YELLOWSTONE'S WILD WORLD

One of the things that I love about new places is not knowing what to expect.  I see the images that others take but refuse to study them before going to a new place because it is important to me to look at each new piece of information with a beginner’s eye.

I understand that for some they don’t have the luxury of time to take things as they come and generally have to fit all of their goals into a short period of time, making research essential.  But, for me, I promised myself that luxury – even if I had to camp in a tent or sleep in a car, I would take the time to explore and discover.

So, you can just imagine what it was like for me that first fall in the Tetons when everything turned yellow and the leaves danced in the air before falling to the ground.  And then the day that it snowed over that perfect yellow world.  I ran around trying to capture it all – every piece of magic that I could find.

But, there was one thing that I knew nothing about and one disturbing event that tore the magic from my soul.  There were hunters killing the elk!  Bam!  It was not safe to hike down by the river.  In fact, I was even afraid to drive down that way.  I remember trying to take the mature approach and even interacted with some hunters but all the while I was thinking that this was not fair.  I did not come to a national park to dodge bullets.

Last year, I was down there during the hunt, without thinking about it, watching some gorgeous elk as the sun was coming up.  And then there were hunters, orange vests, rifles and running.  I had to leave the area and even took a different route back to my motel so that I could not see the elk that had been standing there in such a beautiful way as carcasses.

And, so I mostly stayed with the moose and whatever could be found where hunting was not allowed.  I found my little pieces of magic but also shortened my stay because I did not know when an animal would fall victim to a bullet right before my eyes.

Here are some of the images I captured during my short stay.

The TA Moulton barn above – I always try to capture the barn from a different angle, during each visit and this is one composition I have never seen anyone else do.  Below is a more traditional view, which do you like?

I managed to find a single bull elk bugling deep in the park where hunting was not allowed.

This next photo was actually taken earlier in the year, during the rut.

I tried to capture the bison in front of the majestic Teton mountain range earlier that year, in the summer when the lupine were blooming, but none of those bison would put their heads up for me.

And, back to my Fall visit and sticking with the moose.  I was so afraid of finding myself outside of the park where moose hunting was allowed and watching one go to its knees.  It felt like bullets were flying even when they were no where around.

In Yellowstone last year we saw lots of moose and each one was great.  This year, so far, none.  But, in the Tetons the moose are plentiful and huge.  On this particular day I had been watching a small bull and a cow when suddenly a big guy appeared.  I mean big!  I wished for a smaller lens at that moment, to capture the mountains but it was all I could do to photograph him as it was.

He kept his eye on me but he kept coming.

I was so nervous that it is amazing that I captured him at all.  He was my first big bull moose up close.

The light was all wrong but no time to switch position and in the end, I love the deep tones – even the antler shade across his body.

By now I had my wits about me and had reached for a shorter lens but was nervous that he was crossing so close.  Moose scare me because they are unpredictable.

But, he went on by.  The only thing on that bull’s mind was the girl.

It was time for me to head back to Yellowstone but I remember that later that day 399 made an appearance.  She was doing the gut pile rounds, getting some protein before going to the den.

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