Yellowstone ugly and unkempt? (concrete, route, people)

[Jan Alaska]

We visited Yellowstone this summer and I don't recall there being any problems with bathroom or trash facilities. The picnic grounds we stopped at were all being used and seemed fine.
What wasn't fine were the endless stream of LOUD motorbikes driving wildlife away from the roads and most times taking up whole parking spaces for a single bike. Don't get me wrong we also own a bike but the sheer numbers and the owners with the very loud exhaust pipes became tiresome to the point that we would pull over and stop instead of following behind all the time.

[WyoNewk]

Jan, if that was in late July or early August, I'd attribute part of the biking crowd to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. (I'm thinking they estimated attendance at ~6-800,000.) If not, all I can say is, it could have been worse!

[ScottStielow]

This was the Big Calibration in Sturgis this year!

Rally director estimates 600,000 attended Sturgis motorcycle rally.


Rally director estimates 600,000 attended Sturgis motorcycle rally : Sturgis Rally Daily

[Jan Alaska]

It was right towards the end of Sturgis, we also stopped there on our tour across the country.

Our GPS tried to take us on route 16 on our way to an overnight stop in Cody but we had already decided on route 14 over the Big Horn Mountains, WOW! we were almost more impressed with that than Yellowstone.

We totally fell in love with Wyoming and are planning on visiting again and again and again .

[Ghengis]

Originally Posted by tramp

I bought a senior pass for all national parks & museums for $20. It is a life time pass. It will get me and my wife and 2 other people in at no charge.

if you haven't assigned the two other people slots yet, my wife and I would like those.

Thank You!

[WyoNewk]

Originally Posted by Jan Alaska

It was right towards the end of Sturgis, we also stopped there on our tour across the country.

Our GPS tried to take us on route 16 on our way to an overnight stop in Cody but we had already decided on route 14 over the Big Horn Mountains, WOW! we were almost more impressed with that than Yellowstone.

We totally fell in love with Wyoming and are planning on visiting again and again and again .

Glad to hear you enjoyed Wyoming and the Bighorns! Some would argue that Hwy 16 over them is just as nice. I won't argue whether it is or not, but it's certainly a pretty drive. You should try it sometime too.


I moved from Alaska to Wyoming in '71. I still miss Alaska, but Wyoming isn't bad either!

[SD4020]

Originally Posted by WyoNewk

Glad to hear you enjoyed Wyoming and the Bighorns! Some would argue that Hwy 16 over them is just as nice. I won't argue whether it is or not, but it's certainly a pretty drive. You should try it sometime too.


I moved from Alaska to Wyoming in '71. I still miss Alaska, but Wyoming isn't bad either!

If pulling a heavy trailer east to west I prefer 16.

14 is a beautiful drive. 16 is just as beautiful, IMO.

[KillerK]

Even in a regular vehicle I would kind of prefer 16 over 14, or at least 14A. Took 14A back from Yellowstone to Buffalo once (so we could stop in Sheridan) and it was a harrowing experience coming up 14A on the west side! Pretty though.

[JanND]

Originally Posted by Froggie Legs

Weeds overgrowing a picnic area are not what I would call unreasonable to keep trimmed... and get a grip, I figure if over 3 million people are paying $25/car load to visit, some of that money could be spent for general upkeep. Since I am only inquiring based on the reviews several friends of mine gave, and opening the discussion, I don't need someone telling me what my grasp on reality is, thanks.

No more unreasonable than someone making these sort of comments based on their friends driveby experience. Perhaps those unsightly picnic areas were mowed right after your friends drove thru.
I agree with the comments about folks visiting other areas....wilderness and manicured shouldn't even be in the same sentence.
And, I sure hope they had more memorable experiences to share.

[tycodmom]

It's been a few years since I was in Yellowstone, but I would say that some areas are prettier than others. That's a fact any place you visit. Not having any specific areas pointed out in the OP, leads me to believe these people stopped in some less inhabited areas and it is possible the grass was too tall and there weren't many trash cans because they are more rural for lack of a better word. Coming in from Cody I was disappointed because of the ugliness from the fire. That being said, once I got to my campground and started really touring the park, I found that it was stunning. More so in some area than others, but stunning non the less. Yellowstone is a HUGE park, so while I don't doubt your friends hit a bad patch of the park maybe doing a little research before coming might have helped them see some of the more stunning sights.