Visitors to two national parks wholly or partly in Montana (Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks, respectively) will be able to travel as in the good old days in restored vehicles made by the White Motor Company decades ago specifically for sightseeing use in America's national parks. Once retired, these two classic vehicles have been now brought up to modern emissions and safety standards by the respective park's tradition-minded concessionaires, Glacier Park, Inc., and Xanterra Parks and Resorts.
In Glacier National Park in northern Montana, the fleet of 33
vintage red buses with roll-back canvas tops built between 1936 and 1939 were refurbished several years ago and have again been used for sightseeing tours from both the east and west sides of the park for the last five or six summers. The buses travel along Going-to-the-Sun Highway and also go north to Canada's Waterton Lakes National Park. Scenic interpretive Red Bus Tours range from the three-hour Western Alpine Tour from Lake McDonald ($30 adult, $15 child) to the 8 1/2-hour International Peace Park Tour from Glacier Park Lodge ($75 adult, $37.50 child). Exact dates vary, but most routes begin in mid-June and end in mid-September. You can book on-line or by calling 406-892-2525.
Starting this summer, visitors to Yellowstone National Park, which is partly in Montana but mostly i
n Wyoming, can also sightsee in retro fashion with the return of eight of the park's White Motor Company Model 706 touring vehicles. These long, low-slung "Old Yellow Buses," which began service in 1936, are back -- and isn't it happily appropriate to have yellow buses plying the byways of Yellowstone? The park's fleet, which once totaled 98 touring vehicles, transported visitors for more than 20 years. With park visitors increasingly using private vehicles, the Old Yellow Buses were dispersed to museums, other tour operators and who-knows-where- else.
In Glacier National Park in northern Montana, the fleet of 33
vintage red buses with roll-back canvas tops built between 1936 and 1939 were refurbished several years ago and have again been used for sightseeing tours from both the east and west sides of the park for the last five or six summers. The buses travel along Going-to-the-Sun Highway and also go north to Canada's Waterton Lakes National Park. Scenic interpretive Red Bus Tours range from the three-hour Western Alpine Tour from Lake McDonald ($30 adult, $15 child) to the 8 1/2-hour International Peace Park Tour from Glacier Park Lodge ($75 adult, $37.50 child). Exact dates vary, but most routes begin in mid-June and end in mid-September. You can book on-line or by calling 406-892-2525.Starting this summer, visitors to Yellowstone National Park, which is partly in Montana but mostly i
n Wyoming, can also sightsee in retro fashion with the return of eight of the park's White Motor Company Model 706 touring vehicles. These long, low-slung "Old Yellow Buses," which began service in 1936, are back -- and isn't it happily appropriate to have yellow buses plying the byways of Yellowstone? The park's fleet, which once totaled 98 touring vehicles, transported visitors for more than 20 years. With park visitors increasingly using private vehicles, the Old Yellow Buses were dispersed to museums, other tour operators and who-knows-where- else.The Skagway (AK) Streetcar Company purchased some of the yellow buses, but the owner felt they really belonged back in Yellowstone and returned them to the park in 2001. Now, brought up to modern standards, they are going back into action. For Yellowstone tour details, prices (not yet available) and reservations, go to the operator's website or call 866-439-7375 or 307-344-7311.
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My grandparents had their honeymoon and Yellowstone and showed me black-and-white pictures of the yellow busses.
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