The Yellowstone Regional Airport is a full service airport in Cody, Wyoming. It is served year-round by United Express offering service to Denver, and by Delta Connection providing summer seasonal service to Salt Lake City. Both airlines offer connections from virtually every point in the United States making travel to Yellowstone National Park convenient.
Rental cars at the Yellowstone Regional Airport are handled through Budget Rent A Car, Hertz Car Rental, and Thrifty Car Rental.
Cody is a small town packed with fun activities like a rodeo, the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, a world-class museum, and more. It sits just under 60 miles from Yellowstone’s East Entrance and is the closest town to that entrance. The drive to Yellowstone from Cody is absolutely stunning and places you close to Yellowstone Lake, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and Lamar Valley once you enter the park.
The idea of cooking outside while camping is lovely; sizzling bacon, potatoes wrapped in tin foil and tucked in the coals, the perfectly golden marshmallow. In practice, however, it always seems to be much more complicated than imagined.
One weekend when I was in college, my now husband and I threw some camping gear and my dog in his ancient Nissan Pathfinder and drove six hours away on a whim to a Ten Sleep Canyon, Wyo., a climbing area we’d heard of in passing. It was one of our first camping trips together.
When we got to the area we’d briefly scouted on Google Maps, it was packed. The sun had set long ago and every time we pulled off the dirt road, the headlights would illuminate another tent. Finally, on our third or fourth pass, a kind soul flagged us down and offered to share his campsite with us.
As soon as I unzipped our tent early the next morning, I realized my error. There were half a dozen free-range cows grazing just outside of our campsite and I had yet to leash my dog. She ran straight for the cows, running into the lines holding down the tarp our neighbor was using as a rain fly. The light drizzle from the night before that had accumulated on the tarp dumped on him and his wife, soaking them through their tent.
After profusely apologizing and hauling my dog back to camp, I figured our luck couldn’t get much worse. That was, until lunch time rolled around.
At the grocery store the day before, I’d congratulated myself on the clever idea of packing a bunch of canned food. I bought cans of soup, cans of baked beans and black beans to make into tacos. Every meal of the three-day trip was anchored by a can that didn’t need refrigeration and could be easily recycled when we got back to civilization.
There was just one problem. I went through our camping gear three times and the can-opener never materialized. I’d forgotten to pack it and we were two hours from the nearest store.
My husband got creative and managed to get a can of soup open with a hatchet and a rock, but it took almost an hour. We spent the rest of the weekend eating pretzels and hummus, and I learned my first lesson about camp cooking: never skip a packing list.
Over the last decade, we’ve had our fair share of other camp cooking mistakes. There was the backpacking trip where we cooked pesto pasta the first night and couldn’t scrub the garlicky taste out of our one pot. Even the coffee tasted like garlic. There was the road trip where we bought dry ice instead of regular ice, thinking it would last longer and ended up with a cooler full of carbonated fruit.
I grew up camping with my family and my dad is an incredible camp cook. But just like you can’t make your grandma’s recipes without a ton of practice, camp cooking isn’t something that necessarily comes naturally.
Hopefully this guide to camp cooking will help you avoid some of my mistakes. Whether you’re a first-time camper, or a veteran, there’s always room for improvement over the camp stove.
What is the Best Food to Bring Camping?
Cooler-hardy foods
The best kinds of camp meals are both simple and delicious. The key to having a good experience when it comes to mealtime is planning ahead. Make a list of every meal and snack you’ll need to pack for and plan exactly what you’ll serve. Think through the activities you have planned for your trip and decide when you’ll have time to cook and when it’s better to opt for something quick and easy. If you want to get an early start to beat the heat, stick to a no-cook breakfast. If you’re taking a guided tour that will finish mid-afternoon, you’ll have more time to cook a big dinner.
Opt for meals that don’t require a ton of prep (or can be prepped ahead of time at home) and don’t require tons of pots and pans. Doing dishes while camping is much more tedious than at home, so consider that when you’re planning your meals. I usually avoid anything that’s going to leave my dishes too sticky, greasy or, of course, garlicky.
Cook time is another thing to consider. While something that needs to simmer for 30 minutes at home might not be a big deal, 30 minutes on a camp stove is a long time when you’re using fuel, trying to keep mosquitoes out of your sauce and losing light. Avoid draining all your fuel on one meal by cooking meals that don’t require intensive stove time.
Lastly, consider how your ingredients will hold up. Soft or wilt-prone produce like bananas and lettuce aren’t going to fare well in your cooler. Sturdy produce like apples, bell peppers, onions, kale and cabbage are a great choice to get fresh veggies in. A loaf of sandwich bread is going to get squashed, no matter how careful you are with it, but tortillas and pitas will hold up better.
Keep in mind that raw meat must be kept under 40-degrees F to safely consume it and even then, ground meat should be cooked within a day or two and other meats shouldn’t hang out for more than 3-5 days without being cooked. If you’re not sure if your cooler is up to the task, opt for pre-cooked meat like shredded pork, taco-seasoned ground beef or hot dogs that you can reheat at camp. You can also pack frozen meat in your cooler, which will stay colder, longer.
Best Breakfasts to Cook While Car Camping
While a big breakfast of bacon and eggs seems quintessential to camping, I find that I want to hit the trails early in the morning and cooking and cleaning up that kind of breakfast is a hassle. If I’m planning an early activity, I usually opt for something quick, filling and easy for breakfast. Yogurt and granola is an easy no-cook option and instant oatmeal can be made at the same time you’re boiling water for coffee. I like Kodiak Cakes protein oatmeal to keep me fueled on long adventures. When I can’t shake the idea of a big breakfast, I move it to dinner time and make bacon and egg filled breakfast burritos for dinner when I have more time to cook and clean up.
Best Lunches to Eat When Camping
If you’ll be on the trail over lunch time, assembling sandwiches or heating up soup isn’t going to be an option. I opt for snack items for lunch so that it’s easy to eat on the go whether we’re hiking, canoeing or seeing the sights. Trail mix, granola or protein bars, apple slices, cubed cheese, salami and jerky are all lunch favorites. If I know I’m going to have a cooler with me, hummus is still on the menu, although I make my own hummus at at home now and pack it in a reusable container. I love this hummus recipe from Bon Appetit: (www.bonappetit.com/recipe/israeli-style-hummus).
Best Dinners for Car Camping
Tin foil packets filled with veggies (Photo: Getty Images)
While I prioritize quick, no-cook foods for breakfast and lunch while camping, dinner is a different story. Dinner is a great excuse to gather around with your friends and family and enjoy a delicious meal in the great outdoors. The first step in planning your camp dinners is to decide how you’ll cook. If you’re dreaming of cooking over the campfire, be sure to check for fire bans in the area before planning your menu. Cooking over the fire can be fun, but it’s also tricky. If you don’t have experience cooking with fire, opt for hard-to-ruin foods like hot dogs on a stick or tin foil packets filled with veggies like potatoes and squash.
I prefer to cook on the camp stove since it’s easier to manage the heat and the cooking style is more similar to my stove at home. While a pot of beans and franks might seem like a quintessential camping food, my perspective is that if you wouldn’t be stoked on eating something at home, you’re probably not going to enjoy it anymore in the woods. Think about the things you enjoy making at home and look for ways you can simplify those same meals for camping. At home, I cook a lot of vegetable-heavy meals which can be tricky while camping. I’ve found that a simple stir fry is easy to manage on the camp stove if I pre-cut the veggies ahead of time and make up a sauce in a resealable container. While instant rice will never match the real stuff, it definitely works in a pinch. To make fajitas, I sub a pre-cooked sausage like kielbasa for strips of chicken or beef and sear it in a pan with peppers and onions and serve with tortillas. A pre-made sauce (just not pesto, of course) and a box of pasta are also a no-fail option.
Can’t-Miss Foods for Car Camping
I know that not everything is going to go as planned when I’m cooking outside, so I’ve perfected a few staples that I know will work even if everything else doesn’t go quite right. I invested in the Stanley French Press (www.stanley1913.com/products/classic-stay-hot-french-press-48-oz?variant=39681649836091) and always bring my favorite coffee grounds and an insulated mug to ensure I have good, hot and plentiful coffee each morning. I firmly believe that pretty much anything becomes edible when you cover it in hot sauce so there’s always a bottle of Crystal’s in my cooler. I pack plentiful snacks, like chips and salsa and there are always supplies for s’mores, even if we can’t have a campfire and have to cook them over the stove.
S’mores is always a hit (Photo: Getty Images)
How Do You Pack Your Cooler for a Camping Trip?
When you make your camping menu, write out every ingredient and utensil that each dish will require down to salt, oil for cooking and, of course, a can opener. That way you won’t start dinner and realize you forgot to pack cumin or a cutting board.
Research food storage regulations in the area you’ll be camping in before you start to pack. In a desert national park like Grand Canyon, storing your food items in the car will be enough. But in grizzly bear country like Yellowstone, you’ll need to hang your food at night, store it in a bear cannister or a bear box if the campground has one.
I try to limit the amount of plastic and cardboard packaging I’m buying from the store in the first place, but I try to re-package any unavoidable single-use items in reusable containers (like these: ziptop.com) at home to limit the amount of trash I have to pack out while camping. This is especially important for items going in the cooler. As your ice melts, it will make single-use items like milk containers soggy. Be sure that any raw meat is packed in totally impermeable materials so that you don’t cross-contaminate the rest of the cooler with raw meat juices.
Make any sauces or spice mixes ahead of time so you don’t have to bring your entire pantry with you and pre-cut veggies and pre-cook meat for short trips. If your recipe calls for specific measurements, portion them out to avoid having to measure in camp.
When it’s time to pack your cooler, opt for a block of ice rather than cubes as it will stay frozen longer. A few reusable ice packs are also a great idea to tuck on top after you finish packing to keep everything nice and cold. You should aim for a 2:1 ice to food/drinks ratio for the best results and a well-rated cooler like a Yeti or an RTIC is going to be better at insulating than a flimsy one.
It’s a good idea to pack drinks like soda or beer in a separate cooler to keep your food cooler from being opened constantly and warming faster. If you do put drinks in your main cooler, make sure they are refrigerated first.
Pack things most likely to go bad nearest to the ice like dairy and meat and put veggies and condiments closer to the top. Fill in any gaps with cubed ice to keep everything airtight. At camp, make sure your cooler stays in the shade as much as possible. Remember, easily meltable items that you normally might not refrigerate like chocolate and marshmallows are better off in the cooler too.
A hard-sided storage bin with a lid that closes is a great way to store non-refrigerated items. This keeps things from getting crushed and ensures your food is safe from small critters and insects.
How Do You Cook While Camping?
Making sure you have the right gear to cook while camping is essential. The main item you’ll need is a camping stove. There are two main types of camping stoves: two-burner propane stoves and canister backpacking stoves. When car camping, I prefer the classic two-burner stoves. Two burners give me more room to cook and the larger surface area is better for bigger pots and fry pans. Propane canisters can be found at most grocery stores, which makes it easy to stock-up in small towns as I’m road tripping. Two burner stoves do require a large, flat surface area. Most designated campgrounds have picnic tables that will work well, but if you’re dispersed camping, I’d suggest bringing a foldable table.
Using a two-burner camp stove in Redwood National Park (Photo: Getty Images)
Backpacking stoves are small, single burner devices that sit on top of a can of fuel. They are very lightweight and don’t take up much space, but they do give you less room for cooking and the fuel can be hard to find outside of outdoor stores. They also are a little less stable than larger two-burner stoves, so use some care as you move your pots around on top of them.
Make sure to pack plenty of whatever kind of fuel your stove takes. Most fuels will give an estimated number of cooking hours, which can vary depending on how hot you’re cooking. Boiling water takes more fuel than simmering a sauce. When in doubt, grab an extra can. Check to see whether your stove has an ignition button or whether you’ll need to pack a lighter or matches to get the stove started.
You can buy lightweight, camping-specific cookware, or you can just bring along some of your pots and pans (with their lids) from home. I try to minimize the number of items I’m bringing and stick with a saucepan and a deep skillet. You can bring other items you might need from your kitchen as well such as cutting boards, a knife for chopping vegetables, silverware and cooking utensils. The only items that I find are really worth it to buy special for camping are hard plastic (or metal) plates and bowls and an insulated coffee mug. Bringing breakable dishes or coffee mugs from home is a recipe for disaster.
When you’re at camp and ready to cook, do all your prep before turning on the stove to minimize the amount of fuel you’re using. Find all your ingredients and cooking utensils, make sure you have water and a towel or paper towels handy and do any chopping or mixing. Be sure you have a headlamp handy if it’s getting close to sunset so that you don’t have to go digging for one in the dark to finish dinner.
Once you turn on the stove and start cooking, keep your pots and pans covered as much as possible to prevent heat from escaping and bugs from ending up in your final dish.
You’ll be shocked at how quickly hot food cools off on chilly mountain evenings, so make sure your whole crew is ready to eat as soon as the stove turns off.
How Do You Wash Dishes While Camping?
Doing your dishes properly while camping is important to minimize harm to the environment and make sure you’re not attracting animals to your campsite.
While it might be tempting, never wash your dishes in a natural water source like a stream or a lake. Human food and soaps can easily contaminate water sources. Instead, use the designated dish washing station at your campground if it has one, or set one up at your campsite.
You’ll need a dish bin (a metal or plastic container or a bucket works well for this), a sponge or scraper, biodegradable soap, a strainer and a towel.
Washing dishes is more complicated while camping (Photo: Getty Images)
Always use filtered water, or boil your water before doing dishes to make sure you don’t contaminate them for future meals.
Start by scraping any leftover food scraps off plates, pots and pans into a trash bag. It might be tempting to burn food scraps and paper towels in the campfire, but this can attract animals to your site. Instead, pack out all food materials in a trash bag and make sure to properly store it at night in the same way you do your food.
Fill your dish bin with warm water and use a small amount of soap and your sponge to clean your dishes. You may need to rinse them with a little bit of warm water to get the soap residue off afterwards. Do this over the dish bin and then dry all your dishes with your towel.
After all your dishes are done, strain your dish water to remove any food scraps and dispose of those in your trash bag. Now, it’s time to dispose of your dish water.
Head at least 200 feet from camp and any water sources and fling your dish water across the landscape in a broad, sweeping motion called “broadcasting” to widely disperse the water and keep it from attracting critters. This is the same method you should use to dispose of pasta water as well.
Need more camp cooking inspiration? My favorite places to get recipes are @kenapeay on Instagram and https://www.freshoffthegrid.com/.
Packing List for Cooking While Camping
Start with this thorough list of everything but the food you’ll need to cook while camping and customize it to fit your meals.
Foldable camp table
Cooler
Ice/reusable ice packs
Hard-sided storage bin
Bear canister or rope to hang food (if needed)
Headlamp
Stove
Fuel
Lighter or matches
Deep skillet (with lid)
Saucepan (with lid)
Plates
Bowls
Silverware
Spatula
Cooking spoon
Kitchen knife (with protective case)
Cutting board
Can opener (if you have cans)
Bottle opener and corkscrew (if needed)
Measuring spoons/cup
Hand sanitizer
French press or coffee percolator
Salt and pepper
Olive oil or butter
Insulated mugs
Tablecloth (this can be nice if the picnic table is super dirty)
By: Donald Cyphers Editor-In-Chief For Wyoming News
The Biden Administration is quietly trying to funnel the United States sovereignty into international law without anyone noticing or being able to object. But first, he must disarm Americans. So he is using the “mass shootings as his window of opportunity.” yet over 50 people are shot daily in Chicago, but Democrats don’t talk about that.
The World Health Organization has repeated the talking point that ” even if the text for a treaty on pandemic preparedness is reached, it would have to be signed, ratified, and enforced by the member states themselves. In addition, any treaty will have to pass muster eventually with domestic audiences.”
This is such a BIG LIE. Do not believe it for one moment. Suppose one reads up on International Law and the WHO. In that case, one will get educated that the international law, once ratified, will be permanently binding on any nation’s free will, socialist or communist.
The United States has ratified the treaty under the terms of the Vienna Convention. When nations sign on to the treaty or endorse it, they can not take any adverse action or withdraw as it is a permanent member. There can be no treaty violation or rescinded once the treaty is signed or ratified.
This treaty can also be called the Small Arms Treaty, which wants to regulate the sale of all firearms arms in the United Stated and forced gun confiscation. This treaty has not been submitted to the United States Senate. However, the Biden Administration is trying to influence judges and any regulatory decisions regarding mandatory registration requirements for any type of gun.
This registration is a precursor to gun confiscation. Once that is completed and the nation is disarmed, the New World Order can officially “reset ” the United States, and the rest of the world will follow suit since most countries have already disarmed their populations.
VOTE EVERY DEMOCRAT OUT IN 2022 AND 2024. President Trump, America needs you back; the world needs you back!
While the mainstream media was quick to use the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas to push gun confiscation, it’s conveniently ignoring another shooting that occurred within 24 hours. The day after the Texas shooting, a law-abiding citizen with a gun stopped another deranged gunman in Charleston, West Virginia.
A gunman targeted a birthday party and graduation party at an apartment complex. There were 10 injuries at the shooting, but only one death, that being the gunman who was shot by an armed civilian who was legally carrying in a state that requires no permits to open carry for anyone 18 or older or conceal carry for anyone 21 and older.
Lt. Tony Hazelett, with the Charleston Police Department, told local media the gunman had been asked to slow down as he was speeding near the parties where children were playing. The gunman, upset by that, left to get a gun and later return to the apartment complex where he open fired on about 30 to 40 people at the parties. “A female bystander who was lawfully carrying her firearm pulled her firearm and shot him and killed him,” Hazelett said. He added that no charges will be filed against the woman, who has not been identified.
“She’s just a member of the community who was carrying her firearm lawfully and instead of running from the threat, she engaged with the threat and saved several lives last night,” said Hazelett. This story provides the ultimate answer when posed with a potential mass shooting. That answer is a personal responsibility.
However, in the wake of the Texas shooting that led to the deaths of 19 students and two teachers, both the left and the right have pushed for a bigger government as the solution. The left proposes unconstitutional gun grabs while the right pushes costly, ineffective security theater with more bulletproof glass, heavy locking doors, etc.
“Both sides fail to realize that a violation of any individual’s liberty is a threat to everyone’s liberty” wrote former Congressman Ron Paul regarding the response to the Texas shooting. If Americans have not learned their lesson yet, the government will not protect them. The the government does not provide security.
At Robb Elementary, we know that the Texas shooter had over an hour to perpetuate his evil without contact with police, who were seen outside accosting parents instead of protecting children. The school was fortified with all the security theater those on the right like, and it was also a “gun-free zone” which those on the left like.
RT @SethAsherW: The latest mass shooting?
Outside of a church in Ames, Iowa.
3 confirmed dead.
Courts have time and time again ruled that police have no obligation to protect citizens. The most recent case concerned the shooting in Parkland, Florida concerning the aptly nicknamed “Coward of Broward” ex-deputy Scot Peterson who remained outside as students were slaughtered.
Ryan McMaken, for the Mises Institute, wrote that “we can’t trust the government’s armed enforcers to provide any measure of safety, and we absolutely need a right to private self-defense, to private security, and to accountable trained professionals who are not the bloated, overpaid branch of the government bureaucracy known as ‘law enforcement.’” That’s the lesson that should be learned from what occurred in Uvalde and what occurred in Charleston.
And for those wanting to trust their government with their protection, remember it was the government that perpetrated the largest mass shooting in America’s history. In the 1990s, it was the FBI and ATF that waged a siege on the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas. Your government killed 76 people, including 25 children and two pregnant women, as they shot and torched the compound.
Seeing Yellowstone’s incredible natural wonders is a must-do experience for most Americans but as you watch a bison grazing in the beautiful Lamar Valley or see Old Faithful erupt, it can make many of us wonder at how we’re impacting the land, water and air we’re visiting. But you can travel sustainably on your Yellowstone vacation by reducing your environmental footprint and supporting local conservation efforts with this fun-filled itinerary.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, 29% of total greenhouse gas emissions in the United States come from transportation. While you might have taken steps at home to reduce your environmental footprint like biking to work or composting, it can be daunting to figure out how to travel more sustainably.
We’ve put together this 3-day itinerary to help you become a more sustainable traveler. From LEED-certified hotels to tips on keeping the park’s trails beautiful to locally-sourced dining experiences, this epic itinerary will help you keep Yellowstone beautiful.
Day 1 Grand Teton National Park and Jackson, Wyo.
Sunrise Start: Eco-Friendly Wildlife Watching
Start your trip to the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem with a sunrise wildlife tour with EcoTour Adventures. This four-hour tour will get you away from the crowds and give you the opportunity to observe wildlife like moose, elk, bison, wolves, bears, bald eagles and more from a safe distance in Grand Teton. EcoTour Adventures has been a 100% carbon neutral company since 2008 and focuses on sustainability from reusable mugs for sipping hot chocolate to giving 2% of proceeds to local environmentally-focused non-profits.
EcoTour Adventures in Grand Teton Photo: EcoTour Adventures
Lunch: Sip Sustainably
After a morning spent wildlife watching, head to the small taphouse at Roadhouse Brewing (roadhousebrewery.com) in Jackson which was named a “Best for the World” business by B Lab in 2021. This certified B Corp brewery ensures the beers you’re drinking are easy on the environment. Choose between 10 rotating taps and stick around for a facility tour that occurs daily at 5 p.m. With innovative technologies like chemical recycling, carbon dioxide and steam recapturing and a generator that pulls nitrogen from the air, Roadhouse puts as much thought into their environmental footprint as they do their beers. The company also owns the Roadhouse Pub & Eatery in downtown Jackson. Stop in for an impressive beer list as well as food ranging from seasonal salads to flatbreads to elk and bison dishes.
Afternoon: Environmentally Smart Souvenirs
Spend your afternoon wandering the shops of downtown Jackson. Don’t miss Teton Mountaineering at 170 N Cache St. to gear up for your upcoming adventures in Yellowstone. If you didn’t pack a reusable water bottle, now’s the time to buy one. Single-use plastic water bottles are a major source of pollution in our parks. Do your part and bring your reusable bottle which you can fill with filtered water at the parks’ many filling stations.
Evening: Locally Sourced Dinner with a View
Enjoy a stunning dinner with incredible views at Piste Mountain Bistro at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (www.jacksonhole.com/piste-mountain-bistro.html). Located at the top of Bridger Gondola, you’ll be treated to a locally sourced meal with views of the mountains and valley through floor-to-ceiling windows. Enjoy ingredients from regional producers like Snake River Farms in Idaho and Carter Country Meat in Wyoming fashioned into dishes like roasted lamb with baby artichoke succotash or pork spareribs with pickled watermelon. Reservations are highly recommended. Wondering how to get there? Hop on the 100% wind-powered Bridger Gondola for a 12-minute ride to the restaurant. The gondola is free after 5 p.m. in the summer with a reservation to the restaurant.
Enjoy a locally sourced meal in Jackson Photo: Piste Mountain Bistro
LEED-Certified Bedtime
When it’s time for bed, head to Jackson’s most luxurious eco-friendly hotel. The first LEED-certified hotel in Wyoming, you’ll find recycled steel, organic mattresses, energy-efficient lighting and water-saving toilets at Hotel Terra (www.hotelterrajacksonhole.com). LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a green building rating system that certifies buildings as sustainable. The on-site infinity pool, spa and incredible dining are the cherry on top.
Rustic lobby of Hotel Terra in Jackson Hole Photo: Courtesy Hotel Terra
With more than 1,000 miles of trails to explore, neighboring Yellowstone National Park is the perfect place to spend a day hiking. Head north to explore Yellowstone’s best trails from a leisurely walk along the boardwalks at Mammoth Hot Springs to a summit like Avalanche Peak or Mt. Washburn that will get your blood pumping. There’s a hike for everyone in the country’s first national park.
Don’t forget to hike sustainably in the park by practicing Leave No Trace. It’s especially important to pack out everything you pack in. A stray corner of a granola bar wrapper or a little piece of toilet paper might not seem like a big deal, but when you magnify that by 3.8 million visitors each year, trash becomes a serious problem for plants, wildlife and others’ enjoyment of the trail.
Be sure to stay on marked trails as well. In a park like Yellowstone, it’s super important to keep to maintained paths to avoid wandering into geothermal areas or spooking wildlife. More than that, forging your own path scars the landscape and hurts vegetation.
Hiker at Fairy Falls Photo: Getty Images
Sustainable Dinner in Gardiner
After a day spent exploring Yellowstone’s trails and sights, head to the Corral at 711 Scott St. W in Gardiner (www.visitgardinermt.com/item/131-the-corral) just outside the park’s North Entrance. A testament to the fact that sustainable dining doesn’t have to come with white tablecloths, the Corral is Gardiner’s longest standing business. As part of the Western Sustainability Exchange Program, they focus on local, sustainable and organic ingredients. Go for a crowd favorite with a locally sourced, organic beef burger or opt for something on the wild side with a bison, elk or salmon burger.
Sweet Recycled Dreams
When it’s time for bed, head back into Yellowstone just over an hour south to the Canyon Lodge and Cabins. Located in the heart of the park near the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River, you’ll be perfectly poised for exploring the sights. Three of the lodges at the Canyon complex have been LEED-certified. The Washburn and Rhyolite lodges feature wainscoting and coat racks made of beetle-kill wood, countertops made of recycled glass along with LED lighting and low-flow toilets.
The Moran Lodge lobby with wainscoting made from beetle-kill wood. Photo: Photo courtesy of Yellowstone National Park Lodges
Day 3 Yellowstone National Park
Morning: Give Back and Tour
One of the best ways to see Yellowstone and learn about the complicated ecology of the park is from a knowledgeable guide. The Yellowstone Forever Institute (www.yellowstone.org/experience/yellowstone-forever-institute/), run by the park’s official non-profit partner Yellowstone Forever, provides extremely knowledgeable guides who are naturalists, scientists and more for their park experiences. Best yet? You’ll be supporting the important work the organization does to protect wildlife, conserve resources and educate. Book a private tour that’s tailored to you and your group’s abilities and interests or join one of the institute’s Field Seminars. Seminar topics range from Native American history to certificate-level naturalist courses to night photography. Don’t forget to get all of your souvenirs at the Yellowstone Forever gift stores inside the park or outside the park in Quake Lake, Gardiner and the Bozeman Airport to support the important work they do.
A Yellowstone Forever group watching a grizzly bear in Yellowstone’s Lamar Valley Photo: NPS/Jacob W. Frank
Afternoon: Recycle
You can’t take your bear spray home with you on the plane so be sure to recycle it before you leave the park to keep it out of the landfill. Recycle your canister at park hotels, stores, visitors centers, backcountry offices and ranger stations or the Bozeman airport.
More Ways to Be a Sustainable Traveler
Looking to lower your carbon footprint on your next trip to Grand Teton and Yellowstone? Visit in an electric vehicle! Check out our guide to all the charging stations in and around the parks. A bonus? If you stay at a Delaware North property in West Yellowstone, Mont., you’ll receive 15% off your stay if you come in your electric vehicle (www.yellowstonevacations.com/sustainability).
Another great way to help reduce your carbon footprint on your vacation is by purchasing carbon offsets. These offsets help sequester or avoid carbon via various projects. We like the Protect Our Winters carbon calculator and offset purchase tool at protectourwinters.org/cost-of-carbon/ because it’s easy to calculate the footprint of your trip and you can choose which programs you want to support with your offset purchase from forest management to emissions reduction to methane recovery.
A trip to Yellowstone would not be complete without seeing the largest log structure in the world built from 1903-04. It’s a stunning hotel worth visiting if for no other reason than to experience its lobby and check out its architecture. Old Faithful Inn Dining Room will be open this summer (reservations are required for dinner), as will the Old Faithful Geyser Grill and Old Faithful Inn Bear Paw Deli. At the grill, you can order burgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, beer and wine until 5 p.m. every day.
Old Faithful Inn Dining Room. Shutterstock
If you’re planning for a 2022 vacation, it’s important to know that the Old Faithful Inn dining room offers breakfast and lunch are first- come, first-served, but you need to make dinner reservations in advance. Don’t have reservations? Enjoy a drink and appetizers in the Bear Pit Lounge. For up-to-date information, go to Yellowstone National Park Lodges.
View Wildlife in the Hayden Valley
This grassy valley supports huge numbers of bison, grizzly bears, elk, coyotes, wolves, moose and bald eagles. Stop at one of the pullouts, especially at dawn or dusk, to see these iconic Yellowstone animals with binoculars or a scope.
Bison herd in Yellowstone. Adobe Stock
Stroll Midway and Lower Geyser Basins
Head to Midway Geyser Basin and walk along the boardwalk to see one of the world’s largest, deepest hot springs, Grand Prismatic Spring. It’s larger than a football field at 370 feet across and deeper than a 10-story building at 125 feet.
A lone bison at Yellowstone’s Grand Prismatic. Doug Palmer
Watch Old Faithful
Take a seat and watch the world’s most famous geyser. It erupts about 20 times a day. The front desk of the Old Faithful Inn posts eruption times. It’s just minutes from Old Faithful Inn and sits right behind the visitor center.
Aerial view of Old Faithful geyser. NPS/Jim Peaco
Day 2
Wake up with the Wolves
For your best chance of seeing a wolf, get up before sunrise and head to the Lamar Valley in the park’s northeast corner. Use binoculars or a scope at pullouts.
Yellowstone wolf. Shutterstock
Cruise Tower Road and Hike Mt. Washburn
South from Roosevelt Lodge, stop at the 132-foot Tower Fall. Then drive up the 8,859 foot Dunraven Pass. At the top, park and hike the 3.1-mile (one way) trail to Mt. Washburn’s 10,243-foot summit. Be sure to start your hike early in the day to avoid being on the exposed trail when frequent summer afternoon thunderstorms roll in.
Hikers on the Mount Washburn Trail in Yellowstone. Grant Ordelheide
Eat at Roosevelt Lodge
Built in 1920, Roosevelt Lodge, one of the park’s most charming restaurants, has a front porch with rocking chairs to sit upon and have a drink. Inside the authentic log cabin is food for every dietary need. This classic restaurant does not take reservations, so it’s first-come, first served.
Roosevelt Lodge Dining Room. NPS David Restivo
See Mammoth Hot Springs
Walk on a mile-long boardwalk to see the colorful travertine terraces formed by hot springs rising to the surface and depositing dissolved limestone in dramatic patterns. Reach the Upper Terraces via a staircase.
The boardwalk at Yellowstone’s Mammoth Hot Springs. Grant Ordelheide
RE: Sergeant Brandon Smart disciplinary action.
Grandstand Casino incident
On January 15, 2022, Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Sergeant Brandon Smart was
involved in a disturbance at the Grandstand Casino in Billings. Sergeant Smart was
off duty at the time of the incident and was not in uniform or acting in his official
capacity as a Deputy Sheriff.
Upon learning of the incident, I ordered an investigation into the circumstances
surrounding the incident. The investigation was conducted by a Lieutenant in the
Sheriff’s Office Training and Professional Standards Division. Currently, an
investigation to determine if any criminal activity occurred during the incident is
being conducted by the Montana Department of Criminal Investigations.
Our internal investigation concluded that Sergeant Smart had violated Yellowstone
County Sheriff’s Office Policy on Ethics and Conduct.
Sheriff’s Office Policy 2-1 CODE OF ETHICS States:
I.Law Enforcement Code of Ethics:
A.Character:
Deputies will behave in a manner that does not bring discredit to their
agencies or
themselves. A deputy’s character and conduct while off duty must always
be exemplary, thus maintaining a position of respect in the community in
which he or she lives and serves. The deputy’s personal behavior must be
beyond reproach.
Sheriff’s Office Policy 2-3 RULES OF CONDUCT States:
A. Deputies will not engage in any activity or commit any act that would tend to
bring discredit or impair the efficiency or reputation of the Sheriff’s Office
or its Deputies.
1. Actions of Deputies that are inconsistent, incompatible, or in
conflict with the standards established by the Sheriff’s Office
negatively affect its reputation and that of its Deputies. Such
actions (and inactions) will not be tolerated as they distract from
the Sheriff’s Office’s overall ability to effectively and efficiently
protect the public, maintain peace and order, and conduct other
essential business.
Disciplinary Action Taken
Formal Letter of Reprimand
Removal from Special duties and prohibition from re-applying for special duties for
1- Year
Additional training on or pertaining to Ethics and Conduct.
Sergeant Smart has been a Deputy Sheriff in the Patrol Division and on other
assignments for the past 11 years. Before that, he was a Sergeant at the
Yellowstone County Detention Facility
Sergeant Brandon Smart Disciplined Bad Cop Behavior In Billings
June 2, 2022|National News
RE: Sergeant Brandon Smart disciplinary action.
Grandstand Casino incident
On January 15, 2022, Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Sergeant Brandon Smart was
involved in a disturbance at the Grandstand Casino in Billings. Sergeant Smart was
off duty at the time of the incident and was not in uniform or acting in his official
capacity as a Deputy Sheriff.
Upon learning of the incident, I ordered an investigation into the circumstances
surrounding the incident. The investigation was conducted by a Lieutenant in the
Sheriff’s Office Training and Professional Standards Division. Currently, an
investigation to determine if any criminal activity occurred during the incident is
being conducted by the Montana Department of Criminal Investigations.
Our internal investigation concluded that Sergeant Smart had violated Yellowstone
County Sheriff’s Office Policy on Ethics and Conduct.
Sheriff’s Office Policy 2-1 CODE OF ETHICS States:
I.Law Enforcement Code of Ethics:
A.Character:
Deputies will behave in a manner that does not bring discredit to their
agencies or
themselves. A deputy’s character and conduct while off duty must always
be exemplary, thus maintaining a position of respect in the community in
which he or she lives and serves. The deputy’s personal behavior must be
beyond reproach.
Sheriff’s Office Policy 2-3 RULES OF CONDUCT States:
A. Deputies will not engage in any activity or commit any act that would tend to
bring discredit or impair the efficiency or reputation of the Sheriff’s Office
or its Deputies.
1. Actions of Deputies that are inconsistent, incompatible, or in
conflict with the standards established by the Sheriff’s Office
negatively affect its reputation and that of its Deputies. Such
actions (and inactions) will not be tolerated as they distract from
the Sheriff’s Office’s overall ability to effectively and efficiently
protect the public, maintain peace and order, and conduct other
essential business.
Disciplinary Action Taken
Formal Letter of Reprimand
Removal from Special duties and prohibition from re-applying for special duties for
1- Year
Additional training on or pertaining to Ethics and Conduct.
Sergeant Smart has been a Deputy Sheriff in the Patrol Division and on other
assignments for the past 11 years. Before that, he was a Sergeant at the
Yellowstone County Detention Facility
While all the crowds gather to watch Old Faithful erupt, follow a series of boardwalks and paved and dirt trails through Yellowstone’s Upper Geyser Basin to see more incredible geysers and hot pools and find a sense of solitude. At Upper Geyser Basin, you can walk up to 6 miles to experience the highest concentration of geysers in the world.
Along the way you’ll pass stunning blue, orange and yellow hot pools, have to duck from the mist of erupting geysers, watch the Firehole River steam and hopefully catch a glimpse of the park’s abundant wildlife from grazing bison to herds of elk.
Where Is the Upper Geyser Basin?
Upper Geyser Basin is located in the heart of Yellowstone and encompasses the Old Faithful complex including hotels, restaurants and a visitor center. You can access Upper Geyser Basin from either the north or the south end of the basin. Most people access it from the south and park at the Old Faithful complex. Head to Old Faithful itself, which is located just behind Old Faithful Inn and the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center. From there, you can follow the paved bike path on the left, or head out on the boardwalks to the right. If you don’t want to miss any features, make sure you take one option on the way in and the other on the way out.
If you want to avoid the crowded Old Faithful area, you can also park at the Biscuit Basin lot. From here you can explore the geysers, springs and pools on this basin’s boardwalks before crossing the road and following the trail directly across from the lot. You’ll know you’re on the right track when you quickly encounter Mirror Pool on your right. This part of the basin is not wheelchair accessible.
Yellowstone’s Old Faithful complex with hotels, restaurants and a visitor center. (Photo: Getty Images)
How Long Does It Take to Walk the Upper Geyser Basin?
The best part about the Upper Geyser Basin is that you can walk as far or as short as you like and experience a huge array of amazing thermal features. If you walk all the way to Biscuit Basin from Old Faithful and make a loop on the way back so you don’t miss any features, the entire trip will be just over 6 miles with less than 400 feet of elevation gain.
If you want to escape the crowds, plan on heading at least a mile out into the basin to start to find some solitude. For a fun, shorter loop follow the boardwalks on the east side of the basin until you meet up with the paved bike path. Then, head back to Old Faithful on the paved path with a detour around the Daisy Geyser loop. This route is just over 3 miles.
Plan for half a day or more to explore the entire loop. You’ll want to give yourself plenty of time to stop and admire any active geysers, watch wildlife you might encounter and take lots of photos. Pack a picnic lunch to eat along the way at one of the picnic tables scattered throughout the area. Some geysers in this basin are very predictable. The park usually has predictions on when the next eruption will occur posted in the Visitor Center and online (www.nps.gov/yell/learn/nature/hydrothermal-features.htm) for Old Faithful, Castle, Grand, Daisy and Riverside. It’s worth timing your walk to coincide with at least one of these impressive eruptions but chances are if you spend several hours out in the basin, you’ll see at least one eruption or two.
Sunset at Yellowstone’s Upper Geyser Basin (Photo: Getty Images)
How Many Geysers Are in the Upper Geyser Basin?
There are more than 150 thermal features in Upper Geyser Basin, stretching approximately three miles from Old Faithful to Biscuit Basin. To see them all, set aside a half day or more to walk the full loop that clocks in at just over 6 miles.
Start just behind the Old Faithful Visitor Center and follow the path around the famous geyser.
(Map: National Park Service)
Old Faithful
Old Faithful is one of the most famous geysers in the world. The first white settlers to discover the geyser were the Washburn Expedition in 1870, who stumbled upon the geyser during eruption. Due to the geyser’s frequent eruptions, Washburn Expedition members named it “Old Faithful.” A good name, since Old Faithful geyser has erupted more than a million times since Yellowstone became the world’s first national park in 1872.
On average, Old Faithful erupts every 65-95 minutes. Old Faithful shoots a column of water 100-130 feet into the air and the length of the geyser’s eruption determines how long it will be before the next eruption occurs. Longer geyser eruptions mean waiting longer to see the next eruption.
Old Faithful Geyser on a windy evening (Photo: Ed Hennigan)
Old Faithful, like most of the park’s geysers, gets its water from the depths of the Earth. Snow and rainwater reach depths of about 10,000 feet below the Earth, at which point it’s heated by the magma body, which forces it up through the surface.
From behind Old Faithful, a set of boardwalks heads right, crossing the Firehole River. You can either head right again, following signs for Observation Point where you’ll get an elevated view of the basin after a steep climb, or you can stay left at the fork to circle Geyser Hill. Don’t miss Beehive Geyser and Heart Spring, a gorgeous turquoise pool shaped like a heart.
Beehive Geyser
Beehive is a classic cone geyser. Its vent is narrow – just eight inches in diameter – and acts like a nozzle so that a slender column of water is shot under great pressure. Average eruptions are around 150 feet high, but the geyser has been known to shoot water as high as 200 feet.
Beehive is one of the more forceful, powerful geysers in the basin. Water shoots through an eight-inch opening, and as a result, eruptions are very loud. It’s a spectacular show when it erupts.
After you loop Geyser Hill, continue north along the boardwalk. After passing a few more pools and geysers, you’ll reach Grand Geyser. This is the tallest predictable geyser in the world, erupting with a 150-200-foot spray every four to eight hours.
Continue north, passing Sawmill Geyser.
Behive Geyser erupting (Photo: iStock)
Sawmill Geyser
Sawmill Geyser is situated and connected to approximately 10 other geothermal features that all compete for energy and water. Each geothermal feature pulls and draws energy and water from one another.
One geyser starts pulling water, so the others in the group have to wait until that particular active geyser is done and has a chance to fill up again. Eventually, the whole system fills as one.
Sawmill is a fountain geyser and erupts in bursts and surges. It erupts frequently. In fact, it’s more common to see it in eruption than not in eruption.
Notice how the different pools have different colors of water, or multi-colored rings in one pool. This is because these hot springs are full of microbes that thrive in the scalding hot pools. Different bacteria are responsible for the different colors and thrive in different pools or different parts of the same pool based on the temperature and pH of the environment.
The boardwalks will cross the Firehole River again and join up with the paved bike path. Unless Daisy Geyser is actively going off, keep heading north and save that detour for your return trip. From the bike path, you’ll spy Riverside Geyser across the steaming waters of the Firehole River.
Riverside shoots water at a 60-degree angle across the Firehole River every six hours or so. The water shoots about 80 feet across the river’s surface. Check this geyser out in the afternoon and you may even see a rainbow amidst the eruption. This geyser erupts for about 20 minutes at a time.
The bike path crosses the river again before the pavement ends at the trail’s only restroom and Morning Glory Pool.
Riverside Geyser with a rainbow (Photo: NPS/Neal Herbert)
Morning Glory Pool
Morning Glory has a delicate, scalloped border and the center is a beautiful baby blue color. However, it’s been severely impacted by human behavior across history. People have thrown all sorts of objects into the pool which have blocked its heat vents and changed the temperature of the water, causing other microorganisms to move in and turn the border of the pool orange and yellow.
From the end of the pavement, continue on the dirt trail which follows the Firehole River. The thermal features are farther apart in this part of the basin, so keep your eyes peeled for wildlife like bison and elk.
Just after Mirror Pool, carefully cross the road and continue on to the boardwalk through Biscuit Basin. Follow the boardwalk loop clockwise, admiring the deep blue Sapphire Pool and Jewel Geyser if its erupting. Retrace your steps past Jewel, Shell and Avoca geysers to meet up with the dirt trail that heads south.
Follow the path across the creek and then carefully cross the road again. This path runs along the Firehole River’s west side and doesn’t have any thermal features until you reach the Daisy Geyser loop.
Morning Glory Pool (Photo: Depositphotos)
Daisy Geyser
Daisy Geyser erupts at an angle and will shoot water 75 feet high. Daisy is one of the park’s most predictable and frequent eruptions. Most days, there will be an eruption every 120-210 minutes unless the nearby Splendid Geyser erupts and changes Daisy’s pattern.
Either follow the boardwalk around the loop back to the bike path or if you have extra energy follow the trail past Punch Bowl Spring to Black Sand Basin, another area with half a dozen or so thermal features. After coming back out onto the paved bike path from the Daisy loop, continue south. Just before you reach the Old Faithful complex where you first started, you’ll pass Castle Geyser.
Daisy Geyser erupts in Yellowstone’s Upper Geyser Basin (Photo: NPS/Jacob W. Frank)
Castle Geyser
Castle has an intense eruption that lasts 20 minutes or so before the water has been eliminated and it begins to roar like a steam train for 30-40 minutes.
Castle erupts from one of the largest cones in the Upper Geyser Basin. Its cone is 30 feet tall. Castle erupts about approximately every 14 hours.
Castle Geyser eruption (Photo: Kevin Fay)
Why Is the Upper Geyser Basin Important?
While Yellowstone as a whole is home to the majority of the world’s geysers at 60%, Upper Geyser Basin holds the highest concentration on the planet. This designation alone makes it a spectacular natural wonder, but it has also played a huge role in scientific advancement.
Yellowstone’s many thermal features have allowed scientists the opportunity to discover incredible microbes that live in the hot pools. Some actually feed on CO2 and could help us combat climate change, some could help develop more heat-resistant crops and perhaps the most famous, an enzyme that led to the development of the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) which was instrumental in developing tests to detect COVID-19 in 2020.
Are Geysers Dangerous?
Multiple people have died in Yellowstone’s geothermal features and more have been severely injured. Geysers, hot springs and pools and mud pots are no joke. Their temperatures can be extreme and though the ground around them may look solid, it’s often a thin crust that would collapse if stepped on.
Always stay on the boardwalks or marked trails in geyser basins. There aren’t usually guard rails keeping you from falling into thermal features, so stick to the middle of the boardwalks. Be mindful when taking photos not to get so carried away you put yourself in a dangerous situation. The best idea is to only move your feet when the camera viewfinder is away from your face. Be mindful passing others on the boardwalks and watch for slippery sections after a geyser’s spray soaks the boards.
Keep an eye on small children and elderly members of your group as a stumble could easily be fatal. Pets are not allowed on the boardwalks or trails in Upper Geyser Basin.
While Upper Geyser Basin is a developed and well-used part of the park, its always a good idea to carry bear spray when hiking in Yellowstone and to know how to use it.
Located on an original gold mining settlement, Under Canvas® is the best way to experience one of America’s most iconic landmarks. Enjoy views of Mount Rushmore during the day and a star filled sky with incredible views of the Milky Way at night, all from the comfort of your private tent. Plus, delicious cafe-style dining is on-site and deluxe lodging options include in-tent bathrooms.
Interior of a Suite Tent at Under Canvas Mount Rushmore Photo by Bailey Made courtesy of Under Canvas
Beyond Mount Rushmore, Custer State Park and Crazy Horse Memorial are just minutes away and Badlands National Park is a quick day trip.
In these days of social distancing, Under Canvas is taking a number of operational actions to make sure you feel safe when you stay at an Under Canvas location. Plus, glamping in stand-alone tents with no connected duct-work means you’re breathing in fresh air.
The camps will be using EPA-certified cleaning agents to thoroughly deep clean tents between every guest stay, in addition to all public spaces and staff areas. Hand sanitizing station are available throughout camp. Under Canvas’ EO bath products are in each tent for hand washing.
A gourmet coffee cart is available on site offering everything from cappuccinos and lattes to matcha.
