West Yellowstone
State: Montana
County: Gallatin
Population: 1200
Elevation: 6,663 feet
Time Zone: Mountain (MST)
Zip/Area code: 59758/408
Summer high/low: 78°F/41°F
Winter high/low: 24°F/1°F
Fun facts we've discovered so far:
Can snow at any moment, any time (including middle of summer).
Largest gateway to the park, catering to thousands upon thousands of visitors during the high season summer months every year.
There's 2 averagely small grocery stores as compared to 7 fly shops.
Because of the limited (but sufficient) selection of food items, all locals make lists for their big trip into the city of Bozeman (where gas is $0.30 cheaper per gallon) about once or twice a month.
The McDonald's here (one of 5 chains: Dairy Queen, KFC, Arbys, and Subway), is the nation's most expensive, serving value meals that are $2-$3 more expensive than most others. And also, we are told it's the highest paying service job at $12.50/hour... A wage that would fair very well out here! ALSO we discovered their free wifi that works perfectly from the truck in the parking lot... Thank you Mr. McDonald!
Everyone in town limits has a post office box – no mailboxes.
Most restaurants/shops close during the winter months.
Kevin and I are the youngest people working at Bud Lily's.
Bud Lily's is a legendary shop among fly fishermen, whose namesake was one of the forefathers of the sport. We already have seen tourists taking pictures of our sign, and buying the namesake t-shirts.
The water coming from our kitchen faucet is the cleanest, freshest tasting water I have ever had the pleasure of drinking.
Buffalo are more abundant than any other animal out here, and there are HOT PINK road signs to warn drivers.
There is a world class/world-renowned cross-country ski trail system in walking distance from downtown (olympic athletes train here).
Loads of famous people come through here on their way to camping, fishing, or any other outdoor activity. , the Tennessee Titans coach and family, Yvonne Choinard (spelling? The founder of Patagonia),
The Dairy Queen, which opened 2 days ago and is located right across the street from our store, apparently has the best business in town! Already we've seen crowds of people that have virtually come from nowhere lining the block to get their dipped cones.
More people (read: tourists) die from buffalo-related accidents than bear attacks every year.
A couple years ago, a tourist dad put his small boy on top of a buffalo in order to get a 'kodak' moment... The bull took off with the kid toppling over the backside, hitting the pavement, but fortunately surviving: these are the stories the locals get amused over!
The trash cans that are on every block are animal proof: which means their tourist proof as well, since they have a hard time determining how to open them. Before the town decided to put TRASH on the outside of the green metal structures, people thought they were mailboxes, and unknowingly trashed their souvenir postcards and letters.
The state of Montana does not have a sales tax (woo hoo!), but the town of West Yellowstone does, labeled a 'Resort Tax.' Even still, it's only 3% and we can get the local discount that pretty much covers it.
I'm sure there'll be many more fun facts to come. The town may be small, but there's lot's to learn of this little place – its history, importance, local businesses, and local legends.
We're both acclimating well, having settled into a work routine and having set up our cute little cabin. Since the season hasn't officially started (Memorial Day weekend being the beginning), we're still getting to enjoy the town without the hassle of (too many) visitors. As the weather improves (the past few days having been GLORIOUS), more of the towns people are out and about walking the sidewalks and enjoying the cool mountain air and crisp sunshine. But we're looking forward to seeing the town bustling with more people.
Kevin bought his Montana fishing license the other day for the season and since, he's been out every day on the waters. It's quite adorable really. Having an extra set of everything fly fishing (including waders, boots, rods, fleece pants, etc), I've been following along and learning. The first time I got in the freezing waters of the Madison, wading around and NOT getting wet, I was quite exhilarated and excited about the prospect of what we'll be doing this summer. Set against an absolutely breath-taking background, I look forward to relaxing, drinking a beer, and being in the river. I can say, I never thought I'd be in this lifestyle, but you never know how much you might enjoy something until you try! Kevin is an excellent and patient teacher, whom I'm pretty sure secretly relishes in the fact that he gets to school me on all things fish: oh Obi wan!
We also made a trip into Yellowstone last week, visiting Old Faithful and the Canyon. I was in awe of the landscape my own country has to offer, and thankful that I get to explore more of the area over the next few months! I'm an avid picture taker, even capturing a charging buffalo. He was going after a lady that was literally 3 feet away from him, out of her car, taking pictures herself (we were in the car, driving past). Luckily for the lady the bull relinquished, but succeeded in scaring not only her, but both of us as well! It's sad and stupid how some people can't wrap their brains around the wildness and danger of roaming (very large) animals. Our day trip was excellent though, and a great precursor to more adventures to come in the park!
That's life so far! More to come of our adventures, tourist watching, work stories, and else, etc, etc, etc...
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Sunday, May 9, 2010
No internet = no new posts
In order to go somewhere with free wireless internet we need a public library card. In order to get a public library card, we need a post office box. In order to get a post office box we need a copy of our lease to prove residency in West Yellowstone. In order to get THAT, we need to hound our landlord into giving us one. In order to hound him, we need to make a few phone calls.
Needless to say, it's a process. BUT... first step is done, we have a paper to take to the post office to prove we our semi-permanent residents here. So, first thing tomorrow morning we're headed to get our box, then to get our library cards! THEN... oh joyful free wireless internet here I come!
We can definitely do without having it at the house (we both have smart phones capable of getting online), but once we run out of How I Met Your Mother episodes (I have seasons 1-5 bought in China for $5 TOTAL... And the show we HIGHLY recommend), it's gonna get pretty boring around the cabin.
However, we DO realize that once the weather gets better (which should be here in the next couple weeks - although they got their last 8' snow storm last year JUNE 19TH!!), we know we won't be in the cabin too much. We are LITERALLY a 2 minute drive (if that) to the west entrance of the park, and are 2 hours from a ton of 'out west attractions.' In fact, tomorrow we both have the day off so we're headed to see Old Faithful. I CAN'T WAIT!!!! We'll be buying a season long park pass for $60, then taking a couple pack lunches into the beauty and grandeur.
We still can't believe we actually live here. I'll be sure to write more on our little town later (complete with pictures), and write about our cabin, workplace, hot spots, and view!
P.S. It's Mother's Day, so this post would not be complete without a shout out to the most amazing woman I know. It's true that the older I get, the more I appreciate all that she has done for me, my siblings, and my family as a whole. I hope to be half the woman she is to my future kids (maybe without the whole 'purposely shutting her leopard print dress in the JAG car door when picking us up from school' thing). I love you, Momma! And to all the incredible 'moms' in my life that have been/are there for me: Grandma, Mother Kat, my Aunts, my new Mama Cindy, etc etc etc... I am one lucky gal.
Needless to say, it's a process. BUT... first step is done, we have a paper to take to the post office to prove we our semi-permanent residents here. So, first thing tomorrow morning we're headed to get our box, then to get our library cards! THEN... oh joyful free wireless internet here I come!
We can definitely do without having it at the house (we both have smart phones capable of getting online), but once we run out of How I Met Your Mother episodes (I have seasons 1-5 bought in China for $5 TOTAL... And the show we HIGHLY recommend), it's gonna get pretty boring around the cabin.
However, we DO realize that once the weather gets better (which should be here in the next couple weeks - although they got their last 8' snow storm last year JUNE 19TH!!), we know we won't be in the cabin too much. We are LITERALLY a 2 minute drive (if that) to the west entrance of the park, and are 2 hours from a ton of 'out west attractions.' In fact, tomorrow we both have the day off so we're headed to see Old Faithful. I CAN'T WAIT!!!! We'll be buying a season long park pass for $60, then taking a couple pack lunches into the beauty and grandeur.
We still can't believe we actually live here. I'll be sure to write more on our little town later (complete with pictures), and write about our cabin, workplace, hot spots, and view!
P.S. It's Mother's Day, so this post would not be complete without a shout out to the most amazing woman I know. It's true that the older I get, the more I appreciate all that she has done for me, my siblings, and my family as a whole. I hope to be half the woman she is to my future kids (maybe without the whole 'purposely shutting her leopard print dress in the JAG car door when picking us up from school' thing). I love you, Momma! And to all the incredible 'moms' in my life that have been/are there for me: Grandma, Mother Kat, my Aunts, my new Mama Cindy, etc etc etc... I am one lucky gal.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Trek West Part Three
On our way to Jackson, Wyoming now. We had originally planned just to do a drive by if we could, but circumstances caused us to book a last minute room at a hostel there. I am more than delighted with this since, from what I hear, Jackson is an amazing place. My brother actually spent some time there a few summers ago, and indeed it seems every outdoorsman of sorts has pilgrimaged there at one time or another. Not only that, but we'll be doing it hostel style which I haven't done since my backpacking days in Europe 3 years ago. Traveling in hostels was definitely one of the many amazing experiences that I had and such a great way to meet fascinating people, and I'm psyched to be doing it with such an amazing background. It should be around an eight hour drive from where we were in Colorado, but then we're home free with only 4 hours left to go till our final destination – our future home. As much as I'm ready to already be in our cozy little cabin, I'm excited for the last minute adventure. Besides, we can't really get to our place anyway. Reason? A freak blizzard. Since we'll be living right outside the Yellowstone Park's west entrance (hence the name of our town, West Yellowstone), the shortest and most direct way to reach the town is through the park. Unfortunately, the park is closed because of poor road conditions due to Mother Nature dumping a late April snow. Our landlord called a couple days ago and asked when we'd be arriving, and when we told him the next day he said it'd be best to wait it out down there and come later in the weekend. He also assured us that this wasn't the norm for this time of the year. As of yesterday, they had 8 inches of snow with a forecast of at least 7 more. We knew it'd be cold when we got there, but little did we know it'd be white out conditions! I immediately stressed. I did not pack my week bag for this. Maybe, if I put every article clothing on at the same time I'd be fine, but it wouldn't make for a very comfortable MK. We were already spending the day in Boulder, Colorado (a mere 2 hours from where we were staying) when we got that call, so Kevin took me to REI, outfitting me in the appropriate attire: a mid-layer lightweight fleece base top and bottom, some wind and water resistant shell pants, and gloves. (side note: Casey – Kevin's bud and my new friend! - has a killer roommate who GAVE me some waterproof boots – hollah!) Whew... I was ready now! I've actually been wearing the base top for a couple days now since we've had weather in the 20s here. It snowed off and on all day yesterday. And when it was on, it was ON – dumping snow. Kevin and his buddy, Casey (our gracious host), actually went fishing in it. I opted out to stay indoors and go to the public library and get my internet fix.
It's funny/interesting how normal everything is when it snows here. Coming from Western North Carolina where the infrastructure completely shuts down with 2 inches of snow, these people thrive on driving to the local pub when there's 4 feet on the ground with more on the way. It's inspiring really. Guys in NC – we're wusses. Then again, they are way more equipped and proficient about maintaining the roads. And snow is kinda their life. Casey was just dying to go down the local ski resort mountain, but unfortunately, it's all shut down. That's another intriguing fact about this place – Winter Park, Colorado. There's a huge ski resort that operates and caters to over 14,000 at one time during the peak of the winter season – which finished up about 2 weeks ago (too bad they missed this storm). Now it's like a ghost town, with just the locals, who have worked their butts off during the season and are enjoying a nice break. Most of them just go backcountry skiing or snowboarding, so not having the ski lifts isn't too big of a deal. We saw most of them last night at the bar.
All in all, my first impression of Colorado is that it is kick ass – everything I imagined it would be! Our day we spent in Boulder was amazing (enhanced by the near perfect weather we were greeted with). The scenery is to die for. I've filled my belly with some delicious brews the Rockies had to offer. And the company couldn't be beat. Casey really showed us everything his imposing little mountain town had to offer (except, of course, the slopes but we'll come back for that)!
Despite our fun stay, we're ready to be back on the road again, and back to driving to Montana. We'll be home tomorrow!
It's funny/interesting how normal everything is when it snows here. Coming from Western North Carolina where the infrastructure completely shuts down with 2 inches of snow, these people thrive on driving to the local pub when there's 4 feet on the ground with more on the way. It's inspiring really. Guys in NC – we're wusses. Then again, they are way more equipped and proficient about maintaining the roads. And snow is kinda their life. Casey was just dying to go down the local ski resort mountain, but unfortunately, it's all shut down. That's another intriguing fact about this place – Winter Park, Colorado. There's a huge ski resort that operates and caters to over 14,000 at one time during the peak of the winter season – which finished up about 2 weeks ago (too bad they missed this storm). Now it's like a ghost town, with just the locals, who have worked their butts off during the season and are enjoying a nice break. Most of them just go backcountry skiing or snowboarding, so not having the ski lifts isn't too big of a deal. We saw most of them last night at the bar.
All in all, my first impression of Colorado is that it is kick ass – everything I imagined it would be! Our day we spent in Boulder was amazing (enhanced by the near perfect weather we were greeted with). The scenery is to die for. I've filled my belly with some delicious brews the Rockies had to offer. And the company couldn't be beat. Casey really showed us everything his imposing little mountain town had to offer (except, of course, the slopes but we'll come back for that)!
Despite our fun stay, we're ready to be back on the road again, and back to driving to Montana. We'll be home tomorrow!
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