Yellowstone National Park 2024 Trip Reports
Trip Report ~ Bear & Wolf Sightings ~ by Bill Hamblin
13 through 16 June 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
~ June 2024 ~
June 13th - Thursday
Thursday June 13th. 37 degrees in Silver Gate this morning warming up to 81 degrees. I had a fox day, four foxes going in the park this morning all on the road and four foxes coming out of the park tonight. One fox on the road and three kits off the road watching the cars pass by. At 5:15 a.m. I found the grizzly sow with two cubs of the year on the top of Salad Bowl/Southern Divide Ridge. At 5:35 a.m. I found brown pants the grizzly boar with his rear end colored brown leading a sow from east to west north of Coyote Overlook. At 5:45 a.m. we had two sub adult grizzlies in the Bowl viewed from the Institute. Today they stayed pretty close to each other. At 6:30 a.m. the grizzly sow with one yearling was in the willows south of Footbridge Pullout. They decided to cross the road and fortunately Doug M (bear watcher) stopped his car to assist them crossing the road to the north. The yearling cub always seems to take its time crossing but Doug made sure it crossed before moving on. At 6:40 a.m. We found the grizzly sow with two cubs of the year on K-3 clearing high southwest of Footbridge Pullout. Good viewing with both families in sight at the same time. At 7:15 a.m. the alone cub of the year was north of Soda Butte East Pullout, it had been on its own since May 29th and seems to be digging and eating enough to survive, if nothing bigger catches it. At 9:00 a.m. I saw the grizzly sow with three cubs of the year briefly in Salad Bowl. I was not quick enough to tell Randi M where to see them. Later we staked out the area and at 12;30 p.m. they came back into view for great viewing, and we shared the sighting with lots of people. At 5:45 p.m. Bob W had a colorful grizzly digging high south of the #3 finger on Norris.
June 14th - Friday
54 degrees this morning in Silver Gate warming up to 83 degrees out in the park. We watched a beaver walk up the Soda Butte Creek near Footbridge this morning. Only one harlequin male duck at Footbridge this morning. I had two foxes on the road today, but never saw a wolf today. A little rainstorm slowed the bear watching early today. At 6:15 a.m. Randi M and Gary G found the grizzly sow with two cubs of the year high in the Bowl. A minute later Gary G and Randi M found the grizzly with three cubs of the year lower in the Bowl. The families are moving to the east, which worries us as they soon may move to where we can no longer see them. At 6:20 a.m. Gary G found the grizzly sow with two cubs of the year northwest of the Institute. I think this is a new family because the cubs of the year are really small. Others feel that this made be the Footbridge grizzly sow with now only two remaining cubs of the year. At 7:50 a.m. Kristina G called with grizzlies north of Soda Butte East Pullout. It was the grizzly sow with three yearling cubs digging in heavier trees to the north. At 8:15 a.m. I found the Ski Slope grizzly sow with one cub of the year below the snow cornices. A long-distance spot but fortunately the cub of the year was running around so we could see it. At 8:15 a.m. a large black bear (we think, a brief sighting) under the grizzly with the three yearlings. From 8:25 a.m. through 9:30 a.m. we watched three separate grizzlies on the #2 finger on Norris. Gary G found them. We had two smaller colorful grizzlies running from a larger grizzly. After chasing one of the small colorful grizzlies to the east, the larger grizzly found and chased a second small colorful grizzly to the west. We left with the larger grizzly getting its wish, being the only one left to dig on the # 2 finger on Norris. At 11:00 a.m. Gary G found a colorful grizzly digging in the Bowl watching from near the Institute. At 11:20 a.m. I found a grizzly family high to the south almost skyline viewed from the Institute. I counted three cubs of the year and thinking the earlier family seen in the Bowl had moved a long way. But soon we counted four cubs of the year. It had to be the grizzly seen several days earlier with five cubs of the year on Specimen Ridge. Gary G, Randi M and I counted the four several times. Later Paul H who had not been there earlier joined me and the grizzly sow and cubs did come out into view again. We recounted four and only four cubs of the year. At 3:45 p.m. we had a black bear making a nice sized bear jam near Pebble Creek.
June 15th - Saturday
45 degrees this morning warming up to 80 degrees out in the park with afternoon winds. At 4:04 a.m. I had a bear cross the road near Lower Barronette, I could not see if it was a grizzly or a black bear. We had three harlequin male ducks in the Soda Butte Creek at Footbridge this morning. The Soda Butte Campground just east of Cooke City is open now. The power was off this afternoon and still tonight in Silver Gate and Cooke City. Apparently, the winds caused a transformer to blow and start a fire near Pilot Creek. It was very windy here so fighting the fire will be trouble. At 5:15 a.m. Gary G found the grizzly with two cubs of the year again northwest of the Institute. At 6:45 a.m. I found the first of two sub adult grizzlies digging in the Bowl. Today they were a way apart but did get closer later. At 7:00 a.m. I found a grizzly family with cubs of the year on the second clearing behind Bear Meadow. Everyone soon confirmed a court of four cubs of the year. Today they remained in view for a long time, and we and some of the guides showed a lot of people a rare sight in Yellowstone - a grizzly sow with four cubs of the year. Now I think it has to be the sow that had five cubs of the year earlier on Specimen Ridge. At 7:00 a.m. Gary G found a grizzly south of Dorothy's Pullout heading for the road. It crossed to the north a little later. At 7:35 a.m. Gary G found the grizzly with three cubs of the year low in the Bowl. At 9:00 a.m. Gary G. from Footbridge Pullout found a grizzly on a clearing northeast of Pebble Creek, a lot of miles on that sighting. We moved to Soda Butte Middle Pullout and had to change our notes, as now we could see it had two cubs of the year. It spent quite a bit of time right at the skyline for good viewing considering the still long sighting. At 10:40 a.m. I found the grizzly sow with three yearling cubs today northeast of the Institute. Today was playing and wrestling and chasing for the three cubs. Two continued long after one of the three decided to hang out with the sow. One big bear jam at the Institute this morning with people watching the family of four and getting looks at the coyote den at Ranger Rock, northwest of the Ranger Station. At 11:30 a.m. Gary found a nice sized colorful grizzly almost skyline southeast of Footbridge digging. At 11:45 a.m. I found two grizzlies digging on the second skyline clearing east of Penny Lane from Footbridge. The darker one was larger, and the colorful grizzly was smaller, we guessed a pair of sub adults with one male and one female. At 1:50 p.m. we had a courting pair of black bears, the boar a large cinnamon and the sow a black bear in the Slough Bowl.
June 16th - Sunday
44 degrees at Silver Gate this morning warming up to 68 degrees with a strong afternoon wind. I had two foxes on the road going into the park this morning and two foxes on the road coming out of the park this afternoon. One of the foxes had a large rabbit in its mouth heading back to its den. At 5:20 a.m. Gary G had a large grizzly across the Lamar River walking towards Amethyst Bench. At 5:25 a.m. I found the grizzly sow with two cubs of the year on No Bear Meadow. They were moving already this morning going over the skyline quickly. At 5:45 a.m. I found the grizzly sow with four cubs (believe this is the sow that had five earlier on Specimen Ridge) on the clearing east of The Bell. A long look but the cubs were spread out well for good viewing. At 6:15 a.m. Gary G found the courting pair of black bears north of Fisherman's Pullout. It was a large cinnamon boar and a smaller black sow black bear that we had seen yesterday in the Slough Bowl. At 6:45 a.m. Michael S, Wolf Tracker, called out that he had the sow with three cubs of the year in view from Dorothy's Pullout. We were stuck in a bison jam near the Confluence so turned around and headed back west. We found them just west of A-Z Meadow digging and traveling to the east. Most of the grizzlies we found today appeared to be traveling more than usual. At 9:10 a.m. Gary G found a colorful grizzly north of Picnic Area. It really glowed in the sun. At 9:25 a.m. I found a grizzly high south of the Institute. We were viewing from the dirt parking space east of the Institute on the north side of the road. At 9:30 a.m. I looked above the lone grizzly and found the grizzly sow with three yearlings feeding and moving to the east not too far above the lone grizzly below. At 9:40 a.m. Gary G found a colorful sub adult grizzly on Ski Slope viewed from the dirt pullout east of the Institute. At 10:00 a.m. we had a grizzly digging in the Bell. At 11:30 a.m. I found the Ski Slope grizzly sow with one cub of the year below the snow cornices southwest of Footbridge Pullout. I was lucky to find them in a small snow patch and the cub was running around helping me spot them. A brief view as they quickly went out of sight, and we could not locate them again later.
People Seen
Wolf Watchers: From Montana: Rick M, Kristina G, Taylor R, Jeremy S, Carolyn G and Melba C. From Utah: Paul H. From Wyoming: Christy G and Paul. From Idaho: Ray L and Kathy. Bear Watchers seen this report: From Washington: Randi M. From New Mexico: Bob W. From Utah: Gail and Julie. From California: Jim and Amber H. From Montana: Doug M and Jack G. From Mississippi: Gary G. And From Colorado: Rick and Tanner H. Others seen this report: From Montana: Evan S, Mike S, Grant J, Steve B, Dan and Cindy H, Kyle D, Michael S, Quinn H, Nate U, Hunter G, Bob L, and Kate J. From Vermont: John K. And From Idaho: Scott B.
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
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