Lamar Valley, Yellowstone National Park -- The
howling started off low and timid. Then a wolf
returning from the hunt answered and the woods burst
with the greeting howls of young and old wolves. The
sounds seemed to surround us.
Welcome to the wonders of Yellowstone National
Park.
Twelve of us had packed into a Yellowstone
Institute mini bus at 6 a.m. at Mammoth Hot Springs
and drove to Lamar Valley in the dark hoping to
catching a glimpse of a wolf. None of us expected to
hear wolves howling.
It was day two of a four day Fall Wolf and Elk
Discovery program put on by the Yellowstone
Institute and Xanterra Inc., Yellowstone National
Park’s Official Lodging and Learning Program.
Most of us selected the tour because it
packaged a guided naturalist experience with
transportation around the park and lodging. Hikes
were short and not strenuous. Plus, there is comfort
in numbers in a place that is home on the range to
buffalo, bears and wolves.
Our guide Brad Bulin knew where the various
wolves packs hunted and where the elk herds roamed.
None of us did. Most of us are novice wildlife
watchers. This was the first trip to the park for
several in the group.
“This exceeds my greatest expectations,” said
Sam Merrel of Hermosa Beach California. “It is my
first trip to Yellowstone and to see and hear wolves
and bull elk bulging is amazing.”
The first day we hiked a half mile to an
abandon wolf den. Nestled in the trees on a hillside
overlooking the Lamar Valley, is the place where
some of the first wolves relocated to Yellowstone
raised their pups.
Dug deep into the hillside with side tunnels
and vents it was the first wolf den any of us had
ever seen. It was in perfect condition despite not
having been used for several years.
“This is impressive,” said retired vet John
Kalchbrenner of Homer Glen, Illinois. “The depth of
excavation and series of ventilation shafts are
engineering feats for canines.”
John, a retired vet, worked extensively with
dogs over a 35 year career. He added interesting
insights to the fate of an injured wolf we saw two
days later.
Elk are wolves main dinner item in the park.
Elk seemed to surround us. September and October are
the months bull elk court and fight over the
breeding rights as herd bull.
Elk love starts early in Yellowstone. A bull’s
eerie deep whistle and grunting woke me at 3:30 a.m.
as the sound resonated off my cabin‘s walls.
Later, outside the Mammoth Hotel two small elk
herds mingled causing traffic jams and some
dangerously close wildlife encounters. Four mature
bulls challenged each other. Two locked antlers in a
pushing match. One would dominate staking out a
brief claim to breeding rights of all the females he
could keep herded up.
Hormones and tempers spilled over into the road
with several cars being charged and gashed by
massive antlers and visitors chased.
Rangers tranquilized one of the biggest bulls
with a dart and sawed his antlers off. It was the
second time in two years the bull, dubbed number
six, faced the consequences of his aggression
directed at people and vehicles. Weighing over 750
pounds and sporting massive six point antlers he
ripped a car hood open like a can opener. He was
intimidating.
While elk are seen close up, most wolf watching
takes place through spotting scopes of 40 to 60
power magnification at over a mile. The wolves are
shimmering images viewed through specially crafted
lenses costing from $350 to $2,000. We spent early
morning hours glued to scopes watching intriguing
specs exchanging greetings and tail wagging.
Then we found a kill less than a quarter of a
mile off the road. A coyote with elk blood covering
his face was jerking chunk of meat off the elk
carcass when a jet black wolf appeared. At three in
the afternoon this was unheard of!
Something was wrong with the big wolf. There
was a pronounced limp in her right front leg, she
seemed to drag his back opposite leg and her tail
hung low. As she approached the carcass the coyote
didn’t flee. It held it’s ground.
“My heart went out to the wolf,” said Shirley
Boone of North Carolina. “You always see them as
such magnificent and powerful animals on television.
Watching this poor animal try to feed and then limp
off to find its pack brought tears to my eyes.”
The Fall Wolf and Elk Lodging and Learning
Program provided exceptional sightings and insights
into the wildlife of Yellowstone. It is easy, safe
and helped us understand why our nation’s first
national park is such a treasure.
For more information and the rest of the story
on this unique experience go to
www.wildlifeadventur.com
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“Learn about Yellowstone’s marquee predator and prey
species during the elk’s mating season. Programs
include classroom sessions, wildlife watching tours
and short hikes,” read the Yellowstone Association
Institute’s Fall Wolf and Elk Discovery program
description.
Learn we did. We watch two bull elk lock
antlers in a pushing match tear up sagebrush not 100
yards from the Mammoth Hotel. Two small elk herds
mingled in front of us causing traffic jams and
some dangerously close wildlife encounters.
Four mature bulls bulged and challenged each
other as they courted the herd‘s females. The
annual genetic drive to breed and reproduce was in
full bloom and in plain view of park visitors.
The day before bull Number 6, named after his
ear tag, moved in to take over as reigning herd
bull.
Hormones and tempers spilled over into the road
with several cars being charged and visitors chased.
The scene changed quickly from a photo opt to fear
and people scrambled for cover.
Number 6, weighing in at over 750 pounds
brandishing massive six point antlers charged a
vehicle and used his antlers like a can opener
ripping the hood.
Enough, rangers tranquilized Number 6 and
sawed off his antlers. This was the second year in a
row Number 6 faced the consequences of his
aggression. Minus his massive antlers he was chased
away by other bulls and will face wolf attacks
without his weapons.
Yellowstone Association Institute naturalist
Brad Bulin summarized the events.
“The elk on the lawn and around the buildings
at Mammoth are not in a natural setting. Once the
breeding season starts mature bulls move in to
establish dominance. People and vehicles end up in
the middle of it.”
What a way to start learning about elk and
wolves! The next three days twelve of us students
met at 6 a.m. and piled into the Institute’s mini
bus and drove to Lamar Valley looking for wolves.
Bulin guided us, he knew where the various
wolves packs hunted and how to check with dedicated
“Wolf Watchers,” to get wolf sighting locations.
This was the first trip to the park for several in
the group and most were novice wildlife watcher.
We didn’t have a clue on how to find different
wolf packs. Wolf watching takes place through 40 to
60 power spotting scopes. Most of our sighting were
over a mile away. We spent early morning hours
glued to the institute’s scopes watching intriguing
wolf specs exchanging greetings and tail wagging and
imaged a faintly howl or two.
Then we found a fresh killed six point bull
elk less than a quarter of a mile off the road. We
watched a coyote jerk chunk of meat off the carcass
when a jet black wolf appeared.
Something was wrong with the big wolf. There
was a pronounced limp in her right front leg, she
seemed to drag her back opposite leg and her tail
hung low. As she approached the carcass the coyote
didn’t flee.
“My heart went out to the wolf,” said Shirley
Boone of North Carolina. “You always see them as
such magnificent and powerful animals on television.
Watching this poor animal try to feed and then limp
off to try and find its pack brought tears to my
eyes.”
Inspire, educate and preserve is the
Yellowstone Association Institute slogan. It
described our feelings perfectly. The Lodging and
Learning Programs provided us with exceptional
sightings and insights into Yellowstone. Together
the Yellowstone Institute naturalists and Xanterra
Inc., do a great job as Yellowstone National Park’s
official program sponsors.
