Yellowstone National Park / Wyoming
As a seasoned traveled, I've come to learn that the fun and adventure of a roadtrip begins long before I'm behind the wheel and heading to a destination; it begins with the planning. In the weeks and months leading up to any trip, you can find me researching the routes for the trip, sights along the way and, of course, the destination itself.
Online searches, travel guides and hours spent on Google maps determining the best route to take.
However, even with all this planning, there's still something you have to keep in mind. Something that I find myself forgetting from time to time.
Travel can be unpredictable.
In late September of 2017, I was driving north on John D. Rockefeller Parkway (US Highway 191) from the Grand Tetons toward the southern entrance of Yellowstone National Park.
Just as I reached the entrance, this valuable lesson presented itself.
Travel can be unpredictable.
While September in Yellowstone is typically mild weather with highs in the 60's, nature had something different in mind this September as a major cold front swept through blanketing the area with snow.
Not just a dusting.
Winter had arrived at Yellowstone in September, covering some locations in the park with a few inches of snow and others with a few feet.
I expected to find valleys and forests basking in the sunlight of summer's end.
My first reaction was disappointment. I'm from the South, and snow on the roads usually spells disaster. Snow can also present some difficulty with photography when temperatures are low and the snowfall is wet.
It didn't take long for my attitude to change, because nature had delivered a winter wonderland.
As it turns out, in the western part of the county, they're actually prepared for snow.
Life went on.
Old Faithful continued to erupt every 90 minutes (give or take a few minutes).
The elk still wandered the park, paying no mind to the gawking visitors stopping in their vehicles to admire them.
The mighty waters of the Yellowstone River still thundered over the falls of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.
One of my favorite views in the entire park.
The trail was slippery and wet, covered in a layer of ice in some places, as I made my way to the overlook point --- Artist Point.
In the early mornings, the temperatures were frigid in the 20's, but it created a beautiful mist over the rivers and streams.
Yellowstone became a serene landscape.
The sounds of the water's steady flow.
The bustle of the wind.
The tranquil movements of the elk and the bison grazing in the fields, sometimes stopping traffic as they meandered ever so slowly from one side of the road to the other.
The park roads were salted and prepared for the snow, and quickly plowed and cleared as the storm passed through. As luck would have it, even the roads in the highest elevations of the park along Dunraven Pass and Mount Washburn were opened briefly for a few hours. This allowed me just enough time to explore the sights of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone before driving north toward Mammoth Hot Springs on the final day of my visit.
The drive across Dunraven Pass was breathtaking with the forests painted white by the snow. There were moments when the beauty became almost terrifying, as the snowfall created a near white-out of the 10,000 foot drop-off next to the road while I carefully navigated the winding roads covered in melted snow.
As I descended the high altitudes and passed into the Tower-Roosevelt section of the park, the winter wonderland vanished and the glow of summer sunlight poured out over the landscape. The snow had miraculously skipped this side of the park. Summer had held its ground.
Although it wasn't the visit I expected or planned for, my trip to Yellowstone was beyond memorable. It was guided by two things that I seldom encounter --- spontaneity and snow.
Established in 1872 as America's first national park, Yellowstone covers 3,471 square miles of nature at its finest.
Mountains and cliffs.
Valleys filled with active wildlife.
Rivers and waterfalls.
Forests.
Hot springs and gushing geysers.
Yellowstone has something to offer everyone. If you haven't visited yet, add it to your to-do list. I'll be revisiting this trip in future posts to highlight some of my favorite parts of Yellowstone.
Online searches, travel guides and hours spent on Google maps determining the best route to take.
However, even with all this planning, there's still something you have to keep in mind. Something that I find myself forgetting from time to time.
Travel can be unpredictable.
In late September of 2017, I was driving north on John D. Rockefeller Parkway (US Highway 191) from the Grand Tetons toward the southern entrance of Yellowstone National Park.
Just as I reached the entrance, this valuable lesson presented itself.
Travel can be unpredictable.
Not just a dusting.
Winter had arrived at Yellowstone in September, covering some locations in the park with a few inches of snow and others with a few feet.
I expected to find valleys and forests basking in the sunlight of summer's end.
My first reaction was disappointment. I'm from the South, and snow on the roads usually spells disaster. Snow can also present some difficulty with photography when temperatures are low and the snowfall is wet.
It didn't take long for my attitude to change, because nature had delivered a winter wonderland.
As it turns out, in the western part of the county, they're actually prepared for snow.
Life went on.
Old Faithful continued to erupt every 90 minutes (give or take a few minutes).
The elk still wandered the park, paying no mind to the gawking visitors stopping in their vehicles to admire them.
The mighty waters of the Yellowstone River still thundered over the falls of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.
One of my favorite views in the entire park.
The trail was slippery and wet, covered in a layer of ice in some places, as I made my way to the overlook point --- Artist Point.
In the early mornings, the temperatures were frigid in the 20's, but it created a beautiful mist over the rivers and streams.
Yellowstone became a serene landscape.
The sounds of the water's steady flow.
The bustle of the wind.
The tranquil movements of the elk and the bison grazing in the fields, sometimes stopping traffic as they meandered ever so slowly from one side of the road to the other.
The park roads were salted and prepared for the snow, and quickly plowed and cleared as the storm passed through. As luck would have it, even the roads in the highest elevations of the park along Dunraven Pass and Mount Washburn were opened briefly for a few hours. This allowed me just enough time to explore the sights of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone before driving north toward Mammoth Hot Springs on the final day of my visit.
The drive across Dunraven Pass was breathtaking with the forests painted white by the snow. There were moments when the beauty became almost terrifying, as the snowfall created a near white-out of the 10,000 foot drop-off next to the road while I carefully navigated the winding roads covered in melted snow.
As I descended the high altitudes and passed into the Tower-Roosevelt section of the park, the winter wonderland vanished and the glow of summer sunlight poured out over the landscape. The snow had miraculously skipped this side of the park. Summer had held its ground.
Although it wasn't the visit I expected or planned for, my trip to Yellowstone was beyond memorable. It was guided by two things that I seldom encounter --- spontaneity and snow.
Established in 1872 as America's first national park, Yellowstone covers 3,471 square miles of nature at its finest.
Mountains and cliffs.
Valleys filled with active wildlife.
Rivers and waterfalls.
Forests.
Hot springs and gushing geysers.
Yellowstone has something to offer everyone. If you haven't visited yet, add it to your to-do list. I'll be revisiting this trip in future posts to highlight some of my favorite parts of Yellowstone.
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