West Yellowstone

History West Yellowstone was founded in 1908, when the Oregon Short Line, part of the Union Pacific system, built a railroad to the park's western boundary. The Union Pacific depot followed in 1909, and for decades trains brought tourists who continued into the park by stagecoach and later by bus. On the night of August 17, 1959, an earthquake centred near Hebgen Lake set off a huge landslide in the Madison River canyon. Twenty-eight people died, and the slide dammed the river to form Earthquake Lake.

What to See The Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center, at 201 S. Canyon Street next to the West Entrance, is an accredited wildlife park for grizzly bears and grey wolves that cannot be returned to the wild. It is open every day of the year, though not every programme runs daily. The Museum of the Yellowstone occupies the 1909 Union Pacific depot at 104 Yellowstone Avenue and covers the stagecoach and railroad companies that carried tens of thousands of visitors to the park. It is open daily from mid-May to mid-October and is run by the Yellowstone Historic Center, which took over the depot from the town in 2000; the surrounding railroad buildings form a historic district. The Earthquake Lake Visitor Center, on US-287 about 27 miles northwest of town, has exhibits on the 1959 earthquake and a view of the slide. It opened in 1967, receives more than 50,000 visitors a year, and is open from late May to mid-September.

Outdoors In 2026 the West Entrance road to Madison Junction, Old Faithful and Norris was open to cars from April 17 to October 31. Most park roads close to cars for the winter; in 2026 that was 31 October. Guided snowmobile and snowcoach travel on groomed roads runs from December 15, 2026 to March 15, 2027, and West Yellowstone is the main starting point for these tours. The town has a subalpine climate, with January low temperatures averaging around 0°F, so winter visitors need proper cold-weather gear for open snowmobile tours.

Getting There Yellowstone Airport (WYS), just outside town, operates mainly in summer. Year-round flights use Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport (BZN), about 91 miles north by road via US-191 and Big Sky. Big Sky is about 51 miles north. Driving to Gardiner through the park is possible only while the interior roads are open to cars; in winter the trip means leaving the park and driving round by Bozeman and Livingston.

When to Go Mid-June to mid-September is the busiest time, with all park roads, the depot museum and the Earthquake Lake centre open. May and October are quieter, though some services are closed. Mid-December to mid-March is the snowmobile and snowcoach season, while the in-between weeks of November and spring are the quietest of the year.