Asking help from my fellow SP'rs!

Trying to get a trip organized for me and my two young daughters (4 and 6) this June, but running into some issues…

Basically I have two weeks starting June 6th, 2015 to travel around Montana. Neither me nor my daughters have ever been, so I wanted to get to Glacier, Yellowstone, and Grand Teton, using Missoula as, more or less, a hub. My original plan was to camp the entire two weeks, but I've been reading mixed reviews about the weather in early June, especially in Yellowstone.

I have found two different outfitters in Missoula that rent camping gear, and I've even found one place that rents VW buses equipped with camping gear, but they limit the driving distances and DO NOT include Yellowstone or Grand Teton. (Flying with two little ones entails enough, so I think it would be almost IMPOSSIBLE to pack our camping gear with us).

So basically I'm asking this:

1. Should I just give up on camping in early June in the three parks listed and just go for standard/motel lodging?

or…

2. Does anyone know of an RV place in Missoula that rents camper vans? I found one in Bozeman, but not Missoula… I have no interest in renting an RV from CruiseAmerica, etc…. NOPE. Was thinking a camper van, although slightly more expensive per day, could be a more camp-ish alternative that also provides a vehicle….

In regards to #2:
2a. Recommendations on places to camp in said parks?
2b. Cautions and/or things I should know about doing so at this time of year?

I appreciate any input, and really want this trip to be fantastic. My daughters, although young, have extensive experience camping in our local mountains (San Gabriels), Sequoia, Yosemite, and Joshua Tree. I try to make an effort, whenever I visit a park, to stay IN the park, and according the lodging websites, Yellowstone is near booked for all of June already. (Go figure?)

My knowledge of the area, beyond the most obvious things listed above, is minimal. So ANY input would be greatly appreciated, especially from someone who has done this type of trip before and/or knows the area well.

Oh, and lastly, I saw on another website many people recommending to fly into Bozeman for a similar trip. I checked on that, and the tickets are double the price, so I'm preferring to start/end our trip in Missoula.

Thanks again,

Gusto

I haven't been in the parks recently but I have made dozens of trips to all three parks and lived in Whitefish when I was young. One thing I learned about camping in the parks is that it's often a pain-in-the-butt. My approach to camping is to stay near one of the gateways areas like Alpine (to the south), West Yellowstone (on the west), or Whitefish on the south side of Glacier.

It is highly unlikely that Going-to-the Sun highway in Glacier will be open so in order to see the park you will have to decide which side to approach it from, the south (Whitefish) or the East Glacier entrance. You can drive around from the south to east but it's a long haul to get around the park just to get to the other side of the snowed-in pass.

The very scenic (and much less visited) north entrance to Yellowstone over Beartooth Pass should be open by Memorial Day so you might want to include that in your travel logistics.

As for mountain weather, wow. It can be quite hot in early June or still snowing depending upon when the last big Pacific cold front sweeps across the northwest. I'd plan for both. In the mountain areas of Idaho the June attire is typically down jackets in the morning and shorts and t-shirts in the afternoon.

I know this doesn't help much with the campsite question but it does give you somethings to think about as far as travel logistics go.

Bob

Speaking specifically for the Yellowstone region, early June weather is definitely still a crapshoot. It could be absolutely beautiful with cool to cold mornings and warm days -- or it could still be raining and/or snowing. The weather generally flips to "summer" sometime in mid/late June.

I wouldn't let the weather deter you though. June is one of the best months to be in the park. Wildlife is abundant and the mosquitoes/flies aren't out yet. The only downside to June is that high country trails will still be snowed in and backcountry water crossings will be very high. All that probably would not be an issue since you are making the trip with young ones and not venturing too far into the backcountry.

Yellowstone has a mixture of campgrounds that take reservations and ones that are first come first serve. About 2/3 of the campgrounds will be open in early June, but some don't open until mid June. The advantage to camping in the park is reduced drive time, especially if you camp at one of the more centrally located campgrounds. Yellowstone is a huge park so going from part to another takes a lot longer than most people realize.

Enjoy the trip!

As stated by the others, the weather is a coin flip. Glacier will be tough unless you approach as Boyles said. I've been in 40 degrees with 45mph winds and sleet in June.....and I've seen 90's in June.....both at lower elevations between 5-6k. Higher was snow. We received snow 9 months out of the year last year. If I were you I would nix Glacier and shorten your travel distance from your base. Cody would be quite pleasant in early June and very kid friendly. Only 35 minutes from the east gate of Yellowstone.

Thanks for all the quick replies!

Coin-flip, indeed! When going on big trips, I like to have at least an overall itinerary, but the logistics of this are entirely dependent on weather and accessibility. Going to the Sun road is scheduled to open June 18th, if I remember correctly from the website...

There are definitely other places I want to go in Montana, but Glacier is pretty big on my list, even if the accessibility is limited. It's looking more like "wait and see," but that gets tricky in really popular places!

Any other recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

Gusto

The Going to the Sun Road sometimes won't open until July. When I was in Glacier in early July 2010, it was still over a week from opening. That was a VERY heavy snow year though. Just something to keep in mind.

You need to visit the Beartooth Pass and the town of Red Lodge on your trip! It's actually the NE enterance to Yellowstone and Cooke City is a trip back to the early 1900's!

MCGusto wrote:...Going to the Sun road is scheduled to open June 18th, if I remember correctly from the website...

Glacier National Park sets a target date for the opening of Going to the Sun Road because there is heavy construction on the East side. I believe paving is scheduled for that stretch. The park will then publish a date for the earliest opening of the road. That is most likely the June 18th date you saw on the website. The actual opening of the road over Logan Pass depends on weather. Last spring the road opened the week before the Fourth of July.

I agree with others about the Glacier weather in June. Normally it's a wet month with mountain rain and snow. Many of the high country trails will not be available.

I lived in whitefish for ten years, and Jackon WY. for six years, and I have to agree with the other posts, The weather is a crap shoot. But I would say that the Tetons/southern yellowstone would be dryer that time of year, than glacier. So if it where my trip, I would start at the Tetons, and work may way north. have you checked in Idaho falls for rentals, it's only about 90 minutes from the Tetons, and a pretty good sized town/with airport. Jackson dosn't kick in the tourist season until June 15,so there may be hotel rooms avalable, and you can do day trips to Tetons/yellowstone.

Just thought I will put this one out there as well. the southern san Juans of Colorado are awesome,Ouray/ Durango/telluride. June is a very dry month in Colorado, and if the weather turns sour,the utah desert, is only two hours away.( OH and no Grizzly bears!)

I agree. Starting from the south would give you some time before you got to Glacier and the drive from Idaho Falls to Jackson over Teton Pass is a really scenic way to get into the park. Getting an RV and camping shouldn't be a problem that early in the season either.June is also a great time to visit the parks to see wildlife and the scenery before the 4th of July crowds hit the area. I recall on one 4th of July weekend they estimated that over a million people were in the 3 parks (Teton, Rockefeller, Yellowstone).

Here are some Yellowstone visitor stats.

Month Average # of Visit (1979-2012)
% of Average Annual Visit
January 28,584 1.01 %
February 36,036 1.28 %
March 20,014 0.71 %
April 27,139 0.96 %
May 198,780 7.06 %
June 516,577 18.36 %
July 758,790 26.97 %
August 673,768 23.95 %
September 391,648 13.92 %
October 128,303 4.56 %
November 12,815 0.45 %
December 20,029 0.71 %

Bob

Again, thanks for all the info and recommendations. I've got a long weekend ahead of me, so I'm going to go over some maps and look at some different options... Ultimately, there's A LOT to explore, and we'll be excited and have a good time no matter where we end up! I usually try to stay in one area and really explore it, but because of the question of adverse weather, I'm leaning toward a more open, touring schedule. After the weekend I'll shoot back with some ideas, and I'm sure I'll have more questions.



Thanks again,

Gusto

If you're flying in and start from the south it might be cheaper to fly to Pocatello or even Salt Lake depending upon your connection. The airlines really soak us on the regional hops around here if you're trying to get to a smaller town. I've paid almost twice as much to get to places like Bismarck, ND than I did to get to NYC or Chicago which are much farther in flying miles. With three in your party you might save enough to cover a couple of days of scenic road travel in an RV.

Bob

Salt Lake is a great choice for saving money and only 4.5 hours from Jackson. Idaho Falls is a better airport option than Pokey most of the time.

Greater Yellowstone and Crown of the Continent are two of the world's greatest ecosystems. As such I HIGHLY recommend that given only two weeks you choose one or the other and given the time of year my bias for the GYE is even greater. Make the choice to spend a LOT less time in the vehicle.

Weather could be great, could be horrible. Whatever month you do the whole year long be prepared for EVERY kind of weather. We are sub-arctic here with our elevation. The Gros Ventre Range's southern approaches generally melt out sooner than all other high country in the region, and whether Granite Creek or elsewhere its an exquisite range.

Early June can be great for some YNP and GTNP dayhikes. With the little ones your timing is not horrible for options since higher country will be beyond them anytime. Have a great time whatever you do but please do chose one or the other for all your sakes.

OK, snow day and more time to articulate suggestion.

At 4 and 6 you're not going to do any huge hiking anyway so I would not worry about snowpack unless we have a seriously historic year like 2011. At 4 and 6 IMO my suggestion for spending far less time in the car and focusing on ONE of these gems is reinforced to put it lightly. Here's a suggestion for the GYE that can obviously be changed considerably:

Day 1: Fly into Salt Lake City and rent van/RV. I know that 4.5 hours to/from Jackson on both ends of your trip is a lot for the kids but the money you'll save on airfare makes it an easier pill to swallow. Coming into the GYE from the south you also can break that drive up with camping stops in any number of wonderful places. If you arrive in SLC and get out by say 4 PM I would drive to Granite Creek just southeast of Jackson. There is a wonderful pay hot spring there and any number of awesome boondocking spots as well as a developed campground. There is a second great hot spring that's free but it will almost certainly be flooded by runoff. Spend some time at Granite Falls, maybe walk just a little bit up Granite Creek or to the Swift Creek/Shoal Falls Trail Jct. IF the kids can handle a hiking climb at just 1.5 miles in cresting the southern end of the Granite Hi-Line trail is exquisite. I've done it early season MANY times essentially snow free. Here's a pic:


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Day 3: After Granite I'd head for Jackson and stomache some of the things kids LOVE like the Alpine Slide, aerial tram at Teton Village, Ripley's Believe it or not, etc. Gros Ventre Campground is just 10 miles from town and has awesome views of the Tetons and is one of the greatest places on earth to see and photograph moose. Right there Antelope Flats also provides excellent opportunities to observe Bison and Antelope, and quite possibly at that time of year elk. I'd spend a second night at the Gros Ventre Campground and take a drive up the Gros Ventre River Valley. Lots of great places fgor little girls to play with constant supervision not just for bears but for the water too. If you rented a canoe with the van slide lake would be fun.

Day 5: Head for a camp at Jenny Lake or look into a night at the Grand Teton Climbers Ranch, an awesome hostel that shouldn't be very crowded at that time unless its a really early climbing season. Take the shuttle across the lake and check out Hidden Falls and if they can do it Inspiration Point.

Day 6: If you have a canoe do String and Leigh Lakes. A guy can do the portaging quite easily, probably 3 25 minute round trips with overnight gear. Make those girls stay with you ALWAYS. An overnight on a backcountry lake will be magical, and the views are jaw dropping everywhere.

Day 8: Head for Yellowstone. Take 3 days to see the typical spots. Camp at Slough Creek or stay in Silvergate/Cooke at least one night. Roust them well before dawn and be prepared to stay out in the Lamar past dusk. I'm no parent but this obviously means naps at some point.

Day 11: Head back south. If snow is not to bad someone like me might be able to give you all a ride to Leidy Lake and if the girls have patience they can do the 1.2 mile 1,200' foot summit of Mt. Leidy with arguably the greatest views of the entire Teton Range. If snow if problematic then head for Dubois and do some of the tresures like Brooks Lake and Double Cabin. Drive back to SLC via South Pass or Jackson.

Again, thanks for all the replies and info.

I've already booked flights out of Missoula, so that part of the trip is set. We'll be flying into and leaving from there.

I like the idea of spending more time in one place, rather than spending more time in the car! My usual rule is to park and forget we have a car, but in a place like Montana, that's hard to do!

I"ll be looking at some maps over the next couple of days and will check out the aforementioned spots.

Thanks for the details!

Gusto

Doublecabin is too polite to mention it, but from what I hear, you might want to inquire about staying at HIS lodge.

If not camping, don't overlook the lodging inside Yellowstone. Roosevelt Lodge is an especially affordable and cool place to stay with kids, and an awesome base for wildlife viewing in the Lamar Valley in evenings/early mornings. http://www.yellowstonenationalparklodges.com/lodging/summer-lodges/roosevelt-lodge-cabins/