

[benDover]

Mount Washburn hike from either the pass or Chitanden Rd.(sp?) is a nice half day hike with a nice veiw of the park and countless other ranges + I've never not seen goats up there.

Bring your skis and lap it up (depending on time of year) at the Red lodge ski camp.
http://www.rlissc.com/index.html

[schwerty]

I'll take you and the MRs down a river around the Tetons.

[Touring_Sedan]

The wife and I did the same thing last year. Don't bother reserving. We walked in and scored a room at Mammoth and Old Faithful. People fuck up all the time and miss their reservations.

[Ccard257]

1. bring bugspray

if she's up for some easy overnight hikes you can really get away from most people. When my wife and I went up last summer we just went to the backcountry office and asked for backcountry sites with short hikes. This gave us all day to do whatever we wanted, and then an hour or so of hiking in the evening took us to camp and away from anybody else.