has been on
the road again and visited West Yellowstone in Montana for some of the best riding in the country and to experience the 15th Annual Snowmobile Expo. West Yellowstone is located
one and a half hours from Bozeman, home of Montana State University. Just a stones throw outside Yellowstone National Park is a resort called Three Bear Lodge.
Click here for the IMAGE GALLERY!
Three Bear Lodge is one of the most well established properties
in the Yellowstone area. Under the same management for the last 30+ years they pride themselves on service and value that today's travelers expect. You will enjoy their modern
yet rustic feel of natural pine furnishings and modern conveniences. All of their rooms standard amenities include in room bath facilities, cable TV, heat and air conditioning,
in room hairdryers, irons and ironing boards as well as phones with data ports for use with your computers. On property enjoy one of their 4 hot tubs, outdoor swimming pool and
famous restaurant and lounge. Three Bear Restaurant and Lounge is a must for everyone
who stays in West Yellowstone. Known by locals and visitors as one of the best places in town to eat. Or you can relax in the adjoining Grizzly Lounge
After an invigorating day in Yellowstone, you can cool off in the swimming pool or relax in one of the whirlpools or in-room hot tubs
that are just waiting to take care of you after a good ride. If you need a day off from riding there are many other options for you, a day shopping in West Yellowstone, visit
the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center or just a night out on the town. If you want something
different, you might try the Yellowstone Snowmobile Tour or Snow Coach Tour through the park. Three Bear Lodge offers many different options for you
and your group to experience. Click here for a complete list of activities.
Enormous Riding Area
There are 2.5 million acres of every kind of riding 
for any kind of riding style you have. If you like to
trail ride and see all the beautiful scenery, there are 600 miles of groomed trails to roam. If you like trail riding but want to sample a little of the powder riding, there
are endless meadows and small hills just off the trails for you to get a taste without getting in over your head. If you want the steep and deep, they have some of the most
extreme off trail boon docking, hill climbing, cornice jumping and bowls to play in and it's all within minutes of Three Bear Lodge. This is just one of the reasons why I
enjoyed Three Bear Lodge-- you don't have to go far from the Three Bear Lodge to get any kind of riding you like. 
Visitors have the option of venturing out on their own or I would highly recommend
getting a guide as we did. If you stay at Three Bear Lodge check out the great
package deals, plus guides tend to know all the really good spots of untouched powder for you to play in without you having to spend your whole day trying to find them on
your own.
These Packages give you the FREEDOM to choose between:
Tours of Yellowstone Park with an authorized interpretative guide,
Professionally-guided tours in three neighboring National Forests
Your own self-guided tour exploring the hundreds of miles of regularly groomed trails in these National
Forests.
Here's what we found on our trip to Three Bear Lodge: There were 2 in our group, my self and Mike Grant from SnowtrailsTV.com, (both of us being very experienced riders, Mike from SnowtrailsTV has been in the mountains before and was familiar with this type of riding, I however have never been in the mountains before and was very excited.
We arrived late Wednesday night and Jan Stoddard (Director of Marketing & Operations) had our information packet and room ready to go for us,
which was very nice after being on two flights from Michigan. We packed and brought all of our riding gear and accessories, I definitely recommend this to make your riding
adventures a comfortable experience. Three Bear Lodge does provide everything that you could ever need to go riding even if you do not bring any gear. You can read more on
this by clicking here for Frequently asked Questions.
The next morning we ate breakfast and discussed our riding plans for the next 3 days, and met with Dale Otey our guide. Dale was great,. he
had everything all set up for us. We didn't have to worry about a thing. Dale carried all the survival and emergency gear in a pack strapped to the sled, this is very important
because things can happen and its best to be prepared for anything.
Dale took us to some areas that were untouched and, well words could not describe just how much fun we all had for the 3 days of riding.
Lots of hill climbing and boon docking through the trees and meadows and yes, we even found some unexpected holes thanks to some unexpected snowstorms on mountain. This being my
first time experiencing mountain riding, I had to adjust my riding style. The flat land powder riding that I was used to differs greatly from powder riding while on the side of
a mountain 90% of the time. I found it to be an exciting challenge that allowed me to push my abilities and learn how to side hill and high mark on some very steep and deep
slopes!
After the first day of riding we took a break and looked at the weather forecast, seeing that a storm was on its way into the
area one day away, we decided to visit the 15th Annual Snowmobile EXPO held in West Yellowstone. We saw the unveiling of the new 2005 snowmobiles for the first time,
snowmobile aftermarket exhibitors featuring aftermarket products, clothing & accessories, trailers and more! 
Everything for your sled! We had the opportunity to
see all the latest and greatest products that are available today and talk with some of the exhibitors about their products, after discussing the technical details we decided
to put some products to the test. The Snobunje Cobra was a back saver for us. We definitely got stuck more than once and it made getting unstuck allot easier. Some of the
other products we tested were a couple of items from R. U. Outside. I tested the Sonique gloves and the Mock T under layer shirt. I can't say enough about the products, I used
to wear just two long sieved shirts (10 degrees and colder) under my jacket and I always came back wet and sometimes chilled after "ditch banging" that's as close to mountain
riding that flat landers get, but after playing in the powder and getting stuck 3-4 times I made it back to the lodge DRY and toasty. It was an awesome feeling. Lots of great
things to see and a great place to get updated on new products!
Some of the other events that we were able to experience included Drag Racing, FSX Freestyle
Competition, Kitty Kat Finals and Meet the Racers, the SnoWest SnoCross sanctioned by MWR. World class pro racers
from across North America competed for the "Best of the Best" SnoCross title and an additional $10,000.00 race purse .Friday evening we had the opportunity to have a a pop
with some of the original Slednecks, Cameron Elliot, Shad Free and Dan Adams... It was great to meet and talk with the guys you have watched for 5 years and a hundred times on
video doing the Extreme Jumps, great guys with allot of stories!
The second and third days of riding we excellent, we continued to explore deeper into the Big Sky mountains, finding
deeper snow and steeper riding. I was amazed at the beauty of our surroundings, this was truly a trip that I will not forget. I looked at Mike and said "when can we come back
to West Yellowstone?" Three days of riding and we only saw 8 other riders on the trail. We made some new acquaintances from Iowa, a family of nine or so was out high marking
and spending some great family time together out sledding, nothing better than getting everyone involved!
One of the things that I wanted to do on this trip was to experience everything, so I could write about it and share my experiences
and travel info with anyone and everyone who has wanted to travel outside their normal riding areas and truly take a trip to a destination that you can do something different
everyday and night that you stay. West Yellowstone has all that! I can't wait to get back out there to and ride again and see the friends that were made from this trip. I
think a trip out to Yellowstone park in the summer would be a great family vacation to schedule! Click on any of the photos to take you to the Image Gallery or click
here!
Yellowstone Tour & Travel is really a first class travel
agency with a lot of great people working to make sure you have the best riding experience possible. Click here to get some Hot Deals & Discounts
Destination activities :
Snowmobile inside or
outside the Park
Snow coach tours
Grizzly/Wolf Discovery Center
Imax Theater
Bears Den Cinema (always showing first run movies)
Three Bear Restaurant and Lounge
Cross-Country Skiing
Downhill skiing
Our great lodging facilities with hot tubs, pool and more
Oregon Shoreline Restaurant and Lounge with the ambiance of our museum executive Rail Car.
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Yellowstone Tour & Travel - Local Experts |
Ride with Snowtrails |
Let the local experts at Yellowstone Tour and Travel handle the details of your airfare, lodging and activities while offering
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Documented from Video Mike's driver's seat, Snowtrails TV delivers exciting destinations and unmatched winter scenery.
As seen on your local Public Television Station ( PBS ).
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Snowmobileguys.com would like to thank Jan Stoddard (Yellowstone Tour & Travel, Director of Marketing & Operations), Dale Otey our Guide and everybody
else at West YellowStone Tour and Travel for making our trip first class. Bill Howell & Clyde Seely Property Owners
