"Yochim does a masterful job in delving into not only the historical reasons for Yellowstone’s embrace of snowmobiles but the political maneuverings at state and federal levels ensuring that snowmobiles remained in the part, despite widespread public sentiment against them."—Western Historical Quarterly
"An insider’s perspective on a contentious park issue, albeit one accomplished with detachment and balance. . . . The book is reader friendly: concise, cleanly written, and attractively illustrated."—American Historical Review
"A balanced and incisive analysis of a major controversy that illuminates larger questions of public land use and environmental management in the United States."—Montana The Magazine of Western History
"This unusual book . . . has value to planners, public policy analysts, and thesis writers on a number of levels. Yochim presents the history of winter recreation in Yellowstone, the policy dilemmas of park managers, the science underlying the policy, and the local and national political agendas that dominate public awareness of the issue."—Choice
“An instant classic—the first comprehensive examination of a notorious nationwide controversy, packed with facts and performed without hysteria. It’s also well and vividly written, and illustrated with photos and maps. . . . Yochim explores every aspect of the controversy, from the machines’ history to their noise and air pollution, impacts on wildlife, the local economies, and the power of distant snowmobile manufacturers. He brings to life the various interest groups with their dueling lawsuits, and the park managers, courtroom judges, and politicians. . . . In his hands, the Yellowstone snowmobile situation becomes a classic example of how controversies develop on all public lands. And he reminds us how often the possible solutions are obscured by the loudest voices.”—High Country News
“Exhaustively researched and thoughtfully written, Yochim’s chronicle of this momentous, colorful, and often dismaying controversy could not be more timely. All serious observers and participants of the ‘snow-mobile wars’ should be prepared to expose our convictions to the test of this excellent primer.”—Paul Schullery, author of Mountain Time: A Yellowstone Memoir
“Yochim writes clearly and effectively on an issue of great significance and presents a complicated story with great skill and ease.”—David Louter, author of Windshield Wilderness
“Informative and timely, this is a significant contribution to the literatures on parks, public lands, and environmental issues in general.”—William R. Lowry, author of The Capacity for Wonder: Preserving National Parks
