Simond Raymond of Switzerland braved snow-packed and icy roads, but he considered his winter visit to Yellowstone National Park a success. He saw wolves every day.
“Sometimes the weather is very bad — but we saw the wolves,” he smiled.
Raymond fits into a category of Yellowstone visitor that did not exist 15 years ago: the wolf watcher.
After being wiped out in the park early in the 20th century, 31 gray wolves were re-introduced in 1995 and 1996. They flourished. Today, more than 350 of their descendants roam the park and surrounding area, preying on the abundant elk, deer and bison.
Summer visitors to Yellowstone expect to see wildlife, but most don’t realize that the winter season — which officially begins Dec. 18 — can be prime time for wildlife viewing. Deep snow in the high country drives elk, deer and bison down into the open valleys, where the weather is milder and they can more easily paw or push snow aside to get to the dried grass beneath.
And where the grazing animals gather, predators follow.
My wife and I live only three hours away from Yellowstone and we visit more often in the winter than the summer. We like to tell others about being serenaded by wolf and coyote howls echoing off the mountains, of watching a coyote stalk and pounce on a mouse by listening to it scurrying under the snow, of inadvertently skiing so close to a bison that we could see his bloodshot eyes.
But there’s more than wildlife in Yellowstone in winter. The frigid air enhances the steam spouting from its famous geysers, making them even more spectacular. Its plateaus and broad valleys are made for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing; some scenic drives in summer are designated cross-country ski trails in winter.
Most of Yellowstone is closed to auto traffic in winter, but the part that is open to cars offers some of the richest wildlife viewing opportunities in the park. It runs from Roosevelt Arch, the century-old ceremonial north entrance to Yellowstone at Gardiner, Mont., to the snowbound community of Cooke City, Mont., at the northeast entrance (the road beyond Cooke City is usually closed in winter).
En route, it passes through the Lamar Valley, which some have called America’s Serengeti. This is where most of the park’s wolf watchers hang out.
But even areas closed to auto traffic remain open to visitors, via snowmobile or snowcoach. Visitors can travel by snowcoach to Old Faithful and ski the circuit around the Upper Geyser Basin, the largest geyser concentration in the world. After skiing, visit the Old Faithful Snow Lodge, a modern hotel that invites visitors to curl up in comfy lounging chairs in front of lobby fireplaces.
Those staying in gateway communities can also take snowcoaches into the park on day trips. Cross-country skiers can access scheduled ski drops and pickups for specific trails from in-park hotels.
And for those staying near the north entrance, winter is the best time to try that special Yellowstone experience called hot-potting.
As you drive the five miles from Gardiner to Mammoth Hot Springs, you will cross the Gardner River. You may notice a big parking lot to your left — seemingly serving nothing. It’s not marked, but this is the best opportunity in Yellowstone to take a dip in a wild hot springs without having to hike for 20 miles. By William Kronholm,The Miami Herald
