| NetDescriptions | Located only 11 miles from Yellowstone National Park, our vacation home sits on a hillside, overlooking the Yellowstone River and an expansive grassy valley ringed by towering mountains. The Yellowstone River is only about 200 yards from the house. The good trout fishing in Yellowstone River is world renowned. You'll have good access to the river and to boat launch sites from our vacation home. There is even a small mountain lake only 1/2 mile from the house. This 1200 square foot, three bedroom, one bath, cedar home sits on a one acre property that is fully fenced and the large lawn is nicely maintained. The property is surrounded for miles by pristine US Forest Service public lands that you can hike in, with gorgeous views in all directions.
The nicely furnished bedrooms sleep 6 to 8 people, with one queen-size, two singles and a double-decker bunk bed. Two adult-size futons are available, with their own bedding for extra people on the carpeted floor. Amenities include dishwasher, microwave, iron and ironing board, ice chest for trips. You'll love the peace and quiet as you gaze at the mountains and wildlife while enjoying a meal on the wraparound deck. In the valley below you're likely to see mule deer grazing at most times of the day. Bald eagles, hawks and falcons can also be spotted regularly. Rabbits are abundant and sometimes feed on the lawn.
Features include forced air heating and air conditioning throughout, a beautiful fireplace, full laundry facilities, satellite TV and VHS/DVD player, a CD/cassette player, and a selection of CDs, games, wall maps and books of interest about the area for the use of our guests. There is a cozy cabin feeling engendered by the fir wood walls and ceilings in most of the house. The spacious bathroom has 2 sinks and a shower/tub combination. The kitchen is fully equipped for cooking and dining, even providing spices and extra virgin olive oil. A gas grill is provided on the deck. The indoor dining table seats 6-8. The deck glass top table seats 4. (The deck has seating for a total of 8.)
There are a lot of interesting things to do in the area: visit Yellowstone Park with all of its geysers, mineral terraces, waterfalls, lakes, scenic canyons, swimming, etc.; hikes in the mountains around the house and all around; gentle or whitewater river raft trips, horseback riding; cross-country skiing and hunting, in season. Fine Montana dining can be found in Gardiner, 11 miles to the south, or at the Chico Hot Springs resort about 35 minutes to the north.
If you're looking for beautiful views and sunsets in the midst of the peace and quiet of pristine secluded natural surroundings, with easy access to all the outdoor adventures of Montana, you'll love your stay at Yellowstone Vacation Home. Please check our availability calendar to see if we have an opening during your desired dates. Check us out on the web at http://www.vrbo.com/vrbo/12130.htm where you will find links to our availability calendar and online guest book with guest comments from past years and the current year.
Winter in Yellowstone Park:
During the winter, there can be up to 6 inches of snow on the roads to our vacation home, so a 4-wheel drive vehicle is required. The area around the house does not generally get heavy snowfalls, but Yellowstone Park is at a higher elevation and gets lots of snow. Most of the hundreds of miles of park roads are closed to normal vehicle traffic during the winter, from Dec. 18 through mid-March. During that period these roads are open exclusively to all forms of winter transport including the park's famous snow coaches, snowmobiles, and cross-country skiers.
The only car-accessible park entrance that remains open year-round is in Gardiner. Mammoth Hot Springs, the park headquarters, is only a 5-mile drive from Gardiner. That plowed road remains open all winter all the way through to Tower Falls, the Lamar Valley and Cooke City. Many trail heads for groomed cross-country ski trails are located along this road. If you want to view wolves you can drive further, to Lamar Valley, to view wolf packs from road turnouts using scopes or binoculars.
In Mammoth you can rent snowmobiles, cross-country skis and snowshoes and take snow coaches that transport you to Old Faithful or take you on tours to other destinations. There is also an ice skating rink open to the public at the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel and the restaurant remains open there as well as at the Old Faithful Lodge. (The Old Faithful Geyser never goes on vacation. It continues to erupt many times daily all winter sending plumes of steam and hot water hundreds of feet into the air.)
Our favorite activity in winter is to soak in the outdoor hot spring pools at Boiling River. It's parking area is only 3-miles inside the park from Gardiner. After parking you walk about a half mile along a path bordering the Gardiner River. You soon arrive at a place where a creek of hot geothermal water flows into the river. Rocks are piled up in the river to create natural pools where the hot water mingles with the cold river water to create comfortable places to soak and relax. When you get out, even though the air is cold, you still feel warm as you dry off and get dressed.
Hunters are also welcome at Yellowstone Vacation Home. This area of Montana, just north of Yellowstone Park, receives hundreds of elk migrating out of Yellowstone Park each winter. There is also a year-round resident herd of elk in the mountains just above the house, and mule deer are abundant in the area. Hunting, in-season, is open to the public on all of the vast US Forest Service lands that immediately surround the house for miles. If you choose, you can even leave the house on foot to hunt in the surrounding Forest Service land without disturbing the game animals with the sounds of a vehicle. |