Yellowstone Winter Season Begins Sunday

Yellowstone National Park will open to the public for the winter season as scheduled on December 15.

Beginning at 7:00 a.m. Sunday morning, visitors will be able to travel to the park’s interior roads on commercially guided snowmobiles or snowcoaches from the North, West and South Entrances. Travel through the park’s East Entrance over Sylvan Pass is scheduled to begin December 22.

The road from the park’s North Entrance at Gardiner, Montana, through Mammoth Hot Springs and on to Cooke City, Montana, outside the park’s Northeast Entrance is open to wheeled vehicle travel all year.

At Old Faithful, the Geyser Grill, the Bear Den Gift Shop, and the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center open for the season on December 15. The Old Faithful Snow Lodge and Cabins and the Obsidian Dining Room open on December 18.

The Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, dining room and gift shop will open for the season on December 20. The Yellowstone General Store, the medical clinic, campground, post office and the Albright Visitor Center at Mammoth Hot Springs are open all year, as are the 24-hour gasoline pumps at Mammoth Hot Springs and Tower Junction.

Communities surrounding Yellowstone are open year-round, and local businesses offer a wide range of winter recreation opportunities. Extensive information and assistance for planning a visit to Yellowstone during the winter is on the park’s website.

Park staff members will continue to closely monitor road conditions and weather forecasts that can have an impact on roadways and guided oversnow travel operations. Weather during the winter season is extremely unpredictable in Yellowstone and road closures or delays can occur with little or no warning. Visitors are reminded to come prepared by carrying personal emergency survival equipment in their vehicles and dressing appropriately for outside activities in extremely cold weather.



Jeff
Hiking in Glacier National Park

Only A Few Days Left In Yellowstone's Winter Season

Yellowstone National Park's winter season is drawing to a close.

Park roads that serve commercially guided snowmobile and snowcoach travel to iconic Yellowstone locations will be closed in stages beginning Friday, March 1, when the East Entrance will close at 9:00 p.m.

Oversnow travel into the park from Mammoth Hot Springs will end at 9:00 p.m., Sunday, March 3.

Visitors traveling with a commercial guide service through the West Entrance will be able to enjoy the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone at Canyon Village by way of Norris Geyser Basin until 9:00 p.m., Tuesday, March 5.

Travel to Canyon Village will be still be possible from the both the West and South Entrances via the West Thumb area until 9:00 p.m., Sunday, March 10.

Old Faithful will remain accessible from both the West and South Entrances until 9:00 p.m. Friday, March 15, when all remaining interior parks roads will close for the season.

After the roads close to oversnow travel, plowing crews will clear them of snow so they can reopen to automobile travel in the spring.

At Old Faithful, the Snow Lodge and Cabins will close for the winter season on Sunday, March 3. The Geyser Grill, Bear Den Gift Shop and the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center will remain open through Friday, March 15.

At Mammoth Hot Springs, the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, Dining Room and Gift Shop will close for the season Monday, March 4. The Mammoth Campground, Yellowstone General Store, Post Office, Medical Clinic, the Albright Visitor Center and self-serve fuel pumps are open all year.

The road from Gardiner, Montana, through the park's North Entrance to Mammoth Hot Springs to Cooke City, Montana, is open to automobiles all year, weather permitting. Self-serve fuel is available all year at Tower Junction. Updated Yellowstone National Park road information is available 24 hours a day by calling 307-344-2117.


Jeff
Glacier National Park Hiking

Yellowstone's Winter Season Drawing To A Close

March 1st means two things in Yellowstone: a celebration of the birth of the world's first national park in 1872, and the beginning of the end of motorized oversnow travel in the park's interior for another year.

Commercially guided snowmobile and snowcoach travel between Fishing Bridge and the park's East Entrance over Sylvan Pass ends at 9:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 1. Closures on other road segments will occur during the next two weeks, with all oversnow travel scheduled to end for the season at 9:00 p.m. Thursday, March 15.

Once the roads close to oversnow travel, crews will begin to clear them of snow so they can reopen to automobile travel in the spring, beginning Friday, April 20, weather permitting.

At Old Faithful, the Bear Den Gift Shop closes for the season on Saturday, March 3. The Old Faithful Snow Lodge, Cabins, and Dining Room will close for the winter season on Sunday, March 4. The Geyser Grill and the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center will remain open through Thursday, March 15.

At Mammoth Hot Springs, the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, Dining Room, and Gift Shop will close for the season Monday, March 5. The Mammoth Campground, Yellowstone General Store, Post Office, Medical Clinic, the Albright Visitor Center, and self-serve fuel pumps are open all year.

The National Park Service (NPS) is working on a long-term plan to guide winter use in Yellowstone. The public comment period for the scoping phase for the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is open until March 9. A Draft Supplemental EIS will be released for public review and comment late this spring. The NPS intends to have a final Supplemental EIS, a Record of Decision, and a long-term regulation for winter use in Yellowstone in place before the mid-December start of the 2012-2013 winter season.

The road from Gardiner, Montana, through the park's North Entrance to Mammoth Hot Springs to Cooke City, Montana, is open to automobiles all year, weather permitting. Self-serve fuel is available all year at Tower Junction. Updated Yellowstone National Park road information is available 24 hours a day by calling 307-344-2117.


Jeff
Hiking in Glacier.com

Winter Season Activities to Begin in Grand Teton National Park

Activities for the 2011/12 winter season begin on Thursday, December 15 in Grand Teton National Park. The Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center (12 miles north of Jackson, Wyoming) is open year-round and winter hours run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. The Discovery Center will be closed on December 25, to observe the Christmas holiday.

A Single Day Pass is available to winter visitors at the Moose, Moran and Granite Canyon entrance stations. This winter-season permit allows a one-day entry into Grand Teton at a cost of $5 per vehicle. The single day pass is valid only in Grand Teton and cannot be used for entry into Yellowstone. Winter visitors may choose to purchase one of the following other options for entry:

$25 Seven-day Pass valid for single vehicle entry into Grand Teton and Yellowstone
$50 Grand Teton/Yellowstone Annual Pass valid for one year entry into both parks
$80 Interagency Annual Pass valid for one year entry to all federal land management fee areas

Ranger-led snowshoe hikes begin Monday, December 26 at the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center. This 2-hour activity is offered every day at 1:30 p.m., and previous experience is not necessary. Snowshoes are provided for a requested donation of $5 for adults and $2 for children, 8 years or older. Reservations are required and can be made at 307.739.3399.

Backcountry users and mountaineers planning to stay overnight in the backcountry must get a non-fee permit before their trip at the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center. Permits are not required for day users. To obtain weather forecasts and avalanche hazard information, stop at the Discovery Center, visit the backcountry website www.jhavalanche.org, or call the avalanche hotline at 307.733.2664.

Cross-country skiing and snowshoeing are popular winter activities in the park. Most trails are skier tracked, but not groomed. The Teton Park Road (TPR) is a designated winter trail, open to non-motorized use in winter. The TPR gets intermittently groomed for cross-country touring and skate skiing from the Taggart Lake parking area to Signal Mountain. Grooming operations may begin in late December after sufficient snow (at least 2 feet) has accumulated on the TPR. Severe winter storms or park emergencies may preempt the trail grooming schedule on occasion. Important reminder: Snowshoers should walk adjacent to the groomed ski trail, as snowshoes ruin the grooved track set for skiers' use.

Skiers and snowshoers are not restricted to established trails; however, for protection of wildlife, they are required to observe closure areas from December 15 to April 1. To obtain trail maps, closure locations, or winter information, go to the park's website or visit the Discovery Center in Moose, Wyoming. Winter wildlife closure areas include:

* Snake River floodplain from Moran to Menor's Ferry near Moose Buffalo Fork River floodplain within the park
* Kelly Hill and Uhl Hill
* Static Peak and Prospectors Mountain
* Mount Hunt areas (see the park's cross-country ski brochure for descriptions)

Leashed pets are allowed on the park's plowed roads and turnouts, the unplowed Moose-Wilson Road, and the Grassy Lake Road. Pets are not allowed in the backcountry, which includes all other park areas beyond the plowed roadways.

The unplowed TPR is open to visitors who wish to walk, snowshoe or ski with their leashed pet. Dogs are restricted to the TPR winter trail, and must be restrained at all times on a leash no longer than 6-feet in length. Dogs must also be leashed while in the parking areas at Taggart Lake or Signal Mountain. Please keep dogs off the groomed ski tracks as a courtesy to other trail users.

Mutt Mitt stations are in place at the TPR trailheads to dispense plastic bags for pet waste; trash receptacles are also available for disposal of used bags. Pet owners are required to clean up their pet's waste and properly dispose of the bags in the receptacles provided. Some pet owners have left used bags along the side of the road, and when these bags become buried in snow, they cause problems for rotary snow plows during the spring road opening.

Please note that allowing pets on the TPR is a provisional program that may be discontinued at any time. If pet owners do not comply with the rules and regulations-especially with regard to pet waste disposal and leash rules-it is possible that pets will be prohibited from the TPR in the future.

Dog sleds are not allowed on the Teton Park Road or on Grassy Lake Road in the John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway (JDR Parkway).

Snowmobilers may use the frozen surface of Jackson Lake for the purposes of ice fishing only. A Wyoming State fishing license and appropriate fishing gear must be in possession.

On Jackson Lake, snowmobiles must meet National Park Service air and sound emissions requirements for Best Available Technology (BAT). Before operating a snowmobile in Grand Teton, review the regulations and approved BAT machines online, or stop by the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center in Moose, Wyoming.

Snowmobiles may also use the Grassy Lake Road in the JDR Parkway for recreation. The BAT machine requirement does not apply to snowmobile use on the Grassy Lake Road between Flagg Ranch Resort and the Caribou-Targhee National Forest.

For further information about winter activities in Grand Teton National Park or the John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway, visit the park's website.


Jeff
Hiking in Glacier.com