Yellowstone and Grand Teton are set to start a phased reopening on Monday. Check their websites (nps.gov/yell).8
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Yellowstone National Park and Shoshone Lake
- Thread starter Pringles
- Start date
Yellowstone and Grand Teton are set to start a phased reopening on Monday. Check their websites (nps.gov/yell).8
Ok, its a go. Will drive to Denver pick up daughter and check out Grand Tetons and Yellowstone. Probably only 4 days to hang out. Car camping, backpacking permits might be tough to get last minute because everyone has changed plans. Thought about throwing canoe on top for a day or overnight paddle. Any suggestions? I understand the short amount of time. Thanks.
Yellowstone and Yosemite would two great examples of timing is everything. Being there at the right time solves a lot of problems.
Shoshone Lake is a wonderful spot.
Shoshone Lake is a wonderful spot.
For a scenic and easy overnight, in the Tetons you can put in at String Lake, short developed portage into Leigh Lake. Leigh Lake is absurdly scenic, with Mt. Moran at lake's edge. Can be windy in the afternoon with downcanyon winds. To be conservative, you can get a site at the point to avoid wind concerns. The sites at the mouth of the canyon are nice. Or you could do it as a simple day trip--it's not far, and portage is short and easy.
Two Ocean Lake is off the beaten path, but is a nice day paddle.
Shoshone and Lewis are nice, but entirely different experience--total forest without mountains. Lining upstream between the two is fun. Lewis can be windy.
Thanks ppine and Mason that’s all I need. Appreciate it.
Oh, and at least for Grand Teton, you'll need a Wyoming boat inspection sticker (there was an invasives inspection station at Moran when I was there a couple of years ago), and a Grand Teton NP boat permit, available at Moose and Colter Bay. For Yellowstone, you'll need an inspection and a park permit (link below). Yellowstone preceded Wyoming as a state, and so state regulations don't necessarily apply.
We had two places, near Pinedale and in Victor, ID. The upper Green in spring, the snake and reservoir in star valley. Some of the lakes in TNP, although wind can be brutal. There's also a stream from Victor that meanders north, but I forget the name. That's all.
Did it! Got back a week ago. Will post more tomorrow.
rented a tandem Kevlar canoe from Rendevous in Jackson. Cost $180 for 3 days.
we got the last 2 permits for our nights. Paddled String into Leigh. First site was way off the beaten path into Bearpaw. Second night back into Leigh at site I think 14B. Tough keeping one eye open and one finger on bear spray trying to sleep. Yogi visited a few site the night before according to some folks and the volunteer who was paddling a Kruger! She and her husband stay on Leigh for the summer volunteering.
Water was chilly to swim in. The run off streams were freezing!
Daughter and I worked our butts off paddling into the wind our first night sort of looking for our take out and carry to Bearpaw
Total driving mileage was 5800 miles. I took side trip back up to South Dakota to Custer state park and the Badlands.
my return trip took me back into Illini State park and they were hammered a few days earlier from tornados. Scary.
beautiful area the Tetons, crowded yes, worth it, yes.
talk soon. Thanks for the original post. Yes I wore my Canoetripping shirt! Will figure out pics soon.
rented a tandem Kevlar canoe from Rendevous in Jackson. Cost $180 for 3 days.
we got the last 2 permits for our nights. Paddled String into Leigh. First site was way off the beaten path into Bearpaw. Second night back into Leigh at site I think 14B. Tough keeping one eye open and one finger on bear spray trying to sleep. Yogi visited a few site the night before according to some folks and the volunteer who was paddling a Kruger! She and her husband stay on Leigh for the summer volunteering.
Water was chilly to swim in. The run off streams were freezing!
Daughter and I worked our butts off paddling into the wind our first night sort of looking for our take out and carry to Bearpaw
Total driving mileage was 5800 miles. I took side trip back up to South Dakota to Custer state park and the Badlands.
my return trip took me back into Illini State park and they were hammered a few days earlier from tornados. Scary.
beautiful area the Tetons, crowded yes, worth it, yes.
talk soon. Thanks for the original post. Yes I wore my Canoetripping shirt! Will figure out pics soon.
Welcome to Wyo. I used to live by Laramie and paddled the N Platte all the time.
The fastest way to leave the crowds behind in Ystone is to pick up a paddle.
There are few rattlesnakes around on the Plateau because it is just too cold for them most of the year.
The wind is a problem in Wyo, but lakes like Lewis and Shoshone are moderate in size. Plan to paddle early and get off the water by noon or 1300.
L Yellowstone is cold and huge with lots of wind. That makes it a dangerous lake to paddle.
In the Northern Rockies, there are some bears around. Most places they do not occur in the densities you imagine in your mind. Be vigilant at all times and never sleep anywhere near your food, toiletries or anything that could be construed as food. You will be fine. Bring bear spray and wear on our belt at all times.
The fastest way to leave the crowds behind in Ystone is to pick up a paddle.
There are few rattlesnakes around on the Plateau because it is just too cold for them most of the year.
The wind is a problem in Wyo, but lakes like Lewis and Shoshone are moderate in size. Plan to paddle early and get off the water by noon or 1300.
L Yellowstone is cold and huge with lots of wind. That makes it a dangerous lake to paddle.
In the Northern Rockies, there are some bears around. Most places they do not occur in the densities you imagine in your mind. Be vigilant at all times and never sleep anywhere near your food, toiletries or anything that could be construed as food. You will be fine. Bring bear spray and wear on our belt at all times.
Glad you had fun, and I hope my info helped out. I've always liked Leigh Lake. Years ago, I did what I called the "Grand Teton Grand Tour", where I put in at Jenny Lake and took out at Moose, paddling Jenny, String, Leigh, Bearpaw, Trapper, Jackson Lake, then down the Snake River to Moose where I had stashed my bike for the shuttle back up to Jenny Lake. Fun times.
Wow, this thread has sure grown in the last few months. I’m glad you had such a great trip. I’ve spent my summer hiking and backpacking in Yellowstone. While the front country is amazingly crowded, the backcountry... nope. I was backpacking last weekend, and on the first day, I saw one family on the trail. It was a LARGE family, of maybe 8 or 9, but it was a family. On the second day, I saw three other hikers. Then I got to the trailhead. Apparently I looked rather wild, as the tourists stared at me. Oh well. I camped on a creek, and had three otters pass through. It’s been a different season in Yellowstone, but good. If you had gotten reservations, you had the option of keeping them, cancelling them, and changing them. So, if you wanted to cancel, this year, you didn’t have to pay. Usually, no refunds were given. I had some reservations where my friends weren’t traveling, and so I changed the sites. The backcountry office was willing to accommodate. And if you wanted to do the trip as planned, that was great. And, if you want a “walk in” permit, you can get it up to 48 hours ahead. So with a free weekend coming up, I can put in some options on Thursday, and by that afternoon or Friday, I can know where I’m going. Normally, I wouldn’t know where I was going until I had gotten to a backcountry office and seen what was available. Knowing ahead means I can pack more appropriately, and drive directly. I know, it’s little stuff, but I like it. A couple of weekends ago, I hiked down Delacy Creek trail to Shoshone Lake, and over to the Lewis Channel. I met a woman who had hiked an inflatable down Delacy Creek, and was paddling on Shoshone. It was flat as a pancake, and she was having a ball. I was really jealous. Anyway, I’m glad you had a good time. Oh, and the tornados in Illinois—my home town is Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where the derecho (sp?) went through. Geeze, the pictures are horrible. I still have family there, and every house has damage. Scary stuff.
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Glad you had fun. I have not paddled there, but have always thought it would be great. I first passed through on a coast to coast self supported bicycle tour and later drove through on the way to either a backpacking trip or a off road bike tour in the west (I forget which trip it was).
It is some beautiful country and the crowds are gone once you get 100 yards from the parking lot. As far as traffic goes time of day and day of week can go a long way to minimize traffic even in peak season. Late afternoon Sunday the weekend folks are mostly gone until late in the week. Most of the motorized traffic seems to be allergic to waking up and getting out early so getting travel out of the way in the morning helps a lot. Even on a bicycle we found traffic manageable during the summer by staying away from peak traffic times. Rental RVs were the scourge of the roads for us. We really had to look out for those. They will rent a huge RV to someone who shouldn't be driving a pickup truck.
It is some beautiful country and the crowds are gone once you get 100 yards from the parking lot. As far as traffic goes time of day and day of week can go a long way to minimize traffic even in peak season. Late afternoon Sunday the weekend folks are mostly gone until late in the week. Most of the motorized traffic seems to be allergic to waking up and getting out early so getting travel out of the way in the morning helps a lot. Even on a bicycle we found traffic manageable during the summer by staying away from peak traffic times. Rental RVs were the scourge of the roads for us. We really had to look out for those. They will rent a huge RV to someone who shouldn't be driving a pickup truck.
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