Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming is America's first and most extraordinary wilderness showcasing volcanic geysers vibrant hot springs and remarkable wildlife in breathtaking natural surroundings.
Wyoming: Cody – Cody Trout Ranch Camp
🏕️ Sleeping in a Tipi on the Snake River, Wyoming
We were on a long road trip back to our home in Oregon, having spent time visiting family in Minnesota — which, if you’ve ever driven across America, you’ll know is not exactly a short hop. It’s the kind of journey where you start optimistically with podcasts and end up listening to the same three songs on repeat somewhere in South Dakota. Anyway, we decided to break things up a bit and spend a couple of days at Yellowstone National Park, which was more or less on the way if you squinted at a map and were generous with the definition of “on the way.”
Yellowstone, for those who’ve never been, is one of the great natural wonders of the world. Established in 1872, it was the first national park ever created — not just in America, but anywhere on earth — and it sits atop one of the largest active supervolcanoes on the planet. It covers nearly 3,500 square miles across Wyoming, Montana and Idaho, and is home to more geysers and hot springs than anywhere else on earth. It also attracts something in the region of four million visitors a year, which is why finding accommodation at the last minute in early July is roughly as straightforward as negotiating a peace treaty.
We were aiming for the East Entrance of the park, which is the least-used of the five entrances and, frankly, the most scenic — the road climbs through the Absaroka Range with views that make you want to pull over every five minutes. The nearest major city to the East Entrance is Cody, Wyoming, about 53 miles east. Cody is a proper Western town, founded in 1896 by the legendary showman Buffalo Bill Cody himself — yes, that Buffalo Bill — and it still leans enthusiastically into its frontier heritage, with a nightly rodeo running every summer evening from June through August, which has been going since 1938. It calls itself the “Rodeo Capital of the World,” and nobody really argues.
Our booking was very last minute, and whilst it was early July — peak season — we were still in the strange twilight of the COVID-19 pandemic. This was the period when things had partially reopened but hadn’t fully recovered, so there were still some places available, albeit limited. We weren’t exactly spoilt for choice. Then one listing caught my eye: a tipi, on the banks of the Snake River, just east of Cody. I showed it to my wife. She looked at me. I gave her my best “it’ll be an adventure” face. We booked it.
The tipis are located at the Cody Wyoming Trout Ranch, which is primarily an RV park. The main parking spots sit up on the top of the canyon rim, and from there a rather rough and ready track — “road” would be generous — winds its way down the hillside to the riverbank below, where they’ve constructed several wooden platforms and installed a number of tipis. It’s not the kind of approach you’d want to attempt in a low-slung sports car, but we managed fine.
The tipi itself was genuinely spacious. The traditional Plains Indian tipi — used for thousands of years by nations including the Sioux, Cheyenne and Blackfoot — was designed to house entire families, so two slightly weary road-trippers rattling around inside one felt positively luxurious. They’d done a proper job of making it comfortable: there was a very good bed (plus a sofa bed for good measure), and some wonderfully thick blankets. This last point matters more than you’d think — even in July, the altitude along the Shoshone River corridor keeps the nights pleasingly cool, and you’ll be grateful for those blankets come midnight.
Now, one should manage expectations on the facilities front. There’s no bathroom or kitchen inside the tipi — this is glamping, not a Travelodge. Out on the deck there’s a grill if you fancy cooking, or you can bring your own. For the loo, there’s a portapotty provided for tipi residents, which is perfectly adequate but not something you’d choose to linger in. For a proper shower and lavatory, you trek back up the hill to the main RV park washrooms. It’s not a hardship, really. It builds character. Or so I kept telling myself.
What makes the whole experience genuinely worth it is the location. The Snake River — not to be confused with the much longer Snake River in Idaho, though they are indeed the same river — runs fast and cold here, fed by snowmelt from the Absaroka and Wind River ranges. At this point near Cody it’s a popular whitewater stretch, and we watched several groups of rafters go bouncing past during the day, looking simultaneously terrified and delighted. The water moves quickly enough that swimming is not advisable, and if you’ve got children with you, you’ll want to keep a close eye on them near the bank.
The river is apparently excellent for trout fishing — the Trout Ranch name rather gives that away — and brown and rainbow trout are both found here in decent numbers. We are not fisherfolks, and our relationship with fishing begins and ends with watching other people do it, so we didn’t take advantage of that particular opportunity. But if you’re the sort who enjoys standing in cold water at dawn waving a stick about, you’d probably be very happy here.
The night was the real revelation. Down in the Snake River gorge, there is essentially zero light pollution. None. The nearest significant town is Cody, and even that’s far enough away that it barely registers on the horizon. The result is a night sky of the sort that most of us who live near cities have entirely forgotten exists — a proper, dense, bewildering canopy of stars that makes you feel simultaneously insignificant and rather lucky. We lay there listening to the river rushing past in the darkness, and I can’t think of a better way to fall asleep. It was, frankly, brilliant.
The next morning we were up early, had a civilised cup of tea courtesy of our travel kettle (always pack a travel kettle — this is non-negotiable), and were heading up through the Wapiti Valley towards the East Entrance of Yellowstone about an hour later, feeling considerably more human than we had the night before.
Ten out of ten. Would absolutely sleep in a tipi again.
Planning a Visit to Cody, Wyoming
Cody is a small but spirited town of around 10,000 people in north-western Wyoming, sitting at the eastern gateway to Yellowstone National Park, roughly 50 miles from the park’s eastern entrance. Founded in 1896 by the legendary frontiersman and showman Colonel William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody, the town sits at the foot of the Absaroka Range in the high plains of the Bighorn Basin, at approximately 5,000 feet above sea level. It is widely regarded as Wyoming in miniature: cowboy culture, world-class museums, dramatic scenery, abundant wildlife, and genuine small-town warmth all rolled into one compact destination.
📍 Location
Cody lies in Park County, north-western Wyoming, positioned at the point where the rolling grasslands of the Bighorn Basin give way to the jagged peaks of the Rocky Mountains. It is roughly 80 miles south-east of the Montana border, making it a natural hub for wider regional exploration. The Shoshone National Forest surrounds much of the area to the west, and the Wapiti Valley — one of the most scenic corridors in the American West — stretches along the North Fork of the Shoshone River between the town and Yellowstone’s eastern entrance.
✈️ Getting There
By air: The Yellowstone Regional Airport (airport code: COD) is located approximately two miles from the town centre. It is a small regional facility served by connecting flights from Denver (via United Express) and Salt Lake City (via Delta). Travellers from further afield will need to connect through one of these hubs. Car hire is available at the airport, which is strongly recommended given the town’s layout and the surrounding region.
By car: Cody sits along US Highway 14/16/20, the principal east–west corridor between the Great Plains and Yellowstone’s eastern entrance. From Montana to the north, it is accessible via Laurel/Belfry or the spectacular Red Lodge route. Billings, Montana — the nearest large city — is approximately 105 miles to the north-east, roughly a two-hour drive. From Denver, the drive takes around five to six hours.
By bus: Cody has a small bus station located close to the town centre, though services are limited compared to larger American cities, and schedules may not suit all itineraries.
🚗 Getting Around
A hire car is essentially indispensable in and around Cody. The town itself is compact enough to walk around its historic downtown core, but reaching the surrounding attractions — Yellowstone, the Buffalo Bill Dam, the Shoshone National Forest, and the scenic byways — requires a vehicle. Distances between points of interest can be significant by European standards.
Taxis and ride-sharing services exist but are limited in availability, particularly outside of the peak summer season. Some hotels offer shuttle services to key attractions. Guided tours departing from Cody are a popular and practical option for visiting Yellowstone without the stress of navigating the park independently, though bear in mind that the drive from Cody to the central portions of the park is substantial.
Road conditions can vary considerably, especially in autumn and winter. Mountain passes may close due to snow, and some routes into Yellowstone are only open seasonally. It is always worth checking current road conditions via the Wyoming Department of Transportation before setting out. Wildlife on the roads — particularly at dawn and dusk — is a genuine hazard. Large animals such as elk, bison, moose, and deer regularly cross highways, so drive alertly and do not attempt to move animals off the road by driving at them.
🏛️ Things to Do
Buffalo Bill Centre of the West — This is the undisputed centrepiece of any visit to Cody. The complex houses five world-class museums under one roof, each dedicated to a distinct aspect of America’s frontier heritage: the Buffalo Bill Museum, the Whitney Western Art Museum, the Plains Indian Museum, the Draper Natural History Museum, and the Cody Firearms Museum. The scale and quality of the collection is remarkable for a town of this size, and it is an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution.
Cody Nite Rodeo — Cody bills itself as the Rodeo Capital of the World, and with good reason. The Cody Nite Rodeo runs every evening throughout the summer months and is the longest-running nightly rodeo in the country. It is a genuine spectacle of bareback bronc riding, barrel racing, bull riding, and more, and the atmosphere is electric. The annual Cody Stampede, held around the 4th of July, draws top professional riders from across the country and is accompanied by parades and fireworks.
Old Trail Town — An open-air collection of more than 26 authentic frontier buildings relocated and preserved by historian Bob Edgar. Walking between the structures — which include the original Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid cabin — offers a vivid sense of life on the late 19th-century frontier.
Buffalo Bill Dam — Built in 1910, the dam sits in the dramatic Shoshone Canyon a few miles west of town. When it was completed, it was the highest dam in the world. The visitor centre tells the story of its construction, and the views from the canyon rim are exceptional.
Heart Mountain Relocation Centre — A sobering and important site north-west of Cody, where Japanese-Americans were interned during the Second World War following President Roosevelt’s executive order. The visitor centre and surviving buildings provide a thoughtful account of this chapter in American history.
Outdoor recreation — The surrounding landscape offers outstanding opportunities for fly fishing on the North Fork of the Shoshone River, white-water rafting, hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, and rock climbing. The Shoshone National Forest, the first designated national forest in the United States, is immediately accessible from town.
Gunfight reenactments — A free outdoor gunfight performance takes place most evenings outside the historic Irma Hotel, the grand establishment Buffalo Bill built in 1902 and named after his daughter.
Scenic drives — The Chief Joseph Highway and the Beartooth Highway (the latter rated by many as one of the most scenic roads in America) both make superb day trips from Cody, particularly in summer when the passes are open.
Wildlife watching — The Wapiti Valley corridor between Cody and Yellowstone is excellent for spotting elk, bison, bighorn sheep, and bears. Yellowstone itself, just an hour’s drive away, offers some of the finest wildlife viewing on Earth.
Best time to visit Wyoming
🌸 Spring (April–May)
Spring in Wyoming is a season of transition and reward for the patient traveller. Temperatures range from around 4°C to 18°C, though higher elevations remain cold and snow lingers well into May in places such as Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. Rain is common at lower altitudes, and mountain passes may still be closed or subject to sudden closures. The advantage is a landscape coming alive: wildflowers begin to carpet valley floors, rivers run high and fast with snowmelt, and wildlife is highly active — bison calves appear in Yellowstone, bears emerge from hibernation, and bird migration is at its peak. Crowds are minimal compared to summer, making it easier to secure accommodation and move freely through the parks. It is an ideal season for photographers and wildlife enthusiasts willing to accept changeable conditions.
What to pack: Waterproof hiking boots, a mid-layer fleece, a packable down jacket, waterproof trousers, layering base tops, a rain jacket, sun cream (UV is strong at altitude), binoculars, and a warm hat and gloves for early mornings and higher elevations.
☀️ Summer (June–August)
Summer is Wyoming’s most popular season and for good reason. Temperatures are warm and often hot, reaching 25–30°C in the valleys, while the mountains remain pleasantly cool. All park roads are open, accommodation is plentiful, and the full range of outdoor activities — hiking, rafting, horse riding, fly fishing, and wildlife watching — is available. Grand Teton National Park is breathtaking under clear blue skies, with the Teton Range reflected in the Snake River. Yellowstone is in full swing, with geysers, hot springs, and abundant wildlife on display. July brings festivals across the state, including the famous Cheyenne Frontier Days rodeo. The trade-off is significant: this is peak season, and roads, campsites, and lodges fill quickly. Afternoon thunderstorms are frequent, particularly in July and August, so morning starts are advisable. Book months in advance.
What to pack: Lightweight hiking layers, a waterproof shell jacket, UV-protective clothing, a sun hat, high-SPF sun cream, insect repellent, sturdy trail shoes or hiking boots, a refillable water bottle, and a light fleece for evenings.
🍂 Autumn (September–October)
Autumn is arguably Wyoming’s finest season. Temperatures cool to between 0°C and 18°C, crowds thin dramatically after the Labour Day weekend in early September, and the landscape undergoes a spectacular transformation. Aspen trees turn vivid gold across hillsides and valleys — particularly striking in the Bridger-Teton National Forest and around Jackson Hole. September is prime elk rut season in Grand Teton, with bulls bugling at dawn and dusk, one of the most dramatic wildlife spectacles in North America. Bears are active and feeding heavily before hibernation, making wildlife sightings excellent throughout Yellowstone. Prices drop noticeably after the summer peak, and accommodation is more readily available. By late October, early snow becomes likely, and some facilities begin to close. Timing a visit for mid-September to mid-October offers the best balance of colour, wildlife, weather, and value.
What to pack: Waterproof hiking boots, thermal base layers, a warm mid-layer, a windproof and waterproof outer shell, hat and gloves, warm socks, binoculars for wildlife, and a camera for the foliage.
❄️ Winter (November–March)
Winter in Wyoming is dramatic, demanding, and deeply rewarding for those who seek it out. Temperatures frequently drop to -15°C or colder in January and February, heavy snowfall transforms the landscape, and many roads and facilities close entirely. However, winter reveals a different side of Wyoming that few visitors experience. Jackson Hole Mountain Resort is one of the finest ski destinations in North America, offering expert terrain and reliable snowpack. Yellowstone becomes an otherworldly scene of steaming geothermal features set against frozen silence, accessible by guided snowcoach or snowmobile tour — the only way to enter the interior of the park in winter. Bison and wolves are more easily spotted against white snowfields. Costs and crowds are low outside of the ski resorts themselves, where prices peak in January and February.
What to pack: Heavyweight thermal base layers, insulated waterproof trousers, a down-filled parka, ski gloves or heavyweight mittens, a balaclava and wool hat, wool socks, insulated waterproof boots rated to -25°C or below, hand warmers, and UV-rated goggles or sunglasses for snow glare.
🗓️ The Best Time to Visit Wyoming
For most visitors, late September strikes the ideal balance across every measure. The summer crowds have gone, accommodation prices have fallen, and yet the weather remains crisp and manageable. The elk rut delivers one of the most electrifying wildlife encounters anywhere in the world, aspen gold is at its peak, and clear autumn light makes for exceptional photography. Serious hikers and outdoor adventurers are best served by July, when all trails are accessible and conditions are reliably good, despite the crowds. Those seeking true solitude and a genuinely remote encounter with the landscape should consider a guided winter visit to Yellowstone — an experience that has very few rivals anywhere. Spring, while underrated, is best reserved for wildlife enthusiasts with flexible schedules willing to accept unpredictable conditions. Whenever you go, Wyoming rewards those who venture beyond the car window.
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