Yellowstone National Park 2018 Trip Reports
Trip Report ~ Bear & Wolf Sightings ~ by Bill Hamblin
30 April thru 03 May 2018 - Yellowstone National Park
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~ April 2018 ~
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Monday - April 30th
39 degrees in Gardiner but 28 degrees at Slough Creek this morning warming up to 46 degrees. At 6:10 a.m. the four black Junction Butte males along with 907F headed west and north for a hunt. We also found 969F still limping badly on her front foot and the uncollared black female near the den. Only 1109F was not present this morning, she has not been to the den in a week or so. At 6:20 a.m. Rick and Len H found a large grizzly moving northwest of the Slough Creek den. At 7:30 a.m. Bruce P called in a small grizzly on the # 1 finger on Norris viewed from Footbridge Pullout (our first grizzly on the fingers of Norris). At 7:30 a.m. a black and a gray uncollared wolves were east of Footbridge Pullout. These wolves were unknown, maybe from the Mollies to the south or from a pack outside of the park. At 9:15 a.m. a medium sized grizzly digging high on Ski Slope viewed from the Institute and also from Dorothy's Pullout.
~ May 2018 ~
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Tuesday - May 1st
38 degrees in Gardiner and raining but 34 degrees in Lamar with snow, but not sticking on the roads warming up to a chilly 40 degrees. Low visibility most of the day today. Coots spotted in Floating Island Lake. At 7:15 a.m. Kevin from Teton Science School called with a grizzly north and east of footbridge. This grizzly was digging a large hole and did so for over thirty minutes until it moved off into the trees. At 10:45 a.m. the black sow with one cinnamon yearling cub were gathering a large crowd at the Yellowstone River Bridge. Mom was sleeping under the tree with the yearling up and out of sight up a tree. Soon she climbed the tree and played with the cub up in the tree. At 11:45 a.m. 969F was limping around the den area at Slough Creek. At 12:20 p.m. John G found the grizzly sow with the two and one half year old cub south and west of Fisherman's Pullout best viewed from Coyote Overlook. At 12:40 p.m. Randi M found the two uncollared unknown wolves (one black and one gray) on the far eastern edge of Jasper Bench. At 2:35 p.m. a couple pointed out Small Dot, the black male from the Lamar Canyon Pack bedded near a bison with a fresh calf north and east of Midpoint Pullout in Lamar Valley. After a while Small Dot moved over the ridge and out of sight.
Wednesday - May 2nd
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41 degrees in Gardiner but 35 degrees in Lamar Valley warming up to 55 degrees. I had a bull moose in Round Prairie this morning across the road from Pebble Creek Campground. I walked up to Calcite near the Tower Store today with John G, Randi M, Ed A, and a couple he knew from England. The peregrine is still on her nest near Calcite and has two eggs according to Ed S. A pair of ospreys are thinking of building a nest on the west side of the river at Calcite. At 8:25 a.m. Bruce P found the grizzly sow with the two year old cub south and west of Fisherman's Pullout. Again best viewing from Coyote or Dorothy's Pullouts. This pair was in view again at 4:00 p.m. At 12:20 p.m. a gray and black wolf were seen at the Slough Den. At 2:00 p.m. a black bear with one black cub of the year were near the Tower Store. At 2:30 p.m. the black sow with one yearling cinnamon cub had crossed the bridge and we watched them above Rainy Lake. I did have a THREE DOG DAY today. At 5:05 p.m. I found a grizzly sow with two yearling cubs on the 6th finger on Norris from Footbridge Pullout. We moved east to Soda Butte East Pullout and watched them for a while. At 5:55 p.m. I found the grizzly sow with one cub of the year on Thunderer from the Pebble Creek Campground. They were in the exact same clearing as when I watched them on April 28th.
Thursday - May 3rd
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40 degrees in Gardiner but 28 degrees in Lamar Valley this morning warming up to 60 degrees. The cow moose with two large bull yearlings crossed the road just east of Pebble Creek Campground this morning. I had a golden eagle flying near the Confluence of the Lamar River and the Soda Butte Creek. At 5:45 a.m. John G found a medium sized grizzly digging high north and west of the Slough Creek den. It was not in view for very long, At 6:30 a.m. the grizzly sow with the two year old cub were south and west of Fisherman's Pullout (actually the cub was not seen until later in the morning, it was probably bedded out of sight). At 6:45 a.m. John G found a black uncollared wolf bedded on the west side of A-Z Meadow viewed from Coyote Overlook. At 7:15 a.m. John G now at the Institute found another uncollared black wolf high on the east side of A-Z. The wolf people had good action at Slough Creek this morning and did not come to Lamar to identify these two wolves. I believe that all the Junction Butte wolves were in Slough this morning, and the Lamar Canyon wolves don't go as far west as A-Z Meadow, so I guess the unknown wolves. At 9:00 a.m. a large black bear in the tree line south of Footbridge Pullout. At 9:10 a.m. Randi M found "the Druid Sow Grizzly" north of the Soda Butte Valley from east of the Soda Butte East Pullout. We have watched this sow and coy since 2016 when it was a cub of the year. They hang out on Druid Peak and the north side of the Soda Butte Valley. We know of only two grizzly sows with two year old cubs, this one and the one being seen earlier on Junction Butte and lately south and west of Fisherman's Pullout. At 9:30 a.m. Jon and Karen E found a large collared grizzly across from the Institute moving east near the tree line. At 10:00 a.m. we had a small grizzly digging on Ski Slope viewed from the Institute. At one time it found a hole under a large tree and was out of sight for a couple of minutes. Then it moved back and resumed digging. At 11:30 a.m. Karen E found a small cinnamon black bear south and east of Footbridge Pullout in a small clearing. At 11:45 a.m. our first courting pair of grizzlies were high north and east of the Slough Creek Den. At 12:15 p.m. we had a large grizzly digging on the skyline north and east of Coyote Overlook. At 3:20 p.m. I watched the grizzly sow with one cub of the year on Thunderer from Pebble Creek Campground. John G and Randi M had viewed the family in the same place in late morning. At 5:10 p.m. my last sighting for the day was the small blond grizzly digging above the Diagonal Forest in Slough Creek.
People Seen
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Wolf Watchers: From Montana: Rick M, Doug M, and Bob and Elizabeth N. From Colorado: Rick and Len H. From California: Joe M, and Bob and Nell H. From the Netherlands: Jort V. From Indiana: Jeff and Terri B. From Wyoming: Larry and Linda H. From Minnesota: Scott W. From Iowa: Jim and Joellyn B. From Utah: Chis and Brenda C, and Jerry and Julia C. From Texas: Carol S and Carl L. From Canada: Jeff A. From Idaho: Warren and Natalie B. Bear Watchers: From Washington: John G, and Randi M. From Idaho: Jon and Karen E. From Louisiana: Bruce P. From Colorado: Ed A. From Ohio: Jim and Tywla E. and from Utah: Gayle and Brett. Others seen this report: From Montana: Evan S, Bonnie M, Cliff B, and Ken S. From Massachusetts: Ed S. And I almost forgot From Utah: Bob B.
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Lamar Valley Map - Yellowstone National Park
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