As snow returns to the park, Yellowstone enters the season of winter closures. On November 5th most of the park will close to motorized travel, and will reopen to snowmobiles and snowcoaches beginning December 19th. Only the road from Gardiner to Cooke City remains open to cars year round. This drive through Yellowstone's Northern Range is home to some of the best wildlife watching in the world, providing frequent views of wolves, elk, bison and big horn sheep. It also provides access to some great skiing and snowshoeing opportunities. To many visitors, winter is when Yellowstone is most alive.
This will be the last season under the old temporary winter use plan. The new plan, which will come into effect in for the 2008-2009 winter season, will allow 540 snowmobiles into Yellowstone each day and 83 snowcoaches. These will all require guides, which should ease the problems associated with unregulated winter use.
Under the new plan, Sylvan Pass will no longer be open to winter motorized travel. This will eliminate the need for costly, dangerous methods of avalanche control required to keep the pass safe. However, the area will remain open for other, quieter forms of recreation that are less associated with avalanches. The first four miles of the East Entrance road will remain open to allow snowshoers and skiers to be dropped off.
Before the new plan becomes finalized, the superintendents of Yellowstone and Grand Teton will make a recommendation to the Regional Director, who is then expected to issue a decision in November. The ruling is expected to enter the Federal Register by December 19.
A copy of the final Environmental Impact Statement can be obtained by calling 307-344-2019 or by writing:
Winter Use Planning Team
P.O. Box 168
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming 82190

Anyone who has enjoyed rousing campfire talk or evening program knows that park rangers rank among the best storytellers. In this charming book, you can read more than three dozen stories of adventure, surprise, and humor by rangers from parks around the country. One of Yellowstone's own rangers-the recently retired John Varley-jokes about the "jargon-gene" he says infects scientists, then takes on the daunting task of explaining the polymerase chain reaction. Judge his success for yourself! The entertaining collection ends with two thought-provoking stories by rangers whose parks were the center of attacks on September 11, 2001.
Price: $14.95 (member's price: $12.71)

With the crowds and the traffic gone, the quiet stillness of winter in Yellowstone is a wonder experienced by few. Our Winter Rendezvous in early March offers the perfect late winter retreat in Yellowstone few get to see. After the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel closes to the public, Institute participants move in. Daily field trips for 2008 include wildlife watching, photography, animal tracking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, geology walks, and history tours. In the afternoon you can enjoy the warmth and comfort of this historic hotel while swapping stories over dinner and attending evening presentations by experts such as Doug Smith Ph.D., head of the Yellowstone Wolf Project; Leslie Quinn M.Ed., historian and interpreter; and George Bumann M.S., local naturalist and sculptor.

Dates: March 4-8 and 8-12
Rates with bath: $739 Double Occupancy, $897 Single Occupancy
Rates without bath: $659 Double Occupancy, $769 Single Occupancy
Members receive a $10 discount.

When you give the gift of a Yellowstone Association membership, you offer the opportunity to be a part of preserving on of Earth's most magnificent places. As a special offer this holiday season, your gift recipient will receive a free 2008 Yellowstone calendar in addition to the membership benefits that include a subscription to the Yellowstone Discovery and Yellowstone Today, 15% discount on Park Store merchandise, discounts on Yellowstone Association Institute courses, and more.