In January 1982, I visited Yellowstone National Park with Dana Hanson. The park was popular with snowmobilers who rode in from West Yellowstone in droves. Although the famous lodge at Old Faithful was closed in the Winter, the concessionaire operated the appropriately-named Snow Lodge during the Winter and carried visitors into the park in large, tracked snow coaches.
The Park Service maintained trails around the Old Faithful Geyser Basin and nearby destinations. During our visit, we managed to ski roughly 34 miles–past waterfalls, geysers, elk and bison. The temperature hovered in the 0-20 degree range during our 3-day visit.
The Snow Coach loading at West Yellowstone.
The Fire Hole River
Lone Star Geyser. This geyser erupts infrequently and we were lucky to experience one.
Fairy Falls. It was an 18-mile round trip from the Snow Lodge to the Falls.
Fairy Falls
The Madison River
The Madison River
Bison plowing through the deep Winter snow.
Next: New Fork Lakes/Palmer Lake Loop