Welcome to Yellowstone National Park. I'm Bethany. And I'm Jake. Winner's a beautiful time of year to visit Yellowstone, but it can be dangerous if you're unprepared, especially in the backcountry. There's no guarantees for your safety, so we're going to share some tips to help make your trip safer and more enjoyable. Winner and Yellowstone can be unforgiving and unpredictable. Prepare for deep snow, strong winds, white outs, and sub-zero temperatures. We're talking really cold temperatures like negative 20 degrees Fahrenheit or colder. When it's that cold, everything takes longer. Dealing with a minor injury or equipment issue can quickly turn into a life-rata situation. And if snow conditions aren't great, traveling is much, much slower. Evaluate your progress often and always be prepared to turn around if you need to. Be careful not to overestimate how far you can travel in a day. Extreme weather also brings the potential for frostbite and hypothermia. Symptoms of frostbite include numbness, swelling, blisters, and discoloration to things like your cheeks, ears, nose, fingers, and toes. And symptoms of hypothermia include impaired judgment, shivering, slurred speech, and even extreme fatigue. Learn how to recognize and treat these situations if they come up and don't try to push through. Stop and deal with the problem. Left untreated, they can lead to serious injury or death. Now let's talk gear. Don't let this trip be the first time you use any piece of your equipment. Test your gear in winter conditions before you depend on it in the backcountry. Now I know everyone has a system that works best for them, but here are a few things you should have in your pack no matter what. Pack a stove because campfires aren't allowed in Yellowstone during our winter. And some stoves don't work well in cold weather, so do your research and make sure that your stove is up to the challenge. Pack plenty of food. You can burn 5,000 calories a day or more depending on the weather, terrain, or what kind of shape you're in. A winter backcountry trip is not the time for a diet. Bring extra food and fuel in case you're delayed by slow travel or emergencies. Pack extra layers to prevent hypothermia and frostbite in case the clothes you're wearing become wet or sweaty. Go ahead and ditch all of your cotton. Other items to pack include a shelter or tools to make one. A UV light, tablets, or extra fuel to purify your water. Water filters are going to freeze. An insulated sleeping pad or two, an a warm sleeping bag. Make sure that your sleeping pad is insulated and that your bag is rated at least zero degrees Fahrenheit since temperatures can drop well below that. Bring containers to hold clean water. And a sleeve or insulation to keep them from freezing. You'll want a map in compass or a GPS with extra batteries. Maybe both. A first aid kit, headlamp, matches, sunglasses, sunscreen, 30 feet of rope to hang your food, and a gear repair kit. And here's a pro tip. Know how to fix your gear before it breaks. If you plan to explore the mountainous areas of the park, also pack an avalanche beacon, a snow shovel, a probe, crystal card, saw, and a slope meter. And if none of that made any sense to you, you should probably get some avalanche training or find a route that avoids avalanche prone terrain. One last thing to mention before you hit the trail. Once you have your permit, share your itinerary with a trusted friend. If something goes wrong, we won't know to look for you unless someone tells us you're overdue. And now that you're all packed, it's time to hit the trail. Take time to review a topomat, snow and weather conditions, and avalanche reports for your area. And if you're traveling on groom roads, you're going to be sharing them with snowmobiles, snow coaches, and wildlife. Yellowstone offers great habitat for all sorts of animals, including both black and grizzly bears. Bears hibernate during the winter, but it's still possible to see them any month of the year. So the best practices for traveling in bear country still apply. Traveling groups, make noise, and carry bear spray. Ask a ranger or browse our website for more information. If you do encounter wildlife, chances are it's going to be a bison, elk, moose, or deer. And just because they aren't predators doesn't mean they aren't dangerous. They may attack if approached or if they feel threatened. The best thing to do is to enjoy all of our animals from a distance. Stay at least 100 yards from bears and wolves in 25 yards from anything else. If you plan on getting away from the road, here are some things to consider in addition to wildlife. Make sure you're comfortable navigating. Most trails aren't marked in winter, and they may be difficult to follow, especially in a whiteout. There are a lot fewer people in the park during the winter, so be prepared to self-rescue if something happens. Skying on rivers or lakes can seem quicker, but watch out for hazards like snow bridges, slush, and thin ice. You don't want to end up in the water when temperatures are below freezing. Last thing to mention is thermal features. They pose a significant danger. Many people have died by falling into hot springs. Protect yourself and the park by staying on the trails in thermal areas. So now that you know what to expect on the trail, let's talk about setting up camp. Make sure you pick a spot as a quarter mile from roads and thermal features. A hundred feet away from any water source or trail, and out of sight of developed areas, roads, and patrol cabins. And avoid camping on bare ground to reduce your impact. As we mentioned earlier, fires aren't allowed in the winter, so when you're ready to cook, find a ventilated area and break out your stove. And when you're done cooking, scatter all of your gray water at least a hundred feet from your campsite, and away from any water source or trail. It's very important that bears don't gain access to human food. Bears that do often become aggressive towards people and have to be killed. So when you're done eating, round up your food and any smelly items in your garbage. Hang or store these items in an approved bare-resistant container when not in use. And what goes in must come out. Some designated sites have a pit toilet. If you can find it. But if you can't find it, use an area that people are not likely to ski or walk through like in a tree. Toilet paper should be packed out or burned. No matter the season, it's important to leave no trays when breaking down your camp. So if you built a snow shelter, please collapse it before you leave, so other people don't fall in. These rules are designed to protect both you and the park. When you follow them, you help to make sure that others will have the same opportunity to enjoy the park that you did. Thanks for supporting Yellowstone National Park. And enjoy your trip to the back of tree.