Cody Family First In Line To Open Yellowstone’s East Entrance Six Years Running

Being first in line for the annual opening of Yellowstone National Park’s East Entrance in northwest Wyoming requires a lot of planning, preparation and patience.

But it begins with an impulsive decision.

That’s how Stacy Boisseau of Cody describes what’s become a family tradition she shares with her daughters, who were first in line early Friday for the sixth straight year to be the first through Yellowstone’s East Entrance on opening day.

“We never plan it until the last minute when everybody's certain that we're all going to do it or not,” she told Cowboy State Daily on Friday morning before the gates opened. “I had everything packed the night before. They met me at work Thursday afternoon, and we got dinner, breakfast and lunch ready. Then we leave Cody and take off, hoping to be first!”

Sure enough, Boisseau and her daughters were the first to roll through the East Entrance in 2024. Once again, the family experienced something few people have in their lives — the entire majesty of Yellowstone National Park with nothing but empty roads ahead.

Clogging Continuity

A few vehicles were already lingering outside the East Entrance at sunset Thursday, anticipating the entrance’s opening at 8 a.m. Friday morning. The Boisseau family’s red Jeep Compass had already secured its place at the front of the line.

Boisseau was in the driver’s seat beside her middle daughter, Hailey McIntosh. Grace McIntosh, the youngest of Boisseau’s three girls, was stretched across the backseat in a nest of blankets.

Boisseau’s eldest daughter, Kiya, decided to forgo the overnight wait in front of the gate. She planned to make a separate journey to meet up with the family for a Friday afternoon picnic in the park.

“I brought my snow boots, but there’s no snow,” Boisseau said, gesturing toward Middle Creek, which runs alongside the road. “The first year we showed up, Grace was skating on the ice over there.”

The first year of the first-in-line tradition started because of clogging. Boisseau regularly took her daughters to clogging competitions in Salt Lake City, Utah, in early May when the East and South entrances of Yellowstone typically open.

“The gate would always open on the way back,” she said. “And I was like, how cool would it be if it opened, and we could get through first? After they stopped clogging, I said, ‘Grace, we're gonna be first this year.’ So, I took her and we did it. And then I decided we're going to continue to do this.”

Boisseau acknowledged she shares a competitive edge with her daughters, and a certain satisfaction comes with being the first to enter every year.

However, everyone gets a say on whether they will or won’t continue the tradition.

“We all decided this would be something we can do,” Hailey said. “And we’ve decided to just keep doing it every year since.”

“I find it really meaningful,” said Grace. “It’s fun because it's a tradition now. I like doing this every year.”

Spending The Night

The family wouldn’t disclose exactly when they left Cody and arrived at the East Entrance (that’s a first-in-line trade secret). They come prepared for the long, chilly night they’ll spend in the Jeep Compass.

“I know what I'm doing,” Boisseau said. “I've gone on no sleep because I’m really focused, and my daughters are my whole life. If this is what they want to do, then no sleep is what I will do, and I will do it happily.”

The hours pass with lots of deep conversations and side-splitting laughter. At one point every year, Boisseau makes sure they listen to David Bowie narrating Prokofiev's “Peter and the Wolf,” a classical album from 1978.

“I grew up listening to that, and I have made them listen to that every year,” she said. “It’s the thing.”

If her daughters decide to sleep, Boisseau brings her cameras and other equipment to do some astrophotography. That endeared the family to Yellowstone Ranger Brian Perry, who became a familiar, friendly face every year.

“He allowed us to park here and to astrophotography,” she said. “But then people started trying to park behind us. He told them, ‘Park behind the Shoshone National Forest sign.’ But then he told us, ‘As soon as you see my light, go out. I'm going to bed. Get right here.’ There was just camaraderie between all of us.”

Boisseau has pictures of her daughters taking their Junior Ranger oaths with Perry one year and another with everyone masked up and 6 feet apart during the COVID-19 pandemic. Perry has since moved on, but there’s still an enthusiasm for the family’s tradition with the rangers.

“Last year, one of the rangers brought us a humongous pot of homemade popcorn,” Boisseau said. “He said, ‘This is the greatest thing I've ever heard,’ and trucked back down with his dog and all this popcorn. It’s like a family.”

Locals Lead The Way

As residents of Cody, Boisseau and her daughters take a small amount of pride in leading the way each year. For the last six years, they’ve ensured the first people through the East Entrance are from the community that values the park and its proximity to it in a unique way.

“We're at the beginning and end,” Boisseau said. “When the tourists come, we're not there. We're with the locals at both ends.”

The tradition has garnered attention from many others. Photographers and journalists who cover the East Entrance opening year after year recognize and warmly greet the family when they pull up behind them that morning.

“In 2020, we went out when the West Entrance was closed, so nobody was coming through,” Hailey said. “Grand Prismatic was completely empty. When we walked out, there was this news helicopter that came out and circled around us while we were walking around all by ourselves.”

“There was nobody, not one person,” Boisseau added. “We walked the Grand Prismatic boardwalk, laughed, and walked it again. There wasn’t another soul, and yet we were there. It was insane. It was like we had to Yellowstone to ourselves.”

Moments For Memories

By the time the East Entrance was ready to open Friday morning, nearly three dozen vehicles were waiting to enter America’s first national park. License plates from California, Colorado, Nevada and Montana were lined up behind Boisseau’s Jeep.

In the spirit of the ranger’s corny generosity, the family brought something of a “consultation prize” to the eager people behind them. Boisseau, Hailey and Grace went down the line handing out slices of handmade carrot cake.

“This year, we're going to pay it back,” Boisseau said.

The family treasures its time together knowing they’re making memories they’ll cherish for the rest of their lives. That’s why Boisseau is eager to do whatever is needed to maintain the tradition.

“Every single year, I've been with these girls,” she said. “We’ve made a thing of just being together and doing something. And I’m going to be alone real soon, so I want to make the most of it.”

Boisseau’s oldest daughter, Kiya, lives and works in Cody, but has her own place and schedule, so she decided not to join them this year. Hailey just graduated high school and is heading off to her first year in college in the fall.

“Since I will only be here in the summer, I won't be here next year,” she said. “We don't get to hang out like this a lot. Now that I'm leaving, I'll have all these memories that I get to look back on. It’s really special to get to do this one last time.”

Meanwhile, Grace intends to keep the tradition going as long as her mother is willing to make the night-before trek.

“I've been doing it since I was little,” she said. “It’s fun going through the park, and I like making memories with my mom and sisters.”

After the Yellowstone rangers at the East Entrance raised the American flag and moved the barricade, they warmly welcomed Boisseau, Hailey and Grace for the sixth straight year as the first to enter Yellowstone National Park from the east.

The family’s goal was to reach the Firehole River and enjoy every moment along the way. It was going to be Grace’s first time there since the tradition began.

There will be a time when Boisseau and her family won’t be at the front of the line. But for one more year, they were together with an empty road in front of them, soon filled with more laughter and memories.

“It's not going to last forever,” Boisseau said. “So, I want to hold on to the moments. All the little stuff that means the biggest stuff.”

Andrew Rossi can be reached at arossi@cowboystatedaily.com.