West Yellowstone WOW

We spent two nights in Livingston, Montana, at Osen RV Park — a commercial campground for the weekend.  We avoid commercial campgrounds, preferring the more rustic settings. Since we are living a lot more without reservations this year, and last weekend was the last weekend before school starts in this area, we got reservations for the weekend. We didn’t know the town (Livingston), and the low-price campsites were likely to be full of locals who would have a hundred-mile head start to get a campsite. Picking a campsite without knowing the area is easy, unless the competition is high, like on a Saturday. 

West Yellowstone

So this morning, Monday, we got going early (for us) and arrived in West Yellowstone before 11 am. We drove right by the first campground in West Yellowstone with hopes of getting a more remote place that is more scenic and quiet.

We had planned to go to Mammoth Hot Springs and camp in Yellowstone National Park but instead went through Bozeman to Hebgen Lake, about eight miles west of West Yellowstone.  The change was because if we stayed at Mammoth Hot Springs, it would be crowded; this week is the last week of heavy tourist season in Yellowstone. Labor Day marks the start of the quiet season in the park.

We are delighted with the decision because we picked a campsite on the water with a lake view. I saw trout rising as we pulled up and again this evening as the shadows were getting long. 

From this campsite, we have easy access to Yellowstone. We passed through a small section of the park and a small section of Wyoming only to exit the park and re-enter Montana just north of West Yellowstone. This afternoon, we took a five-mile drive into Idaho to get the kayaks inspected and then turned around back to Montana to our campsite. 

Gallatin River

The drive south of Bozeman was easy and very beautiful. The road follows the Gallatin River as it flows north from Yellowstone, one of three main rivers feeding the Missouri River. The Jefferson River, Madison River, and Gallatin combine near Butte Montana to become the Missouri River. The river was a clear, green color, very beautiful, and looked very fishy. 

Hebgen Lake

Our campsite is on the Madison arm of Hebgen Lake, which flows into the Madison River and is also sourced in Yellowstone. Driving in was rough: first, the road was paved, then washboard dirt, followed by deep potholes. The fence along the route was removed, but the poles remained, and signs stated that buffalo were common in the area. Once in the campground, we had warnings about food storage and grizzly bears.

I expect to break another tradition during our stay here (planned for two weeks) by sending out more frequent reports about Yellowstone. I am wowed by the campsite and expect to be wowed by the park.

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Links

Here is a link to the google map for the area.

Link to our 2019 Route

Link to our route Minot North Dakota to Boise

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