Yellowstone National Park 2023 Trip Reports

Trip Report ~ Bear & Wolf Sightings ~ by Bill Hamblin

08 through 11 October 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

~ October 2023 ~

October 8th - Sunday

28 degrees this morning in Silver Gate warming up to 65 degrees out in the park. At 6:55 a.m. Michael S from Wolf Tracker told me about a grizzly digging on Amethyst Bench. It was on the bench for a while then moved east and back into the trees. At 6:00 p.m. and 6:15 p.m. Stacey A found two separate grizzlies in the tree line south of Trashcan Hill, one was the morning grizzly from Amethyst Bench.

October 9th - Monday

29 degrees this morning in Silver Gate warming up to 73 degrees north of Gardiner this evening as I camped there tonight. At 7:05 a.m. I found the two sub adult grizzlies in the large clearing above the east end of Jasper Bench in Lamar Valley moving to the west. Unfortunately, they moved as the wolves often do to the ravine behind Jasper Bench, so they were only in sight for ten minutes or so. But at 8:40 a.m. and for the next hour they were in the A-Z Meadow digging. The grass is still high, and these grizzlies are small, and viewing was not that good. I spent the evening outside the park and north of Gardiner. I watched thirteen grizzlies tonight: four single grizzlies, two different sows with two cubs of the year each, and a sow with two either large cubs of the year or small yearlings.

October 10 - Tuesday

36 degrees north outside of the park this morning warming up to 63 degrees back in Lamar Valley. I watched a couple of golden eagles fly around Slough Creek today. I watched eleven grizzlies this morning north of Gardiner. Five single grizzlies, a sow with two cubs of the year and the sow with two either large cubs of the year or small yearlings. Back in Lamar Valley, at 3:00 p.m. Carolyn and John G showed me Junction Butte wolves bedded near the tree line south of Trashcan Pullout. Today we had eight grays and five black wolves sleeping away the afternoon. I moved on later and the wolves were still bedded, but others said they moved west before dark. At 4:10 p.m. I found a colorful grizzly digging of Amethyst Bench across the road from the Old Buffalo Ranch. It was in view for twenty minutes then moved into the trees to avoid a herd of bison but then reappeared back on the bench to the west of the bison herd and was still digging when I left around 5:30 p.m.

October 11th - Wednesday

41 degrees this morning in Silver Gate warming up to 49 degrees with rain in the afternoon. I had a THREE DOG DAY today, seeing the fox on the road going into the park this morning, a coyote south of the Old Buffalo Ranch and a black wolf. At 8:00 a.m. I found a black wolf high on the Southern Divide Ridge (called the Salad Bowl for some) from Coyote Overlook. It was definitely alone, howled and looked around for fifteen minutes before deciding to move south and east over the top of the meadow. At 2:40 p.m. from the Old Buffalo Ranch I found the two sub adult grizzlies again this time on the east flank of Ski Slope. They were In shorter grass today so the viewing was good. I watched until 5:00 p.m. and a lot of people got to enjoy seeing them.

People Seen

Wolf watchers: From Montana: Rick M. From Tennessee: Stacey A. From Wyoming: Larry and Linda H. From North Dakota: Sandy H. From Florida: Andy and Missy O. From Colorado: Dale and Fay B, and Dennis R. From Illinois: Andy and Nikki S. From Missouri: Frank H. From Kansas: Calvin and Lynette J. From Arizona: Steve J. Bear Watchers seen this report: From Utah: Bill and Chris M. From Montana: Jeff B and Kathy M. And from Georgia: Sandi R. Others seen this report: From Montana: Mike S, Michael S, MacNeil L, Cliff B, Russ K, Quinn H, Dan H, Emil M, and Audra C.

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

Yellowstone National Park

Lamar Valley Map - Yellowstone National Park