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Yellowstone Rail Trail


dinneR

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It looks like you detoured to Upper Mesa Falls also.  I rode a short loop from the old Bear Gulch parking area to Warm River Springs and then back down the rail trail to the parking area last Saturday.  I am planning on doing the trail from West Yellowstone to Warm River later in June.  What were the trail conditions like - any nasty areas of loose sand and cinders?  How bad were the mosquitos, especially in the Big Springs area?

 

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19 minutes ago, jdc2000 said:

It looks like you detoured to Upper Mesa Falls also.  I rode a short loop from the old Bear Gulch parking area to Warm River Springs and then back down the rail trail to the parking area last Saturday.  I am planning on doing the trail from West Yellowstone to Warm River later in June.  What were the trail conditions like - any nasty areas of loose sand and cinders?  How bad were the mosquitos, especially in the Big Springs area?

 

We did head over to Mesa Falls. We took a wrong turn which was fun.

The conditions were okay, sandy in parts, but not awful. One of the snowmobile ramps was broken, watch it or you could endo.

The mosquitoes were present, but not bad. We turned around before we got to Big Springs.

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2 hours ago, dennis said:

Your first photo looks like the spot where we took the wrong turn.

The first photo is just to the right of the rail trail, and shows the Forest Service road that goes southwest to Highway 47.  The rail trail is just to the left of the water on the left of the first photo.  The road continues east to Warm River Springs, shown in the second photo.

I am planning to ride from West Yellowstone to Warm River campground later this month - date to be determined.  A car shuttle will be used for that ride.

 

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5 hours ago, jdc2000 said:

The first photo is just to the right of the rail trail, and shows the Forest Service road that goes southwest to Highway 47.  The rail trail is just to the left of the water on the left of the first photo.  The road continues east to Warm River Springs, shown in the second photo.

I am planning to ride from West Yellowstone to Warm River campground later this month - date to be determined.  A car shuttle will be used for that ride.

 

That sounds awesome. That entire area that skirts the west side of Yellowstone is so beautiful. 

I'm trying to cook up some bikepacking plans in that direction or into Montana. There are so many roads to wander over there.

Will you camp in Warm River or drive back?

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8 hours ago, jdc2000 said:

The Warm River campground is usually packed, so we will just drive back after the ride.

 

I wasn't sure it's even open for camping. The host is there, it's gated, but the sign says "Stop, Pay here." All sites were empty and nobody was parked in the lot. Outside the campground, along the road, people were parked. 

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4 hours ago, Dottles said:

So what kind of bike would your recommend riding on this @dennis? My wife and I would love to ride that on a vacation.

Fargo is perfect. It's all gravel, some sections are sandy so bigger tires are better. HT mtb is just fine. My friend rode a gravel bike with 40 C tires.

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I did not check to see if the Warm River campground was open or not.  There were lots of cars parked outside, and lots of people along the river.  If it is closed, then no camping, and if it is open by mid-June, then it will be packed, so still no camping.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
53 minutes ago, jdc2000 said:

Upper Mesa Falls visitor center should be opening up next week.  There is a fee, but it is well worth it.

 

Not sure how much of the west side were going to get to this trip. Maybe on our way out but doubtful. On our way home I want to swing by Craters of the Moon. I was there 40 years ago and my wife has never been. 

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2 hours ago, jdc2000 said:

Both, but if you don't have time to bike, the Upper and Lower Mesa Falls are worth a stop.  You won't lose that much time by taking the scenic drive.

My friend in Bozeman says when we head up to Mammoth to head out of Wilson and drive around the west side of the Tetons and enter West Yellowstone, and if afterwards we want to take the traffic jammed scenic drive south from there we can -- which we may because we've come a long way to see the park..  But if we elect to circumnavigate the traffic jam and drive around to start -- this would be an excellent opportunity to view Mesa Falls.

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