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Here is our tour recommendation for North Yellowstone. This is approximately a 9-10 hour trip depending on stops. Take time to enjoy what you see. We suggest the “NPS Yellowstone National Park” app and the “Just Ahead: Audio Travel Guide” national park tour app. The Yellowstone app has great maps and information and the Just Ahead app is like having a tour guide in your vehicle but beware, he will try to entice you to stop at places not on this tour!

Suggestions:

1. Take your lunch

We are not satisfied with dining options at Yellowstone. We suggest you take your lunch and plan on having lunch while waiting for Old Faithful.

2. Take lots of water.

3. Take TP.

4. Wear comfy shoes & clothes.

5. Do not plan on cell service.

HERE WE GO

Go to the East Entrance. Photo op just prior to entrance—Yellowstone sign. Outhouses just past entrance. This is about a 45 minute drive from Four Bear Ranch.

Drive to the “Fishing Bridge” area where there are restrooms, a gas station and a gift shop. Nice stop if needed. It’s always good to stretch a bit.

Go to the stop sign and turn right (North) onto Grand Loop Road. Go to the “Mud Volcano” and “Dragon’s Mouth Spring.” There is ample parking and restrooms. This short walk (1/4 mile total) is on a boardwalk to see the two major sites. There are other hiking opportunities but you don’t have time on this one day tour.

Go North to “South Rim Drive” to view the southern part of the “Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.”

Go East on South Rim Drive to “Artist Point Overlook” for a great view of the “Lower Falls.” Parking is at a premium here so be patient and someone will leave. The driver may drop off passengers so they can head down the trail and catch up with them later.

Go back to the Grand Loop Road and turn right (North). Turn left (West) at the stop sign onto “Norris-Canyon Road.” Take it to “Grand Loop Road Mammoth-Norris” and turn right (North) toward Mammoth Hot Springs.

We suggest a brief stop at “Golden Gate Loop” on the left. This is an area of fascinating huge rocks. There is a short loop and you can find a place to pull off and let the kids do some climbing. Fresh air and energy usage is a good thing.

Continue on to Mammoth Hot Springs. We suggest taking the first left, “Mammoth Terrace Drive,” to view the top of the huge (mammoth) mineral deposits formed by the springs. The Terrace Drive is a nice loop with several areas to stop if you wish. Another option is to park and take the boardwalk/stairs to the bottom and have someone drive to the bottom and pick you up. This is risky as the area is huge, Mammoth and there is very limited cell service. Have a good plan before you separate.

There are restrooms and a very crowded gift shop and snack bar. Best to avoid in order to save time.

As you leave Mammoth take a right (East) onto “Tower-Mammoth Road.” This will take you toward the junction for the Northeast Entrance. Don’t worry about the “Road Closed” Signs. Keep going.

Turn Left (North) at the junction. The road ahead is closed so you have to turn left.

You will drive a bit and arrive at “Lamar Valley” where thousands of Bison tend to reside. Look for them and spend a bit of time checking them out with their calves born in late April and May.

Continue on and exit the park and drive through Silver Gate and Cooke City. There is a gift shop in Cooke City (— not been there so can’t vouch for it.)

Now it’s time to decide about taking Chief Joseph Highway or Bear Tooth Highway. Our estimated times are 3 hours back to the ranch on Chief Joseph and 4 1/2 hours back on Bear Tooth.

Our preference is Bear Tooth Highway as you will never see anything like it in the US. Take time to stop at interesting areas, especially the pass and the overlook as you head down the mountain.

Chief Joseph is one of our favorite drives when Bear Tooth is closed.

Should you want, Bogarts is a great restaurant in Red Lodge, at the end of Bear Tooth Highway. They serve great Mexican dishes and Pizza. It is a 1 1/2 hour drive back to the ranch from Red Lodge.

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Here is our one day South Loop tour recommendation for Yellowstone. This is approximately a 9-10 hour trip depending on stops. Take time to enjoy what you see. We suggest the “NPS Yellowstone National Park” app and the “Just Ahead: Audio Travel Guide” national park tour app. The Yellowstone app has great maps and information and the Just Ahead app is like having a tour guide in your vehicle but beware, he will try to entice you to stop at places not on this tour!

Suggestions:

1. Take your lunch

We are not satisfied with dining options at Yellowstone. We suggest you take your lunch and plan on having lunch while waiting for Old Faithful.

2. Take lots of water.

3. Take TP.

4. Wear comfy shoes & clothes.

5. Do not plan on cell service.

HERE WE GO

Go to the East Entrance of Yellowstone National Park. Photo op just prior to entrance—Yellowstone sign. If it is crowded you will likely have better luck on your way out. Outhouses just past the entrance.

This is about a 45 minute drive from Four Bear Ranch.

Drive to the “Fishing Bridge” area where there are restrooms, a gas station and a gift shop. Nice stop if needed. It’s always good to stretch a bit.

Go to the stop sign past the Fishing Bridge and turn right (North) onto “Grand Loop Road. This is a long trek so take 10 minutes to stop at one of the pull-offs or an interesting site. You likely will see bison in the Hayden Valley.

We suggest spending 1/2 hour at the “Mud Volcano.” There are bathrooms and it is a good time to walk around. Take the short boardwalk to the mud volcano and the dragon’s mouth. Once back on the road, continue North toward The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.

You won’t want to miss the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. Go past the road to the “South Loop” and continue to the “North Loop” road. Turn right on the North Loop. Stop at the first parking lot and take the hiking trail down to the brink of the lower falls at the beginning of the parking lot. It is very interesting. This trail is about 1/2 mile and has a 600’ elevation change each way. An easier hike is the brink of the upper falls but is not on the North Loop.

NOTE: There is an outhouse but as you come into this parking lot there is a modern restroom on the right side. It is painted dark brown so you may not see it. Go here.

As you continue on the North Loop we suggest that you take the road to “Inspiration Point.” No walking required but you can go down a few steps for a better view. You will also pass a huge glacial boulder that Susan would like in her yard here at the Ranch.

Exit this road back to the North Loop.

Continue on and you will go straight through both stop signs toward the “Norris Geyser Basin.” You likely will not have time to stop at the Norris Geysers so turn left at that intersection and head South toward “Madison” and “Old Faithful.”

A quick stop at Gibbon Falls is in order if you are on schedule. You are on schedule if you have stayed with this guide. If you’ve added stops you are likely behind schedule.

Bear to the left toward Old Faithful when you get to the Madison Junction. Shortly you will come to the “Firehole Canyon Drive” on your right. This drive parallels the main road so is a brief distraction and well worth it if you’re on schedule.

You will want to see the “Grand Prismatic Spring” at the “Midway Geyser Basin” and have 2 options, both of which are likely crowded.

1: Stop at the springs parking and take the boardwalk around the Grand Prismatic for an up-close and personal view.

2: If you opt for a more beautiful view, go about 3/4 mile past the Grand Prismatic parking lot and stop at the “Fairy Falls” parking area on the right. Take the hiking trail toward “Fairy Falls” and take the “overlook” trail to a high point where you can get a wonderful view of the Grand Prismatic Spring. At this point go back to your vehicle at the parking lot. You won’t have time to take in the Fairy Falls.

Continue South on Grand Loop Road to “Old Faithful.”

Once you turn onto the Old Faithful road you will want to keep right and avoid all of the turns that would direct you to parking and gift shops, etc. This road will end up really close to Old Faithful and you can find parking around the lodge there. We suggest looking to the right toward the lodge for an open parking spot. The NPS Yellowstone app will give you approximate geyser predictions.

You are now approximately 2 hours from Four Bear Ranch so plan your time accordingly.

Come out of Old Faithful and turn Southish (Left) when you reach the main road. Be sure and turn left again to stay on Grand Loop Road a few miles South of Old Faithful.

When you will get to the Fishing Bridge area turn right toward Cody. You are about 1 1/4 hours from the ranch.

Download this itinerary.

Here is our one day tour recommendation for North Yellowstone prior to June 1. This is approximately a 9-10 hour trip depending on stops. Take time to enjoy what you see. We suggest the NPS Yellowstone National Park app.

Suggestions:

1. Take your lunch

We are not satisfied with dining options at Yellowstone. We suggest you take your lunch and plan on having lunch while waiting for Old Faithful.

2. Take lots of water.

3. Take TP.

4. Wear comfy shoes & clothes.

5. Do not plan on cell service.

HERE WE GO

We suggest you take your lunch and plan on having lunch while waiting for Old Faithful.

Go to the East Entrance. Photo op just prior to entrance—Yellowstone sign. Outhouses just past entrance. This is about a 45 minute drive from Four Bear Ranch.

Drive to the “Fishing Bridge” area where there are restrooms, a gas station and a gift shop. Nice stop if needed. It’s always good to stretch a bit.

Go to the stop sign past the Fishing Bridge and turn left (South).

Drive to the “West Thumb Geyser Basin” and take a break while you walk around the wonders of the area. There is a nice board walk around the features.

Continue on toward “Old Faithful.” Follow the signs into the area keeping to the left and ignoring the signs that want you to turn left into the parking areas and shops. You will end up by the lodge and should find parking close to the geyser. Old Faithful goes off about every 90 minutes and you can judge the time left by how many people are sitting on the benches. If the benches are pretty much empty you know you have a long wait. There is much to do here and you could spend the entire day but there is so much more to see in the park.

When you leave follow the “Grand Loop Road” to the North and stop at the Grand Prismatic spring. The signs might say “Midway Geyser Basin.” Here you have two good options. To view the geyser basin from above, you will want to stop at the “Fairy Falls” trail and walk the 1/2 mile (1 mile round trip) so you can overlook the basin. This is a great option and you get a more spectacular view of Grand Prismatic. Your other option is to go the the actual basin where you can walk on a boardwalk right through the springs. It is spectacular in that you are right there although the rising steam will limit your view of the colors.

From there, continue North to Norris Geyser Basin. This is NOT a stop on this trip but would be if you had plenty of time.


Take the “Norris-Canyon” road (East) toward the canyon. You won’t want to miss the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. When you arrive at the stop sign by the canyon turn right (South) on Grand Loop Road and take the “North Rim Drive.” There are several spots to stop and each has its own amazing views of the canyon. You are now 1 1/2 hours from Four Bear Ranch.

Continue South on Grand Loop road toward the Fishing Bridge area. Turn left (East) onto the “East Entrance Road” and you are on your way home!