Standing on the side of the road looking over the vast snowy landscape of Yellowstone National Park is an opportunity to enjoy nature at its most peaceful—an opportunity that most avid park visitors are eager to experience. One park visitor was enjoying that serene experience—until it was interrupted by a silver SUV off-roading in the distance.
The park visitor took the opportunity to whip out their camera and document the clear violation of Yellowstone's park rules, which are established to promote safety for wildlife and visitors. The park prohibits visitors from driving off-road in vehicles, ATVs, or bicycles. The visitor who recorded the video, and subsequently shared it with Tourons of Yellowstone, didn't stop there, though.
According to the post, the person also took time to educate the driver on the park's rules about sticking to the roadways. While we are unsure whether the driver took the education to heart, we appreciate the effort put forth by the visitor taking the video.
Interestingly, the importance of staying on the roads during the winter turned into a bit of a hot-button issue for those commenting on the video on Tourons of Yellowstone's Instagram page. So why is staying on the road so important during the winter? While plants may be lying dormant beneath the snow, they can sustain damage from vehicles' tires, not to mention from any fluids that may be leaking. Yellowstone, along with other national parks, prides itself on giving people the chance to visit and explore nature, all while preserving it for generations to come.
If the ground is disturbed, the growth there may not come back in the spring, thus affecting the experience of those who visit during that season. One commenter pointed out that tire tracks can be seen in the springtime flowers and grass on their Montana farm where people have driven off-road, an unforeseen consequence for the park as well. In order to preserve the park's habitat, it's best to follow the rules and stay on the road — something this driver learned during this trip. Unfortunately, it turns out that going off-road wasn't the only rule this tourist broke.
The park visitor who filmed the video also caught him getting too close to moose within the park. Three moose were bedded in the Lamar Valley, and they stood up quickly as the man approached. But their sudden change of posture did not deter the man. According to the post, he only took a couple of steps backward, staying within close range of the moose while taking pictures with his camera.
Fortunately for him, the moose eyed him warily without escalating the situation. But even though nothing happened this time, it's never a good idea to approach wildlife — and it's against park rules. The National Park Service's Yellowstone website says visitors are prohibited from "willfully remaining near or approaching wildlife, including nesting birds, within any distance that disturbs or displaces the animal." It's clear that these moose were definitely disturbed by the man's presence.
READ MORE: A Winter Trip to Yellowstone Should Definitely Be on Your Adventure List
