Well, not really all to myself…I did share the park with a few other thousand visitors that happened to be visiting those few days in late May before peak season officially started, but I was one of the few people taking in the majestic sights solo.
Popular for decades as a family vacation staple, Yellowstone National Park is not often top of the list for a single gal’s vacation spot.
That being said, I loved being a solo traveler for my first visit to this natural wonder.
As a lone wolf (pun intended), I could decide which sights within the park were of greatest interest, and it what order I wanted to view them. Wanting to catch a glimpse of the hard-to-spot wolves of Lamar Valley, I decided to rise early both mornings. Not having to submit to anyone else’s schedule, I sat and watched in the morning stillness and was rewarded as a single grey wolf appeared before me; I stared in awe and watched him scouting about for food before heading on his way.
The challenge with Yellowstone is there is just so much to see. The massive park could be a state in and of itself and the mistake too many people make is trying to see everything in one visit. Unless you have more than a week just for driving the major loops and stopping at all the attractions along the way (not even counting side hikes or other activities), you can find yourself skipping things, rushing to the next major map stop. Many people don’t realize the speed limit inside the park is 45 mph and it means a longer commute between regions.
If I hadn’t taken my time on my first visit and focused on a few key quadrants, I would have missed a fantastic side trip down Firehole Canyon and the most serene lunch I’ve ever enjoyed, picnicking next to the rushing river, enjoying the companionship of countless birds, bugs and little critters.
When planning your first trip, look at the park as a whole and determine which features and animals are of most interest, then, map a route and choose the driving loops that best meet those needs without lots of overlap. You’ll maximize your time enjoying the things you most wanted to see in the first place and minimize the sense of “rushing to see it all” and the hurry-up attitude you probably came to Yellowstone to avoid in the first place!