Grand Teton & Yellowstone

On my way to Yellowstone National Park I visited Jackson, WY, a neat little town south of the Teton mountain range. They have excellent bar restaurants. I highly recommend the Cowboy Bar and the Silver Dollar Bar. I then hiked around Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park. I was lucky the weather was sunny and warm enough for a hike in the mountains, opposite of what it was like when I got to Yellowstone. Nevertheless, I camped three nights in Yellowstone and enjoyed every minute of it. I would've stayed longer but like I said, the weather forecast was not favorable. The weather was so unpredictable it snowed and cleared up about three times in a given day.

Wolves are very hard to spot here, you either have to be really lucky or very persistent. The best time to spot them this time of the year is early morning or evenings. I woke up very early two mornings and went over to Lamar Valley, where I scouted for them for hours, along with other eager enthusiasts equipped with scopes and tracking devices (not legal in the park). The only glimpse I got was of a black wolf for about 4 seconds before he went over the hill.

Yellowstone is an enormous park, impossible to grasp in just one visit. There are hundreds of geysers and springs scattered all around the park. I was lucky enough to see most of the ones located in the Old Faithful area. I hiked the south and north rims of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, including the lower and upper falls. Mammoth Hot Springs have dried up tremendously through the years. The Lake Village offers the best views of Yellowstone Lake and the surrounding areas are great for spotting grizzly and black bears.

Yellowstone is absolutely incredible. This is one park you most definitely need to visit. And when you do, allow yourself plenty of time to explore. And even then, you will have only scratched the surface of what this amazing park has to offer.