Spring is officially a few days away, but after a bearish winter, the first grizzly of the season has been spotted in Yellowstone National Park.
Early Wednesday morning, March 15, a park employee observed a grizzly bear between Mammoth Hot Springs and Tower-Roosevelt, according to a statement released by the park’s public affairs office. It is the first confirmed bear sighting this year, although bear tracks have been observed since February 22. Later in the morning, park staff saw two more grizzly bears scavenging carcasses in the northern part of the park.
When bears emerge from hibernation they look for food and often feed on elk, bison and other animals that died over the winter. Sometimes, bears will react aggressively while feeding on carcasses.
All of Yellowstone National Park and much of the surrounding area is bear country. Continue Reading →
Recent Posts
Yellowstone visitation up slightly in September
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Visitation numbers for September increased slightly in Yellowstone National Park compared to last year. The overall increase for September 2016 totaled 3.17 percent over September 2015. The first eight months of 2016 are up 4.1 percent compared to the previous year, according to a statement released by the park's public affairs office. Continue Reading →
Filed under: Yellowstone
Snow briefly closes east entrance to Yellowstone
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The East Entrance to Yellowstone National Park was briefly closed Tuesday after steady snowfall Monday made travel over Sylvan Pass too hazardous. Several inches of snow accumulated along the 8,524-foot pass, and park officials closed the pass in the early morning hours of Tuesday until about mid-day.The road between Cody, Wyo. and Fishing Bridge was re-opened around 11 a.m., and traffic was moving smoothly over the pass early Tuesday afternoon, despite continuing snowfall. Continue Reading →
Filed under: Gateway Towns, Yellowstone
Yellowstone south entrance reopens after closure due to wildfire
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Authorities have closed the main connector road between the south end of Yellowstone National Park and northern border of Grand Teton National Park after a wildfire that started last month has grown to nearly 7,000 acres. The closure means vacation travelers must detour at least 150 miles to move between the neighboring parks, which are connected by an 8-mile scenic parkway. Continue Reading →
Filed under: Grand Teton, Yellowstone, berry fire, closures, fire, road closures, safety, south entrance
Yellowstone roads begin opening to autos for season
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Spring is a great time to see Yellowstone National Park as the landscape begins to shed its winter garb of ice and snow. Animals are becoming more active with the change of season, and newborn wildlife begin moving through the park. Most importantly for local residents, it's a chance to visit Yellowstone before the summer crowds arrive, bringing traffic and congestion to the world's first national park. Road segments throughout the park will follow a staggered opening in the next few weeks, with the road from West Yellowstone and Mammoth Hot Springs to Old Faithful and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone already open for the season, allowing visitors to travel by car to two of the park’s iconic locations. Continue Reading →
Filed under: Gateway Towns, Yellowstone, spring, traffic
Yellowstone invites anglers to annual spring meetings
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Yellowstone National Park staff members will travel to gateway communities next week to talk with anglers about the ongoing efforts to restore native fish species, the threat of aquatic invasive species, and the park’s fishing regulations. In addition to the general public, local fly shop employees and fishing guides are encouraged to attend the outreach meetings. Continue Reading →
Filed under: Gateway Towns, Wildlife, Yellowstone, fishing
Yellowstone celebrates Earth Day in Gardiner
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On Saturday, April 23rd, Yellowstone National Park, the Yellowstone Environmental Coordinating Committee (YECC), and community partners from Gardiner, Mont. will celebrate the 46th anniversary of Earth Day with a community clean-up, waste collection and recycling opportunities, youth activities, information on local environmental initiatives, and more. All Earth Day activities are free of charge and located at the Gardiner Public School. Continue Reading →
Filed under: Gateway Towns, Yellowstone, earth day, gardiner
Spring bicycling begins on select Yellowstone roads
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Some roads in Yellowstone National Park are now open to bicyclists as plow crews work to clear ice and snow in preparation for the park opening to autos later this month. Bicycles are allowed now on 49 miles of park roads from the West Entrance at West Yellowstone, Montana, to Mammoth Hot Springs. But there is no bicycle access to Old Faithful or Canyon until the first interior park roads open to public motorized vehicle access on Friday, April 15. Continue Reading →
Filed under: Yellowstone, bicycles, cycling, spring
Bears emerging from dens across Yellowstone region
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Grizzly bears are emerging from hibernation in the greater Yellowstone area, so hikers, skiers and snowshoers should stay in groups of three of more, make noise on the trail, and carry bear spray. Bear spray is a good last line of defense, if kept handy and used according to directions, when a bear is approaching within 30 to 60 feet. The first confirmed report of grizzly bear activity in Yellowstone National Park was February 22. Wolf biologists observed a large grizzly bear in the Nez Perce drainage. Continue Reading →
Filed under: Wildlife, Yellowstone, black bears, grizzly bears, hibernation, safety
Public meeting in Gardiner for Yellowstone quarantine plan
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The National Park Service has completed an Environmental Assessment (EA) that evaluates various alternatives for a quarantine program for Yellowstone bison. The purpose of a quarantine program would be to augment or establish new tribal and public populations of plains bison to assist in the conservation of the species as wildlife, support cultural and nutritional opportunities for Native Americans, and reduce the number of Yellowstone bison shipped to processing facilities. Continue Reading →