Old Faithful Inn: A National Park Lodge

This rustic 1904 inn is the first and most sensational of all ‘parkitecture’ lodges.

Old Faithful Inn derives its name from its close proximity to the Old Faithful geyser, which erupts once every 35 to 120 minutes. Courtesy of Xanterra Travel Collection

The wood at Old Faithful Inn goes every which way: up, down, sideways, and back. Stairs slant, banisters twist, posts soar, hallways veer, and balcony railings look like roller coasters. Structural members are unmilled; planks are rough-cut, un-planed. Posts and rails often sport natural burls, dwarfish bumps, and rings on the tree trunks. The high beams of Wyoming sunlight that lance through clerestory windows 80 feet above the lobby floor make the old lodgepole pine logs gleam amber.

It’s an elvish fantasy of timber, and there’s a heck of a lot of it.