At this stage in our lives, experiences are much more important to us than stuff. Coming to see Yellowstone in winter was one that excited us. We made our arrangements to stay at the (National Park Service) Old Faithful Snow Lodge (managed by Xanterra) many months in advance. Our visit to Yellowstone National Park in the winter was indeed a success! When we were outside, it was fun and we would recommend a winter visit. In 2010, we visited Yellowstone in the spring and it was great too--read all about it.
In winter, it is necessary to take a snow coach into Yellowstone (the roads are closed). We parked our car outside of the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel and took the Yellowstone snow coach over the groomed--not plowed--road.
We stopped at Gibbon Falls on the way in and followed the river to Old Faithful. The Firehole River starts at Old Faithful and merges into the Gibbon River and then the Madison. One of our stops was at Beryl Springs and we saw its fumarole. When we passed by Excelsior Geyser, we were told that it spews out around 4000 gallons of super-heated water into the Firehole River. With that water warming it, the Firehole River doesn’t freeze in winter; it was around 40° F (but who is checking?). It looks beautiful as it flows perfectly along. Bison drink from it. We were told that the chemicals in the water ruin the bison’s teeth, shortening their lifespan when they can no longer chew and then they starve to death. After that happy thought, we arrived around 6 pm at the Snow Lodge at Yellowstone and our luggage was in the vestibule. The snow coach service was enjoyable and the luggage transfer was efficient.
When we were inside the Snow Lodge, we invariably got annoyed. We vowed that we would never stay at a lodge inside a national park again (or one managed by Xanterra, for that matter). The Snow Lodge on Valentine's Day was full! We had been able to score a King Room (rather than 2 queen beds) for approximately $350 (blended rate) per night. But the Snow Lodge had many annoying features (no wi-fi or cell service in the room—only in the lobby). Our room had a window seat and 2 closets on either side. There was one comfortable chair and a foot stool. We commandeered a second desk chair so each of us could sit at the one desk, next to each other--but we didn't because there was no wi-fi so we hardly ever used the computers. The bathroom was small but usable. The sink was outside the bathroom and functional. The room was quiet but it would have been nicer to be on a higher floor (to avoid foot stomping above). On the positive side, the staff generally was responsive and friendly.
The vistas and the whiteness of Yellowstone with all of the bison, geysers, waterfalls and fumaroles did not disappoint. Our first day was a beautiful and we walked a loop around Old Faithful in the morning, stopping at geysers along the way. The boardwalk had some snow on it because of the 3” that fell on Monday night. Otherwise, it would have been very icy. Even so, there were sections that did have ice. We enjoyed ourselves very much and didn’t get back to the Snow Lodge until around 12:30 pm. That didn’t leave much time for lunch. The Obsidian had a soup of red pepper and cheese and we ate fast and then went on our snowshoe tour. The afternoon was a glorious, with lots of sun and about 8° F. We were a group of ten with our guide, Regan. We went north of Old Faithful near the path toward Maillard Lake. Around the guest cabins, we saw a red fox. Regan said guests feed it and so it sticks around the cabins. She said the trees in Yellowstone are lodgepole pine or Engelmann spruce (Audre's tree). On our snowshoe, we saw tracks of a snowshoe hare (someone thought that they actually saw it). Regan told us about mistletoe lichen that makes witches branches and she showed us some. We walked to the bridge over Firehole River and took pictures. Regan showed us what rime frost looks like when the geyser water freezes onto the trees. We also learned what hoar frost was. We saw bobby sock trees in the pools where the chemicals had killed the trees and left a white collar around the base of the tree in the water. Where there was grass showing, we learned that there was geothermal activity in the area, heating the ground. Otherwise, we were in a snow-covered wonderland. Evidently in winter, there are only about 30,000 visitors in the park versus the summer when there are 4.5 million visitors! In total we walked for 2:38 hours, 1.77 miles. The tour cost $30 each.
The night sky and fumarole (steam and star) tour was not a success; it was too cold and after the first stop we bailed (our guide, April, brought us back to the Snow Lodge). That bust cost $135 for the two of us.
We ate all of our meals at the Snow
Lodge and they were only barely acceptable. Our stay, with two tours and 6 meals, for
the two nights cost approximately $1300 and we were happy we had done it.
The return snow coach trip was also enjoyable. When we got to the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, our 13-year old car started immediately! Bob was our snow coach driver and he entertained us. As it was on the way in, the ride was about one hour too long! There was no traffic in the park in the winter and the only holdups were because of bison on the road. We had 8 people on the coach so there was room to put our computers on an empty seat. We stopped at Fountain Paint Pots which had all of the different features: geysers, fumaroles, mud pots and so on. The different heat-loving bacteria cause the colors in the water. We took pictures of the gorgeous-colored Silex pond, Red Spouter and the Fountain Geyser (which we missed erupting). We learned about the pool called the Celestine dog where a dog jumped in and a man followed to save it. Both boiled to death. We stopped at Firehole Falls for a snap. Then we were back.
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