The population of Gardiner is about 870 people and this is why I like it.  During the summer there are many more people in town who are tourists.  Gardiner is known as the Northern Gate to Yellowstone National Park, visited by about 1 million people each year.  Gardiner is very different when it's not summer tourist season. It is a small and friendly community, located at the southern end of Paradise Valley (the Yellowstone River Valley).  It is between mountains, and the Yellowstone River runs through it.  It's beautiful, and you can walk from one end to the other.  You can also see elk regularly there--you have to be careful not to hit them when you're driving!