Traveling To One of Our Favs

 Yellowstone National Park does not disappoint, particularly for animal photography. Sometimes, it's come and go, but almost always, there's a great shot to be had. Our favorite times are spring and fall. Spring is full of babies, and fall is alive with color. Spring is full of rain and sometimes a blizzard, while fall is full of light and promises of hibernation.  

It's been a while, as life changes, since we've been to Yellowstone.  We had purchased a new (to us) RV.  We had wanted an Arctic Fox for a long time, and were looking at a fifth wheel, but small enough to get in state parks, as they are usually the most uniquely beautiful. In December 2019, we found one.  In January, we purchased it, brought it home, thinking we would go to Yellowstone in the spring of 2020.  Yeah, right!  That didn't work out, so we decided to return in 2022.  That didn't work out either.  

In the spring of 2022, Gardiner, MT, and upper Yellowstone (our favorite part) experienced one of those once-in-every-500-year floods. The water washed out the road from the North Entrance into Mammoth Hot Springs.  Here's a little of what that looked like.

Really scary.  Today, the park service has replaced it with the "Upper Gardiner Road," which Walt and I had taken many times.  It was barely a two-lane road, and at best a different road, but the park didn't need to keep it up, and probably was rarely used, except to see a few elk or possibly other animals that might trek through that area.  There are many roads like this in Yellowstone, and they are not in the best shape, but with a high truck and 4-wheel drive, they can be traveled.  The purpose is to see wildlife that wouldn't be on the busier roads through the park's northern tier.  In no one's imagination could they become something regularly traveled, especially when pulling an RV.  

The upper Gardiner Road, as it is now, the replacement for the easier path from Mammoth Hot Springs to the Northern Entrance, is not really a road for an RV, especially for tourists who may not have much expertise on a winding road with many inclines and declines.  (You don't usually use your brakes for a heavier load.  You use your gears, which saves your brakes.  This isn't widespread knowledge for the normal driver on the road.)  The part I miss the most is the occasional sighting of the mountain goats along the old path adjacent to the Gardiner River.  It was a particular favorite for moms and their new kids. 

Here's what that path looks like now.  Granted, speeded up a little, but it's much more treacherous and has had many mishaps along the way.  If you're traveling to Yellowstone, I recommend either coming in through Livingston on I-90 as a much easier trip, especially for untraveled or novice RVers. 

It's easy to understand that there were many problems at the Northern Entrance, and the park has dealt with them very well.  The Roosevelt Arch is no longer traveled, but remains a significant landmark at the entrance to Yellowstone. However, it's now used chiefly for photographs and as a marker of the history of Yellowstone.  The national park system has figured out how to make the YNP visitor and traffic patterns work together for more modern transportation, like RVs.  Hopefully, the National Park system will do the same for the road from Mammoth to the Northern Entrance.  

Unless the National Parks want to start providing all the commercial services (groceries, drug stores, zip-line adventures, white-water rafting, and other services), they need to be more accommodating to the communities that have catered to the tourists of National Parks.  Gardiner is the main entrance to the Northern Tier of the park, which remains accessible for tourists year-round.  If the road to the Northern Tier through Gardiner becomes more difficult instead of easier, the tourist won't visit as often, the town will suffer, and the park will suffer.    

The whole concept of the National Parks is to provide a way for the American public to enjoy the beauty and awe of nature.  Yellowstone is the granddaddy of the National Park system, and every effort should be made to make it as easy as possible for the public to enjoy and help preserve these parks.  

In the meantime, Walt and I will travel out of Gardiner through Livingston this year and not take our RV back through Yellowstone on the current road.  If we come to Yellowstone again, it will be through I-90.