Logistics

Nothing says fun like planning! Yellowstone is a bit of a schlep, so we want to give you as much information about how to get there and what lodging is like once you do.

Getting there

Yellowstone is located in northwestern Wyoming. The nearest city is Bozeman, MT, and the nearest major city is Salt Lake City, UT. There are a couple options for getting there, depending on where you’re coming from.

Flying

Flying will probably be the easiest option for most of you. There are a few airports in the region, but we strongly recommend flying to Bozeman (BZN - Gallatin Field). From Bozeman it’s about a three hour drive to where we’ll be staying in the park. You could also fly into Jackson Hole, WY, which would let you see the Tetons on the drive up to the park, but flights to Jackson can be twice the price of those to Bozeman, and car rentals in Jackson are pricier as well. Prices fluctuate, but listed below are ballpark estimates of the cost of flying roundtrip to Bozeman from various parts of the country:

• Seattle –> Bozeman: $175

• LA –> Bozeman: $215

• Minneapolis –> Bozeman: $250

• New York –> Bozeman: $450

If you end up flying, you’ll need to rent a car to get to the park. All the roads we’ll use are paved, so there’s no need for anything fancy. A car rental will run you about $450, cheaper if you have AAA. However! We don’t think there is a need for everyone to have their own car, so once we have a better sense of who is coming and how, we’ll set up a Google Doc or something so that we can coordinate carpooling for those of you who want to do that. When booking flights, we recommend flying in as early as possible on the 15th, and out as late as possible on the 18th to allow yourself as much time in the park as possible.

A combo flight-roadtrip possibility is also to fly into Salt Lake City, rent a car there, and drive up to the park, but that drive takes about seven hours. However, flights to Salt Lake and car rentals there are usually a little cheaper, and if you’ve ever wanted to drive through Mormon country, then this may be the opportunity you’ve been waiting for.

Driving

Road-tripping to the park is another viable option, especially coming from the PNW, and it’s what we’ll be doing. The drive to and from Seattle can be done in one day, mostly on I-90. It’s about 800 miles, and takes about 14 hours if you don’t make too many stops. It is more pleasant to break the drive up into two days if you have the time, stopping for the night anywhere between Spokane and Missoula. Apart from the stretch from the pass to Spokane, the drive is beautiful.

We have less experience driving from other places in the US, but know people who drive out every summer from Wisconsin. The drive from Minneapolis is about 16 hours, depending on how fast you feel comfortable driving through North Dakota. Unfortunately, the drive from the East is much less exciting than the drive from the West, unless you have a corn fetish.

If you do decide to drive, Ben’s dad swears that it is actually cheaper to rent a car for the trip than take your own, since going over the passes can put substantial wear-and-tear on a vehicle. He also thinks that running the heater in the winter reduces gas milage, so take that recommendation with a grain of salt.

Other Options

There is a third way to get to the park, wildly inefficient and overpriced, but fun if it’s the sort of thing you like. It is possible to take the Empire Builder Amtrak train from Seattle or Chicago to the bustling metropolis of Havre, MT (population 9,715), rent a car there, then drive south through picturesque Chouteau County to the park. The only reason to do this would be if you both love trains and the history of cargo shipping on the upper Missouri River.

Lodging

We’ll be staying at Canyon Village, in the eastern section of the park:

There are options for both car camping and hotels here, so we’ll all be able to hang out together in the evenings even if some are camping and some are staying in the hotels.

Camping

Front-country camping in Yellowstone is pretty nice, and it’s what we’ll be doing. All the campsites come with their own parking spaces and fire pits, and have shared bathrooms and showers. There is also a 10pm quite time. Campsites are about $30 a night, and 6 people can stay at one campsite provided they share a tent, so if anyone has access to a large tent and wants to sleep with five other people camping can be a very cheap option. Because of how reservations work, we won’t be able to guarantee we’ll all have campsites next to each other, but we should be able to get pretty close. All campgrounds have strict bear-management protocols that are easy to follow. Even in July, nighttime temperatures in the park can dip below freezing and are usually in the 40s, so make sure you have the equipment you need to keep yourself warm and dry if you decide to camp. More pictures and details are here.

Hotels

There is also a lodge and cabins at Canyon which were recently renovated and are very nice. Canyon Lodge is more expensive than the campsites, with nightly rates around $200. It is close to but not directly adjacent to the campgrounds, so you’ll still be able to come hang out around the campfire at night. The cheapest rooms have a single queen bed, and there are fancier suites if you really feel like going to town on a vacation. More pictures and details can be found here.

Reservations

Whichever option you choose, reservations are absolutely essential. Reservations for July 2022 will open June 2nd of this year, and there is a decent possibility that by June 3rd there will be no more rooms or campsites available. Reservations can be made at either of the links above under the “Book Your Reservations”. You’ll be making a reservation for either “Canyon Lodge and Cabins” or “Canyon Campground” for the nights of the 15th, 16th, and 17th. If you RSVP that you’ll be coming, I’ll send out reminders in the days before June 2nd. If on June 2nd you are unsure about whether you’ll come or not, make a reservation anyway. Reservations are fully refundable until June 2022, and you likely will not be able to make a reservation afterJune 2nd. Reservations require a deposit equal to the cost of one night of your reservation, but again, this deposit is refundable until June 2022.

Other Details

There are a few other helpful things to know about visiting the park.

Food

There are a variety of dining options in the park, ranging from deli counters and fast food to more expensive dining rooms. We usually bring most of our food with us to cut down on costs, but this is by no means necessary. However, it is a good idea to bring good hiking snacks with you: jerky, trail mix, cliff bars, etc. We also recommend bringing one or two nalgenes or other water bottles with you. Yellowstone is high, hot, and dry, and dehydration sucks and can make you more susceptible to altitude sickness. The recommendation is to try to double your normal fluid intake while in the park. For those of you flying into Bozeman, there are plenty of places to get groceries before heading to the park, but one of our favorites for hippie food is the Bozeman Co-op, which is a good place for vegetarians and vegans to stock up on supplies.

Gas

Gas gets more and more expensive the closer you get to the park, so to save money we usually get gas at multiple stops heading into the park – leaving Bozeman, leaving Livingston, and then in Gardiner before entering the park. If you’re road-tripping to the park and don’t already have it, we recommend getting AAA for the trip.

Gear

Beyond camping equipment if you’re choosing to camp, it is a good idea to bring the following with you:

• Hiking clothes, including sturdy walking shoes or hiking boots, non-absorbent clothing, a backpack, and a warm, waterproof jacket. Layers are key – temperatures in the park can drop from the sunny 80s to thunderstorms or even blizzard conditions in an hour. Ben has gotten hypothermia twice in the park, both times in July when he got caught out in snowstorms and didn’t have the right layers with him.

• A camera, if you’re into photography. Canyon Village is maybe the most photogenic section of the park.

• Bathing suit. There are fewer swimming spots in the park than most people imagine, but hopefully we’ll be able to visit one of the more popular ones, the Boiling River or Firehole Canyon Drive.

• A good book. Nick has made Ben promise to keep geyser-waiting to a minimum, but there is at least one geyser we’ll probably want to wait for. As there is limited cell reception and wifi in the park, analog entertainment options are nice to have.

• Walkie Talkie. There is limited cell service at best in the park, and so it can be nice to have a walkie talkie to keep in touch with each other while driving or hiking. We have and use these Motorola Talkabouts, and will bring extras with us.

Wifi and Cell Reception

Cell reception and wifi in the park is limited and slow. The Canyon area and other developed centers do have cell reception, but as a general rule the roads between those areas and trails do not. Plan to be mostly off-grid for the weekend.