Expect the Unexpected

The Playful Wolves of Yellowstone

By Diane Simpson

On our most recent trip to the nation’s first national park, established in 1872, we were once again enthralled with the beauty of the landscapes and the commanding presence of Yellowstone’s wildlife inhabitants. It was springtime. The grasses and marshes were full of new greens, golds, browns and burgundies. The sky was vibrant blue and there were still large patches of snow making the meadows and hills look like misplaced golf courses.

Wildlife photography is my hobby and Yellowstone offers unending opportunities to capture magnificent animals in their natural habitat. On our first visit we underestimated the 2.2 million acre size of the park, and the time it would take to get from point A to point B, but we were hooked. For the past nine years we have traveled to Yellowstone once or twice a year to embark on our own photographic safari.

On that first visit we overheard someone ask a park ranger “Where are the animals?” He replied, “Wherever you see them.” How true it is. The wildlife of Yellowstone creates challenges for experienced as well as novice camera buffs yet there are new and wonderful moments to capture on each visit. Always expect the unexpected. You never know what will be around the next turn. Animals wander all over the park but over the years we have narrowed down areas where we are more likely to see certain animals.

In May, we had been in Yellowstone for three days and had already seen the ever-expanding herds of buffalo which were still in the calving phase. Those orange buffalo babies are easily spotted and a joy to watch at rest or play.  Buffalo can be found throughout the park but the drive from West Yellowstone to Madison is always good for photographing these bulky animals. There is a lot of level terrain that makes positioning easier. There are also wonderful backgrounds including towering mountains, the gently turning Madison River and rocky crags that can serve as a camouflage for many animal species.

The bull elk, so majestic in the fall with their wide racks, were just sprouting velvet covered antlers. These too can be found along the Madison River and throughout the park. If you go north at Madison junction, the elk are in abundance all the way to Mammoth Hot Springs where you can see them up close and personal. Both areas are especially attractive in September during the rut. You can watch and photograph the elk collecting and protecting their harems. It is not uncommon to see two bulls vie for the herd with their antlers cracking, and their bugling echoing through the valleys.

Traveling south from Mammoth Hot Springs on our second morning we detoured through a one-way drive immediately behind Mammoth Hot Springs where the oozing mineralized waters of the springs were slowly and methodically devouring all in their sight. Trees had become twisted and gnarled then died, creating a surreal landscape.  The hardening mineral waters create areas resembling frozen ice overhangs. When the morning light hits them, they are breathtaking. Photographers stand at the ready to capture them at just the right sunlit moment.

We continued south toward Norris Geyser Basin and spotted a family of otters resting on the side of a stream near Swan Lake. We had seen otters swimming on several occasions but never resting on the river’s edge. They were skiddish, making picture-taking opportunities limited at best. The great thing about pictures though is just capturing the moment. The picture does not have to be gallery-quality, just an opportunity to remember special times, special places, special friends.

Later in the day we traveled across the year-round northern roadway connecting Gardiner, Montana to Cooke City. In the Roosevelt junction area we saw a female black bear and her two cinnamon cubs who presented another joyful glimpse of the natural order of things. A mother coyote peacefully nursing her young pups rounded out another spectacular day in the park. Though we had seen these animals on numerous occasions, each time is like the first time, exciting, unexpected and breath-taking.

On another crystal clear day we entered Hayden Valley and were witness to an extraordinary, once in a lifetime opportunity. As we were watching a beautiful heron in a perfectly still pool of water at Alum Creek, two healthy, fun-loving wolves came out of nowhere and presented a spectacular show for our private enjoyment. Not more than 10 yards from our car window, they played and posed for the next 15 minutes. They looked deceptively harmless, more like large, stray German Shepards than wild carnivores. Our hearts were racing, our hands were shaking. We understood the rare opportunity being offered to us.

There are thousands of pictures of wolves on the hunt, wolves on a kill and wolves marching in the snow. Our golden opportunity was to watch them at play. They rolled in the snow, bowed to mother earth, went through their exercise regime, yawned, hiked, ran, posed and in a humorous moment, Gracie, as we fondly named her, stuck out her tongue! {Place picture #6Gracie here} There is nothing like a wolf with a sense of humor. Both wolves would look right at us but never made any attempt to approach our car. We watched, took more pictures than we ever imagined and felt our excitement build.

As quickly as they appeared, they ambled off into the vastness of Yellowstone.  We regretfully watched them go, realizing our brief time with them had given us memories to last a lifetime.

We have traveled over half the world, seen unbelievable sights and yet found the beauty and joy we seek as we captured these special moments communing with the wolves on a sunlit day in May.