Yellowstone & Black Hills

[TN Blondie]

Originally Posted by Michael Gray

Stayed first night in Kearney, as planned. 2nd day we drove a little farther than planned, stayed in Thermopolis, WY. Cannot recommend any of the campgrounds yet. Made it to Yellowstone on Monday. Fishing Bridge Campground is very close to a General Store, gasoline, RV/Auto Repair, Visitor Center, and close to the best spot to watch for all kinds of wildlife. We leave early every day exploring and watching for wildlife, and return to the RV near or at dark. We have done the north and south loop. We saw countless Bison, Elk, 7 moose, 5 wolves, and 2 Grizzlies. All but the moose were within 10 miles of Fishing Bridge CG. We will stay here again.

We are in Cody, WY now at the Ponderosa CG. It is tight, but looks like it is one of the best 2 CGs here. The other was full, this one almost full.

Tomorrow we will drive Chief Joseph Highway, and Beartooth Pass to Red Lodge MT, then back. A lady at the visitor center said my route should take about 5 hours, but we have all day. Then tomorrow night, we'll see the sites of downtown Cody...an old west shootout across from the hotel/restaurant Buffalo Bill built and named for his daughter, Irma.

Thanks for the update. I'm glad to read that you'd stay at Fishing Bridge again! If you don't mind, how big of a rig are you in, and how tight did you think Fishing Bridge was?

[RoadHappy]

Ours is 30' w/ no slides. Our site was specific for a 30 or less. There was room for slides on either side of our unit. The water/electric hookup is in the center of the asphalt pad. You park the rv on the left side and then park the towed vehicle on asphalt behind the unit. In front there was room for our awning and then there was another 10 or more feet to the next site....and that was his towed vehicle. The rear front corner of our rv was only a few feet from the rear front corner of the unit parked behind us. Here is a video tour of the CG. It's just like this:

Fishing Bridge Campground - Yellowstone National Park - YouTube

Location is the advantage to this park. It is 27 miles from the East entrance to Fishing Bridge Campground....and everything we wanted to see is west of Fishing Bridge. If you look at a map of YS, you'll see LeHardys Rapids. There are lots of pull-outs where you can park and see lots of wildlife from there to Sulpher Cauldren. There are herds of bison and elk grazing on both sides of the road. Just across Yellowstone River, there is a huge field where we saw wolves stalking the elk, and early one morning saw the grizzlys. We saw 2 moose somewhere between Madison and Norris, then 5 more driving toward the South Entrance while heading to Tetons one morning. Our neighbor in the CG told us that it's more likely to spot wolves and grizzlys in the early morning and late evening hours, and that's when we saw them. Bison and Elk are out all the time and you have to drive carefully because they are often on the roads.

[TN Blondie]

Michael Gray -

Thanks for a comprehensive answer and additional information on wildlife sightings!

[RoadHappy]

Yesterday on Beartooth Highway (in the Jeep) & today when we just pulled in at Devil's Tower KOA.

[Barefoot68]

When you head out to parts unknown how do you find a place to camp. Do you book ahead or watch for camping signs? We have always booked ahead but are times when I just want to stop somewhere for a few days to enjoy the sites. Sometimes hard to find something with 50 amp service and park s 37' 5th wheel

[Gorlininc]

Your trip sounds great. Obviously you are on a schedule. Understandable.
I'm on a 8 month trip and can't get everything in. I'm already planning my next year trip. See what you like. You can always come back for other sights. They aren't going anywhere.
Safe travels
Rick

[RoadHappy]

Yes Barefoot, we had this trip scheduled pretty tight. The only reservations we had though were at Yellowstone. The others we picked during the day while traveling, or the night before online. We used the Goodsam club and Trip Advisor reviews of campgrounds a lot.