Yes, definitely get there ASAP. I remember the first day i was in Yellowstone I took dozens of pics of the bison, elk, bears, etc thinking I might not see that many on any other days. I don't think I have any pictures from that first day left. I have dozens of better ones. That place is just like a theme park for incredible wildlife. Every day I saw places and animals that were more fascinating then the prior day.
yea, glad my trip didn’t get smashed bc of this had the most amazing drive in the rain yesterday from Jackson to Bozeman. Want to go fly fishing on the Madison river so bad now
I have to think they’re just trying to keep people out right now. We got shut in at the south entrance in Yellowstone in 2015 due to flooding, but still could make it out of the west.
Did a 2 week trip thru the canyon last year. Every single one of the guides absolutely love their job. I could’ve listened to their stories for hours.
it sounds like an incredible life. Our guides in Slovenia said they spend their winters guiding in Brazil and then go back to Europe for rafting or canyoning jobs in Montenegro, Croatia, Slovenia, etc in the summer.
I'll be out there for a week next month to fish the Madison, Snake, and Teton Rivers. Hopefully i still have a lodge
A few of the older guys only guide the canyon but the younger ones are constantly guiding different rivers in the US and a few out of the country with they company they work for.
Got some serious heat exhaustion for this view - Longs/Meeker on the left, Rocky Mountain N.P. extending to the right from summit of Crosier Mountain. At the trailhead, it was 90 degrees at 10 AM at ~6300', and 96 degrees in Loveland at 7 PM on the way home. There was a car accident and search/rescue (probable broken ankle) happening at the same time at the trailhead meaning 9 emergency vehicles parked on the road. Followed firefighters up the trail until the injured party, then slogged 10.5 miles through blistering heat which took 8 hours due to extended heat breaks and steep climbs (3,000 ft. for the day). Drank more than 3L+ of water for the first time ever after pre-hydrating all the way there. Still a lot of snow in RMNP after a late season storm.
Tough start with all this snow. Seeing big crowds at lower elevations. We did a 12 miler at Lumpy Ridge - it was packed and busy on the north side of the ridge, too. We didn't lose people until we hiked up Black Canyon (also saw only wildlife in canyon - moose and deer). Going south this weekend to the La Garitas to escape snow and gain some altitude.
Just took a last second trip to Kalispell out of the blue. Arrived today. Staying in whitefish. Looking at the Highline trail in Glacier at sunrise. Perhaps white water rafting. Not sure what else. Rental car prices…yeesh.
Did this last summer, so jealous. Get there early. We woke up at 530 and snagged a spot in the lot. The garden wall trail about halfway through is very much worth it. You’ll gain like 1k feet of elevation in less than a mile so it’s tough but go for it
Thanks for the info. Like I said…last second decision and going in blind. Mentioned highline because my bartender recommended. At sunrise. Just looked and the sun sets at 940pm and rises at 536am. Probably shouldn’t drink too much considering that elevation gain you just mentioned.
Its incredible. And make sure you bring some food and lots of water and they were doing daily mobile passes when we went. Not sure if they still are but might want to check
I have no idea. Put in zero research. Only going off what my bartender told me earlier. May try fly fishing as well. Have never done that before.
just got back from the Canadian Rockies- just an unbelievable location. Must visit for people who enjoy parks. Got to see a mama grizzly and her cub on the last day. Not the best photo and I got a video but it won't let me post it
awesome, you’ll love it. I took it a little easy with the hiking this trip because it was my first time in the area and I had limited time to cover a huge area. I spent more time on the Icefields Parkway which is awesome and a must do. But it does takes a whole day. Make sure to hit Petto The one hike I did really enjoy was in Lake Louise- up to the St Agnes Teahouse then to little Beehive. It’s an intermediate hike probably around 6 miles round trip with about 1500 ft of elevation gain if I had to guess. Maybe a tad more. Beautiful views and the teahouse is great. If you’re staying at the Fairmont the trailhead is literally steps from your front door. I also did Johnson Canyon to the Upper Falls which was very easy and just OK. Lake Minnewanka was an easy hike but it was pretty cool. The second half of it goes into the woods along a cliff overlooking the river which was pretty cool. You can take it up to 9 miles but I did only about 5-6 I would say. It’s a pretty good hike if you’re looking for an easy one with some good scenery. Not one of my very favorite hikes but solid and better than Johnson Canyon imo. The Fairmont Banff Springs is also a great historic hotel worth stopping by to have a drink and checking out. I ate lunch outside there and they have some great views. tons of great hikes to choose from- next trip hopefully I will have some time to do more
Had a four-day Father's Day weekend planned for hiking peaks in S. Colorado with high altitude camping. Weather forecast called for monsoonal flow meaning rain and storms....meaning high altitude camping isn't for me, usually. New Mexico is still on fire and closed, so that was out. Pointed the car the opposite direction for camping in the Black Hills and doing a Badlands drive-by. Spoiler Seeing Rushmore for the 10th or 12th time merited nothing more than a moving car window photo - we car camped nearby after arriving just before dark the night before. Had no real plan, but an outfitter in Custer City gave us a less-traveled trail recommendation that led to Black Elk Peak (elevation 7242', state high point, formerly called Harney Peak) - a 12.8 mile round trip drainage climb (2119') that has good campsites, good water access and the smallest crowds. We had a five star camp site hiking in 4-ish miles first night. Was really hot in there climbing up - low 90s it seemed. Our campsite was just below the most prominent center-left rock tower as we hiked up the drainage on the right side. Other than our brief time on the crowded Black Elk summit ridge, we saw 4 other hikers and 5 horse riders the whole two days on the trail or in camp. Opposite side of Black Elk summit, looking West-ish, I think. Not my first time on the summit, but we carried my infant daughter up it the previous time. This time she hiked it as a 19-year-old. On summit day, we did a 12 mile day - 8 miles up and back to the summit, and then 4 out to the trailhead with packs. Next day, made another visit to Badlands, one of America's greatest 1-day visit National Parks. Buffalo everywhere, and we got to watch a few of them run down ramps into the canyons. We did a quick hike, but it was scorching hot out, and the drive back to Denver was still facing us. MVP was outfitter shop - we had a very quiet, outdoors experience in a tourist trap of a location that is completely overrun with people.
You were right. Highline Trail not open. Logan Pass apparently wasn’t going to open til the first week of July. We entered the west side of the park before 6am since we didn’t have a reservation. Avalanche Trail was closed due to flooding. They got dumped with snow early last week then it was 80° on Friday. We ended up entering the east side of the park around 1PM. Definitely spent more time driving than I had hoped since Logan Pass was closed. Overall it was a great time and my dad really enjoyed his Father’s Day weekend.
Narrows hike in Zion (do it very early as it gets super hot and crowded later) and Fairyland Loop in Bryce Lots of people do the Angel's Landing hike in Zion but that is too dicey for me and I think you need an advance permit
I almost typed in my post that Avalanche would be a good short hike and a beautiful place to chill if the road wasn't open, so sorry that didn't work out either. It's an amazing park (quite possibly my favorite) but really only accessible 2.5-3 months per year. When we went two summers ago it was late July and they had just opened Logan Pass the week before. Plus the res on the east side was closed to outsiders due to COVID so everything was drive in/drive out the same way
One thing always suggest in zion is going to observation via the East Mesa trail. I've not kept up with it, but the traditional route to observation may still not be open. The narrows are awesome. Everybody is different but I would not waste money on the waterproof shoes or dry suits they rent in town. The water is cold, but you'll get used to and won't get hypothermia. I've done it twice in short and chacos, once when the the water was running at just below the cut off limit for too fast. If you want to get away from the crowds the Kolob Canyon entrance is nice and different from the main canyon. The Taylor Creek trail is a good one. The watchman trail from the visitors center is also nice and less travelled. Angels Landing is great to do once, but it definitely should be permitted, and if you can't get one there is still a ton of great trails. Nearby Zion is Kanarra Falls. Its a cool hike up a creek like a mini version of the narrows where you climb up a couple of waterfalls. In Bryce Fairyland is a good trail. If you are looking for something shorter the Queens Garden trails are good and similar. I think there are multiple combinations. Make sure to drive the whole park and see all of the lookoffs. For the Grand Canyon I prefer the north rim to south rim. It's so much less crowded.
I think if you're not doing a really involved multi-day hike, the best way to see the Grand Canyon is to pony up and do a helicopter tour. You can see a much larger portion and you get to land within it and I think it makes the scale much more "real". It's expensive but very worth it. There are a million companies that do them.
seconded. Many Glacier rules. Saw more wildlife there than in all the other parks combined (with the exception of maybe Yellowstone)
Going to take a little road trip the week of the 4th. Trying to nail down where to go using NPs as our guide. Our range is about 800-1k miles from Des Moines or something we can push to in a long single day or a add a short second day- 10-15 hours of map time. Narrowed down to GSMNP area Apostle Islands NS Badlands/Rushmore TRNP ND RMNP RMNP will be the busiest, I assume. I’ve been in the Rockies but not RMNP specifically. Same with GSMNP. We’ve driven the parkway from Asheville, but not been in the park. Any thoughts or other non-NP suggestions within that range? Can’t make a decision. Iowa sucks. We’re the furthest from anything worth a shit.
I would not make a trip specifically for Teddy Roosevelt. You can include it with Badlands/ Black Hill, but that is a long desolate drive. Rocky Mountain is great, and there is tons of stuff outside the park boundary as well. I live right outside of GSMNP and love it, so I'm a little biased. It's set up with different entrances and different sections which can help with congestion compared to other parks. It has been very, very hot here but it looks like we should stay out of the 90s for the next several days so that's a relief. If you have any questions or need suggestions feel free to ask.
It's great, prettiest place you will find for hundreds and hundreds of miles. Just be aware of all the people that just drive through or spend like 4 hours there. It has always felt congested to me, which is the last feeling I like at a park
Angels isn’t that bad. Biggest issue was the amount of people, but the mandatory permit will hopefully cut down on that a bit.
Anytime I hear or read about Acadia NP I get the Lana Del Rey song "Arcadia" stuck in my head for a few days so thanks for that. great song though