Second Stop.

My second stop was Jackson Hole, WY. I got there Thursday afternoon with enough time to wander around the downtown area and have a delicious milkshake from Jackson Drug, a burger joint in an old drug store. It was a relatively small town square area, with a TON of cute shops and restaurants, but it was almost hard to enjoy because of how heavy the traffic was. Still a pleasant afternoon.

​On Friday, I spent most of the day at Grand Teton National Park. I am DEFINITELY out of shape, but man did the hike feel good. It was a cooler day, started off rainy, so I did not expect to get as gross and sweaty as I did... BUT it was worth it. So gorgeous. Definitely a great national park to visit if you're looking for something smaller and easier to manage as it had a ton of signs and the visitor centers were incredibly helpful. 

On my way out of Jackson Hole Saturday morning, I stopped in Yellowstone... Like you can just pop in and out of Yellowstone... Ha! No. 

I left my hotel around 4:45 Saturday morning and was half way to Old Faithful in Yellowstone when the sun rose. Definitely worth getting up that early. I beat the crowds to Old Faithful and walked up about 3 minutes before she erupted. Stunning. I walked through the Upper Geyser Basin and saw a bunch of smaller geysers and hot springs. It smelled like sulfur and I had a close encounter with a bison, but it was beautiful nonetheless. 

After Upper Geyser Basin, I made my way over to the Midway Geyser Basin and saw the Grand Prismatic Spring. It's Yellowstone's largest hot spring and definitely draws a crowd because of its beauty. 

I slowly made my way toward the North entrance the rest of the day. Stopping at the little pull-offs/overlooks. Stopping at Gibbon Falls, which is a beautiful waterfall flowing into the Gibbon River. I walked back to my car only to notice I was trapped in by a tour bus... So I spent quite a bit of time at the falls. No complaints though!

I continued north, stopping at Roaring Mountain for a bit before heading to Mammoth Hot Springs. I didn't have the chance to make it up to Canary Spring, but I roamed the lower terrace hot springs for awhile before grabbing some food for the road. I'm really glad with what I did at Yellowstone, but I definitely felt I missed SO much of the park. The crowds/traffic pick up around 9:30/10a.m., so it really just got frustrating to see anything after then. If I get the chance to return, I'd like to camp and hike a lot more to try and see more of the splendor.

​Next headed north to Billings, MT for a couple days!