kwaldeier

we are planning on going to Yellowstone National Park from June 5th to June 13th. i was just curious of the best places to go and best places to see?? Most importantly i would love to see EVERY animal offered in the park(or as many as i can). If i see an elk or moose i will die happy lol. we plan on coming in from the south entrance and going from there...any help is appreciated!!

salukipv1

asking a park ranger for updated info locally will be your best bet.

I think seeing wolves require being in a certain area they said and up at dawn...

you'll see a lot of animals, you may see a moose along the way from yellowstone to jackson, wy.

Wolf killer

I live just a few hours away from Yellowstone National Park.
I recommend the Lamar Valley for Buffalo, Elk & Wolf watching.

Bob H in NH

spent a week there in 2006. For elk, well pretty much everywhere, but the consistent place was mamoth in the north of the park. There was a herd that came down into town most days. We also consistently saw elk around Ol-Faithful. Buffalo head to Lamar valley.

Ask the rangers, the animals move around a bit and they are very good at pointing you where to go. We never saw a moose or bear. Saw sheep, elk, bison, wolves, pronghorn, coyote, whitetail and mulies and probably more.

kwaldeier

would it be possible to drive all of the "figure 8" highway or all of the major roads of yellowstone in 3 or 4 days???

Bob H in NH

Drive, it, yes. See it all, ummm much harder.

The figure 8 takes a couple hours end to end without stopping. Took us about 3 hours to go from Ol-Faithful in (souther end) to Mammoth Inn (northern end). Also note if I rmember right the "bottom" of the 8 is actually a long ways inside the southern (Jackson side) entrance.

There aren't tons of places to stay, for hotel style you have mammoth and ol faithful. There's cabins in 1 or two spots, then some camp grounds. You will need very advanced reservations for mammoth and Ol faithful. As in you may already be to late for this spring/summer.

It's a BIG place with a slow speed limit. then there's the "nature created" traffic jams to contend with

kwaldeier

we are currently booking for june and they do have some available at the mammoth place....me personally i am worried about getting good wildlife photos....was the wildlife you seen within camera range?? or the range you would need a 10x zoom camera?? thanks!

Bob H in NH

The bison in the above picture is about 10 feet from the car, and he came within 2 feet. You will see animals from the roads, but when you do, so will 100's of other people. Get off the roads and do some hikes, we saw, up close, many animals that where away from people.

Elk in Mammoth come into the town and are almost touchable.




this bull is about 20 yards off a road, and caused a MAJOR traffic jam:



these cows are around the board walk at Ol-Faithfull:

newton29

I'm also considering an early June trip. What's the chance of hitting significant snowfall in the mountain passes near the park at that time? I would be coming via Dubois, Wy.

bullelk1

Lamar Valley and Hayden Valley will have a lot of animals, and the figure 8 drive is a good idea. Check road conditions in early June, because some mountain passes can get snowed in. Don't miss out on the scenery while looking for animals, if you have never visited the park. The grand canyon of the Yellowstone, geyser basins, and waterfalls are amazing natural wonders. Have fun and bring warm clothes!!