Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Park!

9-day recap of my travels between Wyoming’s 2 National Parks! If you plan to visit these 2 parks in a week, I’d easily recommend crafting a similar schedule! Already visited? Let me know if I missed anything, because I totally intend on going back, soon!

Day 1: San Diego to Grand Teton National Park

Direct flight to Bozeman, Montana. Picked up a rental car. Rented a cooler, purchased bear spray and camping propane at REI, and loaded up on groceries in Bozeman.
Drove through Yellowstone Park and arrived at Signal Mountain campground in Grand Teton National Park.

Day 2: Grand Teton | Delta Lake

Hiked and slid on snowpack (see video below) on an 8.5 mile out-and-back trail from Lupine Meadows to Delta Lake. Gained 2.4K feet elevation. AllTrails
Saw our first bear (squatting in the woods) within 200 yards off a switchback!
Skipped rocks and hammocked during sunset over Jackson lake, right next to our campsite.

Day 3: Grand Teton | Cascade Canyon Trail

Saw elk and moose on a 13.3 mile out-and-back hike to the Forks of Cascade Canyon starting at the Jenny Lake Visitor Center. Detoured to Hidden Falls waterfall and Inspiration point. Gained 1.1K feet elevation. AllTrails (we did not take the Jenny Lake ferry service.)
Visited Oxbow Bend for wildlife viewing, ate ice cream at the general store, and watched another sunset over Jackson lake.

Day 4: Grand Teton | String Lake to Yellowstone

Woke with the Sunrise overlooking the Tetons.
Swam with a leach, hammocked, and relaxed at String Lake.
Drove to Mammoth Campground in Yellowstone, the northern-most campground in the park.

Day 5: Yellowstone | Lamar Valley and Mammoth Hot Springs Terraces

Set an early 4am alarm to wake up with the wildlife in the Lamar Valley. Saw bison, moose, elk, pronghorn, 2 sandhill cranes with 2 chicks, and a distant black bear.
Hiked to a 50-million-year-old petrified tree and the Lost Lake. nps.gov
Hammocked and napped above a gentle stream.
Nerded-out at the thermophiles living in the Travertine Terraces of the Mammoth Hot Springs.¹

Day 6: Yellowstone | Geysers and Hot Springs Day

Saw trillions of thermophiles! Gazed at colored gradients of Archaea, Cyanobacteria, Fungi, Algae, and Protozoa, across pools of water ranging from 199°F to 80°F (93°C to 27°C) nps.gov
Watched Old Faithful, Riverside, Grand, and Daisy (from a distance) geysers erupt!
Walked along many hot pools including the picturesque Morning Glory and Grand Prismatic pools.

Day 7: Yellowstone | Hayden Valley, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, and Lamar Valley (Round 2)

Spotted wolves in Hayden Valley. White alpha female with multiple pups bounding in a snowbank. Might have been this wolf from the Wapiti wolf pack!?
2-mile hike alongside the Yellowstone river from South Rim Trail to Artist Point overlook.
2.6-mile hike aside mud pots, hot pools, and secluded lakes.
Sunset in Lamar valley with hundreds of bison.

Day 8: Yellowstone | Lamar Valley (round 3) to West Yellowstone

Awoke abruptly at 1:50am to 6 bison charging next to the tent, through the campground.
First to spot a bald eagle, otter, great blue heron, and a black bear that eventually crossed the road directly in front of our car. Bison and pronghorn plentiful once again!
More wolf spotting and watching pups bound around.
Exited Yellowstone park and settled in BLM land at a wild camping spot.

Day 9: West Yellowstone to San Diego

Packed up, gave away less than $10 of remaining food to nearby campers, returned rental cooler.
Brunch in Big Sky ski town.
Explored the Montana dinosaur museum for 1-hour.
Direct flight back to San Diego. Shower + Laundry immediately upon arrival home!

Footnote:

Because I’m a microbiologist, I have to geek out and share several hyperlinks of hydrothermal videos and information of thermophiles in Yellowstone:
a. Life in Extreme Heat, nps.gov, video and background of thermophiles.
b. The late emeritus professor of bacteriology at UW-Madison, Dr. Thomas Brock, and his foundational research of microorganisms in Yellowstone’s thermal springs. news.wisc.edu
c. Biotechnology applications of Thomas Brock’s Yellowstone discoveries used in modern science today. Article highlights SARS-CoV-2 testing. nytimes