Two Perfect Days in Yellowstone. One Watching Wildlife and One Geysers

Rookie mistake: trying to see everything at Yellowstone in a day. Instead of spending the whole time driving, pick one of these itineraries and make the most of your 24 hours.

One Day of Wildlife Watching in Yellowstone

Wake up with Wolves

For your best chance of spying the park’s wolf packs in action, get up before sunrise and head to the Lamar Valley in the park’s northeast quadrant. Several pullouts on the road let you stop and set up a spotting scope or pull out your binoculars—or look for park volunteers with scopes and ask for a peek. As the sun rises, you might also see bison, badgers, osprey, bears, and deer.

Eat a Hearty Breakfast

When you’re ready for a break, grab breakfast at Roosevelt Lodge. The rustic restaurant and hotel serves up breakfast burritos, hikers’ specials, biscuits, and Montana milling oatmeal.

Cruise Tower Road

Head south from Roosevelt and stop at 132-foot Tower Fall, a thundering cascade. Continue on to climb the shoulder of 10,243-foot Mt. Washburn. Stop at 8,859-foot Dunraven Pass to enjoy the view and scan for bighorn sheep; if you have the time and the weather is nice, consider hiking the 3.1-mile (one-way) trail from here to Washburn’s summit for even better views and wildlife ops.

Gaze at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

Drive through Canyon Village and turn on South Rim drive for an up-close look at one of the park’s most outstanding natural features: 308-foot Lower Falls and 109-foot Upper Falls, two massive waterfalls in a strikingly colorful gorge. Park at Artist Point to take in the vista.

Watch Wildlife in Hayden Valley

This grassy valley in central Yellowstone supports huge herds of bison, plus grizzly bears, elk, coyotes, wolves, moose, and bald eagles. Stop in one of the numerous pullouts along the road and scan the rolling terrain—you never know what you might spot. Or hike the 10-mile (round-trip) Mary Mountain Trail for even better scoping opportunities.

Tip: While driving and looking for wildlife in both Hayden and Lamar valleys, keep your eyes on the road. Instead of peering out into the valleys, watch for people gathering along the roadsides. Stop and park, then look where the cameras are pointed.

Dine by Yellowstone Lake

Feast on wild game, fresh fish, or steak in the Lake Hotel’s elegant dining room (reservations recommended). For a more casual evening, head over to nearby Lake Lodge Cafeteria. Must-do: Sip a pint of a local microbrew or glass of wine from a rocking chair on the lakeview front porch.

One Day of Geyser Gazing in Yellowstone

Start with Old Faithful

You’ve got two options to kick off your day. One, sit down to the breakfast buffet at Old Faithful Inn’s Dining Room, then head outside to catch Old Faithful Geyser in action (the front desk posts eruption times). Two, get a grab-and-go breakfast from the Bear Paw Deli and eat it on the second-floor porch for a picture-perfect view of Old Faithful.

Stroll Upper Geyser Basin

A series of boardwalks leads from the Old Faithful Visitor Center into the heart of this thermal paradise—with more than 150 spouters within a square mile, the Upper Geyser Basin holds the highest concentration of geysers in the world. Highlights include the predicted geysers (Castle, Daisy, Grand, and Riverside), the Lion group, 150-foot Beehive, and bright Beauty and Chromatic Pools.

Explore Midway & Lower Geyser Basins

Head up the road to Midway Geyser Basin, home to one of the world’s largest, deepest hot spring (370 feet across and 125 feet deep)—Grand Prismatic Spring. It’s worth walking the boardwalk to get up close, but an even better view of the vibrant feature awaits at Picture Hill near the beginning of the Fairy Falls Trail; pick it up just south of the basin.

Next stop: Take Firehole Lake Drive past Great Fountain Geyser, then park at Lower Geyser Basin to see the fumaroles and geysers around Fountain Paint Pot.

Visit Norris Geyser Basin

The park’s oldest, hottest geyser basin is another fantastic place to see geysers in action. Head into Porcelain Basin, a half-mile boardwalk trip, to see favorites like Constant Geyser and enormous fumaroles. Continue to Back Basin, a 1.5-mile walk pass acidic Echinus Geyser, sparkling Emerald Spring, and 300-foot-plus Steamboat Geyser, the tallest in the world. Steamboat’s eruptions are highly unpredictable—but several lucky visitors saw a nine-minute show in July 2013 (its first eruption in eight years).

See Mammoth Hot Springs

Finish off your geyser gorging with a different kind of thermal feature. The hot springs at Mammoth don’t erupt, but they do build spectacular travertine terrace formations (as quickly as three feet per year in some places). Walk the boardwalks on the Upper and Lower Terraces to watch the trickling springs at work.

Dine at Mammoth

Finish your day with bison sliders, trout tacos, prime rib, and other hearty fare at the Mammoth Hotel Dining Room.

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Do you have a park map? You’ll receive a free park map when you enter the park or you can download one now. But if you’d like to plan your trip with a detailed topographic map, consider purchasing a Trails Illustrated map of Yellowstone on REI.com that includes hiking trails, iconic sights and more.

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