Today is our last full day to explore Yellowstone, so we are heading to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and West Thumb for today’s adventure.

Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

The Yellowstone River has carved a 20-mile canyon up to 1000 feet deep and 4000 feet across at its widest from the Upper Falls to the Tower Fall area. There are several viewing points along both the North and the South Rims to take in Upper Falls and Lower Falls from differing perspectives. Cascades Creek’s Crystal Falls can also be glimpsed from the South Rim Trail.

Lower Falls – Artist Point

Thomas Moran’s sketches and paintings of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone helped increase the interest in establishing Yellowstone as America’s first national park. The paintings from this viewpoint resulted in the Artist Point name. The view today is as awe-inspiring as it was in the 1870s. The Lower Falls plummet 308 feet (93.9m) as the Yellowstone River flows through its namesake yellow rock canyon. When the sunlight hits the canyon walls just right, they light up in brilliant yellows, oranges, and reds.

Upper Falls Viewpoints

The Upper Falls is only a third the height of the Lower at 109 feet (33.2m), but no less spectacular as it really kicks off the start of the canyon. I was also able to catch glimpse of Crystal Falls by discretely following a family who had a private guide!

Canyon Village

After exploring the South Rim viewpoints for the falls, it was time for lunch, so we drove a couple of miles back to Canyon Village. Similar to the Mammoth and Old Faithful areas, there is a lodge, cabins, visitor center, dining options, etc. We found the 60s-style diner inside the General Store and ordered burgers and fries. The young man who waited on us was from Jarrell, Texas, a small town between Waco and Austin on I-35 remembered for its deadly and devastating F5 tornado in 1997. Many of the workers we talked to during the trip are college students working at the park from all over the US.

Refortified after our meal, we headed south towards West Thumb.

Hayden Valley

This valley, through which the Yellowstone River runs on its way to the canyon, is known for its wildlife viewing. And indeed, we found a large herd of bison. They were a safe distance from the road, so we didn’t witness any tourist-tossing events.

Mud Volcano and Dragon Mouth Springs

Just past where the bison like to hangout, is another thermal area. The two most popular features here are the Mud Volcano and Dragon Mouth Springs. There are several other thermal features here if you want to take a short loop walk (0.8 miles).

Fishing Bridge

Fishing Bridge crosses the Yellowstone River where Yellowstone Lake exits and the road (Hwy 14) then goes to the East Entrance toward Cody, Wyoming. At Fishing Bridge there is the only full-hookup RV park in the park, another visitor center, general store, etc. At nearby Lake, there is another lodge and cabins.

West Thumb Geyser Basin

If you look at Yellowstone Lake – it resembles a left hand. The palm is at the north end of the lake, fingers extend south, and the thumb sticks out to the west – thus West Thumb. There is a loop trail here along about a mile of boardwalk that takes you past dormant geysers and colorful springs along the shore of Lake Yellowstone. This is not a beach for sunbathing – you’ll get scorched from below!

From West Thumb back to the house is approximately 53 miles. We will be on Hwy 191/20 following the lower loop back to West Yellowstone the way we returned from our Grand Teton trip a couple of days before. Going once again past Old Faithful, past Black Sand Basin, past the closed Biscuit Basin, past Midway Basin and Grand Prismatic Spring still with overflowing traffic. Firehole Lake Drive was still closed as well. About 5 miles after the westward turn at Madison, the traffic started backing up, so we knew there were likely critters about. We spotted a few elk grazing along the river.

And not far past that it backed up again – only this time it was for a wreck. There was a loaded SUV on its side well off the road and at least 10 feet down the embankment. Hopefully no one was seriously hurt. We saw a second car with some damage pulled over to the opposite side of the road. No telling what happened exactly, but I’d guess someone either suddenly stopped or turned and the other vehicle couldn’t react in time. Between the animals, winding roads, and distracted drivers, I’m surprised this was the only wreck we saw while there.

For dinner, we went to the Madison Crossing Lounge in an old schoolhouse in West Yellowstone. We all enjoyed our meals. Then, it was back to the house to start packing up to start the next leg of our adventure tomorrow morning. And cards, of course!