You would be right in assuming Yellowstone in California has traditionally been a warm weather destination, but that's about to change. For the first time, Austin-Lehman Adventures is hosting three five-day, four-night “Yellowstone in Winter” programs set for next February.
“Activities include snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, ice skating, dog sledding, ranger talks and sipping hot chocolate fireside,” the company says.
“Devoid of crowds, winter in Yellowstone is an amazing time,” said Dan Austin, Austin founding director. “The cold temps make even more dramatic the thermal activity (geysers, bubbling mud pots, hot spring pools and steam vents). He adds that wildlife is concentrated in the warmer, snow-free geyser basins for easier viewing.
Austin noted that while snowshoeing the Upper Geyser Basin Trail guests will experience in an approximately two-square-mile area the largest concentration and nearly one-quarter of all the geysers in the world.
The per person, double occupancy rate is US$2,198 ($580 single supplement) inclusive of accommodations and meals at historic Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel (dates to 1883).
The package also includes Old Faithful Snow Lodge, and Chico Hot Springs Resort and Spa (dates to 1920’s and features pools fed by mineral hot springs and a spa). Other incidentals such as snow coach transfers are also included.
Departures based from Bozeman, MT, are Feb. 5-9, Feb. 12-16 and Feb.26-Mar. 1.
Austin says the Yellowstone trip is one of six new ALA adventures that are not in the 2012 print catalog but are featured on the company’s web site.
By David Wilkening
