Last Updated on: 12th March 2024, 12:31 am
Aside from its geysers, if there’s one thing Yellowstone is known for, it’s wildlife. While you’ll inevitably have a few chance encounters while exploring the park, where should one go in hopes of seeing as many animals as possible? The answer is Hayden Valley, situated just south of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.
Hayden Valley is particularly known for its large mammals. Bison are abundant throughout the area, while if you’re lucky, you might even spot some bears, elk or moose.
Hayden Valley is best experienced shortly before sunset or just after sunrise (ideally the latter). But considering how driving in Yellowstone in the dark is not advised, you’ll have to stay in the park to best experience Hayden Valley.
The valley is located right near Canyon Village, which contains both hotels and campgrounds. Learn more about accommodation in Yellowstone below.
If you were to drive through Hayden Valley without stopping, it would take you about 15 minutes. But of course, you’ll be stopping plenty of times to see wildlife and admire the views of the Yellowstone River. And you’ll likely want to drive through it multiple times.
Just south of Hayden Valley is a geyser basin known as Mud Volcano, which we’ll also be covering in the guide below. In addition to geysers and mud pots, it too is a great place to spot bison.
For more information on alternatives to Hayden Valley, wildlife tours, packing and accommodation, be sure to check the end of the article.
The Mud Volcano
The Mud Volcano lies at the southern end of Hayden Valley and it’s well worth a stop during your time in the area. Not only do you get to see more interesting hydrothermal activity, but there’s a high chance you’ll see bison near the geysers as well.
As with the other geyser basins of Yellowstone, the area features a boardwalk that will take you around the area. Its total length is 0.75 miles (1 km), while the Mud Volcano consists of both an upper and lower level.
It’s at the bottom level that you’ll find the Mud Volcano itself. Until a large eruption occurred in 1870, it appeared as a cone-shaped volcano, though it now simply looks like a pool of bubbling mud.
After geysers and hot springs, mud pots are one of the major hydrothermal features of Yellowstone. They behave similarly to geysers, but instead of regular water, the liquid is highly acidic. So acidic, in fact, that it causes the ground to dissolve into clay. But as this acidic clay is constantly wet, it appears as what could best be described as explosive mud.
Also nearby is the Dragon’s Mouth Spring, not to mention the Grizzly Fumarole. The various sounds and smells you’ll observe at the Mud Volcano really do make it feel like you’ve entered some kind of dragon’s lair.
Next, as I proceeded up the boardwalk to the upper level of the site, I witnessed a group of about a dozen people running from the opposite direction.
‘A bison!’ one of them shouted to warn me. While I didn’t follow them, I stopped and waited to see what was going on. And sure enough, an annoyed bison appeared from around the corner!
To my relief, he opted not to run down the boardwalk but instead began casually walking along the grass.
Later on, one of the visitors who’d been running for their lives returned to the area and explained the situation in more detail. Apparently, the bison was minding its own business until a reckless visitor decided to invade its personal space, getting right up to it.
Understandably, the bison charged at the offender, but also at nearby innocent bystanders as well. It even made contact with several people but luckily nobody got hurt.
That’s a small miracle, as male bison can weigh up to 2,000 pounds and can run as fast as 30 mph! While they often appear docile, needless to say, these are certainly not animals you should ever mess with.
After the commotion died down a bit, I continued along the boardwalk to explore the mud pots at the upper level: Sour Lake, Black Dragon’s Cauldron and Churning Cauldron
Churning Cauldron in particular is especially active, though it’s been a long time since there’s been a large eruption.
As with many of the hydrothermal features of Yellowstone, you can either casually walk past it or stand there mesmerized by the sounds and movements of the churning liquid.
Coming around the corner and heading downhill, you’ll find yourself overlooking Mud Geyser. From its discovery in the late 19th century and until 1927, Mud Geyser would undergo regular large eruptions.
Whether or not it will erupt again anytime soon remains a mystery. But large craters have formed in recent decades, gradually swallowing the trees that once surrounded it.
But there was clearly someone who didn’t find any of these facts intimidating. Relaxing by the former geyser was a bison, who seemed to be contemplating life while enjoying the view.
Apparently, it’s common to spot bison along hydrothermal areas in winter, though my visit took place in summer.
And reaching the end of the boardwalk and coming back to the site entrance, there was another bison waking along the rim of the Mud Volcano itself! Clearly, the heat didn’t bother him whatsoever.
Looking closely, I realized that this was the same bison who’d charged at the group of visitors atop the hill. Luckily, he was much more calm now, but for whatever reason, he went to hang out in front of the restrooms by the parking lot.
I could only imagine coming out of the bathroom to see a huge bison waiting right outside!
Back on the road and heading toward Hayden Valley, you can also stop at an overlook from which you can see the Sulphur Caldron. Interestingly, it’s believed to be situated right on the edge of the Yellowstone caldera.
Hayden Valley
If at all possible, you’ll want to visit Hayden Valley more than once during your time at Yellowstone, experiencing it both at dusk and at dawn. The best way to do this would be to base yourself at Canyon Village for a night or two, as it’s situated right next to the valley.
While you should see plenty of animals – especially bison – in the evening, right around sunrise is the best time to experience Hayden Valley – both for wildlife and for scenery.
Hayden Valley in the Evening
As you drive through Hayden Valley, you’ll be traveling parallel to the Yellowstone River. You’ll occasionally encounter pullouts where you can park and enjoy the scenery,
But when it comes to wildlife, you never know quite when and where you’re going to spot some. Fortunately, you’re generally allowed to just pull over next to the road if space allows. Visitors are prohibited from roaming deep into the valley on foot, however.
As mentioned, if there’s one animal you’re surely going to spot at Hayden Valley, it’s bison. In fact, bison have lived on these lands without interruption for thousands of years. But there was a brief period when they nearly went extinct.
Today, there are a little under 5,000 bison in Yellowstone. But by the end of the 19th century, the population had dwindled to just 23. But how?
Firstly, native tribes who inhabited these lands had long relied on bison hunting. And they typically did so in a sustainable manner. But after getting ahold of horses that had been introduced to the Americas by the Spanish, hunting bison became easier than ever.
And what ensued was a period that saw various indigenous tribes constantly at war with one another over access to bison hunting territory.
Later on, European settlers also hunted the animal en masse, processing their bones for use in various products. And then the US Army started deliberately killing bison in order to get the Plains Indians to abandon their traditional lifestyle and settle onto Indian reservations.
Fortunately, the government finally began taking the preservation of bison seriously from the early 20th century. Thanks to conservation efforts and the introduction of captive herds to the area, the native bison population was finally able to replenish itself.
Hayden Valley in the Morning
Even if you’re not at all a morning person, it’s well worth putting forth the effort to drive through Hayden Valley at sunrise (this may be impossible for those who aren’t based at Canyon Village, however).
Not only are you more likely to see wildlife at this time (at least from my experience), but the mist over the river in the early morning creates a spectacular dream-like landscape.
In my case, I woke up at around 5:20 at Canyon Campground, entering Hayden Valley around 6:00.
Despite spotting a female elk immediately upon leaving Canyon Campground, I grew worried that I’d come too early. As beautiful and dramatic as the thick fog and mist made everything feel, I couldn’t make out any animals in the distance.
Fortunately, however, about halfway through the journey, the fog finally cleared up – at least on my righthand side. And it wasn’t long before I spotted a pair of bison.
The fog would remain hovering over the river, however, and the scene was almost as impressive as the wildlife itself.
As mentioned above, you’ll want to carefully keep your eyes peeled and be ready to pull over if you spot something. The more people you have in the car with you the better, as the driver will obviously need to keep their eyes on the road.
As with anywhere at Yellowstone, a car parked in a seemingly random spot is often an indication that an animal has been spotted nearby.
While that’s not always quite the case, and some people just stop for a rest, there should be no doubt when you encounter an entire line of cars parked in one area.
Near the end of Hayden Valley, not far from Mud Volcano, I encountered at least a dozen cars parked on either side of the road. Sure enough, it was one of the most coveted wildlife sightings at Yellowstone: a grizzly bear.
But not just one bear. It was a mother grizzly and at least two of her cubs. Unfortunately, they were very far away, and the pictures shown here are a result of an optical zoom lens plus cropping. Nevertheless, it was still thrilling to finally see one in person.
Yellowstone is home to both grizzly bears and black bears. Grizzly bears are also known as brown bears, but they can sometimes be black while black bears can be brown. The main way to tell them apart, therefore, is that grizzly bears have a distinct shoulder hump that’s a result of the strong shoulder muscles they need for digging.
When it comes to encounters in the wild, grizzly bears are generally the more feared of the two, while black bears are comparatively more docile.
How to handle bear encounters is a topic for another time, but you shouldn’t worry too much at Hayden Valley, as you’ll likely only see them from a distance. And if they do get close, you can easily take refuge in your car.
Hayden Valley is so picturesque that you’ll even want to get out to admire otherwise ordinary animals like ducks.
Arriving at Mud Volcano, we turned around to drive Hayden Valley yet another time before ultimately ending up at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.
In addition to more bison, I encountered one more large group of parked cars. This time the star of the show was a male elk with huge antlers feeding on some grass.
There are about 10,000-20,000 elk in Yellowstone in summertime. With that said, they do seem to be more elusive than bison.
If you get the chance to look at one closely, you’ll see how their antlers appear as if they’re covered in velvet, which is actually a fuzzy coating of skin. This is one way for the layman to differentiate them from moose, which are also typically up to a few feet taller.
As a large group gathered to admire the elk from a distance, he seemed unbothered and continued peacefully feeding on his grass. To him, it was porbably just a normal day in Hayden Valley.
Additional Info
While there don’t seem to be any dedicated tours to Hayden Valley at the time of writing, many of the standard day tours of the park do include Hayden Valley as one of the destinations.
If you’re short on time, this highly-rated 12-hour tour will take you to some of the park’s important highlights, including Hayden Valley, Old Faithful and Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. It departs from Jackson and Teton Village.
Aside from Hayden Valley, another prominent spot for wildlife viewing is Lamar Valley. It’s particularly famous for the chance to see gray wolves, while seeing a wolf in Hayden Valley is unlikely.
While I’d originally considered visiting Lamar Valley in addition to Hayden Valley, I ended up choosing to visit Hayden Valley multiple times instead. But why?
One reason was convenience, as Hayden Valley was located right near my campground. Lamar Valley, on the other hand, is about a 60-minute drive one-way from Canyon Village.
Another reason is that even if you do spot wolves in Lamar Valley, they’re likely going to be very far away. You’d need some kind of scope or powerful binoculars to observe them, while photography would be out of the question unless you have an especially long zoom lens.
But of course, there are still plenty of other animals to observe in the area, including the ones mentioned above.
If you’re interested in Lamar Valley, consider this Safari Hiking Tour, which even includes binoculars and a scope.
As it can get very cold in the morning in Hayden Valley, be sure to bring warm clothing, even if you’re traveling in summer.
You might want to consider bringing binoculars to Yellowstone to better see animals in the distance. Binoculars are an item that haven’t been replaced by modern technology, yet one that few people seem to buy anymore. But if you’re purchasing a new pair, there are a few things to consider.
If your binoculars are of too poor quality, you likely won’t end up using them much at all. That’s what happened to me with an affordable pair I picked up in Salt Lake City. On the other hand, it’s only worth buying an expensive pair if you plan on using it multiple times.
For what it’s worth, this affordable pair has thousands of positive reviews on Amazon, while this higher-end pair is also highly rated.
Quality issues aside, another reason I barely used binoculars is because I travel with a zoom lens for shooting wildlife. If you already have a DSLR or mirrorless camera, I recommend 70-300 mm lenses by Tamron which was used for most of the wildlife shots above.
Unfortunately, prices seem to have gone up dramatically since my purchase several years ago. Nevertheless, they’re still cheaper than many of the first-party zoom lenses out there (at least if you have a full frame camera). While I use a Canon, you should find a version suited for your particular brand.
Though you’re highly unlikely to have a surprise encounter in Hayden Valley, you should definitely make a habit of having bear spray on you at all times at Yellowstone. While you can find some good deals online, you’re not allowed to fly with bear spray, so you’ll have to buy it locally unless you’re driving from home.
At around 2.2 million acres, Yellowstone National Park is absolutely massive, and there are few cities or towns right by the park. And even if there were, you’d still want to change locations at least once to easily make it to all the main areas.
Rather than present an exhaustive list of all the different options and variables, I’ll explain what my travel companions and I did. In the end, I’m very pleased with the way the trip worked out. What follows is a brief summary, but you can learn more details in our comprehensive Yellowstone Itinerary.
Yellowstone should be explored over the course of three or four days. Assuming you can spend four nights in the region, it’s best to camp within the park and to do so at two different locations.
Not only will this save you money, it will also save you a lot of driving time. It also makes it possible to observe wildlife at dusk and dawn.
Note that driving in Yellowstone in the dark is not advised due to the lack of lighting and presence of large animals on the road. As such, you can count out staying in a nearby town and getting a head start by departing before sunrise.
Coming immediately from Grand Teton National Park, I entered Yellowstone via the South Entrance and headed straight for the Grant Village Campground. The next day, after exploring the geysers of southwest Yellowstone, I spent another night at the same campsite.
The following morning, we packed up our things and explored Yellowstone Lake and nearby areas. That night was spent at the Canyon Village Campground, located in the east part of the park where the two main loop roads intersect.
Again, we spent two nights in total at the same campground, allowing easy access to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. It was also within reasonable driving distance of Mammoth Hot Springs on the final day. (We’d then head north into Montana).
Yellowstone’s campgrounds are run by the Xanterra Corporation, and you can make reservations at this link.
Both campgrounds I stayed at had shower areas, though they unfortunately weren’t within walking distance of the campsite. There were plenty of bathrooms in the main camping areas, however.
Note that you can also find proper hotels/lodges at both Grant Village and Canyon Village. But not only can they get very pricey, you’d have to book many months in advance to secure a spot. On that note, even camping sites should be booked several months ahead of time.
At the time of writing, Yellowstone costs $35 to enter (learn more here).
If you’re visiting from abroad, note that in contrast to many other countries, US parks typically charge per vehicle rather than per person. However, if you’re traveling by bicycle instead, they’ll charge you for an individual pass which costs $20, while those on motorcycles will be charged $30.
Considering how many National Parks and National Monuments there are to see in the Southwest alone, the best option for most will be to buy an ‘America the Beautiful’ Annual National Parks Pass.
These cost $80 for the year. In most cases, you’re already saving money by just visiting four National Parks/Monuments anywhere in the country within a full year.
What’s more, is that only one person in your vehicle needs to have the pass. Additionally, seniors can buy the pass for just $20. So if you have someone over 62 in your party, just have them get the annual pass and everyone else will be set.
As for where to get the pass, you can purchase it in person at most National Parks or Monuments. But you can also order it in advance online.
Fortunately, a park pass/entry ticket is all you need to visit Yellowstone right now, as the park has not implemented any permit or timed entry systems like other popular parks have.