Yellowstone National Park 2023 Trip Reports
Trip Report ~ Bear & Wolf Sightings ~ by Bill Hamblin
01 through 04 June 2023
Yellowstone National Park
Beautiful Mountain Lion ~ Lamar Valley ~ April 10th, 2023 ~ Photo by Linda Rudge Carney © All Rights Reserved
Mountain Lion ~ also known as the Cougar, Puma, Panther, or Catamount ~ Puma concolor
~ June 2023 ~
Thursday - June 1st
40 degrees in Silver Gate this morning warming up to 68 degrees. I had a fox on the road at NE Entrance this morning. I spotted two moose south of Soda Butte East Pullout in the morning was a long spot. I also saw a badger south of Trashcan Pullout. And two moose near the church outside Silver Gate this afternoon. At 5:40 a.m. I found the grizzly sow with three cubs of the year high northeast of Footbridge pullout. At 6:20 a.m. I found the two sub adult grizzlies high in Bear Meadow viewed from the old Buffalo Ranch. At 8:00 a.m. one gray collared wolf and one black uncollared wolf viewed on Jasper Bench. At 10:00 a.m. I found the Slough Creek grizzly family high above the Slough Creek wolf den area. The family has a sow and two two-year-old cubs, and they looked good especially since it had been over a week and one half since we had seen them. Kind of unusual that they are still together as most grizzly families with two-year-old cubs had thrown them out and mated with a boar grizzly. At 10:15 a.m. we had a lone gray wolf at the den entrance to the Slough Creek den. At 10:30 a.m. we watched a grizzly bear at the Confluence. This grizzly had been seen by Gary way up on K Meadow but came to the valley floor, crossed the river and the road to the north, then crossed again to the south. Not sure why the strange behavior. At 11:00 a.m. we had a grizzly sow with two yearlings outside of Cooke City. The first time I saw this family, they have been seen in the area for the last week or two. At 5:30 p.m. we had a black bear in A-Z Meadow. At 6:15 p.m. seven wolves were seen in Crystal Drainage, last seen crossing the snow cornice on the top of Specimen Ridge traveling to the west. At 7:15 p.m. I spotted a black bear sow with one cinnamon and one black cub high on the # 3 finger on Norris. At 7:30 p.m. we had a black bear sow with a brownish yearling cub northeast of Footbridge. At 7:35 p.m. my last sighting for the day was a small black bear seen on the # 1 finger on Norris.
Friday - June 2nd
44 degrees in Silver Gate this morning warming up to 62 degrees out in the park. I had a THREE DOG DAY (fox, coyote, wolf) today. There was a small carcass off the road near Curve Pullout and it had nine vultures on it, the most I have even seen together in the park. At 5:40 a.m. Gary G found the grizzly sow with three cubs of the year high a little west of their last few sightings. At 6:00 a.m. Gary G found the two sub adult grizzlies in the Bowl viewed from a long way away, from Footbridge Pullout. We did get to watch them closer from the old Buffalo Ranch later in the day. At 6:10 a.m. Rick and Len H found a courting pair of grizzlies on Druid Peak from Trashcan Pullout. At 6:15 a.m. Kevin M found another grizzly under the courting pair of grizzlies also viewed from Trashcan Pullout. Later people saw a fourth grizzly up on Druid Peak. At 7:50 a.m. Gary G had a brief sighting of a dark grizzly behind Jasper Bench viewed from Coyote Overlook. For the next hour we watched up to three black and two gray wolves near Split Rock southwest of Coyote Overlook. At 12:30 p.m. Gary G found a courting pair of grizzlies in the Bowl viewed from Coyote Overlook. It looked like a smaller boar was escorting the sow up and over the skyline, never more than ten feet behind her all the way over the top. At 1:30 p.m. Chloe and Becky showed me a small brown grizzly digging on the # 1 finger on Norris. At 5:15 p.m. Regina W found a courting pair of black bears (the boar was dark brown and the sow a cinnamon color) in the A-Z Meadow. At 5:20 p.m. Gary G found a small black bear way below the courting black bears in A-Z Meadow.
Saturday - June 3rd
48 degrees in Silver Gate this morning with a few light showers today warming up to 62 degrees. A pair of harlequin ducks again in the Soda Butte Creek from Footbridge Pullout this morning. A moose near the church in Silver Gate this afternoon. I had a THREE DOG DAY today. A lot of low clouds this morning made glassing the high meadows impossible. At 6:10 a.m. I watched eight of the Junction Butte wolves south of Trashcan Pullout (others counted 10 or 11). The wolves stalled out on the journey to the east and at noon were still bedded just across the Lamar River making great viewing of sleeping wolves. At 6:50 a.m. Randi M found the grizzly sow with three cubs of the year back in their usual spot but a little downhill, which was fortunate since the low clouds would have prevented us seeing them early this morning. At 7:15 a.m. I found two grizzlies digging on Calfee. I moved on early assuming I had two sub adult grizzlies, but Randi stayed longer and as the light improved identified them as a courting pair of grizzlies. At 9:15 a.m. I found the Slough Creek grizzly sow with her two two-year-old cubs basically east of the Slough Creek den. They had a good space to dig, and they remained in view a long time this morning. At 9:30 a.m. we watched the two sub adult grizzlies (Middle Ridge family) on Specimen Ridge. Gary watched them from Coyote Overlook but could not identify the bears as blacks or grizzlies as they were traveling in thick sagebrush. Doug M (bear watcher) found them viewed from Slough Creek and then identified them as grizzlies. While watching the family of two-year-olds with the sow in Slough and the sub adults in Crystal we occasionally looked over at the wolf den. At least three blacks and one gray adult wolf were seen from time to time. At 10:40 a.m. a nice sized cinnamon black bear moved across the lower part of Ski Slope. At 10:55 a.m. we had a small black bear above the tree line southwest of Fisherman's Pullout. At 11:35 a.m. we watched courting pair of grizzlies in the BOWL from the old Buffalo Ranch. This boar was a large dark grizzly who looked twice the size of the sow. At 12:50 p.m. Donna F found a new family of grizzlies. A grizzly sow with two cubs of the year on the # 6 finger on Norris. Mike and Donna watched this family last night after I headed back to Silver Gate. At 1:05 p.m. Chloe F called my attention to two grizzlies north on Druid Peak. They were a courting pair that others had seen this morning from Trashcan Pullout. At 1:10 p.m. another boar grizzly appeared near the courting pair. The new grizzly was a little smaller, but he ran off the first boar. The boar that ran away we did not see again, but the new courting pair was seen moving around and sliding down a snowbank.
Sunday - June 4th
46 degrees this morning in Silver Gate warming up to 66 degrees. A lot of low clouds made seeing any high clearings where most of the grizzlies are this time of year almost impossible. I saw my first elk calf of the year this afternoon. At 6:00 a.m. I spotted a black bear seen on # 1 finger on Norris below the cloud bank. At 6:15 a.m. a second black bear was seen on # 1 finger on Norris. At 7:10 a.m. a gray uncollared wolf was seen leaving a carcass just across the Lamar River southwest of the old Buffalo Ranch. At 7:15 a.m. we located the grizzly that was on the carcass that the wolf was leaving. The grizzly soon moved south and remained in sight for a long time, eventually going into the tree line. At 7:20 a.m. a black wolf was seen crossing Jasper Bench moving south. At 8:45 a.m. Mike F found the Slough Creek grizzly sow with two two-year-old cubs near the mixed conifer aspen forest in Slough Creek. The family was traveling looking for elk calves then spent time digging in front of the island forest. At 9:00 a.m. Kim H located a new family for us this year. A grizzly sow with one yearling cub high above the Slough Creek den area. They were busy digging and remained in view for well over an hour. At around 9:30 a.m. we noticed the Slough Creek grizzly family with two two-year-old cubs had come upon another grizzly family. Another new grizzly family for us as a grizzly sow with two unusually dark yearling cubs were found just above the Slough Creek family. What had happened is that the new grizzly family had been on a small carcass of some kind, but the Slough Creek family had taken the small carcass from them. Nice to see six grizzlies in the same scope as the new family stood by and watched as the Slough Creek family helped themselves to the carcass. We are guessing that both the families may have been related, as no hostility was displayed. We did see the Slough Creek family again this afternoon. At 10:00 a.m. Mike F found a large black bear on the southern Divide Ridge looking from Slough Creek. At 11:00 a.m. Randi M found a courting pair high on Druid Peak from the old Buffalo Ranch. We saw them again from Footbridge in the afternoon. At 11:05 a.m. Gary G found a nice courting pair on the top of Norris from the old Buffalo Ranch. Since the courting pair had moved out of sight, we traveled east to Footbridge Pullout where the viewing of the courting pair was excellent. At 11:35 a.m. I found the grizzly family with three cubs of the year again northeast of Footbridge Pullout. At 12:30 p.m. Randi M found a black bear courting pair, a black boar, and a cinnamon-colored sow, in the tree line southwest of Footbridge Pullout. At 2:30 p.m. Mike F found the two Specimen Ridge sub adults low in the Bowl from the old Buffalo Ranch. They were out again in sight later this afternoon. At 5:00 p.m. Gary G showed me a small colorful grizzly on the # 2 finger on Norris.
People Seen
Wolf Watchers: From Montana: Josh A, Becky C, Chloe F, Amy T, Dan and Laurie L, Wendy B, Taylor R, Jeremy S, Rick M and Doug M. From California: Bill and Karen M, Kathie L, Bill W and Joe M. From New York: Rick and Maureen B. From Wyoming: Larry and Linda H. From Colorado: Steve and Robin M. From Oregon: Rich and Linda Y. Bear watchers seen this report: From Louisiana: Bruce P. From Wyoming: Terri W, Kevin M, and Rita R (also her son Jeremy and his girlfriend). From Illinois: Frank G and Mike G. From Washington: Randi M. From Colorado: Rick and Tanner H, Kim H, and Rick and Len H. From Idaho: Mark H, and Terry and Marsha J. From Utah: Dave H, Ed and Sara S, and Scott and Joann M. From Mississippi: Gary G. From Montana: Margaret L, Doug M, and Mike and Kathy W. From Kansas: Richard and Sandy B. From Oklahoma: Shaun and Regina W. From Tennessee: Mike and Donna F. From South Carolina: Margaret P. From Georgia: Sandy R. From New Mexico: Bob W. Others seen this report: From Montana: Quinn H, Nate U, Audra C, Mike S, Chris H, and Evan S. From Vermont: John K. And From Florida: Bill W.
Beautiful Mountain Lion ~ Lamar Valley ~ April 10th, 2023 ~ Photo by Linda Rudge Carney © All Rights Reserved
Mountain Lion ~ also known as the Cougar, Puma, Panther, or Catamount ~ Puma concolor
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Lamar Valley Map - Yellowstone National Park
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