Day 4: Exploring East Yellowstone
After an amazing night of sleep in the countryside, we say our goodbye to our friends and head out to explore the east!
The drive was much more scenic on the east side of Yellowstone. With breath taking views of far reaching landscapes, valleys, and mountains.
We even came across a momma bear with 2 babies alongside the road that caused some traffic.
Lamar Valley
(Must See)
The far-reaching grassland was refreshing and inspiring to take in. We saw huge herds of bison and deer. A great place to park along side the road and take in nature. It looked like a scene from lion king but with no lions of course. This place is a great place to have lunch if you packed any.
Canyon Valley the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
(Must see)
The drive to Canyon Valley is very scenic so make sure you stop by all the viewpoints along the way. Keep your eyes open cause we spotted another black bear near Tower Falls as well as another male deer or moose?! Probably a deer…
Canyon Valley is a big stop so expect to spend some time here. We began by stopping by the Canyon Village General Store to get some snacks and coffee. Then started from the North Rim Drive.
Lower Falls
(Must do) (0.8 mile Down and Out trail) Elevation 252 feet
The hike takes you down a steep descent with views right beside the top of the waterfall. The view was well worth hiking back up. The hike was strenuous but is over quickly. Don’t miss this one!
Lookout Point, Grand View, Inspiration Point, and Artist Point
These stops provide beautiful views of the canyons from slightly different vantage points. The viewpoints are right beside the parking location so there is not much walking. Parking was very easy to find for all locations. Artist Point had the best views in our opinion with Inspiration Point coming in second. If you are tight on time I recommend you visit the two only.
Inspiration Point Viewpoint
Artist Point
Hayden Valley
On our way to Mud Volcano, we came across another bison jam but this time… A bison walked by our car so close MS. LBF got scared and raised the window up thinking it will stick his head inside our car. LOL
Mud Volcano
(0.7 mile loop trail)
This was an interesting spot worth the time. A quick and easy loop trail with interesting boiling mud pools. I think this was the largest and most aggressively boiling mud pool I can remember.
Fishing Bridge
We stopped by the general store to grab a bite and enjoyed a nice cup of coffee as we sat beside the serene Yellowstone Lake.
West Thumb Geyser Basin
(Must See) (1 mile loop trail)
West Thumb is a caldera within a caldera with great views of Yellowstone Lake with active hydro-thermal features in and around the edges of the lake. Great walk and a must see!
The West Thumb was our last stop and we began our journey towards the south towards the Grand Teton!
Continue to Day:
Day 3: Exploring West Yellowstone
Day 4: Exploring East Yellowstone