TRIP REPORT: Yellowstone (Feb. 19, 2023)
Well y’all, I had originally planned to have an entire weeks worth to report on, but got a day instead! So what happened? Let’s back up to Saturday.
With all my other commitments in 2023, I only have about 5 vacation days to myself this year. I’d decided that I’d use those precious few days for a week up in Yellowstone’s northern range, something that’s become a tradition for me over the last few years. I put in my time off request, packed up my car with a week’s worth of supplies, and made the drive up to Gardiner, which usually takes me about 10 hours. (If wildlife photography’s my first love, thrifting is my second. So naturally, I had to make a few stops.) After getting in around midnight, I settled into my comfy sleeping bag (more on that lifesaver in a future post) and tried to fall asleep, excited for Sunday.
I got moving around 6:30am. Later than usual, but the sun wasn’t set to rise until 7:15am anyway. It was about 16 degrees (warm!) and I took the winding new road into the park, seeing a few bison in the dark. A group of elk stood out silhouetted on a ridge, and I made a mental note to come back and check them out later.
Shortly after I crossed the Gardiner River Bridge, I spotted a red fox trotting down the road towards me! I’d never seen a fox in that area before! Still too dark for any pictures, I turned around at the next turn out to watch him for a bit. Not long after, I saw a coyote, likely the same grayish one I’d photographed last month.
7:00 am and I’d already spotted a red fox and coyote. All I needed was a wolf to complete a three dog day!
The world was light by 8 o’clock as I made my way past Slough Creek and the new road construction. I checked for eagles in the Cottonwood trees, and saw some locals at the end of Lamar Valley, 3 moose far out on the other side of the river.
Around 8:30 am I spotted a pair of coyotes in the trodden down area next to Soda Butte. I stopped to photograph and film them for a while, laughing as they took turns pooping and pissing all over the area. Ahhh, young love.
Coyotes are extremely loyal and keep the same mate throughout their lives, only finding a new love if their previous partner dies.
As they sat down for a rest I left them and continued on to Pebble Creek, hoping for some action there. As usual, there were bison around but none in an inspiring spot for shooting. No sign of the moose that sometimes frequent the willows and river there. I decided I’d hit Cooke City later, and headed back towards Gardiner, intending to check on the elk I’d spotted before dawn.
Before I could reach the area where I’d spotted them, I saw a good number of cars parked in the pullouts at the Gardiner River Bridge. I found a spot and got out to talk to a friendly group, and my ears immediately perked up when they said there was a bison carcass far below us. Maybe I’d get my three dog day after all! The small crowd began to talk excitedly as a coyote approached the carcass, pulling off a gratuitous chunk and running up the steep hill across from us.
When I have trouble spotting carcasses amongst the sagebrush, magpies and ravens always come to the rescue.
After waiting for a bit, I did a quick check of the Mammoth Hot Springs area where I sometimes find mule deer this time of year. I went back to check on the bison carcass, the area now empty of people. I sat alone as snow started to come down, and watched as the coyote came back for seconds. He frantically tugged on different parts of the carcass, pausing often to look for danger. That alone suggested it wasn’t his kill, although if it was wolves that had taken the small bison down, they weren’t keeping an eye on it anymore. I gave up on wolf sightings at the carcass as I saw my coyote friend run away with the entire spinal column of the kill, teeter-tottering as it threw him off balance.
I watched, thoroughly amused and impressed, as the coyote carried away a snack as big as he was.
Noon came and I was back deeper in the park, turning my car around to photograph a bison crossing one of the frozen ponds, getting my favorite photos of the trip. Gusts of wind had started to appear that weren’t there in the morning, a hint of what was on its way.
A reccuring theme this trip: the difference a few seconds can make.
By 1 o’clock I’d made it back to Lamar Valley and saw my favorite familiar face: Limpy. He’s a coyote in the northern range with a - you guessed it - iconic limp. He was injured (probably by a car) some years ago but soldiers on, doing just fine. As people stopped to take photos, he hobbled back up the hill to sit and wait for another chance to cross the road. The wind whipped up again, blowing so strong at one point that it held his tail straight out behind him like a pennant flag. And yet, within a minute the sun shone so brightly that it painted a perfect shadow of Limpy on the snow beside him.
Once again, the difference a few seconds can make!
I did another quick trip to Pebble Creek and back, my stomach starting to grumble. I hadn’t had my usual breakfast of apple sauce and granola bars, so I planned to stop at Lava Creek picnic site and test out my boyfriend’s portable stove to make a quick mac n’ cheese. Lofty dreams, Chrissy, lofty dreams.
Despite my stomach’s disagreement, I stopped to photograph some dippers along the Lamar River, awesome little birds and North America’s only aquatic songbird! They perch right on the water’s edge, bobbing their little butts in a groovy dance before diving completely under the water to collect food, usually aquatic insects and larva. Once again, gusts of wind would all but obscure some of my shots. Where I’d once got awesome photos last year, the snow was up to my knees or higher, so I decided to come back to the dipper dance another time and hightail it to Lava Creek.
Shooting through a bush gave these photos a red tint and splotchy-ness, so I’m opting for black & white here.
My stomach’s grumbles were replaced with butterflies as I rounded a corner past Petrified Tree, where I saw a group of cars stopped with their flashers on, others slowing down, and some people out with their cameras. “Wolves?!?!” I thought, about to have a heart attack. A red fox it turned out, still a joy to see. I drove ahead to a pull out and walked down the road to take some photos. I mentally kicked myself for not at least bringing a granola bar to snack on, but couldn’t bring myself to head back to the car to grab one. What if she stands up and starts hunting? I’d never gotten a photo of a fox’s classic winter leap, so I carved out a little bench of snow beside the road and settled down to wait.
The sun appeared again, sending playful shadows across the tiny snow mounds.
The fox lifted her head a few times, but as the time passed it was pretty obvious it was nap time for her, not lunch time. So I decided to get on with my own lunch mission, and got back on the road. As I passed Lava Creek, the snow began to fall again and I realized I’d misremembered the picnic area. The tables were completely buried in snow, only a tiny parking spot carved out for the bathroom. So I continued on to Mammoth Hot Springs, stopping for a quick check on the bison carcass from earlier. Nothing.
As I poked around Mammoth Hot Springs looking for a place to lunch, the snow continued to fall. I pictured myself trying to light the little camp stove in the snowfall, and decided eh, I’m only 8 minutes from Gardiner at this point. Maybe I’ll treat myself and just stop there for a late lunch.
By the time I settled on Wonderland Cafe & Lodge for lunch (an easy decision) it was already getting close to their 4:00pm trivia time. I made a quick meal of their Wonderland Burger (with added goat cheese, YUM) and used the time and cell service to check my phone and instagram. I always love to see what my fellow wildlife photographers are up to, especially if they’re in the area too. I saw Trent Sizemore talking about the incoming storm, and went online to find out more. Of course, I’d checked the weather Friday night, but it was only forecasted at about 3”-5” inches a day, something me and my Subaru can handle, especially with the snow plows.
NOAA however, had changed their tune. I scratched my head as I looked at the forecast: 1 - 14 inches possible overnight, and much more on the way.
Well, that’s not very helpful.
I finished my burger, and said hello to my photography hanging up in the women’s bathroom. “I really need to get a copy of The Pooper hanging in the men’s,” I thought to myself. I was starting to think about cutting this trip short. If I got back home in time, I could withdraw my PTO request and get my vacation days back. I’d hate to use up 2-3 valuable days on a snow storm with little to no visibility. And that’s if I can even get my car moving in the morning.
I wasn’t about to miss the last two hours of the day though, so I hopped back in my car to do one last loop of the road as I mulled over my options. I stopped at the bison carcass for another check, but there was no sign of anything but magpies on it. I passed by the fox, still napping in the same spot hours later. By 5:00pm it was already getting dark, although sunset wasn’t scheduled for another hour. The incoming storm’s clouds were already blocking out most of the sky. I turned around early, deciding to spend the last sliver of the day with the red fox, but by the time I’d reached her again it was too dark for good photos.
There she was, curled up tight with snow collecting on her back like powdered sugar. Would she wake up under a foot of snow in the morning?
By the time I made it back to Gardiner I’d decided it. I kept saying to myself, “Oh, if I was smart I’d leave today...” I decided to be smart for once and head home. Road closures happen often out here, and I knew if I tried to head home Monday night I could get stuck. No disrespect to Idaho, but I didn’t want to spend my precious few vacation days in a motel there. So, after just a day of shooting I began the long journey again, for the second night in a row.
I didn’t get home until 3:30am, and spent President’s day on the couch being lazy and catching up on The Last of Us. But as the Yellowstone alerts rolled in this morning, East Entrance closed, South Entrance Closed, Lake to Canyon closed, Old Faithful to Lake closed, I knew I’d made the right decision. I guess this year I’ll just break tradition, and trade a week of winter for a week of baby bears come May! For now, I’ll be watching online to see what cool encounters I missed out on this week (watch it be another wolverine.)
If you made it this far, thanks for reading my very first Trip Report! I’ll try not to be so long winded next time! It’s Tuesday night now, and the storm has reached us here in Utah. In the time it took me to write this, 3 to 4 inches of snow piled up on top of my car. Some stores are preemptively closed tomorrow, the University canceled classes, and there’s a good chance we’ll get a foot of snow tonight in the city. As much as I love my car bed, I’m glad I cut this trip short and am snuggled up in my real bed tonight. Til next time!
Chrissy
