Americans have always been captivated by big things. We're not talking flat screens or Viking ranges. We're talking skies and valleys, mountains and wildlife—the more oversize the better. In 1872 Ulysses S. Grant helped crystallize this sensibility when he protected our first national park, the 2.2-million-acre Yellowstone. Then as now, the landscape was teeming with spouting geysers, bubbling hot pots, trophy trout, lurking grizzlies, and free—roaming bison, elk, and moose. But those are just the initial attractions. What brings visitors back—again and again, year after year—is the park's astronomical sense of scale. It's huge in the unequivocally American way, and to feel it you need only take a few steps down a trail.

GAME PLAN: One area that typifies the enormity of Yellowstone is the park's southwest corner, a collage of remote waterfalls, geysers, and wild animal herds. The 27-mile hike from Bechler Ranger Station to Old Faithful starts in the creek-laced Bechler Meadows before tracing the region's namesake river through a cool, spruce-forested canyon. One by one, you'll pass Ouzel, Colonnade, and Iris Falls, the highest of which, Ouzel, tops out at 230 feet. Beyond the Great Divide, you'll reach Lone Star Geyser, a backcountry show that erupts every three hours (whether you hit it right is another matter). More reliable is a sit-and-soak hot spring the locals call "Mr. Bubble," accessible from Three Rivers Junction via a short trail along Ferris Fork River. Another side hike leads two miles to Shoshone Lake, the biggest backcountry lake in the park, where there's an au naturel geyser basin sans boardwalks or guardrails. The three- or four-night trip, which is best in August or September, culminates as any Yellowstone hike should—at the like-clockwork plume of Old Faithful. If all you can spare is a single day, then hike the seldom visited Specimen Ridge Trail, a steep, 3.5-mile, 1,600-foot grunt up from the Northeast Entrance Road. The specimens in question are petrified redwoods, oaks, sycamores, and maples—one of the largest stone forests in the world—and the ridge offers open views of the Lamar Valley, now the territory of some 170 reintroduced gray wolves, and 10,243-foot Mount Washburn. A more American landscape there could never be.

ULTIMATE BASE CAMP: Dating from the old rail-and-stagecoach days, the Lake Yellowstone Hotel rose to prominence after World War I and maintains a 1920s vibe on the shore of Yellowstone Lake. You can stay in the colonial-style lodge buildings, but it's better to nab a refurbished cabin (open May 16 through October 4; $128; travelyellowstone.com/lake-yellowstone-hotel-cabins-94.html).

VITALS: Backcountry permits, $20 in advance or free in person at park ranger stations within two days of the trip. Seven-day entry pass, $25. Campsites, from $12 (nps.gov/yel).

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