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Posted by Wendy (174.45.85.71) on 10:29:19 07/23/13
Hello Loons and Lurkers,
I am back in Bozeman after a lovely 8 days in Parkadise. I am transposing my tapes and will eventually post a full report, but it could take a while. So here is a little teaser of coming attractions.
Suffice to say it was a wonderful trip - very relaxing, full of summer beauty, warm friends and wildlife delights.
There are fewer wolves on the Northern Range than any year since the early years of restoration, so it was pretty hard to find them, but I did manage at least one wolf each day. Saw the Junction Butte pack one morning and the Lamar Canyon pups twice. Spent many long wolfless hours in the evening out on the rolling hills south of Hitching Post, but in doing so, met some really nice fellow visitors.
The construction on the road from Roosevelt to above the Tower store is pretty nasty when they are working, and mildly unpleasant when they are not. It kept me from going to Canyon and from spending any quality time up above Antelope Creek. Thus my trip was completely Lamar-centered, but as it is my favorite place on earth, it was no hardship.
Some friends and I did the "easy" hike recommended by Ballpark Frank - from Hellroaring trailhead to the spur trail connecting to the Garnet Hill Loop. It was a very nice hike, especially because it was a cloudy day. When the rain came, we waited it out under the canvas-covered dining room at Yancey's Hole.
Bison are everywhere in Lamar - they made the drive in and out pretty slow at times, but it is still enjoyable to me to be surrounded by them and to hear their grunting and mooing. Lots of pronghorn visible with many dainty fawns, and I managed to see three moose, too! Saw some elk, too, and several spotted calves.
One of my favorite sightings was after a long, wolfless day, Unit 51 and I climbed way up on Dead Puppy Hill. We had a great view and scanned everywhere but found no moving canids. So down we came, filled with disappointment. As the light faded, we joined some friends to the east trying to find the elusive yearling 859M. Then a call from Dillon at Hitching Post sent us driving back west. We arrived around 9:15 and it was nearly dark.
Moving quietly down the hill and onto the road came three Lamar Canyon wolves (Big Gray, Middle Gray and the Black female). They were a little more than 100 feet away from where we stood in the lot, I could hear their toe-claws softly clicking against the pavement. They stood in the road a few seconds, staring at us, and then disappeared into the willows.
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