Why Winter Is the Most Amazing Time to Visit the National Parks

There are a few rites of passage on most national parks bucket lists: watching Old Faithful blow at Yellowstone, staring up at Yosemite’s towering sequoia groves, and looking down into the abyss of the Grand Canyon. And while I love our national parks so much I used to spend my summers working in them, let’s be honest — they’re not always as picture-perfect as postcards would have you believe, largely due to summer overcrowding. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve sat idling behind a seemingly endless line of minivans whose drivers have pulled over to snap selfies with some distant moose. In the height of summer, those poor creatures are more photographed than a Kardashian’s derrière!

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Here’s a little secret of in-the-know parkgoers — sometimes the best season to visit is when everyone else is breaking out their long underwear and battening down the hatches. You guessed it: winter. That’s when powdery snow dusts the mountains and valleys, when the bears and coyotes come down hunting for food, and when most of the people who’d ordinarily be clogging up the roads are cozied up to their flat screens.

Here are a few of the coolest experiences worth bundling up for in the national parks:

Thermal pools at Yellowstone National Park (Scott Kublin/Flickr)

Yellowstone National Park, Wyo.

Ian Shive, a photographer who is currently working on his second book of national park photographs (The 100 Year Anniversary of America’s National Park Service, due out next fall from Insight Editions), has this to say about Yellowstone: “Only a small section of the park remains open during the winter months, but if you visit, you are one of only a few people — unlike the summer months, where traffic can be backed up for miles for a single wildlife sighting.”

The park keeps its northern entrance plowed and open throughout Wyoming’s blustery winter. Don’t miss seeing the Old Faithful geyser blow — it’s even more beautiful in a blizzard. And then there are the 400-degree Technicolor thermal pools, which look particularly bright against a white snow backdrop.

Another perk, according to Shive: “Not only do you have a much more private experience, but the wildlife tends to be closer to the road, especially in Lamar Valley, where it is not unusual to see a red fox, elk, bighorn sheep, buffalo, and wolves all in the same day.”

The best place to stay is at Old Faithful Snow Lodge & Cabins, which is accessible only by snowcoach and snowmobile. (What, you don’t have your own snowmobile? Don’t worry: They’ll pick you up at the Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport and even supply you with a loaner for your stay.)

Related: 7 Gorgeous and Surprisingly Uncrowded U.S. National Parks

The Ahwahnee Hotel was designed to highlight its natural surroundings. (Christina B Castro/Flickr)

Yosemite National Park, Calif.

Winter is an amazing time to visit Yosemite National Park. It’s beautiful — and quiet. It’s also a surprisingly great place to hit the slopes. At Badger Pass, which is set to open Dec. 12, you start slaloming at 8,000 feet elevation, with an incredible bird’s-eye view over the surrounding Sierra Nevada mountains.

My tip: Splurge on a room at the storied, luxury-cabin-like Ahwahnee Hotel, where James Franco recently spent New Year’s Eve. This winter they’re offering a stay-two-nights, ski-free package.

Rather sleep somewhere more rustic? The Ski Hut at Glacier Point overlooks frost-covered Half Dome and is accessible by a 10.5-mile guided cross-country ski trek. A word of warning: The hut sleeps up to 20 people in one bare-bones room. Bring earplugs.

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Snow at Bryce Canyon (Piriya Photography/Getty Images)

Bryce Canyon, Utah

Flashlights and headlamps aren’t allowed when you go night snowshoeing with the rangers at Utah’s Bryce Canyon — that’s what the full moon is for. When the snow below you reflects all that moonlight, you can see for miles: naturally formed red rock arches, hoodoos (spires of limestone) dusted in sugary snow. Your ranger guide will help you keep an eye out for wildlife, since this is a place where red foxes, mountain lions, and pronghorn roam.

The snowshoe hikes are offered from November through March, whenever the snow depth exceeds 12 inches. Snowshoes and poles are provided, but bring your own warm and waterproof boots: You’ll be glad you did. But even more glad you went.

Related: 5 National Parks in 7 Days: The Ultimate U.S. Road Trip

Apostle Islands National Lakeshore in the winter (Doug Wallick/Getty Images)

Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Wis.

Last year was the first time in about five years that visitors were able to access the crystalline ice caves that form under the red sandstone cliffs at Wisconsin’s Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. Insiders are predicting that the ice will be thick enough this year to again allow access.

This one is for truly adventurous types only: You’ll have to walk more than 2 miles on frozen-solid Lake Superior to get to the ice caves (crampons and ski poles are recommended). Once you’re there, stand back from the bounty of icicles — they do occasionally fall.

Want to get a shot for Instagram? Try to go late in the afternoon on a sunny day; that’s when the lighting of the sandstone and icicles is at its most dramatic.

(If all of this sounds too cold for you, we won’t judge if you pack your swimwear — and head straight for the Florida Everglades.)

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