When planning our route west we included a 2 night stay in the Yellowstone area in order to pay the park a brief visit. The brevity of our time allotment was due in large part to Art’s desire to avoid the swell of people that flock to this park each summer. According to one local magazine, Yellowstone welcomes 4 million visitors each year!

With this limited time parameter, we chose to focus our day around the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. This spectacular gorge offers many overlooks that afford views of the canyon, the falls, the Yellowstone River and the vast wilderness beyond. Though each site was teeming with people, we were still able to find parking, snap a few pictures and hang over the ledge and marvel. As I said about the Tetons, the same holds true here – pictures do not capture the grandeur.

Following our exploration of this area, we found a spot along the Gibbon River to eat lunch. The crystal clear water tumbling over the rocks was a balm to the soul – peaceful and relaxing.

Obviously, one day provided just a snapshot of what this park has to offer. There is just so much to see over a very large area. But instead of focusing on what we did not see, we feel very blessed to have seen what we did. The takeaway here is to visit Yellowstone, no matter how briefly, you won’t regret it!