Hiking in the Beartooth Mountains of Wyoming

Program Registration: From 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., after you have your room assignment, come over to the Road Scholar table to register with the program staff and get your welcome packet containing your up-to-date schedule that reflects any last-minute changes, and to learn when and where the Orientation session will take place. If your arrival is delayed, please ask for your packet when you check in.

In the lodge dining room, we will have a family-style welcome dinner. You’re welcome to bring your own choice of beverage.

Orientation: The Group Leader will greet everyone and lead introductions. We will review the up-to-date program schedule, discuss roles and responsibilities, logistics, safety guidelines, emergency procedures, and answer questions. During the program, our hikes will be led by an expert naturalist in addition to our Group Leader. Hikes each day will be up to 6 miles with an elevation gain of 600-1,000 feet. Transportation to and from trailheads will be via van unless specified otherwise. Remember to bring a reusable water bottle that you can bring with you on hikes; ice water will be available in the vans to refill water bottles. The Beartooth Plateau/Absaroka Mountains area is at high altitude with hikes on trails at elevations from 7,000' to 11,000'. At high altitudes you are more susceptible to dehydration and altitude sickness. Carrying a water bottle with you and drinking plenty of water is important and a simple way to avoid these unpleasant and sometimes dangerous problems. Dehydration can affect a variety of people differently so its best to stay hydrated. Hikes are planned but be aware that schedule/hiking locations may change at the last minute due to weather, trail conditions or wildlife activity. Periods in the daily schedule designated as “Free time” and “At leisure” offer opportunities to do what you like and make your experience even more meaningful and memorable according to your personal preferences. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions. Program activities, schedules, personnel, and indicated distances or times may be changed due to local conditions/circumstances. In the event of changes, we will alert you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your understanding. Continue getting to know your fellow Road Scholars, settle in, and get a good night’s rest for the day ahead.

At the lodge dining room, we will have a plentiful buffet.

With an expert naturalist, our day begins with an introduction led by an expert naturalist to the natural history of the mighty Beartooth Plateau and Absaroka Mountains in north central Wyoming's magnificent high country. In the mid morning, we will hop aboard the van and head to the trailhead for our first day hike led by our naturalist. The isolation of this impressive area adds up to lightly used trails. Hiking here provides the opportunity to explore beautiful country and soak up its natural history along the way.

Along the trail, we will have sack lunches that are prepared in the morning at the ranch.

Hiking continues through mixed forest habitat while seeing and learning about the geology of this incredible, mountainous portion of the west. The poetry of its names - Beartooth, Shoshone, Absaroka - and the result of its violent geology make it a place that stamps itself into memory for anyone fortunate to hike its trails.

Lodge family-style meal.

We’ll then get to know this remote and untouched land with a presentation on its ecology and wildlife by a naturalist. Located to the northeast of Yellowstone National Park, the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness is an important part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Managed strictly by the U.S. Forest Service, the wilderness is home to the largest area of unbroken land above 10,000 feet in the continental United States.

Lodge buffet.

Voyage to the trailhead includes on board interpretation. Hiking encounters include exquisite, subalpine lakes and creeks, meadows and pockets of timber. Naturalist explains how wildlife uses this habitat including the plants that grow here. Discover the miracle of survival and interdependence of various species including Whitebark pine, Clark's nutcracker, squirrels, grizzly bears and more.

Sack lunch prepared in the morning at the ranch.

Hiking continues with interludes among riparian habitat and other high elevation life zones. The lush diversity of plant life that bursts forth each short summer is a miracle to behold knowing that, too soon, winter will resume its frigid, iron grip. Discover nature's astonishing, high elevation coping mechanisms.

Lodge family-style meal.

At leisure.

Lodge buffet.

Journey into the mountains for our day’s hike. The hiking area trails shed light on the region’s human history including use by hunger-gatherers and later explorers, trappers, miners, homesteaders, and dude ranchers.

Sack lunches prepared that morning at the ranch.

Hiking continues. A spectacular land of high, windswept plateaus and mountains reveals signs of glaciation, basement rock, fault zones and volcanics. A land of short summers and long, harsh winters. A land that reveals itself to hikers willing to make the effort and take the time. Impressive and often harsh, but yet fragile and easily damaged by human use.

Lodge family-style dinner.

Resting our legs, we will continue to learn about the ecosystem, wildlife, and the issues they face. An immensely fragile environment, the wilderness is home to one of the few tundra biomes in the continental United States.

Lodge buffet.

Ride to the trailhead for another exciting day on the trail. As we hike, our naturalist will explain the significance of this region. The Beartooth Plateau and Absaroka Mountains, their streams, life zones, life forms, and geology are an important component of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

Sack lunch.

Days of hiking along lightly used trails among staggering scenery has revealed a magnificent area's natural history. Hands-on learning as it was meant to be.

Lodge family-style meal.

We’ll then gather to review the program and look back on our new memories from our hiking adventure. Be sure to prepare for check-out and departure in the morning.

Lodge buffet. This concludes our program.

We hope you enjoy Road Scholar learning adventures and look forward to having you on rewarding programs in the future. Please join our Facebook page and share photos of your program. Visit us at www.facebook.com/rsadventures. Best wishes for all your journeys!