Have I mentioned that the weather can be unpredictable in Montana? We got a big reminder last week on the first day of our Fall Yoga & Yellowstone retreat. Yellowstone Park is part of the government shut down (that topic is beyond a blog post), and a storm dumped over a foot of snow at B Bar. So, Yoga & Yellowstone needed a back up plan. Big time. It was turning into Winter Wonderland (which is usually in January).

I’m used to dealing with Montana. I always say its unpredictability is part of its beauty. But as fall quickly morphed into winter last Thursday, and I was driving in almost white out conditions…I was getting a little worried. Cars got stuck. Snow kept coming down. Yet everyone arrived safely, and by the end of the evening we were cozied up by the fire with a glass of wine.

We woke up to a winter wonderland. In October. We would not be going to YNP. We would hit our yoga mats and build our own heat from within. Our Yellowstone guide came to us, because B Bar is truly a 9,000 acre extension of the park. Same ecosystem, same animals (read more on B Bar’s land and natural resources). The sun was sparkling on the snow, so we headed out for a hike to look for animal tracks. People threw snowballs and ate snow. As our guide shared his knowledge, the outing took on the feeling of a school field trip. We were little kids out playing in the almost knee-deep snow. That night, the stargazing took everyone’s breath away. We could even see the Milky Way.

I’m a planner. So when things don’t go as planned, I have to remember to embrace the resulting situation as an opportunity. I can’t control the government or the weather (dammit!). But Montana teaches another lesson that goes along with its fantastical weather whims: it always, always delivers. The Thoreau quote We need the tonic of wilderness inspired our Yoga & Yellowstone retreat; this round the tonic had a little different flavor. Namaste.