It’s the time of early spring in Yellowstone when we are eager to be outside despite pretty iffy weather, combing the landscape for any signs of new life. Spring wildlife watching in Yellowstone is not really for the faint of heart. At first, the changes are subtle, and few. Buttercups, bluebirds, meadowlarks, sandhill cranes, and the real prizes – the first grizzly sightings, and the first bison calf. Each new gem makes our hearts sing after a long winter.
I’ve been driving the northern range regularly in hopes of finding a baby bison. Today, I found a wolf instead! Actually three wolves, 2 blacks and a grey, who spent some time howling after crossing the road. (Photo taken from a vehicle with a telephoto lens). You can see a video of the wolf here.
I decide to spend the afternoon taking a walk to a sit spot overlooking Slough Creek. Coyotes are howling on two sides as I walk down the still gated gravel road. A raven flies over, wings a breathy, voiceless chop with each beat. Sandhill cranes – three of them - screech as they take flight down by the river.
Far off in the distance, I see a large group of bison running from the creek bottom to a spot up higher on the sage covered slopes. I look to see if there is something that disturbed them, but don't immediately see anything obvious. Bison are tricky –sometimes they will run just for the heck of it, rather than from a threat (herds of animals running can be one of the signs a predator is in the area). Still, I scan over in the direction from which they ran from time to time to see if anything emerges.
I walked down here to look for the baby bison – the first we've heard about – that's supposed to be around Slough Creek somewhere. It wasn't visible from the road, and I decided a walk and a sit spot would do me good. Right now, drowsy in this moment of stillness warmed by the sun, listening to the gentle whirring of goldeneye wings, I am thinking that this was a very good idea.
After about 15-20 minutes, I scan back to where the bison had vacated and see a moving brown spot. Pulling the binoculars up to my face, I say to myself “well, well, well! It seems the bison herd I saw running did have a reason.” And there it is, my first grizzly bear of the year, lumbering through the bottom lands by the creek. I watch until it disappears below the cut bank of the creek and out of sight.
What a gift to get out of the dull monotony of the car and be on the landscape. Had I not picked a sit spot and lingered for a while, I never would have noticed the bison running, or seen the grizzly bear.
Eventually the sun went behind the clouds and a cold breeze chased me out of my sit spot and back to the car. I made one last attempt to find the bison calf before heading home, and….just a few hundred yards down the road from the parking lot I spot it!
I wish I could describe to you the feeling in my chest right at the moment when I see my first bison calf for the year. It’s like a warm, sparkly light expanding in my chest and filling me with joy. It’s hard to find words for it, but I suspect there are a whole lot of you who can imagine what that might feel like. I can’t stop grinning as I’m watching the little tyke curled up next to mom, and then urging her to get up to nurse.
Want Yellowstone experiences like these? Here are a few guides that will help:
