Tuesday, May 26, 2020
Cody, Wyoming to Pahaska Tepee, Wyoming
Yellowstone Day 1
Highlights: Icy East Entrance, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, waterfalls, fumeroles, mud pots, colorful hot springs, playful geysers, wildlife, and empty roads, parking lots, and boardwalks
We left Cody heading west on the Buffalo Bill Scenic Highway. Just past Pahaska Tepee Resort (where we'll be staying tonight), we entered Yellowstone National Park via its East Entrance, the most scenic entrance road to the park and one we'd never traveled before.
Along the Buffalo Bill Scenic Highway
Yellowstone had only partially reopened from the Covid shutdown a few days earlier (Lower Loop only, no lodging, no camping, no food, no tour buses, visitor centers closed, and only two of the five entrances open), and it felt like we had the park to ourselves. We turned north at the Lake Village intersection and started traveling the loop counterclockwise, stopping early and often. The lack of people was astonishing.
The world's first national park, since 1872
From Lake Butte Overlook, along the East Entrance Road
Icy Yellowstone Lake
Parking at the Mud Volcano area - Nobody here!
Empty boardwalk
Steaming mud pots
We took our sweet time exploring the geothermal features, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River and its massive waterfalls, and looking for wildlife, making it as far as Norris Geyser Basin before we ran short on time and had to backtrack out of the park. A spooky secluded hike through the Back Basin section of Norris Geyser Basin was my favorite part of this outstanding day.
308-foot Lower Falls from Artist Point, on the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River
110-foot Upper Falls from Uncle Tom's Trail, on the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River
Empty viewpoint of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
Porcelain Basin, Norris Geyser Basin
Back Basin, Norris Geyser Basin
Playful geyser in the Back Basin
Bison in Hayden Valley
Shortly before dark, we checked into our lodge just outside the East Entrance of the park and took a short drive around the area looking for more wildlife. Just down the road, we saw see a deer swim across a stream.
Entering a stream near Pahaska Tepee
Swimming
Made it!
Lodging: Pahaska Tepee Resort, home of Buffalo Bill's historic 1904 lodge, two miles outside the East Entrance of Yellowstone. With no lodging open in the park at this time, this is as close as you can get. We rented one side of a cute little duplex cabin. It was comfy, but the walls were paper thin so we had to be super quiet. No WiFi or cell signal here - no problem. For dinner, we had big delicious burgers and beers in the lodge's restaurant.
Driving distance: 190 most satisfying miles
Pahaska Tepee Resort
Our little cabin
Buffalo Bill's lodge, 1904
Tom
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