The Season Begins!

By on April 24, 2011   /   Events, Lodging, Recreation, Vacation   /   Leave a comment

Robert journeyed north last Thursday, April 21 for the monthly Ashton Chamber of Commerce meeting.  And since most of the snowbanks are gone, RANKIN2 (Robert’s Ford Explorer) hauled  a new picnic table set, new solar lights, an antique mailbox, along with new bedspreads up!

Dan and his crew (of Dan’s Plumbing & Heating) will meet us early on Thursday April 28th and get the water and electricity turned on for our 2011 season!   Our first guests of the season are arriving the next day and there is so much to get done!  The buildings have wintered fine, but there are water heaters to check, the heating systems to get turned on and the grounds to start cleaning up.  And I’ve had lots of time this winter to think about re-decorating the rooms and cabins with a few new antiques and pictures.  But that will come after the important things are functioning.  (Robert won’t let me have a hammer or paintbrush until the basics are up and running)

This is a tulip from last spring that always blooms in front of the house in the back.  Mom and I spent several falls planting red tulips there and under her snowball bush. They are still coming up.  Last fall after we had closed The Rankin  I went up several more weekends to plant a few more bulbs-  just me, a thermos of coffee and a few snowflakes to keep me company.  I hope the green shoots are at least pushing up through the ground when we go up this week.  It will be another 2-3 weeks before they will bloom.

Robert and I are looking forward to welcoming guests from Europe this summer as well as old friends who consider us their home-away-from-home.  Celebrate Spring and Travel Safely !

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Auto Court Moment

By on April 16, 2011   /   Events, History, Recreation, Vacation   /   Leave a comment

From time to time, I want share some of the history of our business and the events of the time my grandparents operated the small Rankin Auto Court in our blog.

This picture is an ad from The Idaho Guest Encyclopedia, 1956-57.

And GOOD NEWS from the Bozeman Daily Chronicle on April 15, 2011: Roads into Yellowstone National Park from the north and west reopen for the spring today.

Visitors eager to experience early spring in Yellowstone’s interior will be able to travel by car through the park’s north entrance at Gardiner and west entrance at West Yellowstone to Norris, Madison, Canyon and Old Faithful. In addition, park entrance fees will be waived April 16-24 as part of National Park Week.

We have all waited and watched the last few weeks as budget cuts threatened the opening of our beautiful Yellowstone and Grand Teton Parks.  I came across this amazing front page story from 1942 in the local newspaper, The Ashton Herald.  What an instant connection for me.  My grandparents running this same business faced a possible Park closure.  Area businesses feared for the worst as the 1942 summer season approached.   I know what they were feeling.  As it turns out, it was a rumor in 1942 and Yellowstone Park did open that year, as  it has again this year.

I did a little more research.  I was curious about what the visitor statistics looked like for 1942 and found they did drop during WWII:

1941,  581,761

1942,  191,830

1943,  64,144

1944,  85,347

1945,  178,296

1946, 814,907 !  1946 and the war was over, no gas rationing and the country was traveling.  These statistics are from the Total Yellowstone Page  webpage on 4/14/11.  Last year in October 2010, the Park announced there had been a record number of 3.4 million visitors.   Wow!  We are excited for another year and the chance to welcome everyone traveling through our area.  Plan on staying with us to relax while you explore the beautiful Ashton, Yellowstone and Teton areas !

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Bike ON!

By on April 2, 2011   /   Events, Recreation, Vacation   /   Leave a comment

Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park are open to bicyclists to enjoy before they open for motorized vehicles April 15.  Snow geese are flying through our area as well. Camas Wildlife Refuge reports that Tundra and Trumpeter swans are resting on Big Pond.  There is an awesome article in the March 26 issues of the Standard Journal (our local newspaper), about all the bird activity they are seeing.

We’re gearing up (no pun intended!) as well.   We are planning to get rooms and cabins up and running mid-April and look forward to welcoming travelers as they visit our beautiful Ashton-Yellowstone-Teton area!

Many thanks to Fitzgerald’s Bicycles for the use of this beautiful photo from their blog site.  Their business is in Jackson Hole, WY .  Check out their web and blog site!

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