Yellowstone National Park 2024 Trip Reports
Trip Report ~ Bear & Wolf Sightings ~ by Bill Hamblin
24 through 27 May 2024
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
~ May 2024 ~
May 24th - Friday
29 degrees this morning in Silver Gate warming up to 56 degrees with a cool afternoon wind. I watched a bull moose today with nice antlers already over a foot long. I had a THREE DOG DAY (coyote, fox, wolf) today. At 5:20 a.m. Frank H called saying that the 3 1/2-year-old female sub adult grizzly was on the bison carcass viewed from Boulder Pullout. At 5:40 a.m. Gary G found a small grizzly digging in the Lion Meadow. At 6:10 a.m. Doug M (bear watcher) found the grizzly sow with three yearling cubs north of Fisherman's Pullout. You had to view them from the dirt pullout west of Fisherman's Pullout but great viewing at a few hundred yards. It is the closest this family has, to my knowledge, come close to the road. At 6:15 a.m. I found a large grizzly in the old Druid Rendezvous area. I later got a better look at this grizzly as I traveled east and watched from Picnic Pullout. At 6:45 a.m. Bruce P called with a sub adult grizzly in view at the Confluence. A small colorful grizzly slowing going into the willows. I heard from several people that it had shown up there last night providing the photographers a nice evening. At 7:30 a.m. Mike W found a grizzly on Norris hunting elk calves. I arrived to view it zig-zagging in the sagebrush on Norris viewing was good from the Confluence, as the colorful grizzly had moved on by then. At 7:45 a.m. I watched a large black bear south of Hubard Hill in the tree line. At 8:15 a.m. I got to watch a courting pair of grizzlies in the ravine to the east of the den that Wendy B had viewed earlier. At 8:45 a.m. 1478F, a two-year-old gray female, walked around the den area at Slough Creek. At 9:45 a.m. I found a grizzly faraway north of Fisherman's Pullout way up viewed from Long Pullout in Little America. It was running when I found it and only in view for a minute or two. I stayed there watching for a few more minutes seeing if there was any animal reason for it to be running. At 10:45 a.m. Allen K told me about the grizzly sow with one yearling was just across the Soda Butte Creek from Footbridge Pullout. I was in the pullout but was glassing high towards the fingers. The family slowly moved west and eventually crossed the road to the north. A small group of hikers were walking north of Footbridge and were really surprised when the grizzly stood up to see them. At 12:45 p.m. I found the grizzly sow with three cubs of the year (coy) high on the rock formation on Specimen Ridge. I made a good spot as the sow was bedded with the cubs out of sight. She sat up and I only had to wait and then could see her and all three cubs. This created a large bear jam and many many people got to watch them. At 1:15 p.m. Rachel M found a black bear sow with one black and one dark cinnamon cub of the year in a low clearing on Specimen Ridge.
May 25th - Saturday
31 degrees in Silver Gate this morning warming up to 63 degrees out in the park. The park opened the Yellowstone Picnic Area today featuring a brand-new restroom. At 5:35 a.m. Hayden G found a grizzly east of the willows that are east of the Horizontal Forest in Slough Creek. It was in view for a long time. At 5:40 a.m. the wolves were active at the den. I saw one black and two gray adult wolves and one black and one gray puppy. The pup total is still two blacks and one gray. At 6:40 a.m. I watched a black bear sow with one cinnamon cub (I watched a pair a few days later and concluded it was a courting pair with a black boar and a cinnamon sow). At 6:45 a.m. I found the grizzly sow with one yearling near the Moosehead viewed from Picnic Pullout. They crossed the road to the north yesterday and are still north of the road today. At 8:00 a.m. traveling to the east there was a small road jam between the pullouts of Coyote and Dorothy's. A colorful grizzly was attempting to chase a herd of bison north of the road but as I left it was being chased by the bison. At 8:15 a.m. Bruce P had the grizzly sow with three cubs of the year fifty yards off the road near Confluence East Pullout. The sow as digging just off the road. This was the grizzly sow and with cubs of the year that had been seen before high on the finger of Norris. They finally crossed the road to the north. The drivers of the lead cars going both ways stopped making an opening for them to cross. That was nice, a lot of times the drivers do not, and the bears had to go back. At 10:00 a.m. I watched a black cinnamon black bear near the tree line south of Picnic Pullout. At 10:50 a.m. John G made a great spot on Specimen Ridge. It was the grizzly sow with three cubs of the year, again bedded with only the sow in view sleeping. The sow eventually got up and then everyone got to see the entire family. Great and long viewing before they went over the mountain. But then we could see them from Slough Creek at a longer distance. They did encounter a hiker or two and ran down close to the Crystal Drainage. At 8:40 a.m. Hayden G had a courting pair of black bears, both black in color, south of Hubard Hill. At 10:00 a.m. a large dark cinnamon black bear south of Hubard Hill (this color of black bear often gets watchers to believe it is a grizzly). At 11:20 a.m. I watched the grizzly sow with three yearlings again at long range from Long Pullout in Little America. The grizzlies were high north of Fisherman's Pullout. At 11:20 a.m. I watched another grizzly digging a half mile or so from the yearling family also from Long Pullout. Kim H watched them for a time too. At 11:45 a.m. Mike F showed us a black bear sow with two black yearling cubs near #9's old den south of Straight-away Pullout. At 3:00 p.m. Rick and Maureen B came upon a small bunch of people watching south of Trashcan Pullout. It was eight of the Mollies wolf pack bedded and sleeping. Today six grays and two black wolves in great view bedded in short green grass. At 4:00 p.m. the 3 1/2-year-old female sub adult grizzly was still guarding her bison carcass at Boulder Pullout. At 6:20 p.m. Gary G showed me a dark grizzly digging on the east end of Druid Peak.
May 26th - Sunday
35 degrees with snow and rain early in Silver Gate warming up to 55 degrees out in the park. At 5:20 a.m. Gary G had a grizzly moving through the Lion Meadow. When leaving the grizzly ambled through the Junction Butte pack den area. The four wolves harassed the grizzly occasionally biting the grizzly's behind but finally the grizzly moved on, and the wolves bedded. The wolves present this morning were two black and two gray wolves. At 5:35 a.m. Hayden G had a grizzly hunting elk calves high in the meadow west of the Slough Den. At 5:50 a.m. Doug M (bear watcher) found a big grizzly above the Slough Den. This grizzly moved away and did not interact with either the wolves or the other grizzly. At 6:15 a.m. a black pup was in view near the den hole. At 6;30 a.m. the 3 1/2-year-old female sub adult grizzly was still on the bison carcass near Boulder Pullout. At 7:10 a.m. Hayden G had a dark grizzly low in A-Z Meadow. At 7:30 a.m. Randi M found a grizzly eating on something in the high sagebrush north of Coyote Overlook. A cow elk nearby told the story that the grizzly had found the elk calf. At 7:35 a.m. a black bear was in view above amethyst Bench. At 7:40 a.m. Hayden G found a small grizzly traveling east in the large meadow behind the east end of Jasper Bench. At 8:25 a.m. Randi M and Gary G found a grizzly digging near the Moosehead at the same time. The grizzly was digging near the Moosehead that is northeast of Picnic Pullout. At 8:30 a.m. eight Mollies wolf pack members were in the Soda Butte Valley. We waited until they got on Norris heading to the south. Watching from Trashcan Pullout we counted six gray and two black wolves. They found something to eat, based on the ravens flying out of the river corridor and then bedded south of the Confluence for the day. They got up near evening traveling west testing several bison herds. At 9:10 a.m. Hayden G found a black bear in a clearing below K-2 Meadow. At 9:40 a.m. I found a large cinnamon black bear grazing on K-2 Meadow. At 10:20 a.m. Hayden G found a grizzly sow with two cubs of the year (coys) on Specimen Ridge. We were all worried because we had been seeing the grizzly with three coys in the area and hoped that she had not lost one of them. The one missing appeared to be the larger of the three cubs. At 10:40 a.m. Kim H found a new family for us grizzly watchers in the Northern Range: a grizzly with one cub of the year in a clearing south of trashcan. The sow spent all her time digging and feeding leaving the coy to play by itself. A lot of running, sliding down the snowbank and circling around to attack mom from the rear. At 11:30 a.m. we finally saw the large grizzly Maureen B had been watching for quite a while. It finally emerged from the sagebrush and ran into the tree line which caused a black bear in the tree line to run away. At 12:20 p.m. Hayden G found a medium sized grizzly digging north of Hubbard Hill. This one had an unusually bright light brown stripe around it just behind the neck. At 12:35 p.m. Hayden G found a small colorful grizzly low in Bear Meadow spotted from Hubbard Hill. At 6:35 p.m. Jeff and Val B and Gary G showed me the grizzly sow; with three cubs north of Picnic. It was a challenge to see, as they were on the ridge line. We were getting the sow once in a while then she would go over. Finally, they came into view walking on this side of the ridgeline. Late today Blake M found a grizzly with three coys on Specimen Ridge. Gary G and I headed there later to find out what was going on. Were there two grizzlies, one with two coys and one with three coys, or perhaps one of the coys was not keeping up and therefore some of us were seeing the one with two and other with three. We found the family and it had only two coys. It would take another day to solve the question.
May 27th - Monday - Memorial Day
Monday Memorial Day, May 27th. 28 degrees this morning at Silver Gate warming up to 65 degrees out in the park. I had a THREE DOG DAY today. A badger den has shown up across from Hitching Post. I hiked Trout and Buck Lake today with Randi M; then ran into Frank H, John G and Rick and Maureen B on the trail. At 5:30 a.m. Hayden G found the grizzly with two coys back on Specimen Ridge. So, the question is still open. At 5:40 a.m. a gray wolf was seen at the Slough den. At 5:45 a.m. I found a grizzly hunting elk calves east of the Slough den. At 6:30 a.m. we had a black bear above the Amethyst Bench grazing. At 7:40 a.m. Hayden G showed me a grizzly hunting elk calves northwest of Picnic Pullout. At 7:50 a.m. I drove to the Soda Butte Valley because Michele from Wolf Tracker had a grizzly family in view. It was the grizzly sow with one yearling cub north of the Soda Butte East Pullout. At 8:15 a.m. Hayden G made a great spot. The grizzly with one coy was in a bare ground rock formation south of Trashcan Pullout. Why a grizzly with a coy would be in an area with nothing but bare rock, I do not know. At 8:40 a.m. I found the grizzly sow with three coys northeast of Picnic Pullout on the same ridge as yesterday. Great viewing with the sun behind them and staying on this side of the ridgeline. Tonight, they were downhill and approaching the road as I left the park. I would bet that would be a huge bear jam with the curve in the road and the river just across the road and very few rangers out in Lamar. A 9:30 a.m. I found a grizzly digging on Calfee from Trashcan. At 2:45 p.m. I found the grizzly sow with three yearlings northeast of the Institute. They had been viewed briefly by others early this morning north of Hubbard Hill. After seeing the three yearling family Randi M and I decided to try to figure out the grizzly with coys in Crystal Drainage. John G had seen the family with three coys this morning and we had seen the one with two coys. So, we needed to find the sow with three coys to guarantee that two grizzlies existed with coys Hayden G joined our search. I started at Coyote Overlook, where John G had seen the sow with three this morning. Meanwhile Randi started at Lamar Canyon West. Randi found a family but was not sure of the coy count. We separated from each in a different pullout to find them as they had entered a treed area. I was at Crystal and found the sow with three coys. They were moving to the west, so we all went to Straight-away Pullout. Hayden G found them there. The sow was running around and disappeared. Then we saw a lone cow elk in the scene. Soon the three coys were running hard and up the mountain all by themselves. They moved about three hundred yards up the rocks and looked down. The sow had caught the elk calf. Now avoiding the cow elk, she went up hill to get the coys. Then she returned to feed on the calf. Now we knew there were two sows with coys in the area. I had heard about two weeks ago from Jeremy S of the wolf project that the bear management people had seen the sow collared as 1054 back a few miles with two coys. So now we have the sow with three coys who likes the Specimen Ridge and often crosses the road to go to Junction Butte, and the grizzly with two coys who is collared and likes the Middle Ridge which is the next ridge east of Specimen Ridge. To confirm this, we will need to get close enough to see the collar on 1054 the sow with the two coys. While watching all of the grizzly action we noticed the black bear sow with two black yearlings in a lower clearing on Specimen Ridge, then a black bear sow with one black and one cinnamon coy low on Specimen Ridge.
People Seen
Wolf Watchers: From Montana: Rick M, Wendy B, Kriztina G, Jeremy S and Taylor R. From Missouri: Frank H. From New York: Rick and Maureen B. From Colorado: Bob B and Mark and Carol R. From South Dakota: Sam and Ginny G. From Illinois: Sandy and Ken H. From Arizona: Matt L. From California: Kathie L. From Utah: Paul H and Celia L. From Wyoming: Dale and Fay B. From Texas: Carl L and Carol S. And From Oregon: Bruce and Kelly H. Bear Watchers seen this report: From Washington: Randi M and John G. From Illinois: Frank and Cole G, Wayne K, and Chicago Bob and Margaret P. From Montana: Doug M, Mike and Kathy W, Jack G, Jeff and Val B, and David B. From Mississippi: Gary G. From Colorado: Rick and Tanner H and Kim H. From Wyoming: Terri W, Rita R, and Kevin M. From Tennessee: Mike and Donna F. From Idaho: Blake and Rachel M. From South Carolina: Margaret P and Scott P. From Louisiana: Bruce P. From Iowa: Steve S and Bob A. From Utah: Hayden G, and Mark and Liz H. From Missouri: Don and Carol L. From New Mexico: Lorie U. And from Minnesota: Kevin and Barb B. Others seen this report: From Montana: Quinn H, Allen K, Nate U, Mike S, Jim H, Chris H, Ashea T, Michael S, Grant J, Emil M, and Cliff B. From California: Carol B. From Vermont: John K. And from the Netherlands: Jort V and girlfriend Shennon M.
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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