Taking things from the park, like a rock sample, is punishable by up to $100,000. The guy at Norris paid with his life. The tourist we saw was a stupidass.

puget sound cal fan;842710905 said:

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The Grand Tetons and Jackson Hole Wyoming are spectacular.

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I agree Puget. The only sad fact is that Jackson Hole has become a tourist trap of the first order. Typically, we go fly fishing in South western Montana every year (Madison River) and for many years would drive to JH and then drive north through the parks exiting the north or west exits of the park to head to our destination of Ennis, MT. We stopped doing that about 10 years ago because JH is just full of more expensive hotel/motel rooms and touristy shops selling the same stuff that every other tourist destination sells.

We still go fishing in Montana but go to and from via alternative routes... Through Oregon and the Columbia River gorge up through Glacier National Park for example. My father was born in Butte, Mt. So I've seen just about every inch of central and western Montana there is to see. That said, in spite of all the tourists, I love visiting the National parks for the sheer beauty they each have within their borders.

Natural selection isn't 100% fool proof.

Reminds me of being in Rome a couple of years ago visiting Vatican City and all of the wonderful artwork etc there. We're in St. Peter's and there was a special alter off to the side where everyone lines up to slowly walk past and view the alter. As we are arriving at the front of the alter, just ahead of those who are behind us and just behind those immediately in front of us, a group of about 7 or 8 Chinese tourists barrels into our group and literally pushes everyone out of the way so they can see/take photos/yammer on loudly and generally interrupt everyone else who'd followed the accepted convention there. Same thing happened throughout the cathedral. Unbelievably rude and their behavior resulted in shoving and raised voices everywhere they went. Apparently m in China, this approach is common. The guy in YNP is damn lucky he didn't end up boiled or gored by a buffalo. That happens in the park annually as well.

petalumabear;842710922 said:

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I agree Puget. The only sad fact is that Jackson Hole has become a tourist trap of the first order. Typically, we go fly fishing in South western Montana every year (Madison River) and for many years would drive to JH and then drive north through the parks exiting the north or west exits of the park to head to our destination of Ennis, MT. We stopped doing that about 10 years ago because JH is just full of more expensive hotel/motel rooms and touristy shops selling the same stuff that every other tourist destination sells.

We still go fishing in Montana but go to and from via alternative routes... Through Oregon and the Columbia River gorge up through Glacier National Park for example. My father was born in Butte, Mt. So I've seen just about every inch of central and western Montana there is to see. That said, in spite of all the tourists, I love visiting the National parks for the sheer beauty they each have within their borders.

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Detour through Hells Canyon, to Idaho, Stanley and the Sawtooths then up into Montana through the Bitterroots, spectacular without the crowds plus lots of historic stuff- Oregon trail museum, Sacagawea museum, Big Hole battleground, ghost towns

Was talking to a Chinese American and commenting on how so many from Mainland China were visiting Yellowstone. and her first comment was "They are so rude." They don't have a lot of consideration for the other tourists. However, i have also met some very nice ones. Of course they were with a student who had been in the USA awhile. The tourists thought I was so helpful, he wanted to get his picture taken with me. This was in Arches National Park.

concordtom;842710749 said:

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Crossing bighorn range not possible on 16 at Buffalo due to fire, so we continued to Sheridan and crossed on 14. Not sure what 16 would have been like but 14 was awesome!!

The climb up was great views of forest, valley below and sedimentary rock layers with sign telling the later name and age, from 200M to 500M years old. Was up top, a whole different Eco system at 9000 feet. We saw a moose and a beaver in his dam.

Down the western side in Shell Canyon also full of great views!!!

Then to Cody. Tent camped there, then West Yellowstone, then Gardiner MT, then Jackson - finally got to see the Tetons. 3 days in Yellowstone were great. Saw tons of animals and took 1500 photos. Now in Sun Valley ID, past Craters of the Moon lava field (trip pt), home soon.

Great trip for the family.

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dunno how you're heading home, but if it's 89 past Bear Lake - stop at the Hometown Drive-In in Garden City, UT. Best damn raspberry shake ever. And I don't know them, have no connections, etc. (and seriously, it just could be that you'd be so danged hot and tired from driving a long way, that any shake would taste great....) I've sent about 50 people there in my life - no regrets.

petalumabear;842710924 said:

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Reminds me of being in Rome a couple of years ago visiting Vatican City and all of the wonderful artwork etc there. We're in St. Peter's and there was a special alter off to the side where everyone lines up to slowly walk past and view the alter. As we are arriving at the front of the alter, just ahead of those who are behind us and just behind those immediately in front of us, a group of about 7 or 8 Chinese tourists barrels into our group and literally pushes everyone out of the way so they can see/take photos/yammer on loudly and generally interrupt everyone else who'd followed the accepted convention there. Same thing happened throughout the cathedral. Unbelievably rude and their behavior resulted in shoving and raised voices everywhere they went. Apparently m in China, this approach is common. The guy in YNP is damn lucky he didn't end up boiled or gored by a buffalo. That happens in the park annually as well.

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Interesting to hear you (multiple people here) say this.

I noticed some similar behavior where they were clamoring a bit for positioning at the Falls and elsewhere I got cut off a bit. My kids were wondering where all these tour busses of Chinese were coming from. I said that they are part of a new wealthy portion of planet earth - you know all those things we buy at stores for less and less money? You know all those container ships we see in the Bay, and the big cranes to unlock the cargo in Alameda? Well, someone is making them, and making money, and now they are traveling the world and Yellowstone is apparently on the list, just like the Eiffel Tower and Big Ben have been for generations of Americans.
Ugly Americans?

I didn't want to make any generalizations about the "pushy" behavior to see the sights first, but now you are confirming our observations.
Ugly Chinese? never thought of that before.... hmmm...

OldenBear;842710936 said:

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dunno how you're heading home, but if it's 89 past Bear Lake - stop at the Hometown Drive-In in Garden City, UT. Best damn raspberry shake ever. And I don't know them, have no connections, etc. (and seriously, it just could be that you'd be so danged hot and tired from driving a long way, that any shake would taste great....) I've sent about 50 people there in my life - no regrets.

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Thanks.
South from Hailey, ID thru Twin Falls, ID to Jackpot NV then on to I-80, and blaze across the desert from there.
Be home in the foothills above Sactown in 10 hrs.
The trip ends today.
;-(
sniff, sniff

I've got a bunch of photos and one super funny video that my 14 yr old filmed.
The bison were starting to mate and tussle at dusk in the Lamar valley - they were butting heads, sparring and running and at one point a group of 7 or so were heading toward our car while engaged and running sideways. The girls were screaming like they were gonna get stampeded. I was the exact opposite. Fight, battle, kill, destroy! I was clicking away with my camera. The contrast in our excitement is hilariously captured.
I'll post it here if I get her clip off her phone. We've been replaying and laughing since.

When we were in Yellowstone last year a Chinese tourist jumped off the walkway at Norris Geyser Basin and started running around near a couple of steam vents while yelling like an idiot. And this wasn't a kid, it was man probably in his 50's who you would think would know better. But for moronic tourists, the Russians we encountered at the Grand Canyon the year before were the worst. Rude, pushy, and constantly doing stupid things like teetering on the edge of the canyon rim. I kept thinking, "So this is the 'Evil Empire' Reagan was so concerned about?"

GB54 - Yup. I've done all that. Need to go out to the Custer battlefield again and through the Bitterroots. It's been a few years for each of those. But, as I said above, I've been going for decades so I've seen it far more often than not. Love my Big Sky Country.