Take a Hike! To Yellowstone National Park
A mellow hike at America’s oldest national park
Over the years I’ve returned to America’s oldest national park many times and can summarize every visit in three words: Yellowstone never disappoints. Whether you’re content to just drive the roads in search of wildlife or take a few steps from the car to admire the raging rivers and waterfalls, mountains, sprawling canyons, or geysers and other geothermal features, Yellowstone National Park will deliver. One year, we watched the aurora borealis spread across the Wyoming sky at 2 a.m., and on another occasion, saw the most magnificent spring rainbow at the West Entrance.
We always stay at a hotel near the South Entrance, since it’s only minutes to reach the park, although roads within the park (Hwy 98 and others) are usually closed during winter due to snow. It hardly needs to be said, but like most national parks in the summer, Yellowstone is enormously popular, with the most-visited sites like Old Faithful becoming oppressively crowded. But you can always beat the crowds by arriving early. Two summers ago, I drove in at 5 a.m. on a weekday and had the place almost to myself, sharing one area only with several wolves stalking some critter across the road.
Those wishing to discover Yellowstone National Park on foot can choose from among more than 1,100 miles of trails to explore. Needless to say, we’ve only attempted a fraction of those, but if you’re looking for a short easy trail that’s not on everybody’s radar, then Storm Point Trail is a great choice for several reasons.
To quote the park website, “This trail begins in the open meadows overlooking Indian Pond and Yellowstone Lake. It passes alongside the pond before turning right (west) into the forest.” The trailhead is about 3 miles east of Fishing Bridge Visitor Center and the trail itself is a loop, a little over 2 miles long, with just a few easy inclines and uneven spots to navigate. When we arrived early one July morning, a ranger was on hand and walked up, asking, “Do you have your bear spray?” We did, because we had heard it was an area popular with bears (spoiler alert: we did not see any on the path).
The trail leads to Yellowstone Lake, abundant with waterfowl, and you can walk down to the beach. You can also step out onto the rocky lookout, Storm Point, with a beautiful scenic view over the lake. Just behind that area lives a large colony of cute marmots that you will almost certainly see as they scamper in and out of their tunnels. The trail follows the shoreline for a while, then loops back through the forest and fields before returning to the parking area.
So, flaunting a lake, overlook, pond, fields, forest, birds, marmots, and with the possibility of a grizzly sighting, this trail won’t disappoint, either.
Nevertheless, we worried that our visit to Yellowstone last summer might be our first disappointing trip, given last year’s reports of reduced federal funding and staffing in the national parks. Fortunately, any impact here was barely noticeable, as the park rangers and staff clearly went out of their way to keep the park clean, safe, and well-supported, and they were readily available should they be needed. Our national parks are a national treasure and should be treated accordingly.
FEATURED PHOTO, TOP: Yellowstone Lake view from Stormy Point at Yellowstone National Park. Photo by Nick Thomas.
Nick Thomas teaches at Auburn University at Montgomery in Alabama and has written features, columns, and interviews for many newspapers and magazines, including Boomer. His “Take a Hike!” column describes short trails, hikes, and walks from around the country that older adults might enjoy while traveling. See ItsAWonderfulHike.com.
