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Yellowstone Lake, Lake Village, WY

Photo: Acroterion, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

Sport & OutdoorIconicOutdoor Adventure

Yellowstone Lake

Lake Village and Fishing Bridge area, Grand Loop Rd, Yellowstone National Park · Lake Village, WY

Why you should go…

Yellowstone Lake sits at 7,732 feet inside the Yellowstone Caldera and covers about 132 square miles with 141 miles of shoreline. You can watch cutthroat trout from Fishing Bridge, launch a boat at Bridge Bay Marina, or walk the boardwalks of West Thumb Geyser Basin, where hot springs steam right at the waterline. The water rarely tops 66 degrees in summer, and ice can stay on the lake into late May or June.

  • #yellowstone national park
  • #mountain lake
  • #fishing
  • #boating
  • #wildlife viewing

Good to know

General sport & outdoor guidance

Habits that pay off across this whole category, not rules for this one venue. Always check the official site for the specifics.

  • Weather calls the shots

    Check the forecast the morning of and keep an indoor backup in your pocket for the day it turns.

  • Shoes, water, sun cover

    The three things that decide whether you last the whole outing or cut it short after an hour.

  • Parking and launches fill early

    On a nice weekend, lots and trailheads are often full by mid-morning.

  • Daylight shrinks in shoulder season

    Spring and fall visits need an earlier start than the same trip in July.

What's around here?

The closest stops to Yellowstone Lake, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Iconic

    Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

    $25–$50

    Stand at Artist Point and look up a yellow-walled canyon to the 308-foot Lower Falls.

    18 mi awayMore like this

  • Sightseeing
    Iconic

    Old Faithful

    $25–$50

    Watch Yellowstone's signature geyser shoot water more than 100 feet high from the surrounding boardwalks.

    23 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Iconic

    Grand Prismatic Spring

    $25–$50

    Follow the boardwalk past Yellowstone's largest hot spring, a deep blue pool ringed in orange and yellow.

    24 mi awayMore like this

  • Attractions
    Family Favorite

    Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center

    Under $25

    Nonprofit wildlife park near Yellowstone's west entrance, home to rescued grizzly bears, gray wolves and other native species.

    38 mi awaySwitch it up: Attractions

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Iconic

    Mammoth Hot Springs

    $25–$50

    Walk boardwalks above steaming travertine terraces in Yellowstone, next to the red-roofed buildings of Fort Yellowstone.

    38 mi awayMore like this

  • Tours
    Outdoor Adventure

    Yellowstone Helicopters

    $50+

    Helicopter sightseeing flights from West Yellowstone Airport over Hebgen Lake, Two Top and Earthquake Country, from 20-minute hops to a 60-minute wilderness explorer.

    39 mi awaySwitch it up: Tours