Yellowstone Territory

Yellowstone National Park offers an unparalleled collection of natural oddities, but for great
scenery, the sights are better outside the park. Don’t miss the Chief Joseph Scenic Byway (WY
Rt 296), the Beartooth Highway (US 212), the Cody Highway (US 14/16/20), the Absoroka
Range, and, above all, next-door Grand Teton National Park.

US 191, south out of Yellowstone and the Teton Parkway (no longer US 191) to Moose Junction,
WY, is arguably the most spectacular mountain road anywhere (however, Charles Osgood
preferred the Beartooth Highway). It runs mostly in the valley. Three essential stops are 1]
Oxbow viewpoint, a short way south on US 191 after the turn-off to the Teton Parkway, then
retrace; 2] Mt. Moran overlook; and 3] the lobby windows of Jackson Lake Lodge.

While not in the same league as the above, there are also impressive scenic drives from Bozeman,
MT, to West Yellowstone, MT, with a side trip to Big Sky; from Livingston, MT, to Gardiner,
MT, at Yellowstone north entrance, and from Bozeman or Livingston to Red Lodge, MT ,via I-90
and MT 78, with a side trip on MT 298 (where Dave Letterman and Tom Brokaw have homes) into
the heart of the Absoroka Range, and a stop at Greycliffs Prairie Dog State Park, south just off I-
90 at the Greycliff exit.

The Beartooth Highway has a short open season, as it tops off at 10,000 feet and is closed by snow
during the long winter. At the summit, the vegetation and climate along the road is classified as
Arctic tundra.

Route 296, the Chief Joseph Scenic Byway--our favorite drive in the area--and US 212, across
northern Yellowstone to Gardiner and Livingston, are kept open year-round. We have never made
the trip in winter, since we are too busy skiing, but if we were free, this is the first place I would
head to see grand mountain scenery in mid-winter splendor, blanketed by snow.

There are good views of a deep, narrow river canyon, especially from the bridge (there are
sidewalks) at the rest stop on Route 296.

Quick Tips:

The best time for all these drives is as soon as the roads are clear of snow in the spring, when the
hills are green but still topped by snow-capped peaks. However, people who live where green
dominates the summer landscape might find mid-summer and fall, when everything turns brown,
more interesting, as this is a type of landscape they rarely see.

The cheapest lodging in the Yellowstone region is in Bozeman and Livingston. Although they
look furthest away from Yellowstone, only Gardiner and West Yellowstone are closer in driving
time unless you stay in the Park. After some 15 trips to the Yellowstone region, we have come to
prefer Cody, WY as our favorite place to stay. Second choice, Gardiner. West Yellowstone isn’t
bad either if proximity to Yellowstone is your chief concern

Montana’s room tax is complex; 7% in West Yellowstone, 4% in Bozeman and Livingston, and
6% in Gardiner.

Avoid summer, when Yellowstone is packed. Having taken my own advice, I can’t tell you just
how packed it is in summer, but consider this: once, in the fall off-season and not on a weekend,
we could not find a parking place at Tower Falls parking lot.

Best Way To Get Around:

A car is essential.

Route 296 is a superb mountain road.

The Beartooth Highway is ancient and decrepit. In 2005, they started a 6-year modernization of
the road. Expect delays.

The roads in Yellowstone suck. They would embarrass a poverty-stricken third-world
dictatorship. They are narrow, rough, twisting, and jammed with traffic. They are an
embarrassment to the USA, so far below the quality of roads in France and Germany that
Congress, who is responsible for their deplorable condition, ought to hang its head in shame.
Count yourself lucky if you can drive 40mph in Yellowstone, and doubly blessed if you don’t
need new struts afterward. On the positive side, improvements are gradually being made, but they
are too little, too late.

Roads in Grand Teton NP are better than in Yellowstone.

Flat-landers take note: mountain roads have big hills. It is imperative, when going downhill, to
shift into a lower gear, 1 or 2 or low, to use the engine to brake your speed. Brakes alone can’t
do the job. You will destroy them, maybe not on the first hill, but sooner or later, you will go
flying off a curve.

Gardiner is one of three small Montana Towns located at the gates of Yellowstone National Park. Rooms here are generally less expensive than in the park. Gardiner has lower a little rates than West Yellowstone and it’s closer to major park features. Mammoth Hot Springs nearby. Gardiner’s disadvantage is that it is much smaller than West Yellowstone, has only a few restaurants and limited nightlife.

This was one of the best Comfort Inns we have encountered. Room rates vary greatly depending on the season, ranging from $50-$175. The motel sits well back from the road and uphill, minimizing traffic noises, not that there is much nighttime traffic here. With no neighboring buildings blocking the view, there are nice views of the surrounding mountains in every direction.

As soon as we walked in the door to register, the lobby got our attention. This is no postage stamp sized motel lobby. The lobby extends almost the full width of the building, is two or three stories high, and decorated with big game trophies and a grotesque Elk antler chandelier (bring your camera in). The lobby decor is 20th Century ersatz rustic. It brought to mind my artist friend’s basic principle of art and architecture-- "if you are going to make it ugly, make it big and ugly and it will impress the masses." It’s one of those rare hotel lobbies that makes you want to grab the complimentary morning newspaper and coffee and sit down in the lobby to read and soak in the atmosphere.

Rooms (we have stayed here two or three times) were top of the line Comfort Inn quality– fairly good size with hair dryers, Internet, coffee/tea in the room, decent storage space, comfortable beds, a sink area separate from the bathroom, TV, a chair, and, something not always found, decent lighting at night. Most importantly, there were good curtains on the windows for keeping out light and it was quiet.

All room entrances are on interior halls. This greatly assists comfort in the cold weather, of which there is a lot at Yellowstone.

Make use of the free local phone calls from your room to make a diner reservation, especially if you want to go to the restaurant at the Best Western, by general agreement, the best eating place in town.

A minimal breakfast, served in the lobby, is included with the room. There is an indoor hot tub. Indoors is smart in this climate. A casino, bar, and restaurant were added since we were there. There is truck parking. Although we never encountered this problem here, if you want to insure a quiet night’s sleep, ask for a room away from truck parking as many inconsiderate truck drivers leave the motors, or refrigerator units, running all night long.

Buffalo Bill built the Irma and named it after his daughter. The very popular restaurant still has
the original stamped steel ceiling and the grand bar Queen Victoria presented to Buffalo Bill. The
last two times we ate there, the buffet had expanded to every night from weekends only.

The first time we ate at The Irma, I ordered buffalo steak, as I had never eaten buffalo. We were
not impressed--it was tough and chewy. Later we came to like buffalo meat a lot by learning
how it should be cooked and sticking to properly cooked dishes. Buffalo is almost totally fat-free,
so it has no fat to internally baste it and keep it moist while cooking. There are three ways to deal
with this: (1) always have buffalo cooked rare so it doesn’t toughen up; (2) only order dishes
that include a lot of liquid, like buffalo chili or something with a sauce to add moisture; or (3) stay
with buffalo burgers, because a little extra fat is mixed into ground buffalo, making it about as fat
as extra lean ground beef. So, unless you want your buffalo steak bloody rare, head for the
buffet.

The Irma buffet is deservedly popular. Everything we’ve tried is good to outstanding, except the
fish of the day, which is about as fresh as you’d expect in a place 800 miles from the nearest
ocean. On the other hand, the salmon dishes are, except for the problem of freshness, quite nicely
done. Roast beef is the star of the show, and desserts also come off very well. Salad offerings are
a little limited; this is meat-and-potatoes country after all.

The hustling service staff has been on the verge of being overwhelmed every time we’ve been
there, and we only go in the slower spring or fall season. Management definitely needs more
bodies on the floor.

Don’t forget to wander around the halls and rooms of the hotel to get a flavor of what a real Old
West hotel was like.

The main entrance to the restaurant is on the main street. The hotel entrance is on the intersecting
side street, and it is a grander approach to the restaurant, although you may not get noticed for
awhile if you come in this way. Use the hotel entrance and then cross the restaurant to its front
door to get seated.

The 4Bs, a small Montana chain, is one of our favorite examples of the classic Western café. You
will not get a great meal at the 4Bs, maybe not even a good meal, but you will get decent comfort
food at such low prices that you will love the joint. When we are traveling in Montana, we go out
of our way to eat at a 4Bs, both a cultural and culinary treat.

A 4Bs breakfast will carry anyone except construction workers over until dinnertime. I’m
especially fond of the 4Bs pancakes, and I don’t much care for pancakes. For lunch, stick with a sandwich; meals are too big. For dinner, stick to steak or chicken or shrimp, out of respect for the tradition the 4Bs keeps alive--restaurant Americana circa 1950. The rib-eye steak, for its price, is one of the great diner bargains you’ll ever find.

The ambiance is neon lights and plastic, which is to say, eating out in America 50 years ago. Service is down-home friendly and fast. Just remember, a meal at the 4Bs is more than meal; it's an experience.

Bubba’s in Jackson Hole is famed for good BBQ at reasonable prices, and the Cody branch, west
end of the main street, on the left, heading toward Yellowstone, is every bit as good, larger, and a
more pleasant scene.

Dinners feature chicken, pork, ham, and beef, long smoked over a wood fire, and three levels of
heat in Bubba’s own BBQ sauces. The chicken is quite dry from the long cooking, so we bury it
in BBQ sauce. Beef, pork, and ham are best just accented with a little sauce. Ask the waitress if
curly fries are available. There is an optional limited, but varied, salad bar.

At diner, we usually go for the amazingly low priced sandwich with salad bar, a good meal for
less than $10. Diners feature the same meat as the sandwiches with two sides and Texas toast.
Coleslaw, baked beans, and fries, especially curly fries, are tops in the sides. Servings are large.

The daily lunch special is real bargain, and the Tuesday BBQ pork sandwich with curly fries tops
the list.

If you don’t already know it, be advised that beer goes good with BBQ.

Although we have had countless meals in Cody, we have only eaten at two places. If we are
really hungry, we go to the buffet at Buffalo Bill’s Hotel Irma. If we aren’t that hungry, we go to
Bubba’s. We don’t try any other places because, having a lot of experience with eating in the
inter-mountain west, we are pretty sure neither can be beat, so why run the risk of a sure bet of
getting a lesser meal?

If you know Bubba’s in Jackson, be advised that the Cody branch is not nearly as hectic and waits
seem to be rare (as of 2004).