A few more weather notes are in order before we move on. On Jan. 18, we discussed with Dave Bernhardt of the National Weather Service in Great Falls the status of the dreaded El Nino.

He said the sea surface waters of the western South Pacific Ocean are still showing a moderate El Nino pattern, but in Montana the normal results have been skewed.

While in a few limited parts of our state the snow and its water content have been well above the average, most of our vast landscape has been dry, with snowpack far below normal.

So for the state as a whole, the dryness El Nino carries with it is prevalent here. Temperature-wise, lengthy period of above-usual readings associated with El Nino have not occurred to date. Most weather stations in Montana have had plenty of below zero readings.

The Kootenai River basin in northwest Montana is the only drainage with far more than the expected moisture.

A couple of snow measurement sites show 122 percent. A few others are in the 80 percent -- 90 percent category. Flattop Mountain has 86 inches of snow on the ground and Poorman Creek has 68 inches.

Beyond the northwest and perhaps the northern Bitterroot Divide, the percentages fall way off. The Madison and Gallatin drainages are 75 percent and 67 percent of average respectively.

The winter personality of West Yellowstone -- once a bastion of blue-smoke filled air infused with the incessant whining of engines that sounded like a swarm of mammoth mosquitoes -- is changing.

In part, this was forced by changes in National Park Service regulations regarding snowmobiles.

Today, only cleaner-burning, quieter snowmobiles led by tour guides are allowed in Yellowstone National Park. The experience in our opinion has been positive.

More and more snow-time visitors are opting to see the park via snow coach. And with the growing popularity of muscle sports such as cross-country and backcountry skiing, skiers are becoming more plentiful in this park entrance town.

Nordic skiing fits well with the snow coaches as they provide a dropoff/pickup service. Seven outfits now offer the coach service and each has its own plan and preferred drop off points.

We had an opportunity to take two snow-coach trips with Alpen Guides, a well-established operation out of West. Susie took the route through the Geyser Basins to Old Faithful and Rick along the Gibbon River to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.

To be honest ... initially, we considered guided tours to be too "touristy" for us ... preferring to strike out on our own. How wrong we were.

It's hard to "eat crow", but the day was more than enjoyable for both of us -- the drivers are knowledgeable as to the park's winter show, where the best chances of finding animals are, historical notes and, the horseshoe-shaped seating in the vehicles allowed everyone in the coach to visit and share experiences. We would go again and again.

The Alpen Guide folks offer a bit of nostalgia by using refurbished over-the-snow vehicles first made by Bombardier in the early 1940s for the US Army's Colorado Mountain Division and winter travel in the north. In 1955, the swoop-shaped transporters made their first appearance in Yellowstone.

You can stay with the coach or be let off at specific sites to ski.

Or snowshoe on your own catching a ride on the coach's return. One option allows for you to be let off at Biscuit Basin and the ski through the Upper Geyser Basin along the Firehole River then on to Old Faithful to meet your chariot.

The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, a magnificent sight anytime of the year, is especially wild in winter. As the once sleepy Yellowstone River is squeezed between multicolored, 1,200 to 1,500-foot deeply-etched canyon walls, the now roiling water plunges 109 feet over Upper Falls, heading towards the often-photographed 308-foot drop of Lower Falls creating a deafening roar. In winter, enormous ice cones are built by the fall's spray.

The Old Faithful tour allows for short ski or snowshoe hikes to mud pots and geysers and is timed to coincide with one of the "grande dame's" classic eruptions.

Whether you are eyeball to eyeball with bison using the roadway as their own, spotting wolves, photographing perched eagles, learning how to identify a cygnet swan, experiencing the shrewdness of the ravens, or being paced by coyotes as you scoot along, you are creating memories of an adventure that will remain with you long after you return home.

The wondrous gift of seeing the Park in winter is ageless in its appeal. We had folks from 5 to 75 on our trips and perhaps the old-fashioned word "delightful" would be the best way to describe the comaraderie and events of the day.

Alpen Guides can be reached at 800 858-3502 and the West Yellowstone Chamber of Commerce at 406 646-7701 can give you information on the other services.

Rick & Susie Graetz are Montana publishers and photojournalists. Their email is thisismontana@aol.com.