Before Christmas break, with Joseph done at Michigan three days before the other boys were done, Dad and Joseph both flew to Montana, met at the Bozeman airport, and drove down to Yellowstone Park for two solid days of winter adventures.
We stayed in the gateway town of West Yellowstone, one of the coldest, snowiest towns in America, which was relatively deserted. The winter season had just started on December 15, which means the park roads have re-opened (after closing at the end of the summer season in October), but essentially only to tour guides leading snow coach and snowmobile trips. We did one of each trip in our two days, with a hike tagged on to the snowcoach day.
Our Snowcoach tour was the first day, to the Upper Geyser Basin, including Old Faithful. Joseph and I split off from the tour for a bit more than an hour to hike through the basin, which was amazing in winter, including seeing the Riverside Geyser go off while we went by! We also saw Swans, Bison, and Coyotes. We had a wonderful guide for our journey chugging through the park.
Day Two was Snowmobiling, and we went forty miles each direction to the Yellowstone Canyon area, seeing Lower Falls, Upper Falls, and the Rim. We saw Swans, Bison, and Coyotes again this day, as well as an Elk and an Eagle. It began snowing while we were snowmobiling through the higher elevations, adding to the atmosphere but also making it a bit more arduous.
Lots and lots of great photos - here are a few of the notable ones:
Outside our snowcoach at a rest stop. The tiny vehicle fits eight plus the guide.
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