Andrew and I just came back from an amazing week at Bozeman, Montana! I was very fortunate to have won an award at work a few months ago which basically paid for this trip. Since it was still a bit difficult to travel internationally, and Yellowstone has been on both our travel lists for a while, we decided to choose have a Yellowstone adventure.
Yellowstone was absolutely beautiful! Everywhere we went, there are so many bisons and elk just strolling around, chilling. We arrived on a Saturday, and we initially wanted to spend Sunday and Monday in Yellowstone, since we got two nights lodging at the Mammoth Hot Springs. However, it was snowing and some of the roads in Yellowstone were closed for parts of the day. Weather was going to be a bit worse on Monday, so we decided to explore more of Mammoth Hot Springs, Grand Prismatic Springs, and Old Faithful on Sunday, then come back on Tuesday.
Despite the snow, it was still very easy to appreciate the beauty and grandeur of Yellowstone. The Mammoth Hot Springs was a larger area than I anticipated. Since we stayed at the hotel there though, we just walked via the boardwalk surrounding the terraces. Then, we headed towards the Grand Prismatic Springs. Even though there was a bit too much steam to really see its vibrant colors because the temperature was low, it was still incredible to see up close. Last stop for that day was Old Faithful. Unfortunately, we had just missed the geyser go up. At the very least, we got to test out our winter gear, haha.
Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
When we got back to Yellowstone on Tuesday, it was bit more of a drive because we went straight from our Airbnb in Bozeman, so it took a little over 2 and half hours. But, the weather was so much nicer. There was still some wind chill, but the sun was out and it wasn’t cloudy, rainy, or snowy. It was the perfect day for us to continue our Yellowstone adventure and go to both Lookout Point and Artist Point to get two views of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.
Fly Fishing
Then, we learned how to fly fish from Gallatin River Guides. Our guide, Aaron, taught us what we needed to know about fly fishing. It was definitely an adjustment learning a different type of technique in fishing, but we had fun. It was also a beautiful day that day so it was quite relaxing on the boat. Lots of mental multitasking involved with fly fishing though.
Due to regulations, we can only do catch and release. After getting more bites than what I could land, I finally got a fairly sizable brown trout. I gotta say though, while I always like learning a new skill, I still prefer the traditional spinning reel fishing.
Other Activities in Bozeman
The rest of our time was spent on exploring the local eateries and sporting good stores, accidentally doing three escape rooms, and going to a cat cafe. For breakfast and brunch, we really liked Jam! (Yelp review here). For dinner, you should try Tanglewood Grill and Tap (Yelp review here). If you want something quick for lunch or dinner, we liked this hole in the wall place called Mo’Bowls (Yelp review here). And our travel is never complete without a few coffee shops. Closer to Yellowstone, we went to Yellowstone Perk a couple of times because the people and the coffee were great. In Bozeman, we stumbled upon Cool Beans Espresso Bar by accident, and they had the best orange mocha I’ve ever had.
Because I’m an addict, I just had to try an escape room in Bozeman. We went to Escape 406 and started with one room. Long story short, we ended up doing another one immediately after the first one on that same day, and doing a third one the next day. This place was fantastic! My husband and I have done a lot of escape rooms (mostly in California), and have experienced different generations of escape rooms. The rooms in Escape 406 are what would be classified as Gen 2, which means it has a good mix of actual physical locks and fancier tech/production. For more details on the rooms but without spoilers, feel free to read my Yelp review here.
Lastly, I managed to find a cat cafe in Bozeman and was able to book a visit a few hours before our flight back home. Cat Show Cat Cafe was super cute! While there were no adoptable cats available, the five permanent kitty residents were adorable and had lots of personality.
We definitely had fun adventuring in Bozeman!
1 comment
Beautiful pictures, and the escape rooms sound like a real highlight! The cats are pretty, too.