Yellowstone National Park 2017 Trip Reports
Trip Report ~ Bear & Wolf Sightings ~ by Bill Hamblin
04 May through 07 May 2017
~ May 2017 ~
Thursday - May 4th
46 degrees in Gardiner this morning but only 30 degrees in Lamar Valley warming up to a pleasant 71 degrees. At 5:50 a.m. John G found five black and one gray Junction Butte wolves north and east of Coyote Overlook. Present this morning were 969F the gray female, and the blacks were 996M, 1047M, 1048M, the limping yearling and one other black pup or yearling. They attempted to get a bison calf from a herd of cows but that did not go anywhere. At 5:55 a.m. I spotted a small grizzly in the old Druid rendezvous area viewed from Coyote Overlook. At 6:00 a.m. we had a grizzly north of Coyote Overlook. At 7:00 a.m. we watched five black and two grays (one collared) of the Mollie's wolf pack on Dead Puppy Hill viewed from Footbridge Pullout. They were howling and looking across the creek and road towards the Lamar Canyon den area. Soon 949M was heard and seen north of the road barking and howling back at them. 926F is now in the den and Little T is due any day, so the only other member of the pack is Small Dot. At 7:05 a.m. I found a nice sized grizzly right across the creek at Footbridge (150 yards). At 7:20 a.m. we had a grizzly low on Norris moving east (was seen later from Footbridge Pullout by others). At 7:25 a.m. we watched a light grizzly on Norris viewed from the Confluence moving south. At 8:00 a.m. I spotted a grizzly low on the Salad Bowl/Divide Ridge viewed from Coyote Overlook. At 9:00 a.m. we found a grizzly in the large meadow in Crystal Drainage viewed from the Slough Creek Restroom. At 9:15 a.m. the un-collared gray Prospect Peak pack member was near the Sage Den in Slough Creek. At 2:05 p.m. we watched a small blond grizzly in the aspens south and east of Picnic Pullout. At 3:30 p.m. the grizzly sow with one yearling was just off Junction Butte in the small pond east of the Specimen Trailhead. In summary I viewed members of four different wolf packs today. Others saw one gray wolf puppy at the Sage Den this afternoon.
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Friday - May 5th
40 degrees in Gardiner and 33 degrees in Lamar Valley warming up to a hot 76 degrees. At 5:45 a.m. I found a large grizzly south of Trashcan Pullout viewed from Coyote Overlook. At 5:50 a.m. I spotted a small grizzly in the old Druid Rendezvous area viewed from Coyote Overlook. At 5:55 a.m. we saw three other grizzlies in the old Druid Rendezvous area and when we hiked up the hill at confluence later we discovered it was a grizzly sow with two two year olds. At 5:55 a.m. we found the grizzly with the blond two year old cub north of Coyote Overlook. At 6:10 a.m. I found a small sub adult grizzly south and east of Amethyst Bench viewed from Coyote Overlook. At 6:30 a.m. a gray and black both un-collared wolves were seen south and west of the confluence viewed from Trashcan Hill, these were Mollies wolves. At 6:45 a.m. Ralph N found a large dark grizzly on Norris viewed from above the confluence, we watched from Trashcan Hill. At 6:35 a.m. we had a blond grizzly east of Amethyst Drainage viewed from Trashcan Hill. At 7:15 a.m. I found a large black bear above the Horizontal Forest in Slough Creek. At 7:40 a.m. Ralph N found five black wolves and one gray wolf on Jasper Bench (the usual group the gray 969F, the blacks 996M, 1047M, 1048M, the limping yearling and another black wolf). At 8:00 a.m. four more black Mollies wolves were near Chalcedony Drainage viewed from Coyote Overlook. We later hiked up above the confluence and found four blacks and one gray bedded south of the Confluence. At 10:00 a.m. we found an old grizzly grazing north of Soda Butte east Pullout. Bruce P had taken pictures of this grizzly at the Soda Butte Picnic Area earlier in the morning. This is an old grizzly with strange looking ears and fresh scars on both cheeks on his face. Randi M also noticed a patch of missing hair on its rear. The bear was in and out of sight for 45 minutes, then ran off when a car spun its tires getting out of the dirt pullout. Between 1:15 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. the un-collared gray female as well as 964M and 966M both grays were in and around the Sage Den at Slough Creek. At 4:45 p.m. John G found two grizzlies south and east of Footbridge Pullout. They were in and out of trees so we could not determine the types of grizzlies. Later we found them bedded south of the Soda Butte Cone (Ralph N had them earlier and they turned out to be a courting pair).
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Saturday - May 6th
52 degrees in Gardiner and 37 degrees in Lamar Valley warming up to a warm 74 degrees with a cooling front moving thru in the late afternoon. I had a golden eagle today and a cow moose with last year's calf near the exit to the Black Tail Drive. At 5:35 a.m. I spotted a small grizzly on Amethyst Bench viewed from Coyote Overlook. At 5:45 a.m. I found a small dark grizzly on the north end of Salad Bowl viewed from Coyote Overlook. At 5:55 a.m. I found a courting pair of grizzlies north of Coyote Overlook. The sow found something to eat and the boar sat and watched and waited for her to finish. Both grizzlies moved north and over the hill. At 5:55 a.m. we had a small grizzly in the old Druid Rendezvous area viewed from Coyote Overlook. At 6:05 a.m. I found the brown rear colored grizzly south of Fisherman's; later Craig C. reported that it showed up in Crystal Drainage. At 6:15 a.m. Ralph N reported a large dark grizzly on Norris. We viewed it from Coyote Overlook, then went east and had a better view from Trashcan Pullout. At 6:20 a.m. Bonnie from Wild Side tours made a great spot of a grizzly with five black and one gray wolves on a carcass below Salad Bowl but behind Jasper Bench viewed from the Institute. These were Junction Butte wolves the regular group and were also in good view from Dorothy's Pullout. At 7:15 a.m. Ralph N called with the courting pair of grizzlies far east and south of Footbridge Pullout. We moved east to Soda Butte Middle Pullout and could not find them immediately. They had got into the creek corridor and moved to the west. Great viewing south of the cone as she stayed away from him for quite a while. I moved back to the west for other things, but John G and Randi M stayed and watched two quick mates. Later in the morning she took the boar all the way to the top of Penny Lane south of Footbridge. At 8:00 a.m. Doug M (wolf watcher) called from Slough Creek that he had two grizzlies in sight in Crystal Drainage. Ralph and I arrived in time to watch two separate grizzlies high on Middle Ridge in Crystal. The first was a small dark grizzly digging in the opening. The second a large grizzly was traveling about four hundred yards to the first bear's east. At 8:10 a.m. the gray un-collared wolf bedded near the Sage Den at Slough Creek (note: today three puppies were seen, all dark gray). At 10:00 a.m. John G and Randi M found a black bear sow with two cubs of the year south of the Institute. I arrived later as they were in the shade of a tree and thought all three were black. John and Randi had better light and said a black and a brown cub. At 10:45 a.m. we had a dark good size grizzly moving east and south of Picnic Area near the tree line. Later we found it from Hitching Post moving south near the tree line. At 10:50 a.m. we found a large dark grizzly near Chalcedony moving thru sagebrush and into the trees south and west of Hitching Post. At 5:45 p.m. three black wolves were found on the southern Divide Ridge from Slough Creek. Josh A came back from Lamar Valley and watched from the Specimen Trailhead and found the rest of the Junction Butte wolves (total five black and one gray) bedded low on the southern Divide Ridge. At 5:50 p.m. 964M and the un-collared gray female were near and around the Sage Den at Slough Creek.
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Sunday - May 7th
52 degrees in Gardiner and 40 degrees in Lamar Valley warming up to 68 degrees. We had cloud cover most of the day with light winds. Another vulture seen today and a cow moose with a yearling calf at Footbridge this afternoon. At 5:40 a.m. I spotted a courting pair of grizzlies in the old Druid Rendezvous area (Note: I talked to a photographer who stayed out late last evening; he had them mate for thirty minutes around 8:00 p.m.). At 5:45 a.m. I found a small grizzly in the old Druid Rendezvous area viewed first from Coyote then better from above the Confluence. At 5:50 a.m. we had a dark grizzly in the old Druid Rendezvous area viewed from Coyote Overlook, then much better from above the Confluence. At 6:10 a.m. we climbed above the Confluence and watched all four grizzlies and an additional large light grizzly who was further east of the other four. At 6:10 a.m. Randi M. found the six Junction Butte wolves bedded south of Trashcan viewed from the Confluence. The regular five blacks and one gray wolf. At 7:10 a.m. I found a large dark grizzly near the skyline north of Coyote Overlook. It did a back scratch and then moved over the sky line to the north. At 7:15 a.m. farther to the east we had a courting pair of grizzlies briefly seen near the sky line. Around 7:35 a.m. the lone dark grizzly reappeared several times on the skyline. At 7:50 a.m. John G and Randi M found a large dark grizzly in the Yellow Grass Meadow in Slough Creek. At 8:05 a.m. we had a grizzly way above Lamar Valley to the north viewed from Little America. A long ways away, but great light this morning with the cloud cover. At 8:15 a.m. 964M was seen at the Sage Den in Slough Creek. 964M is identified by a white stripe down its back. At 8:45 a.m. the grizzly sow and yearling that has been on Junction Butte was found on the eastern slope of the eastern Peregrine Hill. Before I arrived, John G saw the yearling about 20-25 feet up a tree. The sow was feeding all the time, so it looked like the cub just wanted to climb the tree. At 9:00 a.m. the un-collared gray wolf was seen at the Sage Den at Slough Creek (note: several times five gray pups viewed by others today). At 9:15 a.m. we had a large grizzly moving west and south in Little America viewed from the Slough Creek restroom. John G and Randi M went to Little America to get a better look and discovered it was the old grizzly with scars on both sides of its face. At 3:45 p.m. the blond grizzly was seen on Amethyst Bench. After I left the six Junction Butte wolves came out of the trees on Amethyst Bench and ran the blond grizzly off.
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People Seen
Wolf Watchers: From Montana: Rick M, Doug M, Lizzie C, Bob and Elizabeth N, Josh A, Alan and Sue O, and Ron and Linda. From Utah: Jerry and Julia C, and Chris C and his wife. From California: Joe M, and Bob and Nell H. From Oklahoma: Robert and Pam W. From Florida: Rick K. From Colorado: Ric and Kathy T. From Texas: Carol S and Carl L. From the UK: Alan and Kirsty P. From Wyoming: Larry and Linda H. and from Minnesota: Scott W. Bear Watchers: From Montana: Ralph N, Jack G, Chuck and Debbie. From Washington: John G and Randi M. From Louisiana: Bruce P. From Colorado: Ed A, From Illinois: Wayne K. From Idaho: Craig C, Blake M, and Carma and Jennings. From Oklahoma: Paul S. From California: Les W, Cole W. and From Utah: Dean and Jeri D. Others: Bob L, Carl S, Cliff B, Jim and Judy W. and Emil. From Washington: Ed M From Arizona: David and Phyllis. And lastly from Utah: Bob B.
Yellowstone National Park
Lamar Valley Map - Yellowstone National Park
