ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Travel writer and advisor Lisa Evans, host of Big Blend Radio's "Journey Jukebox" Podcast takes us to Yellowstone National Park — America's very first national park, marking 110 years of the National Park Service this year.
This episode picks up right where her Cody, Wyoming visit left off: after basing herself in Cody, Lisa spent a day and a half looping through Yellowstone by chartered bus, and brings back a full rundown — bison herds thick enough to stop traffic for fifty cars, a moose sighting straight out of Lamar Valley, a surprise cinnamon bear, and the bighorn sheep on the way out of the park.
From there we walk through the icons — Old Faithful (which kept everyone waiting an extra thirty minutes), the otherworldly colors of Grand Prismatic Spring and the Midway Geyser Basin, the bubbling mud volcanoes, and dinner at the historic Lake Yellowstone Hotel with a general manager who's spent 40 years working his way up through the park's lodging operation.
We also get honest about the less charming side of visiting a place like Yellowstone: tourists stepping over barriers at Mammoth Hot Springs, walking up to bison for a closer photo, and — in one widely reported case — Pierce Brosnan's own $1,500 fine for wandering off a boardwalk into a restricted thermal area. With national parks already stretched thin on funding and staffing, we talk about why this isn't just about rule-following — it's about keeping the wildlife wild and the parks safe for everyone who visits them.
Along the way, Lisa also looks ahead to her next stops — Clarksville, TN, and a trip up to Anacortes, WA — and shares more of the multi-generational travel trends she's seeing on the road.
🗺️ Plan your own trip: Full Yellowstone travel guide, park links, and resources: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/yellowstone-still-wild-at-110
- Missed her last stop? Catch Lisa's Cody, Wyoming episode & article: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/cody-wyoming-western-culture
🎵 Journey Jukebox Music Playlist on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7humUf03LIW04t8LiJSSN9?si=71c11c52c77c4596
🎧 More about the Journey Jukebox Podcast:
- New episodes air every 3rd Tuesday at 6pm CST: https://journeyjukebox.podbean.com/
- Podcast Magazine: https://online.fliphtml5.com/yhwzg/JOURNEY-JUKEBOX---2026/#p=1
Follow Lisa Evans:
- https://substack.com/@allabouttravelwithlisa
- https://writerlisa.com/
