Things to do in  Yellowstone National Park

Hayden Valley—named after Dr. Ferdinand Hayden, whose geological survey helped Yellowstone become a national park in 1872—is one of the best places in Yellowstone to spot wildlife. It’s also one of the most popular, though the traffic isn’t always entirely human-caused: Herds of bison sometimes crowd the road, letting you know whose territory you’re on.

Established in 1872, Yellowstone is the country’s first national park Famous for its wildlife and geothermal activity, the park covers almost 3,500 square miles (9,000 square kilometers) and stretches over parts of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. It’s a true place of superlatives, boasting one of the largest high-altitude lakes in North America and the longest undammed river in the contiguous US—it even has its own Grand Canyon. If you’re looking for adventure or just pure, untouched wilderness, move Yellowstone to the very top of your list.

Named for its frequent and predictable eruptions, Old Faithful Geyser is the gold standard of geysers and the star attraction of Yellowstone National Park. The steaming, multicolored pool puts on a show every 60 to 120 minutes, when it shoots boiling water up to 180 feet (55 meters) into the air.

Grand Prismatic Spring is not only the largest hot spring in Yellowstone National Park, but one of the largest in all of North America. More than its size though, the spring is famous for its colors that radiate from a deep-blue center out to green, yellow, and red. It’s a spectacular sight unlike anything else in the park.

Fountain Paint Pot is one of several mud pots found within Yellowstone National Park that bursts and pops as the mud thickens throughout summer. The surrounding Fountain Paint Pot area is known for its pools of thermophiles (heat-loving bacteria) that gather to form multihued puddles in the earth, as well as mini-geysers and fumaroles.

Yellowstone is home to one of the largest concentrations of mammals in the lower 48 states, and the spectacular Lamar Valley ranks among the best locations in the park to spot wildlife—black and grizzly bears, elk, bison, wolves, bighorn sheep, mule deer, and several types of birds. It’s easy to see why it’s nicknamed America’s Serengeti.

At Mammoth Hot Springs, geothermal waters heated in Yellowstone’s caldera valley emerge through cracks and fissures, depositing minerals to create terraced travertine formations. Visitors traverse boardwalks above the steaming hydrothermal features, taking in one of Yellowstone National Park’s most impressive natural wonders.

The landscape comes alive with the sound of bubbling mud pits and steaming fumaroles at this geothermal hotspot inside Yellowstone National Park. Natural features with names like Dragon’s Mouth Spring lend the formerly active volcano an otherworldly feel and make it one of Yellowstone’s most intriguing places to visit.

The hottest, oldest, and most dynamic of Yellowstone's 11 geyser basins, Norris Geyser Basin may not contain an icon like Old Faithful, but it still serves as a wild portal to the Earth’s underworld. Home to Steamboat Geyser—which erupts upwards of 300 feet (91 meters)—and dozens more, visitors here float along boardwalks just inches above this active supervolcano.

Fifty million years ago, “Yellowstone” wasn’t the steaming supervolcano we know and love today. Instead, this corner of Wyoming was covered in towering redwoods, magnolias, maples, and volcanoes. When those erupted, the forests were a casualty, though a few trees survived in fossilized form. Still standing today, the Petrified Tree is the largest in the world.

Of all Yellowstone National Park’s waterfalls, the Upper Falls of the Yellowstone River are possibly the most underrated. At a thundering height of 109 feet (33 meters), the Upper Falls are an impressive sight that’s certainly worthy of a stop—and would more than likely be the highlight of virtually any other park.

A drive along Yellowstone National Park’s 142-mile long (228 kilometer) Grand Loop Road takes you past most of the park’s major attractions. Cruise along the figure-eight-shaped road for a ready-made Yellowstone tour featuring Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic Spring, and more, easily completed in one day or spread out over your own timeline.

Like many other places in Yellowstone, the Firehole River is a scenic spot that lives up to its dramatic name. As it meanders north for 21 miles (34 kilometers) to join with the Madison River, the Firehole acts as a drainage basin for many of the park’s geothermal features and is the ideal spot for a summertime dip.

Stretching 1,080 miles (1,735 kilometers) from Yellowstone National Park to the Oregon border, the Snake River is one of North America's longest rivers. It serves an important role in the ecosystem as a home for tons of wildlife, including wild salmon. It's also a top location for water recreation like rafting, fishing, and kayaking.

Black Sand Basin is a section of the Upper Geyser Basin in Yellowstone National Park. Though small, it is packed with exceptional thermal features like geysers, colorful pools, and hot springs, and is often less crowded than its big-name neighbors. Visit as a quick stop during your Yellowstone National Park tour—it’s worth every second.