【2019 Yellowstone②】Why to visit in winter time

This was my first time to visit Yellowstone in winter.
The reasons I visited in winter are;
・It is easier to watch wildlife compared to summer
・You can see some animals ONLY in winter time (including bighorn rams)

To see bighorn rams, which appears in “Krag, the Kootney Ram” by Ernest Thompson Seton, was my long time dream.
We can often see ewes and lambs, young rams in summer time, but couldn’t see rams with big horns before.
This is because rams tend to stay in higher altitude and only come down to lower places in winter.
Those are the reasons why I decided to travel Yellowstone in winter time.

After visiting Yellowstone in winter, I started to consider that maybe winter is the best season to visit there.
The reasons are;
・You can watch various kind of animals
・You don’t need to be worried about being chased after countless mosquitoes or encountering bears in close distance (as they hibernate in winter time)
・The Park is not so crowded
・Hotels are cheaper compared to summer

First of all,
・You can watch various kind of animals
Since the field is covered with snow, we could spot wildlife easily. Plus, regarding of wolves, as they finish their parenting and start preparing for breeding in February, our guide Daniel told us that it is easier to spot them compared to other seasons.

Also, a guided tour was a great solution for a traveler like me. Thanks to Daniel, there were many chances to see various kind of wildlife.

・You don’t need to be worried about being chased after countless mosquitoes or encountering bears in close distance (as they hibernate in winter time)

Plus, we don’t need to worry about encountering bugs, insects including mosquitoes or horseflies. Also, since bears hibernate during winter, we don’t need to worry about bumping into a bear whilst walking (although if we do not surprise or irritate them, bears may attack people).

・The Park is not so crowded
Yellowstone is crowded in summer time, especially from June to August. There are countless visitors from all over the world.
The atmosphere is lively, however, every hotels and the roads are crowded. Especially when wolves show up near roads, we need to wait for a while to park car and watch them.
Since it was in the middle of winter, there were few people in the Park. So even when there are wildlife like moose, goat, sheep near roads, traffic jam never happened. Restaurants were not crowded either.

・Hotels are be cheaper compared to summer
As mentioned above, hotels cost much in summer time. When it turns to winter, yes there are some tourists who come for ski or wolf watching, the prices are about half compared to summer.