Snowmobiling West Yellowstone, 2021

Q: So what do you when your RV home breaks down and will take a week to fix? 

A: Go snowmobiling in West Yellowstone, of course!

Actually, we had been planning a snowmobiling trip for some time. Vicki, who has always been the driving force in our snowmobile adventures, but rarely the driver, needs a fix every few years. We had sold our former snowmobile back in March of 2016, so it was time. From Escondido, we rented a AWD Jeep and drove to West Yellowstone forthwith. As noted in the previous post, we had already planned to do this trip this week, with motel and snowmobile reservations already in place.

It was a marvelous trip. The 2-day driving from California to Montana and back bookended a week of great weather, great snow and grooming, and sparse company both in town and on the trails. The government and citizens of West Yellowstone pretty rigorously observed relevant Covid-19 protocols, although their tourist/yahoo visitors were not so rigorous. More American exceptionalism; nothing new. Historian Patricia Limerick once observed that about 10% of any population are jerks. In the US, it's about 35%, I'd say. And not just jerks, either.

We stayed at the Day's Inn, enjoying ample nice accommodations, socially-distanced hot breakfasts, and a soothing hot-tub to ourselves after our three day-long rides. Temps were in the single digits over-night, but up into the 30s by the afternoons. Skies were mostly clear every day. Snow levels were fine in the valleys as well as in the high country. Trail grooming from West Yellowstone and from Island Park, ID, is done almost nightly, and on several occasions we were clearly the first to hit an extra virgin, cold-pressed trail. In this snowmobiling mecca, trail signage is excellent, and one is never out of cell-phone range. 

We were five full days in West Yellowstone, three on the trail, two resting back in town. Our snowmobile rentals were from High Mark and Yellowstone Adventures, both four-cycle Ski-Doo Grand Touring machines, two-ups (two seats), 900cc and 600cc respectively. We've been dealing with Yellowstone Adventures since the turn of the century, first rentals, later actually buying one of their lightly-used four-cycle 1000cc Ski-Doos in 2003, and having it serviced by them periodically. The only downer was the expected fatigue and soreness resulting from hours on the sleds. But at our age, fatigue and soreness are expected from almost any activity.

West Yellowstone street scene; all the streets are kept snow-
covered, except for the two highways that intersect: US 20
and US 287

First day out, first picture

Heading for Two Top, a perennial favorite

Winter Wonderland, what Vicki likes most, en route to Two Top

Tetons in the distance (magnified)

Atop Two Top; as high as the trail goes

The top of Two Top; we learned in 2003 not to take a heavy
two-up off the groomed trail

Panning around

Another view of the trail and the Tetons

Us on Two Top

Vicki in a cold but happy place

Looking toward Yellowstone country

Big Spring

In Island Park, a pretty good indication of the snow level

Extra virgin, cold-pressed freshly groomed trail

Me, drinking to that; unfortunately it was just 
black coffee

Another day, heading for Mesa Falls, Tetons again, from Idaho

Thus, Lower Falls

Up closer

Along Henry's Fork (of the Snake River)(which issues from 
Henry's Lake): Henry's Swan

Headed for Lion's Head...behold! we are on the Continental

Divide Trail...our favorite snowmobile adventures were on the

CDT, a hundred or so miles east of here, in Wyoming; too

high and isolated for us nowadays; plus no one would rent a

two-up for solo use

Looking toward Lion's Head

Looking out across Lake Hegben; not our tracks

Looking back toward Yellowstone

Extremely thin ice on Lake Hegben; note bevy of extremely
noisy swans...

We didn't get into the Park this time (we would have had to
make reservations in 2017) nor did we encounter any bison 

But we did encounter this critter, not 200 feet from town, which
we like to think was a wolf; but more likely a coyote

To see a couple dozen more such posts, just enter "snowmobiling" in the side-bar search box.