7/7
Depart Inglewood — heading north
~9 hrs to Scipio
🤠 Rodeo? maybe
Rodeo on the way up — if it works out
West Yellowstone Rodeo runs 5–6 nights/week mid-June through mid-August (~$15–25/person). If you're pushing past SLC and stopping near West Yellowstone, you could catch it night of 7/7 before sleeping there. But with kids and a family crew, no pressure — Scipio overnight is the smarter call. westyellowstonerodeo.com ↗
🚗
LA → Scipio, UT
I-15 N all the way · ~9 hours · push past SLC while everyone's fresh
- Leave early — target Scipio, ~9 hours. Push through SLC without stopping.
- Las Vegas is 4 hours out — good fuel/snack stop (avoid stopping there overnight with a July crowd)
- St. George, UT (~5 hrs) — scenic red rock, good lunch stop if you want to stretch
- Arrive Scipio by early evening — check in, pool, easy night
- No alcohol sold in Scipio — pick up anything you need in Cedar City or St. George
Departure plan — who's driving what
Stay: Night of 7/7
🛏️
Overnight — Scipio Hotel, Scipio, UT
Right off I-15 · ~9 hrs from Inglewood · pool + sauna · scipiohotel.com
- Why Scipio: Ben's call — push further than SLC on Day 1 while everyone's fresh. Scipio is 569 mi / ~9 hrs from Inglewood, leaving only ~6.5 hrs to Colter Bay on Day 2.
- Scipio Hotel: family-owned, right off the I-15 exit, pool and sauna, clean rooms, kind staff — exactly the right kind of place for a one-night road stop
- No alcohol sold in Scipio — if you want something for the evening, pick it up in Cedar City or St. George before arriving
- Morning of 7/8: quick breakfast, back on I-15 by 7–8am → Logan Canyon → Bear Lake raspberry shakes → Colter Bay by early afternoon
Scipio Hotel — booking notes
July 8 – 11 · 3 nights
7/8
Arrive Colter Bay — settle in
🛖
Scipio → Colter Bay · ~6.5 hours
I-15 N → US-89 through Logan Canyon, Bear Lake, Afton, Alpine → Jackson → Colter Bay
- Leave Scipio by 7–8am — on I-15 immediately, no city traffic
- Bonus stop: Bear Lake, UT/ID (~2.5 hrs from Scipio) — turquoise "Caribbean of the Rockies" + La Beau's raspberry shake in Garden City
- Afton, WY elk antler arch (~3.5 hrs) — great photo stop, kids love it
- Arrive Colter Bay early-mid afternoon · check in · explore the marina
- Early night — breakfast cruise at 7:15am tomorrow · reserve: 307-543-3100
Group notes — arrival day
7/9
Boat Trip + Triangle X
🎣 Fish day
Wyoming license + Grand Teton park permit required
No live bait. Kids under 16 free in park. ~$55/person for Wyoming license. Buy online or at the visitor center.
⛵
Boat trip — 8:00am sharp
Grand Teton Lake · Triangle X Ranch option
- Boat departs 8am — get the kids up and moving
- Triangle X Ranch for guided fishing options
- Grand Teton lake boat rental on property
Reservation + logistics
7/10
Jenny Lake + Taggart Lake
🛶 Kayak / fish
🥾
Hike + paddle day
Boat shuttle in · 4-mi loop · Taggart Lake kayak rental
- Jenny Lake: take the boat shuttle in, hike the ~4-mile loop — gorgeous, manageable for kids
- Taggart Lake afternoon: kayak or boat rental
- Check shuttle schedule — first boat varies
Group notes
7/11
Leave Tetons → Grant Village
🚗
Head north ~1pm
~2 hrs · Yellowstone south entrance
- Morning free — pack up, check out
- Depart ~1pm heading into Yellowstone south
- Arrive Grant Village, check in, walk the Yellowstone Lake shoreline
Transition notes
July 11 – 14 · 3 nights
7/12
Geysers · Old Faithful · Mama Glory · Lake
🎣 Fish maybe
Yellowstone park fishing permit — no WY license needed
3-day or season option. Kids under 16 fish free. Buy at any visitor center.
💨
Geyser basin + Old Faithful
3–4 miles · Mama Glory · Yellowstone Lake afternoon
- Geyser basin loop — 3 to 4 miles, totally doable for families
- Old Faithful — check the eruption schedule at the visitor center
- Mama Glory area exploration
- Yellowstone Lake: fish or just take it all in
Group notes
7/13
Norris Geyser Basin
🌡️
Norris Basin — ~45 min north
Hottest basin in the park · Steamboat Geyser
- Steamboat Geyser — world's tallest active geyser — is here
- Norris is the hottest and most acidic basin in Yellowstone — otherworldly
- Plan ~1 hour minimum; pack lunch, limited food service at Norris
Group notes
7/14
Boat? · Hayden Valley → Roosevelt Lodge
🎣 Fish maybe
🦬
Transition — south to north Yellowstone
Optional morning boat · Hayden Valley · Arrive Roosevelt
- Optional: Morning boat on Yellowstone Lake — Xanterra at Bridge Bay Marina (reserve ahead)
- Drive north through Hayden Valley — best bison/bear/wolf corridor in the park
- Grand Canyon of Yellowstone viewpoints en route
- Arrive Roosevelt Lodge, check in
Group notes
July 14 – 17 · 3 nights
7/15
Sunrise Wildlife · Canyon · Mt Washburn option
🎣 Fish morning
🌅
Out early — Lamar Valley at dawn
Wolves, bears, bison · binoculars essential
- Sunrise: Lamar Valley wildlife — wolves, bears, bison, pronghorn, eagles
- Morning: Slough Creek fishing — legendary cutthroat trout, right near the lodge
- Afternoon: Grand Canyon of Yellowstone — Upper and Lower Falls views
- Optional: Mt Washburn hike — 6 mi RT, ~1,400 ft gain, 360° panoramic views at the summit
Group notes
7/16
Sunrise Wildlife · Slough Creek · Campfire Cookout
🎣 Best fish day
🔥
Campfire cookout night
Full day: wildlife, fish, waterfalls, then fire
- Sunrise: Lamar Valley or Tower area for wildlife
- Slough Creek fishing — best day of the trip for it
- Tower Fall exploration in the afternoon
- Evening: campfire cookout — hot dogs, the whole deal
Cookout plan
7/17
Mammoth Hot Springs → Salt Lake City
~8 hrs total
🌙 SLC overnight
♨️
Mammoth Hot Springs — last Yellowstone stop
Roosevelt → Tower Junction (west) → Mammoth · 45 min
- Roosevelt to Mammoth: Head west from Roosevelt to Tower Junction (right turn), then 18 miles through rolling hills to Mammoth — 45 min total
- Walk the Upper and Lower Terraces — travertine hot spring formations unlike anything else in the park
- See Liberty Cap, the towering extinct hot spring cone
- Elk often lounging on the Mammoth lawns — look for them near the hotel and visitor center
- Terrace Grill or Mammoth Hotel Dining Room for lunch before you leave
- Plan ~1 hour minimum at Mammoth
Mammoth notes
🏛️
Drive under the Roosevelt Arch — exit via Gardiner
Mammoth → Gardiner, MT (North Entrance) · 5 min
- The iconic Roosevelt Arch — "For the Benefit and Enjoyment of the People"
- Quick gas in Gardiner, then south on US-89 to Livingston
- Pick up I-90 West at Livingston → Bozeman → I-15 South
- Bozeman is a good fuel/lunch stop if you didn't eat at Mammoth
🚗
I-15 South → Salt Lake City
Bozeman → Idaho Falls → Pocatello → SLC · ~6 hrs on the interstate
- Bozeman → Idaho Falls: ~3.5 hrs on I-15 south through wide-open Montana and Idaho ranch country
- Idaho Falls → SLC: ~3 hrs continuing I-15 south through Pocatello, past the Wasatch Range into the Salt Lake valley
- Fuel stops at Idaho Falls and/or Pocatello — both right off I-15
- Arrive SLC by early evening — grab dinner, crash
SLC overnight notes
7/18
Salt Lake City → Inglewood — Home
~8 hrs · I-15 South
🏠 Home by 3pm
🚗
I-15 South — all the way home
Same road you drove up · reverse order · one freeway · ~8 hrs
- Leave SLC by 7am — fuel up, breakfast, I-15 South. You know this road now.
- Wave at Scipio as you pass (~1 hr) — where it all started
- Beaver / Cedar City — fuel if needed (~2–2.5 hrs)
- St. George (~3 hrs) — good stretch stop, red rock one last time
- Mesquite, NV — state line, quick gas
- Las Vegas (~5 hrs) — lunch stop. In-N-Out round 2?
- Baker — world's tallest thermometer, Alien Fresh Jerky for the kids
- Barstow (~6.5 hrs) — last fuel before the basin
- Cajon Pass — descend into the LA basin. Coming down this time.
- Inglewood by ~3pm — the Gonsalves · Johnson · Jack inaugural run is complete. 🤠
Homeward bound notes
Lodging tracker
Confirmation numbers, check-in times, and notes for all three stops.
🛏️
Night 1 — Scipio Hotel, Scipio, UT
July 7 · 1 night · Ben's pick · I-15 exit · scipiohotel.com
Property name
Confirmation #
Check-in
Phone
Address & notes
🏕️
Stop 1 — Colter Bay Village, Grand Tetons
July 8–11 · 3 nights · ✅ Confirmed
Property name
Confirmation #
Check-in
Phone
Room · Rate · Balance
🏨
Stop 2 — Grant Village, Yellowstone
July 11–14 · 3 nights · ✅ Confirmed
Property name
Itinerary #
Check-in
Phone
Room · Rate · Balance
🌲
Stop 3 — Roosevelt Lodge, NE Yellowstone
July 14–17 · 3 nights · ✅ All cabins confirmed · Updated 7/5/26
Property name
Itineraries
Check-in
Phone
Cabin breakdown · 3 nights
📜
License & permit overview
Two separate systems — know before you go
- Grand Tetons (7/8–7/11): Wyoming fishing license + Grand Teton park permit. ~$55/person. No live bait. Kids under 16 free.
- Inside Yellowstone (7/11 onward): Yellowstone-specific permit only — no WY state license needed. 3-day or season. Kids under 16 free. Buy at any visitor center.
- No live bait in either park. Some Yellowstone waters are fly-fishing only.
License notes — who has what
📅
Best fishing windows
- 7/9 — Jackson Lake (boat trip): Cutthroat, lake trout, brown trout. Main Teton fish day.
- 7/12 — Yellowstone Lake: Cutthroat. Lake + shoreline. Afternoon after geysers.
- 7/14 morning — Yellowstone Lake: Optional boat at Bridge Bay Marina (Xanterra). Reserve ahead.
- 7/15 & 7/16 — Slough Creek: Best fishing of the entire trip. Legendary cutthroat stream right near Roosevelt Lodge. Bring waders.
Per-day notes
🧰
Gear & tackle inventory
What we're bringing / renting
🎒
Group packing checklist
Check things off as you pack — everyone can track this
🍽️
Camp food & provisions
Coffee, French press, cereal, oatmeal, sandwiches, hot dogs
Food plan