Y’Stone NP open for Over Snow travel

richardcoxid wrote:
Saturday, 12/15/18 at 8AM Yellowstone NP is open for over snow travel, ie Snow coach, Snow Machines , Xcountry skiing and Snow Shoes. Snow Machine Fuel is available at O’faithful and Canyon. Snow Lodge is open at O’faithful, ALL food stuffs and refuse will be carried out on Snow Coaches.

About 15 of us have reservations at a AirBB for 12/27 thru 12/31 and reservations for a one day Snow Coach trip to O’faithful!

Post Pictures when you are Done - love it in White.

Would a pickup wearing Trax adapters instead of wheels be considered a snow coach? Wouldn't that be an interesting truck camping vehicle.

Gordon

That is exactly what the commercial tour operators are doing. Currently they are using Ford Powerstroke Diesels, (450?) small bus (school bus?) 14 passenger units. With HO output fresh air heaters. Used as wheeled tour buses during the summer, for winter touring they jack them, remove the wheels and tires, bolt on 4 Trax units and they are over Snow transportation, in the spring they just reverse the process and use them as wheeled tour buses.

This is a far cry from what they used 30-40 years ago! Ancient Bombardier coaches with Ford flat head engines, Metal tracks about 2/3 the length of the coach, if I remember correctly passengers set sideways directly on top of the tracks, steered by skis on the front, I think that they only had re-circulation heaters, every passenger had a towel to continuously wipe the condensation off the windows! Did I mention that they were LOUD inside!

For more information Google- Y’Stone snow coach tours, Y’Stone snowmobile (snow machine) rentals etc.

Winter o’snow visiting is a never forgotten experience! You are dealing with animals so there is NO guarantee, but you will probably see xxx times as many animals as during the summer! Those animals aren’t dumb they migrate to the higher elevations during the summer to get out of the heat, and come back down to the thermal areas during the winter because warmth. Also the geysers are bigger because of the increased steam condensation in the cold air. Of course the normal summer rules still apply, stay only on the paved roads even tho there is 2-3 feet of hard packed snow under you and the rangers use radar guns to enforce the 45 MPH speed limit.

Very cool to hear. I'll have to try and visit during the winter.

Thanks for the detailed info on the coaches.