Things to do in Yellowstone/Island Park
This is a list I complied for another Tugger -
Things to do:
Warm River for feeding fish & flyfishing
Cave Falls - This is at the southeast edge of yellowstone - Access to the park is by foot only here but if you have some hikers or fishermen, Bechler meadows is great. Cave falls is nice for a picnic. These are not far from Ashton.
Upper and lower Mesa Falls - this is a loop that you can drive
Big Springs - You can rent a canoe at Mack's Inn & they will drop you at Big springs & you float backdown to Mack's Inn. There is also a historical house at the Springs which is very interesting to go through.
Sawtelle Peak - you can drive to the top and the views are amazing. One year there was still snow in July - my kids thought that was really cool
There is a loop that goes to Hebgen Lake and there is a park service site were there was an earthquake - I think it is called Quake Lake - It is a reallly nice drive & stop at the info center.
Bear World just north of Rigby - this is sort of a drive through zoo
West Yellowstone - Yellowstone Museum, Imaxx, Grizzly Center & lots of nice little shops.
In Yellowstone:
Old Faithful
Mud Pots
Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone - yellowstone falls, artist point - this is my favorite part of Yellowstone
They have a cowboy cookout that leaves from Roosevelt - Great steaks & all the trimmings - you get to it by stagecoach or horseback
Hayden valley for wildlife watching.
You can expect to see Moose, Bison, Elk, Bald eagles, Coyotes, wolf, Black bear and occassioally grizzley bear. You can always tell because there will be traffic jams when wildlife is spotted & everyone pulls over for pictures.
North east of the park is Cody and if you have time it is worth a trip
South of the park is Teton National Park and Jackson Hole - Also worth a trip.
If you have fly fishermen - the south fork is a short drive from Island Park - you can also fish in Harriman state park which has tours of the historic Harriman Ranch (railroad Tycoon) and it is also known for the Trumpetor swans. The resort (Island Park) arranges a dicount horseback ride at harriman & also discounts on the Imaxx & grizzly center in West Yellowstone.
You can also fish in Yellowstone - they have maps when you get the permit of where you can fish. My husband likes the Madison River.
If you do drive up from Salt Lake, stop at the lava fields north of Blackfoot - it is very interesting - you can see the dormant volcanoes in the desert (It is high plains desert) . West of there about an hour is craters of the moon National Monument. The INNEL also use to have an exhibit on the first nuclear reactor - but I don't know if they still allow access to the site or not.
Also checkout
www.yellowstoneassociation.org - they offer some neat classes & have lots of literature as well - it benefits the park as well