Pic 1 - After living withing a hundred miles of premium snowmobiling (Island Park receives an average of 227 inches of snow with hundreds of miles of trails), Marcella and I decided to rent a snow machine and check it out. We made it just a sight-seeing adventure, staying on the groomed trails, which are clearly marked and labeled for the most part. Early in the morning the trails are pretty smooth as they seem to groom them every night. After proceeding out of West Yellowstone about 2.5 miles we turned south on the Two Top Loop Trail. At this junction you can take the Mosiquito Cutoff or go left down by the Pacific River, which we did.

Pic 2- This is looking down the Mosiquito Cutoff Trail.

Pic 3 - Down along the Pacific River. The trail to this point is pretty flat, but a beautiful winter wonderland.

Pic 4- We turned south on the Railroad trail, went over to Big Springs and then made our way down to Macks Inn. We warmed up there a while with coffee and tea and then found the Meadow Creek Trail. A few miles up the trail is the Meadow Creek Lodge, a welcome relief from the 10 degree temperatures. We rented snowmobile clothing and bought some warmers to put in our gloves and boots just in case. Marcella used her warmers, but being the driver I was quite comfortable. At the Lodge, the food (burgers and fries) and service were great and the rustic log furniture was beautiful.

Pic 5 - Here is a picture inside.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pic 6 - Another picture from the outside as we were getting ready to leave.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pic 7 - From the Meadow Creek Trail we headed North on the Twin Creek Trail. There was much more elevation on this trail even more beautiful. There were several single track side trails that you can take and places where people had climbed up steep hillsides.

Pic -8 As we got to the higher elevations the snow on the trees increased. Unfortunately, it was mostly overcast, but we did break through with some sun that added to the beauty. I guess it can have very low visablity with a heavy snow or wind, which we avoided.

Pic 9 - Here is a closer view of the snow on the trees.

Pic 10 - Here is one of the clearings toward the top. With the sun shining it was a stunning view. On down the other side we saw a cow moose charge across the trail a couple hundred feet in front of us. Unfortunately there wasn't time to grab the camera.

Summary: If you don't mind the cold, this can be quite the adventure. The machines are very easy to ride if you haven't experienced a snow machine before. The rental starts at $114 for a single or $124 for a double. Clothing rents for $15 from helmet to boots and everything in between. Winter is the off season for West Yellowstone so motel rates are reasonable for a resort area. We got a room on the internet for $75.

If you are adventurous, you can rent a higher performance machine for $150 and take off up the mountain sides for as much adventure as you want. Fresh powder, sunshine and temperatures in the upper 20's would make it ideal. We ran into an interesting cross section of people of all ages. One extended family of 15 had traveled from Belfield, ND and brought their own machines with them. There were several retired couples and young children riding with their parents.