Yellowstone winters are unforgiving. Here’s how rangers stock up for the cold ahead

The animals in Yellowstone National Park aren’t the only ones stocking up for the winter.

Park rangers at one of the country’s most visited national parks have a long, isolating winter ahead. In order to survive, they have to prepare, the park said in a Facebook post Friday.

“During winter, rangers stationed in the interior of Yellowstone experience a level of isolation unknown to most modern Americans,” Yellowstone National Park wrote.

Only about a dozen people live in a ranger’s village, so rangers have to survive on their own, the park said.

Yellowstone winters are frigid, and skis, snowshoes and snowmobiles are the primary way to get around, according to the National Park Service. Roads shut down as winter storms slam the park, and there is little vehicle access.

“Every year in early November, most park roads close to regular traffic to prepare for the winter season,” the National Park Service said. “The only exception is the road between Mammoth Hot Springs and the northeast entrance, which is open to regular traffic all year. Around mid-December, roads open to limited snowmobile and snowcoach travel.”

Because of the restricted road access, rangers who need groceries or medical care could have to travel by snowmobile for over two hours to access those basic necessities, the park said.

The temperatures are also brutal. It can drop as low as -30 degrees Fahrenheit at night, the park said. That cold, dry air can cause dehydration too, which means you have to eat and drink more to keep yourself warm, officials warn.

“Freezing, dehydrating, and fermenting are just a few ways rangers prepare for the long, cold months,” the park wrote. “People everywhere are learning to be more self-sufficient.”