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Trip Report ~ Bear and Wolf Sightings ~ by Bill Hamblin

19 - 22 June 2011




Yellowstone Wolf ~ © Copyright All Rights Reserved Gerry Hogston

~ June 2011 ~


Black bear cubs by John William Uhler Copyright © All Rights Reserved

Sunday - 19 June

I slept in and left Idaho Falls about 4:30 a.m. I made Hayden Valley about 7:30 a.m. I found the grizzly sow with two yearlings just off the road at Elk Antler Creek. Soon she crossed the road and then decided to travel the road back to the north (had the photographers running for their cars). At 8:30 a.m. I watched a black wolf (probably the uncollared yearling) cross the sagebrush clearing heading for their rendezvous area in Hayden Valley. At 11:00 a.m. I spotted a small grizzly high north of Slough Creek. At 12:00 p.m. I found a cinnamon black bear in Crystal Drainage. At 1:00 p.m. I spotted a dark grizzly north of picnic area. At 1:30 p.m. we watched a big grizzly east of the rendezvous area. At 1:45 p.m. I found a large black bear west of the rendezvous area. At 5:00 p.m. I saw a black bear in the tree line near the rendezvous area. At 5:10 p.m. we had a grizzly south of the Institute. At 5:35 p.m. the resident blond grizzly above the narrows viewed from coyote overlook. At 6:30 p.m. a black bear south of picnic area. At 7:00 p.m. I spotted a grizzly high in a meadow east of penny lane. At 7:45 p.m. we had a cinnamon black bear in A-Z (Laurie from Helena showed me). At 8:00 p.m. there was a grizzly on Norris Mountain. And at 8:20 p.m. my last sightings was a black bear at Rainy Lake. I found campsite at Tower for this stay, pretty quiet most nights.

Monday - 20 June

At 6:00 a.m. I spotted a grizzly north of picnic. At 6:05 a.m. we had a small blond grizzly north of picnic. At 6:20 a.m. we had two grizzlies (probably a courting pair) back on Coffee. At 7:05 a.m. I found a cinnamon black bear in the tree line south of midpoint. At 7:40 a.m. I watched a courting pair of grizzlies north and east of coyote overlook. At 7:45 a.m. Alan and Sue were running for their car to get binoculars and we found five of the Lamar Canyon wolf pack returning from Slough Creek north of coyote overlook. They ran into a couple of cow elk with calves, one calf ran the wrong way and an hour later the wolves reappeared with full bellies. The 06 female headed back first, then 15 minutes later the four others moved east back to the den site area. At 8:30 a.m. there was a grizzly west of A-Z meadow. At 11:15 a.m. I found a large dark grizzly way back of Coffee. At 3:30 p.m. we watched a black bear on Tower Hill. At 7:10p.m. we found a grizzly in bear meadow viewed from the Institute. At 7:30 p.m. we watch a large grizzly chasing bison in the rendezvous area. This might be the biggest grizzly I had seen this year. He has the colorful blond and silver back of smaller boars, but when he past in front of the bison, boy is he big. At 9:15 p.m. my last sighting was a cinnamon black bear near Calcite Overlook on my way back to camp.


Tuesday - 21 June

Yellowstone Wolves ~ © Copyright All Rights Reserved Gerry Hogston

At 5:50 a.m. I had a dark grizzly heading south on Jasper Bench. At 6:10 a.m. I watched a courting pair of grizzlies north of coyote overlook (skyline but in view on and off for well over an hour). Becky and Chloe found a grizzly in a clearing behind ski slope at 6:15 a.m. I found the resident blond grizzly above the narrows at 6:40 a.m. At 6:50 a.m. I spotted a dark grizzly high in a clearing behind salad bowl (actually the middle ridge if viewed from the Slough Creek bathroom). At 7:10 a.m. I found a cinnamon black bear in A-Z meadow. At 7:25 a.m. we had a grizzly in the east end of A-Z. At 7:40 a.m. we watched a grizzly in the salad bowl. At 8:10 a.m. we watched a grizzly on the skyline north and east of coyote grazing for awhile, and then it ran an cow elk calf over the hill (it was only 20 feet ahead of the grizzly when it went over the hill, so I think the grizzly caught it). Not a bad morning, nine grizzlies and a cinnamon black bear all from coyote overlook in a little over two hours. At 9:00 a.m. I spotted a blond grizzly north of picnic. At 9:10 a.m. I found a black bear in the tree line in the rendezvous area. At 9:20 a.m. we had a large grizzly in the rendezvous area (probably the bison chaser). At 9:35 a.m. I heard of puppies being seen from hitching post. We were at trash can, so only 10 minutes later saw two of four pups seen earlier along with two gray yearlings. At 10:30 a.m. we had a large grizzly in K meadow. At 11:00 a.m. there was a grizzly high on ski slope. At 12:10 p.m. Chloe found a small blond grizzly on ski slope. At 12:15 p.m. we watched a grizzly in K meadow (viewed from Dorothy's Knoll). At 1:10 p.m. we watched another blond grizzly on the backside of ski slope. At 1:50 p.m. I spotted a grizzly at boulder pond heading to cross the road from north to south. At 2:30 p.m. we watched a courting bear of grizzlies near gunsight on the backside of Specimen Ridge viewed from Antelope Creek. At 7:35 p.m. Larry and Linda were the first to find the puppies in a clearing above hitching post along with three gray adults (puppies: two black, one gray, and one dark brown - smaller than the other three). At 7:35 p.m. we watched two grizzlies, one big, one smaller in a high clearing east of penny lane. They did a few chases and then fed for 15 minutes or so. I had a fox carrying two ground squirrels in the road near Calcite Overlook on the way home. A THREE DOG DAY.


Wednesday - 22 June

Black bear cubs by John William Uhler © Copyright All Rights Reserved

At 5:18 a.m. I spotted a grizzly south of Dorothy's Knoll. At 5:20 a.m. I found another grizzly in the same area. At 5:25 a.m. we watched a large grizzly south of the institute. At 5:45 a.m. we had two grizzlies high in the last clearing before the skyline south of the Institute viewed from Dorothy's Knoll. At 6:05 a.m. we watched a grizzly in bear meadow. At 7:00 a.m. I spotted a large grizzly south of trashcan. At 8:00 a.m. we watched a grizzly in K meadow. At 8:30 a.m. I spotted a grizzly in the river corridor south of hitching post. At 9:00 a.m. we had four or five wolves above the road and close viewing from hitching post. We had had a few elk in the area, and all of a sudden had wolves chasing and being chased by elk everywhere on the side of the hill. About 9:30 a.m. the wolves reappeared near Soda Butte Cone. On leaving the Tower Fall Campground I had a bear jam on the exit road - a courting pair of black bears. At 5:30 p.m. there were two grizzlies high on A-Z (brief sighting). At 5:45 p.m. the resident blond grizzly above the narrows again (it doesn't move over 150 yards - in fact one day there was a jam as you entered the narrows, apparently it came over the ridge and slept on a rock in the shade of the day). At 7:00 p.m. I spotted a grizzly high in salad bowl. And finally we watched a grizzly close to the confluence around 7:30 p.m.

Other News:

Lots and lots of badgers this year (dens from wrecker grade, two in little America, one down the second pullout at Slough Creek, one near the hitching post with two big little ones, and finally one at Dorothy's Knoll that bit a coyote who got too close). Two chicks on the Osprey nest. Two eggs on the sandhill crane nest at Floating Island Lake, and two pairs of Ruddy Ducks also. The bison calf who joined the two bison bulls, is now a herd of five as now four bulls and the calf are traveling together (looks good and eating grass). Lots of yellow bellied marmots also at Floating Island Lake. Wolf pup status: (4) Lamar Canyon Pack - four, two black, one gray, one dark brown); Canyon Pack - three, two black and a gray; Agate Pack - four grays near Quartz Creek - viewed from plane; Blacktails - four puppies - two black and two gray also viewed from the plane.




Yellowstone Sunset ~ © Copyright All Rights Reserved Gerry Hogston



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