Yellowstone Women’s Hiking and Hot Springs Weekend

We’ve got 4 days, babe. So we’re kicking things off birdie-early! We’ll do intros, triple-check our daypacks, fill our water bottles, and set the trip vibe before departing for Yellowstone.

After a transfer in our Explorer Chick Private Shuttle, we’ll arrive at the park’s iconic Upper Geyser Basin. Here we’ll watch Old Faithful blow and roam trails surrounded by 25% of the WORLD’S geysers in ONE tiny square mile! Whoa, love that math for us. 

Keep your peepers peeled for wildlife like bald eagles, osprey, bison, jackrabbits, and so many other curious critters. We’ll wander with plenty of stops to soak in the misty magic. 

After we geek out over geysers, we’ll break for a trail lunch before hitting up Grand Prismatic Overlook. Your fellow Explorer Chick will catch your jaw as you take in that classic smokeshow view of Yellowstone’s largest rainbow hot spring. Don’t you DARE apologize for taking 300 photos. Because we’re Explorer Chick, we love hitting all the secret spots from the back and will take you up the hill behind Grand Prismatic to view the spring from above. This is so much better than being at work!

With scenic drives and stops all day long, we’ll end today’s journey in West Yellowstone to check in, explore town, get our shop on, and dig into our welcome dinner. Rawr!

Distance: 7 miles
Elevation Gain: 612’
Hiking Time: 4.75 hours
Transport Time: 4.5 hours (broken up over the day)

Accommodation: Lodge West Yellowstone, shared
Meals: L-D

Today is full of top-secret surprises that’ll make you feel 8 years old again! After breakfast at our lodge, we waste no time jumping in the SHEnanigan Shuttle to our first stop of the day, Gibbon Falls! This gorgeous 84-foot drop of water gushes over a remnant of the Yellowstone caldera rim, which was formed by a volcanic eruption ~631,000 years ago.

This is a quickie stop because we’ve got hot springs to ogle. We’ll load back into the shuttle for a drive to Norris Basin, home of Porcelain Basin Overlook. These milky blue pools are the most otherworldly way to break up our drive time and stretch those legs. Your Explorer Chick guide will nerd out about silica, iron minerals, and acid waters. While teaching you all about hawt little organisms called thermophiles which thrive in these inhospitable temps. (Iconic tail name, btw.)

After we cruise the boardwalk and soak in the views, we get back on the road to hike the stealthy mind-blowing back entrance to Mammoth Hot Springs. We’ll take a lesser traveled trail (no spoilers!) with a small climb to escape the tourists. Experiencing the alien Hoodoo rock formations and hidden wildlife in peace is a damn privilege.

Mammoth Hot Springs is a natural wonder that is home to steaming terraces made of travertine. These living sculptures are constantly growing and changing. What you see today won’t be what others see next year. And that’s friggin beautiful.

We’ll have loads of time to wander around in awe and take all the photos of the world’s greatest collection of hot springs and terraces made up of travertine deposits. Sadly we can’t enter the springs, but the views will make our eyes water. Gawk at Rustic Falls and Bunsen Peak and try to sneak a peek of a curious Pika poking out of a Hoodoo!

Once we roll into Gardiner, you’ll have some solo time to take a stroll and explore before a well-earned dinner!

Distance: 4 miles
Elevation Gain: 860’
Hiking Time: 4 hours
Transport Time: 1 hour 40 minutes

Accommodation: Inn Gardiner, shared
Meals: B-L-D

It’s an early start, Explorer Chicks. But we’ve got fur, feathers, and fangs to see! #worthit

Our hope today is to spot a grey wolf during our Lamar Valley Wildlife tour, so start those manifestations! We’ll meet our Wildlife Tour Guide and enjoy hot drinks as a group while getting briefed on the adventure ahead.

Today is a NO fragrance day to stay stealthy and a PANTS day to protect your legs from bites and plants.

We’ll keep our eyes peeled for wolves, bison, bears, pronghorn, woodchucks, and maybe even a bald eagle or two! Yellowstone is home to nearly 300 species of birds, 67 species of mammals, 16 species of fish, 6 species of reptiles, and 5 species of amphibians. If you flip when you see a red squirrel, you’re gonna need a clean pair of undies. We’ll also enjoy views of more Hoodoos and basalt columns.

After our Wildlife Tour we’ll do a quick scenic leg stretch around Trout Lake followed by a gorgeous hike along the Yellowstone River. We’ll hike up the ridge to get a ridiculous osprey view, where we’ll congratulate ourselves for being bad bitches. 

After filling up on some delicious bites and sights, we’ll head back to our cozy inn—with a few surprise stops along the way for bonus hikes and Instagram-worthy photo ops. To top off our last full day, we’ll sink into ultimate relaxation as we soak in the only hot springs you can dip into nearby, with the sunset setting the perfect scene. Tonight is all about recharging those legs—tomorrow’s early start is worth it!

Distance: 4.2 miles
Elevation Gain: 665’
Hiking Time: 3 hours
Transport Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Accommodation: Inn Gardiner, shared
Meals: B-L-D

How is it already our last day?! Save the tears because we’ve got one last adventure to share together. We’ll meet for a final crack-of-dawn transport, boarding our shuttle to Artist’s Point. We’re catching the stunning sunrise that paints everything in the canyon sherbert orange. Hellooo, new desktop background.

We’ll hike with coffee in hand as we wander to Upper Falls to watch the canyon wake up with us. We’ll then follow the trail downriver, following the canyon the entire way to Artist’s Point. We’d say it’s the perfect finale to our 4-day adventure, but we’re not done yet!

We have a choose-your-own adventure as we meander around the North Rim Trail for another hike with stunning lookouts and side shoots onto the falls. 

We’ll wrap things up with a drive through the Tetons and a farewell wine toast and lunch in Jackson Hole. Then we’ll hug it out and promise to do this all over again. Pinky swear, okay?!

Depart any time after 5pm. Optional post-tour rooms will be available to book.

Distance: 3.2 miles 
Elevation Gain: 668‘
Hiking Time: 2.5 hours
Transport Time: 3 hours 50 minutes

Meals: B-L