Yellowstone National Park 2022 Trip Reports

Trip Report ~ Bear & Wolf Sightings ~ by Bill Hamblin

28th through 31st May 2022
Yellowstone National Park

~ May 2022 ~

Saturday - May 28th

49 degrees in Silver Gate this morning warming up to 55 degrees. I had a THREE DOG DAY today. Yesterday both the Beartooth Highway and Dunraven Pass opened for the year. Today they were closed because snow. At 5:35 a.m. I found a small colorful grizzly in A-Z Meadow viewed from Coyote Overlook. A really small grizzly who kept running and looking back, never saw what it was afraid of. At 5:40 a.m. we had a large black bear on the top of Amethyst Drainage. At 6:30 a.m. I spotted a black uncollared and a black collared wolf south of Footbridge Pullout moving to the west. At 7;00 a.m. Richard and Rita R found the Slough Creek grizzly sow with her two yearlings west of the Slough Creek den. Good viewing as they traveled further to the west. At 7:15 a.m. Richard and Rita found the Specimen Ridge grizzly sow with her two yearlings on the west flank of Specimen Ridge viewed from Boulder Pullout. At 8:50 a.m. I found the Mount Norris grizzly family with two cubs of the year (coys) on the # 3 finger on Norris. At 8:50 a.m. we had another black wolf moving west south of Footbridge Pullout. At 9:10 a.m. the Specimen Ridge grizzly sow with three coys was again on Ski Slope. At 9:20 a.m. we had three black wolves and three gray wolves on the bison carcass south of the Buffalo Ranch. At 9:30 a.m. Richard and Rita R found a small colorful grizzly low on # 2 finger of Norris. At 9:40 a.m. Richard and Rita found a second small colorful grizzly high on # 2 finger on Norris. At 10:30 a.m. the two 3 1/2-year-old grizzly sub adults were seen on the clearing behind the east end of Jasper Bench. The two got to close to the carcass and all six wolves chased them into the trees. At 10:45 a.m. we had a courting pair of black bears, the boar black and the sow cinnamon color in a small clearing above Amethyst Bench. At 4:30 p.m. I watched a cinnamon black bear north at Lower Barronette Pullout. From 6:20 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. two black and one gray puppy plus one gray adult at the Crystal den site. At 7:15 p.m. I spotted a grizzly in the tree line southwest of Footbridge Pullout. At 7:30 p.m. my last sighting of the day was a black bear on the bison carcass south of the Buffalo Ranch and one black bedded waiting its turn on the carcass.

Sunday - May 29th

37 degrees in Silver Gate with low clouds most of the morning warming up to 46 degrees. I had a moose at Elk Creek this afternoon. It was snowing on the way back to Silver Gate tonight. At 5:45 a.m. I found a black bear in the tree line south of the Buffalo Ranch. At 5:50 a.m. Gary G pointed out a small grizzly in the tree line southeast of the Buffalo Ranch. At 6:45 a.m. I found the Specimen Ridge grizzly sow with two yearlings again on the west flank of Specimen Ridge viewed from Boulder Lake Pullout. We were lucky to see them as the cloud cover lowered after the sighting and they were not seen later in the day. At 7:00 a.m. Hayden G found a large grizzly digging and slowly moving east through the yellow grass meadow in Slough Creek. Most of the morning almost all of the high clearings were fogged in with low clouds. At 8:10 a.m. we had the courting pair of black bears, with the black boar and the cinnamon sow wrestling in a small clearing southeast of the Buffalo Ranch. At 8:10 a.m. a black wolf came to the bison carcass south of the Buffalo Ranch. At 8:40 a.m. a large cinnamon black bear was run up a tree as three Junction Butte yearlings gave chase (two black and one gray on the wolf colors). At 8:50 a.m., I spotted 1228F on Dead Puppy Hill from the Confluence. Others had been seeing her in the area before I found her. At 9:35 a.m. the Mount Norris grizzly sow with two coys were spotted on the # 3 finger on Norris. At 9:45 a.m. Richard R found a small colorful grizzly on the # 2 finger of Norris. At 10:05 a.m. Chris H found a large grizzly in a clearing south of Trout Lake. I missed seeing it then, but Joe K called as the grizzly crossed Round Prairie going west to east. At 11:10 a.m. Terri W found the Specimen Ridge grizzly sow with three coys on Square Meadow before Ski Slope from YES Pullout. At 1:35 a.m. we had a cinnamon black bear south of Straight-away Pullout. At 1:40 p.m. I found a black wolf (the Alpha female) with one large black pup and one small black pup near the Slough Creek den. Although I did not watch, the wolf watchers were watching all day as the wolves at the Crystal den moved fifteen pups north over the Northern Divide Ridge and out of sight. By the end of the day no wolves or puppies were seen at the Crystal Den. At 3:20 p.m. Hayden G found the Junction Butte grizzly sow with two (either large yearlings or my take two-year old’s near Junction Butte). This family had been missing for a few days. At 4:30 p.m. we had a large black bear far to the north from Curve Pullout in Little America.

Monday - May 30th - Memorial Day

I woke up to 33 degrees with four inches of snow in Silver Gate this morning. A lot of rain and low clouds again this morning warming up to 47 degrees. At 8:00 a.m. the wolf watchers watching the Slough Den called with the Slough Creek grizzly sow with her two yearlings digging in the Lion Meadow. Good viewing until they moved off to the west, this afternoon they reappeared above the Slough Creek den for a long time. At 9:20 a.m. I found a large black bear across the river to the north of Aspen Pullout. An easy sighting as a large herd of bison were moving away from the bear. At 9:40 a.m. a black bear tied to approach the bison carcass south of the Buffalo Ranch. A small herd of bulls gathered around the bison carcass and the black bear retreated to the trees. At 10:30 a.m. I found the Specimen Ridge grizzly sow with three coys first on Square Meadow then on Ski Slope. They were running this morning as another grizzly was slowly following them from below. Soon the other grizzly disappeared, and the family again began to dig and feed. At 10:35 a.m. Randi M found a grizzly digging on Amethyst Bench. At 11:10 a.m. Gary G found the two 3 1/2-year-old sub adult grizzlies again on Amethyst Bench. They were separated this morning but got back together this afternoon. At 12:20 p.m. Bruce P found the Mount Norris grizzly family with the two coys. At 12:30 p.m. Randi M found a small colorful grizzly on the # 3 finger of Norris. At 12:40 p.m. Hayden G found a small colorful grizzly digging on the # 1 finger on Norris on the east end, the family was not on the west end. At 1:40 p.m. Hayden G found a tall black bear southwest of Footbridge. At 5:00 p.m. we had a cinnamon black bear north of Soda Butte East Pullout.

Tuesday - May 31st

A short day as I left for two days home to fix a tire. Eight grizzlies today: the two 3 1/2-year-old sub adult grizzlies on Amethyst Bench, the Slough Creek sow with two yearlings in Slough and the Specimen Ridge sow with two yearlings on Specimen Ridge.

People Seen

Wolf Watchers: From Montana: Wendy B, Dan and Laurie L, Reve and Susan C, Melba C, Joe K, Doug M, and Rick M. From New York: Rick and Maureen B. From Wyoming: Larry and Linda H. From Colorado: Steve and Robin M and Terri S. From Utah: Julie A. From California: Kathie L. From South Dakota: Sam and Ginny G. From Illinois: Sandra H. Bear Watchers seen this report: From Washington: John G and Randi M. From Wyoming: Terri W, and Richard and Rita R. From Idaho: Blake and Rachel M. From Louisiana: Bruce P. From Mississippi: Gary G. From Utah: Hayden G. From Colorado: Rick and Tanner H, Rick and Len H, and Kim H. From Illinois: Mike B and Cousin Bill. Others seen this report: From Montana: Quinn H, Forrest, Ashlea T, Grant J, Mike S, Michael S, Evan S, Nathan V, Audra C, Chris H, and MacNeil L. From Colorado: Brian A. And from Vermont: John K and Beth.

Yellowstone National Park

Lamar Valley Map - Yellowstone National Park