Winter Wonderland

A History of Unmatched Beauty

 Yellowstone National Park

Written by Amy Grisak

Photography Contributed by National Park Service and Jacob W. Frank

Yellowstone is a magical place in the winter, but in its very early days as a national park, it was mostly bereft of human visitation. It wasn’t until after WWII that visitation increased enough to consider winter adventures as a separate season; beckoning hearty souls to experience “Wonderland” when everything is frozen and covered in a white blanket of snow.

With temperatures capable of plummeting to -40F and snow amounts ranging between 50 to 600 inches, a winter trip to Yellowstone took careful planning. There was no official road until around 1882, and most of the lodging was ill-equipped for the cold and closed for the season. 

The one exception was G.L. Henderson’s National Hotel (later named the Cottage Hotel) in Mammoth, which opened on Christmas Day in 1885. Visitors at this time explored the thermal features in the Mammoth area and soaked in the healing water of hot springs piped into the facility.  

In 1886, the federal government sent the US Army to apprehend poachers and protect the park’s vulnerable resources. These soldiers, many arriving from Arizona,  had no experience skiing let alone dealing with the harsh winter conditions, but they became proficient on the Nordic-style skis. They covered many miles traveling to backcountry cabins and patrolling the snow-covered landscape for nefarious characters, such as the notorious Ed Howell, whose apprehension led to the push to save what was left of the nation’s bison herds.  

On January 5, 1887, well-known photographer Frank J. Haynes coordinated with Arctic explorer Frederick Schwatka and eleven guides to take the first winter photographs of Yellowstone. These brave souls spent 29 days snowshoeing and skiing over 200 miles, experiencing -52F temperatures and a blizzard that trapped them on the slope of Mount Washburn for three days. Still, Haynes successfully took 42 photos during the harrowing journey. 

The construction of the Old Faithful Inn depended upon the frozen landscape. Before beginning the project, Harry Childs of the Yellowstone Park Company, the mastermind of this monumental project, ordered sledges to haul lumber and materials over the frozen landscape in December 1902. He rightly assumed that the heavy loads would be impossible to move over the soft ground of the spring, making it difficult, if not impossible, to bring in what they needed to begin in June 1903.

The builders began work in the early summer and had the bulk of the structure completed by the time winter set in for real. To continue progress, 45 craftsmen endured prolonged sub-zero temperatures in the uninsulated, massive building and completed the 67-foot-tall structure (considered the largest log building in the world at that time) by the following June.

As park infrastructure improved, more people became interested in winter travel, and a hodgepodge of over-the-snow vehicles came on the scene to shuttle people through the frozen landscape. One of the early machines was called a “screw-tractor” and consisted of a tractor body mounted on two cylindrical, raised-spiraled screws. It’s difficult to picture this gadget in action, but supposedly the screws acted as paddles that pulled the machine over the snow. 

The prosperity and patriotism that rippled throughout the country after WWII took shape in the love of our national parks as growing families loaded into their cars and set out for a true American adventure. While visitation increased significantly during the summer months, the winters also saw an uptick. 

Innovations developed during the war found a new purpose in the parks. Studebaker developed the “Weasel,” the M-29 cargo carrier for the US Army in 1942, but it was only briefly used in combat. Fortunately, with a functional, cargo-carrying design, powered by tank-like tracks that effectively handled the snow, this Army surplus machine was a useful tool for park personnel for several winter seasons.  

Yet, more people sought a winter adventure in Yellowstone, and there was growing pressure to plow the roads, creating access within the park’s interior. To offer a unique experience, in 1949, West Yellowstone resident Walt Stuart employed three snow planes to take visitors on park tours. Invented in 1929 in Saskatchewan, the snow plane incorporated a small plane body with three skis powered by the engine and a propeller mounted on the rear. This safety nightmare, yet thrilling experience, enabled the driver and guests to skim across the snow and frozen lakes, similar to the airboats in the Everglades. 

Stuart and his team ushered 35 guests through the icy wonderland the first year, and by the winter of 1954, 171 tourists saw the park from the snow planes during the winter. 

Besides touring visitors, the National Park Service occasionally tapped Stuart to assist in winter tasks. There is one story of him shuttling supplies to a ranger cabin across Yellowstone Lake in the spring. Although the frozen lake appeared solid during the trip out, he dared not look back as pieces of ice gave way behind him during his race back to safety.

The “Bombardiers” were the first snow coaches,purchased in 1955 by the Yellowstone Park Company to accommodate the growing number of winter guests. The tear-dropped shaped, enclosed vehicle was equipped with tracks to handle Yellowstone’s winter terrain. Created by Canadian inventor Joseph-Armand Bombardier, it was his answer to  a reliable means of over-the-snow travel after his son died of a burst appendix in 1934 because they could not take him to the hospital due to snow-blocked roads. The Bombardier snowmobiles, as they were originally called, were born.

Drivers loved the “Bombs,” even though they were so loud  they required ear protection. These tough machines glided along the snow-covered terrain and could blast through drifts with ease. While conversion vans and larger snow coaches eventually came onto the scene, the Bombardiers created memories for Yellowstone visitors until 2016, when the park retired its 21-coach fleet.

One of the most pivotal moments in park history was the arrival of the first snowmobile in 1963; the Polaris “Snow Travelers.” Even though only three entered the park that season, these snow machines soon became an extremely popular way to experience Yellowstone. By 1973, the park was grooming the roads, and the Old Faithful Snow Lodge, originally built in 1958, housed visitors keen on snowmobiling, snow coach tours, or skiing the snow-covered trails to see the thermal features in their winter attire. 

By the early 1980’s, winter visitation exceeded 100,000 guests and during the winter of 1992, more than 140,000 visited; a number that officials hadn’t planned to see until the year 2000. During its peak, an average of 795 machines toured the roads each day launching a heated debate. 

These early snowmobiles were extraordinarily loud, many reaching over 100 decibels. They also spewed copious exhaust, including carbon monoxide. At one time , there were so many machines at the West Yellowstone entrance that it nearly violated the Clean Air Act. Snowmobiling was banned for several years in the early 2000’s. While many visitors loved the thrill of riding through the park in the winter, the noise and air pollution detracted from the experience for many others. 

The other challenge was run-ins with wildlife, particularly bison that preferred to use the groomed roads. Multiple incidents with bison charging snowmobilers who did not respect their distance or rode up on the animals too quickly fueled the debate.. 

During the winter of 1996-1997, Yellowstone (and many other parts of Wyoming and Montana) received 150 percent of its annual snowfall. To make matters worse, a thin layer of ice prevented bison from plowing through the snow to reach vegetation. So bison did what bison do. They walked to better ground, and this time they followed the groomed roads out of the park. 

Concerns that bison would transmit brucellosis (a disease that causes cows to abort their calves) to domestic cattle, led park officials to manage the culling of 1084 bison that wandered from the park. The Fund for Animals sued the National Park Service (NPS) and for a short time it looked like there would be no more snowmobiling in the park. Fortunately for winter recreationists, the NPS agreed it would study the issues to mitigate the problems, and the machines continued. 

Snowmobile technology has created quieter and more efficient engines that meet much  lower emissions standards.

With nearly 140,000 winter visitors each year, it’s no longer the proverbial Wild West. There is a concerted effort in balancing the thrill of this unique experience with the wild aesthetic. Presently, visitors who wish to see the park via snowmobile can coordinate with a guiding service or apply in August for the lottery drawing for a private permit..

There are plenty of ways to see Yellowstone in the winter, even if you don’t want to ride a snowmobile. Over-the-snow travel to Old Faithful, Madison, Canyon, Biscuit Basin and points in between are available through snowcoach tours from mid-December into March,  and skier shuttles can drop guests at several locations for extended outings. 

Winter visitors can drive from the north entrance at Gardiner to Cooke City through Lamar Valley, which is an excellent place to see wolves in the winter.  

Visiting Yellowstone in the winter is a reprieve from the summertime crowds and an opportunity to immerse yourself in this frozen, truly wild country.