I’m incredibly excited to tell you all about this amazing trip. I haven’t talked about it much, because my photos have been sitting on my SD card, waiting patiently for me to take a look at them. To be honest, the past few weeks have been exhausting and the last thing I have wanted to do is sit down and edit photos. But this past weekend I was struck with some motivation and I got it done!! This post is going to be a bit longer than usual, and a two-parter, but I have a good story and incredible photos to show y’all!!
First off, I renewed my contract until December because I am loving it in Washington, and the facility I’m working at is great. I requested a week off in between contracts to recharge. Recharging, for me, meant taking a road trip and getting into nature. Cody and I planned a vacation to Yellowstone, a national park neither of us had been to. We planned a two-night camping trip in the park, a day in Jackson, a trip to the Tetons, and a day of driving around Yellowstone doing the typical touristy things like Old Faithful (which was pretty neat).
We left Washington super early on Saturday in order to get to West Yellowstone by evening. We had a hotel room reserved for the night at Yellowstone Country Inn. It was about a 12-hour drive, and we made a couple stops along the way for food and gas, but not much else. The drive was gorgeous. Montana is absolutely beautiful. They don’t call it Big Sky Country for ‘nothin! We made it to the hotel just in time to make sure we had all the gear and food we needed, and that we were packed appropriately. We went to bed already exhausted, knowing that we would be up early so we could make it to our shuttle.
Packed up and ready to go!!!
Sunday morning we got up, packed up the car, and headed into Yellowstone National Park. We were meeting our shuttle driver early so he could drive us from our end destination where the car was parked, to the trail head. Our driver was great. He talked a lot about the wildlife (he loved him some bears), and about the decreased number of backpackers this year. He helped us unload our packs, and bid us farewell and good luck on our trip. We were officially on trail.
We started at Biscuit Basin, a collection of geysers with a wooden walking bridge above the thermal field. There were a few people at Biscuit Basin that morning. It was a cool morning with blue skies, perfect for starting out. We got on trail and made our way into the woods. Once we got started we only saw one other couple who was hiking in the opposite direction we were. They told us our camping site for the evening was beautiful and that we would really enjoy it.
Black Diamond trekking poles by the Black Diamond Pool. 
Look at all those thermal features!!! 
Sorta looks like a biscuit, yeah? 
Grand Prismatic?! Nope.
The hiking was beautiful. We passed rivers and wildflowers. We were able to see some features in the distance from above, and we also passed some evidence of past wildfires. We took a lunch break at OD3, a gorgeous campsite beside a river and waterfall. We took off our shoes and cooled off our feet before starting up again.
Biscuit Basin from the trail 
Campsite OD3 
I love adventuring with you ❤
We hiked about 6 miles the first day, ending our day at Firehole Meadows, campsite OD2. We scoped out the campsite, set up our tent and hammock, and broke out the snacks. We refilled our water bottles in the nearby river. We got there pretty early, so we snoozed in the hammock for awhile. As we sat looking out at the field, we wondered if it wouldn’t be better to move the tent closer to the meadow. After all, it was supposed to be a clear night and we would have an amazing view of the stars, and maybe see some big animals the next morning if we got up early enough. We moved the tent and slept with the rain fly off.
Trail to OD2 
OD2 campsite 
Firehole Meadow 
A gorgeous sunset 
I woke up a few times during the night and was delighted to see more stars than I had ever seen in my life. I was able to see the Milky Way, too!! It was amazing! The craziest thing about the first night, for me, was the complete silence. There were no bugs, no birds, no rustling around of animals, no cars or airplanes. It was completely quiet, save for the squeaking of the sleeping pads when we moved. It was eerie almost, but at least birds weren’t keeping me awake like they had the past couple times I had camped outside. Sleeping in the meadow was peaceful.
When we woke up the next morning, it was still pretty chilly, so we hung out in the tent for a bit. As we were getting around for the day, we were able to see some elk creeping in and out of the tree line. We made breakfast and packed up the tent, preparing for another gorgeous day of backpacking.
Of course we talked about lunch plans while we were hiking. We decided to take a break at Fairy Falls for lunch and to refill our water. Our campsite for that night was only a short hike from the falls and we thought it would be a good breaking point for the day. Once we got closer to the falls, however, we were told there was a grizzly on the trail! Yes, a real live grizzly bear was just hanging out on the trail ahead of us. As we got even closer, I pulled my bear spray out of my backpack and Cody pulled out his phone to take pictures; we were ready. The bear was up the hill at this point, lunching on huckleberries and minding his own bearsiness. We treaded carefully, but quickly, and warned everyone we passed about the bear. Most people hurried ahead saying, “I know!” excitedly. I thought those people were nuts! Bears are scary! It was pretty amazing being less than 100 yards from a grizzly, though.
Photo credit: Cody Feller
We were also able to see some incredible thermal features the second day. A hot springs led into a hot river. We could feel the heat coming off the water. The heat and bacteria in the water had stained all the rock and wood a strange yellow color. The feature itself was a vibrant blue. We hiked along that river for a bit.
Look at that geyser! I wonder how often this one goes off… 
We ended up stopping for lunch at a river crossing. We refilled our water there, and I soaked my feet in the cool water. I was feeling pretty good that afternoon, and we had already checked out our campsite. After spending the night in an open field, it was disappointing. Our second night’s campsite was literally surrounded by trees and there was zero view. We ate lunch, filled up on water, and decided to hike the rest of the trail that afternoon. It was still early in the day and we were both feeling like hiking more. So, after lunch, we hiked on!
This is OD1. Fairly disappointing after spending the night in the open. 
We stopped at the Grand Prismatic and we were lucky to have a clear, sunny day. We hiked up the Overlook Trail and boy, was it gorgeous. If you ever go to Yellowstone, maybe bypass the Spring Trail and do the Overlook Trail. You get a full view of the spring in all its glory.
You can see the people on the Spring Trail across the Grand Prismatic.
After getting our fill of the Grand Prismatic Spring, we continued. The afternoon was hot, and the rest of the trail was flat. The remainder of the trail was in full sun. We saw some more thermal features, and we even saw some buffalo in the distance. We had crossed off so many wildlife in two days! Elk, grizzly, AND buffalo?! This place is W I L D, folks. I was absolutely thrilled. We completed the trail around 3:30 and we were beat. We loaded our packs into the car, feeling accomplished and exhausted, and headed into Jackson for the evening.
Done!! Happy, tired, and ready for the next one!!
We got a hotel room for the evening, rinsed off quick and went to Snake River Brewery for supper. Burgers, fries, and beer: Is there a better way to end a backpacking trip?
My first backpacking trip was a complete success and I can’t wait for the next one. I have a few more days of the trip to talk about, but I’ll do that in Part 2!
I have 11 more weeks left in Washington and so much more to do!! I hope everyone is staying safe and staying healthy. Keep on keepin’, friends!
ShutterbugRN Travels 