Madison Junction is a mountainous part of Yellowstone, on the west side of the park, just within…read morethe west entrance. It's the confluence of the Madison and Gibbon Rivers, where they go from snow melt and hot springs through the park, to ultimately merge into the Yellowstone River. This area is full of wildlife- including the great American Bison! They're out here in numbers. There's so many of them. Fortunately, there's lots of pull off opportunities to get a good gander at the bison without jeopardizing the traffic. Madison offers a smaller visitors center, but the real visitors center is in West Yellowstone. Madison Junction has become one of the more major entrances to the park since the floods washed out the roads from the North Entrance. The campgrounds here looked nice, lots of shade.

My favorite part of the park I start at the west entrance and travel to the Madison junction and…read moreback to entrance I see almost every animal in the park beautiful area

The Fountain Paint Pot area is a large part of the lower geyser basin with hiking trails and…read moreparking. The walk to three geysers is around 45min round trip on boardwalks among pools, springs, steaming mudpots and fumaroles. Most are not very colorful. A lot of greys, tans, chalky colors, huffing and puffing. Some reddish hues. The pool and the spring are a lovely clear blue, when their steam is not obscuring them from view. It was easier to see the blue color in the further-north Silex Spring, which you can also see from the road. It's all geologically and volcanically amazing. Interspersed, there are groves of live pines, and groves of skeletal trees with their bases stained white by evaporating mineral waters. Parking is just south of Fountain Paint Pot. It wasn't too crowded at 10:20am on a Wednesday. (Jul 2026).

Clepsydra Geyser FTW! At Yellowstone you'll see many perpetual fumaroles, sure. But perpetual…read moregeysers?? Try finding a tall one, ha! Well, Clepsydra's not *that* tall, but its height remains admirable, and hey, perpetual. + Spouting 40' behind the 3' Spasm Geyser. + Not so crowded. . Located in Lower Geyser Basin (5min 2mi north of Midway Geyser Basin (Grand Prismatic Spring)). + This trail is one of the shorter boardwalks of Yellowstone. A quick and easy visit.

This spot gives you an amazing panoramic view of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone from the north…read moreside. Lookout Point is one of a few lookout spots you can stop at when you drive on North Rim Drive (a one-way drive). Just heads up, the parking lot isn't very large. If you continue on with your drive on North Rim Drive, you will eventually end up in Canyon Village. If you want to make an adventure of your stop here, I suggest hiking the North Rim Trail east to Inspiration Point and enjoy the beautiful views along the way. There is also a paved path and some wooden steps below that take you down to a viewing platform called Red Rock Point. This will give you a close full view of Lower Falls. Lookout Point was one of my favorite spots to stop at on the North Rim. I highly recommend checking it out.

At the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone there is a lower and upper portion of the falls. This is the…read morelookout point on the lower falls and I think this is the best view of the lower falls. You can go to the brink of the lower falls to see the top of the waterfall, but this lookout overlooks the entire thing which I think is better. Another underrated view is the red rocks view which is right next to this lookout point. Instead of going straight to the lookout you go down the stairs, walk a bit and then get to the red rocks view which is a bit closer to the waterfall and more eye-level. There are also fewer people here so you'll have more time to take nice pictures and videos without the crowds.

O give me a home Where the buffalo roam…read moreAnd the sky is not cloudy all day! Home! Home on the range! This is it. This is the place that they're singing about- so many buffalo! This valley is a total change in environment from the rest of the Yellowstone National Park. These lazily rolling hills seem like old floodplains of the Yellowstone River. Along this stretch of the river, fishing is limited, but it sure looks like there's good trout in all these waters. My favorite parts of Hayden Valley are the mud pits and mud pots, and the mud volcano. Here, they have a boardwalk that takes you on a short walk past violently gurgling and gushing mud pits, where the geothermal energy churns up mud violently, so it looks like a dragon is living in the muck under the surface. We saw so many buffalo here, just hanging out along the side of the road, in the fields, just chillin'. They cause traffic jams, so be prepared.

No wonder they call Lamar Valley, not Hayden Valley, America's Serengeti. There are a few bison…read moresitting beside the road, but not enough energetic ones for that road-crossing experience. Still a cool sighting nonetheless. They just lying there in the sun peacefully, watching drivers pass by. It's a pleasant drive between Mud Volcano and Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.

Old Faithful is an icon of Yellowstone, and the Old Faithful Visitor and Education Center is a…read moregreat first stop before heading to the geyser. They provide predicted eruption times for Old Faithful and other nearby geysers, which is very helpful for planning your visit. There's free Wi-Fi and ample parking, making it a convenient place to wait for the next eruption. You can also get suggestions on trails and viewpoints, based on the latest prediction timetable. A great place to start your Old Faithful visit!

I would definitely say this is the most aesthetically pleasing visitor center in the park as the…read moremodern architecture and how it faces the Old Faithful is beautifully well done. This visitor center and all of the rangers here were super friendly to all & plenty of knowledge & exhibits to walk through to learn about Yellowstone. The NPS really knows how to take care of their visitor centers and the gift store here had plenty of goodies to look at for all that want to collect souvenirs and get those passport stamps.

Bunsen peak is a lovely hike that I would consider to be moderate. I received the rec to do this…read morehike from a ranger at the station near West Geyser after I'd asked about Mount Washburn trail and Avalanche peak (recs from a friend). The ranger told me that the peaks were actually still covered in snow (per cameras they have) and that the trails would be icy even though it was the end of May, so they wouldn't be recommended. But she said that Bunsen offers a lovely landscape peak at the top and had almost no snow at all so it would be a good option. I'm glad I went! The trailhead has a small parking lot, there were a couple spots available when I came around 10am. It took me about an hour to go up the trail to the peak, and I did encounter some snow and slippery areas because of how steep they were near the peak, but it was navigable with just my hiking boots (I didn't have chains or crampons on). The view at the top was totally worth it, it was just stunning! You get a 360 view depending on where you're standing, and the weather was excellent too - clear skies with just a few clouds and a cool breeze but it isn't cold since you're moving around. Was a great place to stop for a snack, and I actually had 2-3 bars of signal so I FaceTimed my mom to show her the view. Would rec this trail to anyone visiting Yellowstone who wants a moderate hike with a gorgeous sweeping view of the park, including all the way into mammoth lake area and Montana!

Remember the old days in high school where you got to use a Bunsen Burner in science lab? Well this…read morepeak is named after the guy who invented it - German chemist Robert Bunsen. He was responsible for early work on volcanic geyser theories and got a mountain named after him for it. When I visited Yellowstone, my goal was to do a hike everyday. This one was probably my favorite. It's relatively short and gives you amazing panoramic views. The hike to Bunsen Peak summit is 2.1 miles (4.2 miles roundtrip). You can get there and back in 3-4 hrs. But you don't have to go all the way to the top to get great views. You can see Mammoth Hot Springs in the far distance within the first hour of the hike. The beginning part of the hike is filled with a lot of trees until you make a turn at Cathedral Rock. Then you hit a lot of switchbacks until you get to the top. You can continue on to Osprey Falls from the summit if you want to make your day a little longer. Parking for Bunsen Peak is right off Grand Loop Road. The lot is pretty small and fills up quick. There is another parking lot across the street and down the road a little bit if you don't mind the short walk. This hike was a lot of fun! I highly recommend you fit it in your day if you are visiting Yellowstone.

Great place to visit to learn more about Yellowstone National Park. This historic building was…read morebuilt by the United States Army in 1909 to house the troops who protected the park before the National Park Service was established. It's located next to Mammoth Hot Springs. The interactive displays tell the history of the park and about the landscape and wildlife. There are staff on hand to answer your questions and a bookstore inside that sells resources about Yellowstone.

In the first major stop coming from the NW entrance of Yellowstone is the Mammoth Springs Historic…read moreDistrict. One of the historic aspects of this community, besides the hot springs, is Fort Yellowstone, first started in 1872 and taken over by the National Park Service in the early 1900s. The Horace M Albright visitor center should be your first stop. It used to be a bachelor's officers quarters, with room for six, and is not only a good source of information about Fort Yellowstone, it a small museum with info on the park, the animals in it, and the nearby Springs. The Park Rangers operating the desk are a font of information. There are monitors near the desk that provide details of the camp sites, traffic and nearby lodgings. It's hard to reconcile the modern day technology in a building over a 100 years old. Many of the original buildings that make up Fort Yellowstone are still standing and although occupied by employees of the park and the district and not available for a tour, it's still worth a walk to interesting walk. As you walk, you'll probably also see a herd of resident elk, sometimes walking and sometimes sitting. (They aren't tame, though, and the signs at the visitor center warn you not to approach them.) On your way to the Springs and the hiking path around them, take a few extra moments and learn about the pre-park history.

Biscuit Basin is Closed Due to a 2024 Hydrothermal Explosion! The parking lot, boardwalk, basin…read moreand Firehole River at Biscuit Basin, located north of Old Faithful, is closed to all travel until further notice due to the possibility of another event at this site.

This review is for Mystic Falls, Fairy Creek & Little Firehole Loop which was a ~3.5 miles round…read moretrip that took ~2 hours to complete. Trail begins along the flat boardwalks at the Biscuit Basin with a few smaller geysers and pools. This was where majority of the crowds were at. The dirt trail becomes narrow as you steadily hike towards the top and eventually loops down towards the waterfall. Stunning views of Mystic Falls and the surrounding areas of Yellowstone! Carry bear spray; the chances of encountering a bear is lower at popular trails but you never know. Short video of the hike for those interested! https://youtu.be/o2TcYheYtEk