Ski Date: May 10, 2009; The Swan's Fin: The sun was shining and I headed back up to The Swan's Fin. A.k.a. The Pommel, because it would be the perfect hill for a Pommel Lift. Luckily there is none. It had been hit up earlier in the week by some skiers, but on Sunday I had it to myself. I started towards the top across Swan Lake Flats around 10am. The trip across the sage was
covered on foot and ski, half and half. The snow is quickly disappearing on the flats, but holding on the slope of the Swan's Fin. I boot tracked up it and dug in a small bench in the snow near the top. The very top of the hill is snow free. Blown down to rocks. I set up on the snow out of the wind. I did four runs down the Fin. The boot track was set up nicely after the first trip. The runs down were a blast on the corn snow. Some quality meditative time was spent on top surveying the 360 Yellowstone scenes in the sun. After the fourth run, I continued across the Flats on ski. From the top, I had been able to spy a mostly snow covered route. It required taking the skis off only once between the Fin and the car. I headed down the hill to Gardiner after enjoying the view from the road of my 4 signatures glistening in the sun on the Swan's Fin. We were dog sitting Shiloh at a friend's house where Em is painting a mural. I watched basketball, the Yao Mingless Rockets victorious at home over the Lakers to tie the series at 2-2. Go Rockets!
The mission was skiing Avalanche. The members were Dave Hahn and I driving up to Sylvan Pass from Gardiner in his Vanagon. The Avalanche mission had to be aborted due to the closing of Sylvan Pass from a snow/rock slide after sitting at the cone barricade in front of the Fishing Bridge General Store for 2 and a half hours. No ranger in sight with explanation. We abandoned the wait at 11am and headed north to Canyon. Our new mission was to ski in the Washburns on Hedges. It was a success. We parked at the barrier just north of Canyon junction and roamed up the road 15 minutes to where we put on our skis at the Cascade Picnic Area/Trailhead. We were on skis just before the crack of noon. We skinned through the woods and hit the hills and climbed up a ridge to Hedges. The climb was steep and kicked my ass but we gained a lot of elevation pretty quick. At the top of the ridge, we decided against the 15 minute additional ridge skirt to the top of Hedges. We wanted to make sure to hit the snow before it began to fall apart. After a twenty minute break on the ridge top, we headed down our 1,500 vertical feet of fun back to the Vanagon. After a post ski libation, we headed back to Gardiner.
Awoke at 8am in Osprey Dorm at Lake with a slight Cinco de Dos hangover. The ski mission was Elephant Back. A couple of inches of wet, heavy fresh snow lay outside. A problem soon popped up, Em had neglected to bring her skins. Luckily Parks hooked her up with a pair of kicker skins. She used these to climb Elephant Back. The sky was squally. Little squalls blew in with wet snow and retreated for some sunbreaks as we climbed and descended the 800 vertical and 4 miles roundtrip of Elephant Back. (8600 feet). We spied the scene overlooking the Hotel and the Lake sprawling below. The Absarokas lay shrouded in clouds. We loped through the unburnt lodgepole woods. After skiing, we had a lakeside car picnic in front of the Lake Hotel before cruising back to Gardiner in a mix of sun, snow, and rain.
Ski Date: May 2, 2009; Top Notch: I awoke at 6:30am in the back of the Honda Accord at the Top Notch trailhead. Chilly and misting snow. The Cinco de Mayo faithful soon began arriving. The pullout was soon chock full of vehicles, people, and one dog. 13 faithful hit the trail by 8am. Charley hung in the car. I brought up the rear. We climbed. The wind and mist increased with the altitude. Chilly misting rain. The break up top was brief. I followed the rest down. We dropped into the bowl. Conditions decent compared to my last run in it. Dropped in at a higher point following a few. 8 of the faithful headed down to the cars and Cinco de Mayo celebrations at Lake. 5 remained, I was among them. We climbed back up the heart of the bowl on skins. Steep and slippery. Kelby broke. Hooked back up with our trail on the ridge. Followed it over to our ridge up. Took different routes down. I stayed on the ridge. Apres ski were initiated at the trailhead upon arrival at 3:00pm, to Lake Butte, and finally to
Cinco de Mayo at the LERV. Traditions were to be maintained. Skiing, cerveza, margaritas, fajitas, nachos, decapitation of pirate pinata.....friends and fire. Akin to Christmas in Japan. Minus
Annual Gift Man.
Ski Date: May 1, 2009; Double Burn: Slept late. Motivated to go to Lake for the weekend. Tomorrow is Dos de Mayo. Saturday chosen for the Cinco de Mayo celebration. Traditional Top Notch ski and party day at Lake centered in the trailers in the Fishbowl. Ski, then eat and drink. I packed up and hit the road around 4:30pm for a leisurely drive down to Lake. I would be spending the next two nights down there. Em had to work on Saturday and would come down to Lake afterward for the party. On the sunny ride down, I was taken over by the urge to ski while passing Double Burn. The day had been cold but sunny. I wagered the snow was good for one run. I skinned up and had one late afternoon run down. Slushee crusties. Parks and Melissa drove by as I returned to the trailhead after my run. The Cinco faithful had began massing. After my run, I drove down to Lake and beyond to West Thumb on a scenic cruise. I returned to Lake to scope the scene. Ultimately, I drove on to the Top Notch trailhead. I slept in the car. Ready to go in the morning.
Today we awoke to three inches of snow in Gardiner. It is still coming down. Even more should be accumulating up in the park.
Gardiner sits at 5,259 feet at the North Entrance of
Yellowstone National Park. The area of the park around Gardiner is its lowest elevation. The highest point in the park is Eagle Peak in the Absarokas.
Eagle Peak sits at 11,358 feet. The average elevation of the Yellowstone Plateau is 8,000 feet. Gardiner sits at the junction of the Yellowstone and the Gardiner Rivers, nestled between the Gallatin Mountains and the Absaroka Mountains in a rain/snow shadow. Gardiner has a high desert climate and rarely gets the heavy snow of the rest of the park. When it does snow, it usually disappears fairly quickly. But just up the road 8 miles and a couple thousand feet, the heavy snows of the Yellowstone Plateau and mountain ranges linger into summer. It has been a typical spring in the
Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Just when you think spring has sprung, winter returns with more snow. Our weather has been oscillating between sun soaked warm spring days, and blustery snow filled ones. Spring in Hokkaido was reminiscent of spring here. Sun, rain, snow, and everything in between coming in a single afternoon. Friday was snowy and windy. Saturday was crystal clear. Sunday is once again snowy and windy. Snow is supposed to continue through the week. Spring skiing will continue. And conditions should continue to oscillate between powder, crust, and corn. We have had it all, and I look forward
to having some more. After a winter at Old Faithful, it is great to be in Gardiner exploring a whole other skiing venue. We will be here until May 21. Em is working at Human Resources. I am working on the Bull Crew, going into the park and moving snow at Lake, Canyon, Old Faithful, and Grant. Lots of Yellowstone windshield time and wildlife spying. I work 4 ten hour days, Monday through Thursday. Giving me three day weekends to ski and otherwise relax.
Ski Date: April 25, 2009; Bighorn Loop: " 7300' to 7620'. 5.5. miles, easiest to more difficult. 320 feet elevation gain/loss. The trail begins at the Indian Creek Hut and coincides with the Indian Creek Loop for the first mile. It then continues west, making a loop through the rolling terrain with outstanding views of the Gallatin Mountains, Gardner's Hole and the surrounding country." Mammoth Area Ski Trails Map. The views were outstanding. Mt. Holmes, Dome Mountain, Antler Peak, Bannock Peak, Quadrant, etc...were all booming in the blue. After a couple inches of snow the previous night, Saturday dawned clear and blue. A couple of inches of fresh on a solid base. I headed out of Gardiner at 10am and was skiing by 10:30am. I floated around the trail scouting the terrain. Somehow it the first time I had skied or hiked on this section of the Bighorn Pass trail which ultimately leads over the Gallatins 20 miles to the Gallatin Highway. Good access to a wealth of terrain on Antler, Bannock, and Quadrant. As I toured the loop, I drooled at the Gallatins imagining the possibilities.
Ski Date: April 24, 2009; The Swan's Fin: After a week of sun, winter moved back in on Thursday night. I awoke on Friday morning to fresh inches in Gardiner. This dissipated the necessity for an early ski start, essential for warm, sun soaked spring days. I rolled over and slept for a couple more hours, a luxury not afforded on my 7am start work days. I awoke at 9:30am, puttering and relaxing before motivating to ski at noon. I headed up the hill to Swan Lake Flats. My goal was The Swan's Fin (a.k.a. The Pommel), a large hill on the edge of Swan Lake Flats. The top is about a mile from the road. The top of The Swan's Fin sits at 7917', the Flats at 7260'. It is a fun sustained 30 degree slope. I parked near Swan Lake and headed across the Flats. Not a good choice. I should have parked up at the Glen Creek/Bunsen Peak trailhead. Swan Lake is a big, shallow pond surrounded by marsh on the Flats. When frozen, skiing across the marshes provides the easiest access to The Fin. But the warm weather of the previous week started slushing things up. Leading to moist, marshy collapses. But I made it across nonetheless, and up The Fin. It was in good shape. A couple of inches of fresh snow on top of a firm base. Snow was falling and the wind was blowing. I did two runs on The Swan's Fin before heading back across the marsh to the car. I stopped in at the Boiling River on the drive back to Gardiner. The bad weather allowed me to have it all to myself for my hour there.
Ski Date: April 19, 2009; Hedges/Sheepeater: I awoke in Pelican Dorm at Lake. We had agreed on an 8:30am start time for skiing Hedges. I was running a little late. I quickly packed and made my way over to Fowler's house. The sun was shining, but the crew was not motivated. Sunburned and Livingston calling, Parks, Melissa, Brian, and Mike decided against skiing. They were leisurely dining on breakfast when I got to Dale's. Their lack of motivation evident. I hung out for about 15 minutes, got some coffee, and said my goodbyes. I would be skiing Hedges solo.
Hedges sits in the Washburn range just north of Canyon Junction. They had plowed up to the gate a quarter mile above the junction. I parked there. Two vehicles of Gardiner locals were already parked there. I strapped on the skis and headed up the road to the Cascade Lake Trailhead/Picnic area. I veered off the road there, and headed through the lodgepole forest to the beckoning slopes of the Washburns. Canyon Junction sits around 8,000'. The top of Hedges sits at 9,699. It is about a five mile round trip. The first mile is pretty flat. Once you hit the slopes, you are left with a beautiful, mostly open sustained run of over 1,500 feet. I did an up and down. The wind was howling up top, but the views were stupendous. Afterwards, I stopped in at the newly opened (for the season) Canyon general store for an apres ski Bratwurst. On the ride home I saw the same 4 wolves on the road between Canyon and Norris that I had seen a couple weeks before. Before getting back to Gardiner, I strapped on my touring skis at Sheepeater Cliffs trailhead and skied a mile in to relax on the cliffs overlooking the beautiful cascade of the Gardiner River in Sheepeater Canyon. A fitting end to a great ski weekend.
I drove down to Lake on Friday night to hook up with Brian, Parks, and Melissa. We all enjoyed the hospitality of Fowler's. We were up early on Saturday, on the road to Sylvan Pass just after 7:00am. 5 of us piled into Mike's ride. Our goal was
Top Notch, a 10,238' peak in the Absarokas: a classic spring Yellowstone ski. We parked at the base of our usual ridge approach, around 8,400', and headed up on skins. The snow was crunchy with a breakable crust. Spring transitions not yet complete. The 1,800' is gained and lost over two miles. A steep climb up, and a fun ride down. We hit the peak around 11am. The sun was beating out the clouds and made for some great peak lounging in a shovel dug seat. Brian, Mike, and Park's did a long run of the southside. I stayed lounging, and napping in the glorious sun. When they arrived back up top, they were ready for another. I joined in on this one. We found some nice corn on some other south facing slopes. We skinned back up after a great run. Unfortunately, our ultimate run down sat on the east and north, which was windblasted with a breakable crust. This made for some sloppy turning. After riding the crust of the top ridge to the saddle, we decided to drop into the bowl instead of following the ridge down. I got a couple good turns in on the top of the bowl, and then hit the crust again. Falls ensued but all survived. The trees were much softer, controllable, and fun. We hit the car and some celebratory beers around 3pm. They were followed by many more into the night at Fowler's.
Ski Date: April 12, 2009; Schult'z Knob: We were up early, and so was the sun. We walked over to Mike's and climbed into his Jimmy for the ride up to
Jardine, the former mining community nestled in the Absarokas, 6 miles and 2,000 feet above Gardiner. The Mineral Hill Mine is now closed, finishing up its clean up phase. Now
Jardine is a satellite residential community of Gardiner, providing access to the National Forest. Its miles and miles of logging roads serve as ski and snowmobile trails and conduits to the wealth of off piste. I have skied up there several times, but not nearly as much as Mike. He was our guide on a seven mile loop up and around Schulz's Knob. Coming off the Knob in our touring gear in collapsing, breakable crust was sloppy, but the rest of the tour was fun, complete with great sun soaked Absaroka scenery.
Ski Date: April 11, 2009; Blacktail Plateau Trail: "7571' to 6600', 8 miles, easiest to more difficult. The trail follows an unplowed road and may be skied from either end. It begins 8 miles east of Mammoth Hot Springs at a parking area across the road from a self-guiding trail, or at a service road approximately 1 mile farther east (we started at this trailhead due to lack of snow at the first).
The trail gradually climbs 900 feet in six miles through open meadows to The Cut. From "The Cut" the trail descends two miles down a moderate grade through a spruce/fir forest to rejoin the Mammoth-Tower Road 1.4 miles from Tower Junction. Broad vistas, elk, deer, coyotes, and occasionally bison (and a whole buttload of critters)
may be seen." Mammoth Area Ski Trails Map. We dropped a car at each trailhead. Mike's at the start, and ours at the end. Mike met up with us in Gardiner at 8:45am. We rendezvoused with Lloyd and Curtis in Mammoth at 9am. We saw two wolves on the hills near the high bridge over the Gardiner spooking a herd of elk with their proximity. After dropping the cars, we headed down the road. The snow on the road up to The Cut was in good shape. After The Cut, it began to fall apart in a collapsing mess. You would be cruising along nicely on top, and then suddenly everything would collapse leaving the skier wallowing in mush. It was at times a frustrating ride down on the road, but fun nonetheless. One must be prepared for anything in spring skiing.
Ski Date: April 10, 2009; Claggett Butte: I parked up at the Mammoth Terraces, just in front of the locked gate to Yellowstone's interior. I strapped on my tele-boards and skins and headed up the Terrace Loop to the Snow Pass trail. A mile into into the ski, foreshadowing began. I looked down as I climbed and realized one of my side cables had unscrewed and unhooked itself. My rear throw binding dangled unfastened on my right foot. The cable nowhere to be found. Stupidly, I was not carrying a spare. Lesson learned. I searched and searched for 15 minutes retracing my steps, to no avail. I decided to sit and take a short break, before heading back down the trail in defeat. But lo and behold, 5 minutes down the trail I came upon the missing piece and reattached it. I headed back up Snow Pass invigorated. Near the top of the pass I veered off onto the Clagett Butte/Sepulcher trail and headed up Clagett Butte, which sits at 8005'. The Terraces trailhead sits at 6570', giving a 1,500' vertical over two miles. I took a long break in the sun on the edge of the cornice filled travertine cliffs on top of the butte before heading down. The snow was variable going down, from solid to collapsible, but the turns were nice. That is until I hit a big snow bump, falling forward and breaking my left ski. I heard a ripping sound. I was fine, but my ski was not. The top sheet of my ski had ripped up, taking the binding with it. Luckily, the binding was still attached, and the snow crammed between the lifted top sheet and the rest of the ski wedged it in place. I was able to ski down okay with its present state. But it would be the last journey for my Morotto tele-boards, purchased for 5000 yen in Sapporo. I got two seasons out of them. After asking around, Carl gave me an old pair of 193cm Tele-birds with Hot Chili rear throws. I will finish out my tele season on these. Thanks Carl!
We rendezvoused with Curtis and Carl at 9am in Mammoth. We were going to ski
Bunsen Peak, leaving Carl's truck at the YAC Camp at the bottom of the old Bunsen Road, and taking our car up to Swan Lake Flats. On the Flats, we came up on four wolves right at the pullout where we were going to park. A big gray stood on the snow bank right in front of us. A
black dropped down to the road and followed the other two grays. A good start to a great day. We strapped on the skis and headed across the flats to Bunsen. We climbed straight up Bunsen via skin and boot. The top of Bunsen sits at 8564', and has some great snow filled terrain off its eastern side. We took a long lunch break up top, gloriously windless and sun soaked. Then we began our descent to the old road which we would follow down to the YAC Camp. The old road sits at about 7,200' where we hooked up with it, giving us an interesting and challenging 1,300' vertical to the road. From there we still had another 1,000' vertical over several miles down the winding road to the YAC Camp. The road oscillated between ice and powder. When all was said and down we had covered about seven miles and enjoyed 2,300' vertical of descent.
Ski Date: April 4, 2009; Specimen Ridge: After a week of snow, the sun was shining. Curtis and Carl came down to Gardiner for a breakfast at the Town Cafe, and we joined them when the Town opened at 9am. After breakfast, we headed up the hill and all climbed in the Accord and headed out to Tower. We parked just beyond Tower, at a pullout just before the road crosses the Lamar River. Our plan was to head up onto Specimen Ridge. Our pullout sat at 6,200'. We strapped on the skis and began to climb up to the ridge. As we climbed, the wind increased. By the time we were on the ridge it was raging. We named this ridge Windy Ridge. We climbed up to around 8,000' on the ridge. Driven by the wind, we decided to drop down into a backside bowl that looked inviting and windless. It
turned out to be a great move. Once we were off the ridge and into the bowl, the snow was soft and powdery. The turns were great. We found a sunny, nearly windless spot in the trees of the bowl. We dubbed the bowl Stone Bowl after a nice long break. I decided to do another run as the rest relaxed and headed back up to Windy Ridge. The ride back down Stone Bowl was stone cold fine. After another break, we motivated out of the bowl and down the rest of the ridge to the car. The ride down was a blast with great conditions.
Ski Date: April 3, 2009; Snow Pass: Awoke to snow and drove up the hill to the top of the Terraces. Parked at the gate and strapped on the skis. Headed up the left side of the Terrace loop to the Snow Pass trail.
"The trail ascends 770' in 1.5 miles through a series of steep grades along an old wagon road to Snow Pass. Good views of the surrounding country are frequent. From Snow Pass the trail continues 0.5 miles down over rolling terrain to a trail junction..." Mammoth Area Ski Trails Map. One way towards the road at Glen Creek trailhead, one way to Fawn Pass, and one way towards Sepulcher and Electric. I turned and headed another mile up Glenn Creek to the bottom of a ridge leading up to Sepulcher before turning back around and heading back to Snow Pass. The ride down was a good one. A good end to a fun 8 mile day out in the wind and snow.
Ski Date: March 29, 2009; Undine Ski Hill: Em and I awoke to snow, and headed up the hill to the
Undine Ski Hill. From 1942 to 1994, this had been the local ski hill. A rope tow served the 500 or so feet of vertical on a couple of runs.
Undine Ski Hill was finally shut down by the Park Service in the early 90`s. The hill sits 5 miles outside of Mammoth on the Mammoth/Tower Road, right across from the pullout overlooking Undine Falls. It is nice and open and easily accessible. We skinned up and explored the woods up top before our first run. The snow was good, so we skinned up again, took a break, and telemarked down once again. When conditions are good, it is a great and quick escape for a couple runs. After our second run, we hung out with the views of Undine Falls and the Lava Creek Canyon before heading back down the hill to try and dig out Jesse's snow/ice bound car sitting behind Juniper Dorm in Mammoth. We dug it out, but ice still locked in the wheels. It was freed a few days later with the help of Drew and Charles.
Ski Date: March 27, 2009; Double Burn: After a week of snow and my first work week on the Bull Crew, the sun was shining on Friday morning. That boded well for my planned trip down to Old Faithful to grab the rest of our stuff out of storage in our winter room in Larkspur. The roads were in good shape, and I successfully lugged and loaded up all our stuff in the Accord and was heading back towards Gardiner by 1:30pm. I brought my telegear with me in hopes of getting in a few runs on Double Burn, a hill just off the road between Norris and Mammoth. I pulled off the road around 3pm, and the snow was in good shape. I strapped on the skis and skins at the Grizzly Lake trailhead, crossed over Obsidian Creek, and up Double Burn. The hill was burned twice, in 1976 and once again in 1988, and hence is nice and open compared to a lot of the other hills in the area. Twenty years on, lodgepoles are repopulating the hill, but sections of it are still real open and make for some great runs on a 400' vertical slope of 25 to 30 degrees. I skinned up the first run, and then booted up for two more. A couple of inches of powder on top of a firm base for some great late afternoon dust on crust runs.
P.S. Our digital camera we got in Japan 3 years ago has deteriorated beyond use. It now only produces badly blurred images. We retired it, and we have spent most of the spring without a camera. The sporadic skiing images I included are thanks to friends. Three of the final least blurred images from our camera sit above. R.I.P. We just got a new camera. I look forward to using it on next week's skis.
Pulled out of Snow Lodge at 8:00am on March 19. Drove the Mattracks all the way from Old Faithful to Gardiner. I drove van 430 with 10 passengers. Road from Madison to Old Faithful had been rotary plowed through the previous day. It was ice covered. But from Madison to Gardiner it was pavement. Probably not the best for the longevity of the tracks. We kept speeds down. Stopped in Mammoth to drop everyone off at their cars. I jumped out and got the Accord rolling after a 13 week hibernation in between two Mammoth cabins. Had to do a couple minutes shoveling to get it out of its slumber. Em took over the Accord. I drove the Mattrack down the hill to park it behind the Gardiner warehouse with the rest of the Xanterra collection. We gathered our stuff and got our room in the Bunkhouse. Then went over to Ashea and Mike's for lunch. After lunch and some unpacking and packing at the Bunkhouse, we jumped in the Accord and headed to
Chico Hot Springs for some final Snow Lodge carousing and soaking. From Chico we headed to Livingston to stay with Brian Webb and Shifijie. Slept in the guesthouse out back.
On Friday, after some morning Livingston, we rendezvoused with Curtis and headed up to Showdown in EEP, north 120 miles on
US 89. We were staying at
Bob's in
Neihart, 8 miles north of Showdown and King's Hill Pass, skiing on Saturday and Sunday
(Ski Date: March 21-22, 2009). Tony runs
Bob's Bar, restaurant, and hotel. Besides The Inconvenience Store, it is pretty much the only game in town. I like to call Neihart, the Cooke City of the North. Snowmobiling hub for the Lewis and Clark National Forest with the benefit of
Showdown 8 miles down the road. Neihart and Showdown sit in the Little Belt Mountains, home of the
Yogo Sapphire. Saturday skiing was spring with a bit of everything. Rain in Neihart Saturday night, was snow at Showdown. 2-3 inches fell to freshen and whiten runs up nicely. Great snow day on Sunday left our appetites satisfied as we headed back to Livingston to the Accord in EEP. Torrential hail storm in Livingston as we grocery shopped before heading back to Gardiner. Work beckoned on Monday.
Paraphrased from the pages of the Transportation Department 2008-2009 Winter Run Book.
SRR (South Regular Run) Old Faithful-Flagg Ranch-Old Faithful
Daily 12/17/08-3/15/09
10 max per Bombardier; 2-10 Bombardiers
7:30am Report to Old Faithful Dispatch.
Check out coach and go to breakfast.
8:30am Pull up in front of Snow Lodge. Load luggage. Then passengers.
9:00am Depart Old Faithful Snow Lodge.
Stops: Kepler Cascades, Shoshone Point, West Thumb Geyser Basin
11:45am Arrive Flagg Ranch. Disembark luggage and passengers. Fuel. Eat Lunch.
12:30pm Load luggage. Then passengers for return trip to Old Faithful Snow Lodge.
1:00pm Depart Flagg Ranch.
Stops: South Entrance, Moose Falls, Lewis Canyon, Lewis Falls, West Thumb.
4:45pm Arrive Old Faithful Snow Lodge. Disembark and Unload. Clean Coach. Fuel. Paperwork.
Sound Check Date: January 14, 2009 I had a 2:00p.m. date with a Sound Check at the South Entrance. I left Snow Lodge at 11a.m. for my deadhead down South, behind the wheel of 713 (a.k.a.
Ole Yeller or
Lucky for those not fond of Ole Yeller's rabies demise). 713 is one of
Xanterra's Bombardier R-12 flagships for BAT (Best Available Technology), which the Park Service is calling for all snow vehicles on the road to have by 2011. It is part of the ever evolving and devolving winter use battle that has raged for decades. BAT seems to be somewhat in the eye of the beholder. Talking to a couple of the mechanics, Xanterra's answer to BAT seems to be an unwieldy Frankenstein. 712's engine, one of the other 3 coaches presently equipped with BAT, caught fire and
has been out of commission for nearly a month as the mechanics struggle with it. The BAT consists of retro-fitting the Chevy 350 engines with fuel injection and a different exhaust system with catalytic converter and muffler, instead of the glass packs now on the Bombs. The quest is to raise gas efficiency, lower emissions, and lower decibels. As far as sound goes, the goal is to have all snowcoaches no louder than 73 decibels, supposedly the sound of a four stroke snowmobile. This was the first Sound Check of a Xanterra BAT Bombardier R-12. It ended up registering at 75 decibels, compared to 80 decibels for a non-BAT Xanterra Bomb. Still some of the loudest (if not the loudest) snowcoaches on the road.
The South Entrance Sound Check was the first in a series of Sound Checks that the Park Service, in conjunction with
VOLPE, a wing of the Department of Transportation that specializes in sound issues related to transportation, was holding over a week and a half period. Besides the South Entrance, they were holding Sound Checks up at Indian Creek and Seven Mile Bridge on the Madison. This coach and others would be tested multiple times at multiple sites. It was something akin to a mini-Snowcoach Festival as the various kinds of coaches (Bombardier R-12s,
Snowbuster Vans, and an array of
Mattrack vehicles) from different concessionaires were being tested. A who's who of Yellowstone winter. Besides hanging out with the Winter Management Team, Sound Guys, and one of the Groomer's, I also hung out with Arden of
Yellowstone Expeditions, and the mechanic for
Alpen Guides (whose name I am presently spacing).
Alpen Guides run 8 red Bombardier R-12s out of West Yellowstone. He gave me a tour of one. They look and sound real nice and receive a lot of tender loving care. Their engines are set up different than Xanterra Bombs. They don't have high exhaust stacks. Instead the muffler is down low under the coach, pointed down. They are significantly quieter. The Alpen Guide Bomb was registering somewhere around 67 decibels. When my time finally came,
Shan, a
Park Service soundscape specialist for Teton and Yellowstone Parks climbed in my coach. We then proceeded to run the course about 20 times, straight shots through the microphoned area, back and forth with lots of 5 point turns in the road to get turned around. They wanted 3 runs within 2 miles per hour of each other and 2 decibles of each other at a high speed (about 25 mph), 15 mph, and then finally an idle test. I was the last coach to go, and the sun was nearly setting as I finished up, which made for a spectacular ride home to Snow Lodge. The deadhead sunset at Lewis Lake was hard to beat, making all the resulting noise and air pollution of my 88 mile Sound Check deadhead well worth it. Let the analysis begin. Cue resulting lawsuits.
