Yellowstone Activity Guide
West Yellowstone, Montana is not only the premier gateway to Yellowstone National Park, but the perfect Montana vacation destination. It’s an incredible Rocky Mountain location surrounded by national forests and suited for any activity or adventure.
West Yellowstone offers the perfect destination with a full range of Yellowstone lodging and dining properties, along with events and activities for every season. There are dozens of options for eating; from full-service restaurants to family diners, specialty grills and ethnic foods, bakeries, coffee shops and even deli items available at our local marketplaces. Make sure to grab some supplies or sack lunches for your own "picnic in Yellowstone Park!"
For inside activities, don't miss the unique movie, "Yellowstone," playing daily at the Yellowstone IMAX Theater with a six story movie screen and surround sound. Kids (and adults too!) will love a trip to the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center, an animal sanctuary with live grizzlies and wolves. Meet the two wolf packs and two new wolf pups or check out the "Keeper Kids Program."
Our West Yellowstone lodging experts can create the perfect vacation for any season. Check with any of our local lodging properties for seasonal events, activities, rates, and ideas on how to make the most of your Yellowstone and Montana trip or vacation.
For more information, check the events calendar at destinationyellowstone.com/calendar/. You will find something special to make this the vacation one of your most memorable ever.
West Yellowstone Winter Adventures
With an average of 143" of snow every year, West Yellowstone offers some of the best trail and off-trail winter access in the Continental US. The Rendezvous Ski Trail system starts right in West Yellowstone and offers a groomed 35KM trail, usually groomed daily and available from November through April. The Boundary Ski Trail (pet-friendly) and Yellowstone Park’s Riverside Trail also start from West Yellowstone.
There are also millions of acres of public lands for snowmobilers and cross-country skiers to explore. Explore over 400 hundred miles of groomed snowmobile trails in the surrounding National Forests. You can snowmobile right from your hotel or motel on West Yellowstone's snow-covered streets. Local businesses offer beginners complete snowmobile equipment and clothing rentals, guides, trail maps, and instructions. More experienced riders can rent a high performance mountain sled and back country guide for a day.
West Yellowstone is also "snow shoe heaven." With trails and plenty of back country to explore, this is the perfect place to try snowshoeing for the first time or hone your skills. Snow shoe hikes into the National Forest or Yellowstone Park are offered on weekends during the winter
Yellowstone in Winter
Each year, Yellowstone National Park opens for travel over-the-snow. The same roads that are used by automobiles in the warm months are groomed with a layer of snow for the winter. Daily snowcoach and snowmobile tours leave from West Yellowstone into the wintry heart of Yellowstone Park.
Cold temperatures create incredibly photographic vistas as billowing steam clouds rise from thermal features against a backdrop of snowy fields and jagged mountains. The wildlife is even more noticeable against the snow and closer than ever as elk and bison follow the groomed roads along flowing, geyser-heated rivers.
West Yellowstone tour companies offer daily trips over the snow into Yellowstone via snowmobile or snowcoach. Snowmobile tours include all the equipment and clothing you will need for a day in the park. Over the snow tours of Yellowstone begin mid-December with the opening of the West Entrance to Yellowstone on December 15th, 2010 and run through March 15th, 2011.
Don't miss this unique opportunity to experience Yellowstone Park in its most pristine and quiet state. For an added adventure, combine a snowcoach tour with a cross country ski adventure into Yellowstone's back country. Get off trail into the hidden winter wonders of Yellowstone Park.
West Yellowstone in Spring
Yellowstone's west entrance, located at the edge of West Yellowstone, opens for vehicle traffic on April 15, 2011. Spring is often called the secret season in Yellowstone Park. The locals know that spring and early summer is one of the best times to visit Yellowstone. There are fewer visitors and vehicles than the busier summer months.
Wildlife abounds as animals are more active searching for new spring grasses. Beginning in mid-April, bright-red baby bison can be seen paralleling their mothers. Later in May, as they grow stronger and more independent, you can watch as these calves bound through meadows, head butt each other, and generally act like school kids on a playground.
Bears emerge from hibernation and move to lower altitudes looking for winter kill and new roots. This is the best time of year for bear spotting and so far this year, it is one of the best for finding both grizzly and black bear sightings.
The wolf packs are also active in spring, as mothers den and the rest of the pack actively hunts every day. Elk calves are born in late May and early June. Their mothers hide them during the day from predators. Watch for elk calves in early morning and around dusk as they come out to eat, drink from streams, and play.
Spring is also the season for bicycling in Yellowstone. Cyclists can venture onto roads not yet open for the season including the road from Canyon to Tower over impressive Dunraven Pass. “Yellowstone Cycle Only” Days run from April 1-15th, 2011. Cyclists can enter Yellowstone for free through the west entrance and ride to Madison Junction. No public vehicles are allowed during this time ensuring a unique and intimate Yellowstone experience.
West Yellowstone in Summer
West Yellowstone in summer is all about your favorite activity. Yellowstone Park, our neighbor, is a beautiful combination of steaming thermals, gushing geysers, sparkling rivers, lush green meadows, tall pine forests, and rocky mountain peaks. With sunny days, yet comfortable temperatures, this is the time to explore Yellowstone whether a boardwalk hike among the geysers or a back country adventure.
West Yellowstone is the perfect place to base your summer vacation. We are the closest entrance to Yellowstone and the Old Faithful geyser area. The Yellowstone airport is just two miles north of town and serviced daily by Skywest.
There are ample activities every day in West Yellowstone, from programs just for kids like the SmokeJumpers or Keeper Kids at the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center. Catch a Yellowstone ranger talk or spend an evening at the Wild West Yellowstone rodeo, or Playmill Theatre or Pinecone Playhouse. Taste a huckleberry ice cream cone, a local favorite, or relax with a locally roasted cup of coffee. Stroll through the Yellowstone Historic Center Museum or take the Historic Walking Tour
