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Trip Report: Yellowstone in Winter - January 2023
Published February 23, 2023
The wind has a distinct bite as it howls across the open prairies of the expansive Hayden Valley. While the thermometer says it's 8 degrees outside, the reality of the meteorological measurement known as windchill makes standing out here tricky. While modern textiles and insulating materials make the weather a bit more bearable, it's still no match against the cold. Winter's bone is harsh and unrelenting.
Slogging towards us is a foursome of bison. The snow is belly deep on the wild bovines and their movement is laborious. With a face dusted with frost and mud, the bison look rugged and lean - the product of time spent in one of the harshest environments in the lower 48 states.
Slogging towards us is a foursome of bison. The snow is belly deep on the wild bovines and their movement is laborious. With a face dusted with frost and mud, the bison look rugged and lean - the product of time spent in one of the harshest environments in the lower 48 states.
I look at the photographers in our group. I know their extremities ache each time the breeze stiffens. No one quits as the moment is too important. This scene, this one point in time, has never happened before and will never happen again. So cameras click. That's the essence of photography: to capture life's fleeting moments with a simple click.
Winter in Yellowstone is a sensorial experience. The scents of land, the sight of the barren, snow-covered landscape, the feel of the cold, and the sounds of the wind and bisons all interconnect into an experience that can't be replicated elsewhere.
From a sheer mathematical standpoint, Yellowstone National Park is hard to comprehend. We are taught in elementary school that no two snowflakes are alike. When you consider, however, that all 2.2 million acres of this park are covered in a foot or more of snow - each meadow spangled with a deep accumulation of powdery precipitation and each tree bough weighted by winter's chilly offerings - the sheer mathematics of the variety of snowflakes that lie before us challenges the mind. In each square foot of snow lies an estimated 10 million snowflakes. The sheer number of individual snowflakes is unfathomable when you consider that there are 43,560 cubic feet in an acre-foot. It equates to more stars than you'll ever see in the night sky. Here it is, all under our feet.
From a sheer mathematical standpoint, Yellowstone National Park is hard to comprehend. We are taught in elementary school that no two snowflakes are alike. When you consider, however, that all 2.2 million acres of this park are covered in a foot or more of snow - each meadow spangled with a deep accumulation of powdery precipitation and each tree bough weighted by winter's chilly offerings - the sheer mathematics of the variety of snowflakes that lie before us challenges the mind. In each square foot of snow lies an estimated 10 million snowflakes. The sheer number of individual snowflakes is unfathomable when you consider that there are 43,560 cubic feet in an acre-foot. It equates to more stars than you'll ever see in the night sky. Here it is, all under our feet.
Soon, the bison disappear in the unrelenting snowfall. We load in the snow coach, move on, and look for the next opportunity to stop and make simple photographs in extraordinary conditions. We don't have to wait long. Just down the road, we find a curious pine marten. He's in good condition despite being in the season of scarcity. He darts in and out of the pines stops briefly occasionally and gives us all a chance to capture an image. Martens are fast but curious and his willingness to hang around us ensures that we get a few pictures of him.
During the West Yellowstone phase of the trip - we cast out on a snow coach each day and explore a different part of the park: Hayden valley, the Falls of the Yellowstone River, Firehole Canyon, and Old Faithful are all on the list. While each day includes a specific destination, the sojourns are broken by looking for animals and visiting locations that are valuable for landscape photography.
Eventually, we return to where we first begin - Mammoth Hot Springs. On the first day, we arrived at this immense spring as our launch point for the first part of our excursion. It's an iconic introduction to the park as the spring and surrounding buildings are the original entrance into the park. As we approach, steam rises from the thermal feature. It's hot, caustic, and overflowing across a broad travertine hill. The water spills over and runs downhill towards the Gardiner River drainage, creating terraces iconic to this location. Fueled by a giant and unseen magmatic chamber, the water steams and churns during the cold months - but it does not freeze.
Eventually, we return to where we first begin - Mammoth Hot Springs. On the first day, we arrived at this immense spring as our launch point for the first part of our excursion. It's an iconic introduction to the park as the spring and surrounding buildings are the original entrance into the park. As we approach, steam rises from the thermal feature. It's hot, caustic, and overflowing across a broad travertine hill. The water spills over and runs downhill towards the Gardiner River drainage, creating terraces iconic to this location. Fueled by a giant and unseen magmatic chamber, the water steams and churns during the cold months - but it does not freeze.
The springs are a geologic anomaly. It and dozens of other thermally dynamic earthen belches that occur in the park proper make up half of the world's thermal features. Parenthetically, Mammoth Hot Springs is the place where we depart the snow coach and head into the North Range on our own.
On the road, the snow is packed yet passable. Slow rolling ensures our safety but it also makes wildlife more spottable. Early on, we see pronghorn antelope and more bison, and a pair of moose, including a mature moose who's dropped his antlers for the season.
Soon, we make it into the fabled Lamar Valley. By the time we do, the first tentacles of an immense winter storm begin to lash across the valley. Visibility is limited and we can't see across the expanse of the watershed to admire its austere beauty. Nearly disorienting, the white wall of hazy snowfall meets the plain where months of accumulating flakes rest in temporary suspension. Only spring's thaw will release the pack into the water cycle. For now, however, more snow piles.
On the road, the snow is packed yet passable. Slow rolling ensures our safety but it also makes wildlife more spottable. Early on, we see pronghorn antelope and more bison, and a pair of moose, including a mature moose who's dropped his antlers for the season.
Soon, we make it into the fabled Lamar Valley. By the time we do, the first tentacles of an immense winter storm begin to lash across the valley. Visibility is limited and we can't see across the expanse of the watershed to admire its austere beauty. Nearly disorienting, the white wall of hazy snowfall meets the plain where months of accumulating flakes rest in temporary suspension. Only spring's thaw will release the pack into the water cycle. For now, however, more snow piles.
On the valley flats, a coyote hunts. Covered in snow, she seeks one last morsel before bedding. She's hungry, yet the valley is sparse. Like the snow and winter's imminent onslaught, she won't quit. This particular coyote has a lame hindquarter and I've seen her before. Nearly two years prior she was in this same area, with the same congenital anomaly, hunting with a badger. Undoubtedly, the badger is warm underground. She doesn't have the same luxury of shelter as her Mustelidae hunting companion. Therefore, she must be vigilant in her never-ending search for food. Yet she endures.
One moose sighting later, we are in Cooke City for the night. While the word "city" adorns the village's name, it's far from a bustling populace. Perhaps 50 permanent residents live here and only a single road bisects the tiny burgh. We eat at a local establishment and walk back to our rooms for the night.
Before the day breaks, I am outside. Overnight a foot or more of new snow blanketed the landscape and it's still falling. A snowplow rumbles in and out of town in an attempt to keep the only road in and out of town open for motorists. We grab breakfast and head into the park for the day. The conditions worsen, yet we persevere. Another coyote, some bison, and ultimately a mature bull elk later, we salvage what we can of a foul weather day.
Like the wildlife of Yellowstone, we persevere.
Before the day breaks, I am outside. Overnight a foot or more of new snow blanketed the landscape and it's still falling. A snowplow rumbles in and out of town in an attempt to keep the only road in and out of town open for motorists. We grab breakfast and head into the park for the day. The conditions worsen, yet we persevere. Another coyote, some bison, and ultimately a mature bull elk later, we salvage what we can of a foul weather day.
Like the wildlife of Yellowstone, we persevere.
Learn more about our Yellowstone in Winter photography tour!
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Each tour is bundled with lodging, meals, and transportation between workshops included, allowing you to focus on photography instead of the stress of traveling.
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BACKCOUNTRY JOURNEYS
"Backcountry Journeys offers guests the unique opportunity to explore our natural world from behind their own lens. We run a selection of hand-crafted Photo Tours, Workshops & Safaris connecting passionate people to exceptional experiences. Locations worldwide.
All Images & Content are property of Backcountry Journeys Photography Tours, Workshops & Safaris LLC - Copyright 2025
TRIP CATALOG
Download our Trip Catalog for detailed information on our many destinations for photography tours, workshops, and safaris.