Two [very different yet remarkably similar] weeks in America's first national park
Let's hear it for Yellowstone (not the television show!)
My last two weeks in Yellowstone were dominated by book events for Inspired by Yellowstone at the Old Faithful Inn. The program features artists of all types: authors, painters, photographers, etc., who set up shop in one of the hotel lobbies and hawk their wares to the crowds of tourists who flock to Yellowstone National Park every summer. (Booth neighbors included Kyle Moon, wildlife photographer, Erin Lee Dentinger and Sharon Iott Stchur, both painters. Thanks for the company!)
The first week started inauspiciously. The power was out for the first hour. Generators did a little work but not over in the corner with the artist displays. Luckily it came back on soon. But the big clock on the chimney stopped and had to be restarted later by a technician.
I was in Yellowstone selling the book last summer as well. This summer I wondered if airline prices, gasoline prices, and general pessimism about the world would keep people closer to home but since the beginning of the season (May) through June, the tourists kept up their numbers, just 1% down from last year at this time. Compared to 2021 though, after Covid, we’re not breaking any records.
Visitation in June 2026 showed a 4% decrease from June 2021 (938,845 recreation visits). The park’s record-breaking year was 2021 with over 4.8 million total recreation visits. - NPS
The weather was the topic this year. The first week it was cold and rainy. I mean, cold even for Yellowstone. The end of June and the high was 40F. Then this happened on my third day:
The kids, let us say, were overjoyed. Reports of snowball fights on Craig Pass and even in the Old Faithful Inn parking lot! My car had a good inch of snow on it. So that was fun. However sitting by the open doors of the Inn, those big red doors that nobody felt it necessary to close, was not much fun that day.
By the way, it doesn’t matter what the actual temperature is when the “feels like” is 14F!
I wondered how the weather would affect tourist behavior but it didn’t actually seem to matter much. Books were sold, ice cream was gobbled down, geysers and wildlife were spied. (I didn’t actually see much wildlife unfortunately, stuck behind a table in the lobby.) As usual, everyone wanted to know one of two things: when does the geyser go off and which way to the restroom. 🤣
This year I decided to give away tote bags to anyone who bought three books. Any books would qualify as I also had a lot of my back list on another table. This was a success! I have one tote bag left because it was hiding in a box. The rest, both Deadly Yellowstone ones and a couple Bennett Sisters totes, happily went home with book lovers.
What to do with that last tote bag? I am happy to give it away to anyone who buys three paperbacks on my website, or will sell it outright—make me an offer!
This could be the year most (but not all) tourists refrained from asking about Yellowstone, the television show. Hallelujah! The new spinoff, The Madison, was discussed as I live right on the Madison River. Have you watched the show? I was curious, made it through an episode to spy on the landscape and recognized a couple places. Please give us a review!
That was my first week, five days selling books then home for many naps. The next week started up a few days later after a fun, low-key 4th. The weather completely turned and was gorgeous and sunny and mid 70s while many areas of the country were under a heat dome. The folks from South Carolina, Louisiana, and Georgia that I spoke to both weeks were happy to be up north and never complained. I also met tourists from Belgium, Brazil, and other far-flung places. (Sometimes I didn’t ask, just smiled and had them write down the names they wanted inscribed in the books.) Two dads from somewhere (soccer fans from Brazil, Turkey, Poland?) bought books for their daughters, Agata and Sabrina. Love it.
Deadly Yellowstone is of course still available. Thirteen short mystery stories set in the park, it features a wide variety of topics and settings, from art to poachers to influencers, Congressmen, and more, all with a suspenseful twist. My story is set right in Old Faithful Inn lobby, when an author falls to his death from the crow’s nest, four stories up.
How is your summer going? Or winter down under? Tell us about your exploits in reading and travel and life!
