Broker Insights from Robyn Erlenbush – ERA Landmark Real Estate
One of my favorite annual adventures is our journey to the Lake Hotel in Yellowstone National Park on Labor Day weekend. Over the past 30 years, we have experienced every precipitation type and temperature range known to Montana. Several years ago, we watched a group of Australians gleefully making snow angels in several inches of white stuff. This year, I took an early morning photo safari with a small and hardy group with a beginning daytime temperature of 27 degrees. The one constant that has never changed is how much tourists and locals alike love and admire the park and all it has to offer.
Yellowstone National Park. The name alone conjures up visions of bears and wolves and the glorious spectacle of geysers erupting. While on occasion the headlines turn tragic, the overwhelming feelings when thinking about Yellowstone National Park (YNP) are often associated with nostalgia from magical childhood trips or anticipation of adventures to come. Like memories of “Are we there yet?” coming from the back seat of the car. The mixture of events that can be enjoyed while in the park is vast. From the most sedentary sightseeing to downright adventures, the hardest decision may be what to do first and then wonder why you didn’t plan a longer stay. Wildlife viewing is the one activity that visitors will most likely be involved in whether they try to or not. Buffalo act as natural speed deterrents as they wander down the well-traveled roads. A wolf or grizzly in the distance is often spotted by one and soon becomes a hub of commotion as vehicles pull over and the cameras and iPads are quickly put to work. Elk nbso online casino reviews meander through the center of towns and are another reminder of the awe that is experienced by wildlife close up.
Established in 1872 as our nation’s first national park, YNP visitation has grown exponentially over time. When the numbers were roughly tracked in the early years, there were reportedly 300 visitors in the inaugural year of 1872. By 1923, visitation numbers surpassed the 100,000 mark. Move forward to 1948 and the 1,000,000 benchmark was met. 2010 is still the record setting year with a total of 3,640,205 noted visits. 2014 is the second highest figure to date, yet 2015 is outpacing both last year and 2010 through July’s statistics. All indicators look like the final numbers could come in over 3,750,000. We could slice up the raw numbers all day, but the bottom line is that nearly four million people (local and long distance tourists alike) visit YNP each year. Considering that three of the five entrances are located in Montana (West Yellowstone, Gardiner and Cooke City), that ensures an incredible amount of impact on our local economy.
A few facts that fascinate me are the size and complex nature of the park, which is larger than the states of Rhode Island and Delaware combined, at 2,219,789 acres. During the fires of 1988, approximately 36% of the park burned. Now, a mere 27 years later, one can barely notice the devastation. YNP is home to one of the world’s largest calderas with over 10,000 thermal features and 300 geysers. Yellowstone Lake is the largest high attitude lake in North American. With over 1,100 native plant species and 400 thermophiles (an organism that thrives in relatively high water and ground temperatures), 322 types of birds and 77 different mammals, there is plenty of diversity to compliment the humans.
Besides just making lifelong memories, park visitors impact the surrounding economies in a very positive way. An article published by the Yellowstone Insider back in April quotes a federal government study crediting $543.7 million per year as the economic result of YNP tourism. The spending contributes to 6,662 jobs in the adjacent communities. As I booked my trip for next year, it is apparent that the very high occupancy levels will continue for the summer of 2016. Many of the lodging facilities (from $80/night for Roosevelt Lodge Cabins to the $680/night Presidential Suite at the Lake Hotel) are nearly sold out for the season. It seems that we have the very best of both worlds, in our backyard…a magnificent natural world wonder coupled with a tremendous economic engine for Montana.
Image via RoadTrippers.com.
