Wild Memories Photography Tours

By Deby Dixon

The day began cold with sun filtering through the clouds and fresh snow covering the higher elevations.  My ultimate goal was to make it over Dunraven but I was in no particular hurry and so meandered and stopped to talk to some folks – to catch up with wolf world a little.  The best news of the entire day was that the Lamar Canyons were seen very far away and quickly – the whole pack was present and accounted for.

With that great news under my belt I could sigh with relief and carry on, to the Yellowstone River where I have often thought about capturing the fall colors and the intense blue of the river but never had.  This time there was a dusting of snow in the mountains above, with a layer of fog covering part way down.  It was time to capture Fall before it was completely gone

I took three vertical shots so that I could capture the entire scene with more detail, using a longer lens, and stitched them together to create this enormous moment on The Yellowstone.

Afterwards, I stopped at the Rosie sighting where I was greeted by a number of friendly faces that were happy to see me and it felt good.  It felt really good.  I chatted awhile but because the bears were sleeping and my destination was Dunraven, I kept going.

Not a lot of snow up high but enough to cover Fall slightly but yet it glimpse through.  The road was icy in one spot and I had quite a scare, making me remember that I have to figure out how to get three more tires soon.

Glimpses of Winter on Dunraven

So glad that I took that drive!  No critters, i.e. Scarface and Mini Mom, but that was okay.

I continued on to Canyon and took a walk in the woods where I found this Pine Marten staring at me.  Been dreaming of finding one of these cute little critters in a tree because in the past they had been running through the forest or across a snowy meadow.  It was a bit surreal though, to look up and see this face looking at me.  I only had a few seconds, during which there were some camera adjustments with my small lens but here it is, the elusive Pine Marten

Yep, you are right, I showed this cute face twice.

The rest of my time down south was uneventful with no major sightings.  I had hoped to find 755, or the Canyons, but neither was in view.  At the Wapiti trailhead was a young, spooked bull elk and so I went for a hike, because I had been meaning to see that trail.  So much I was meaning to do this summer but with the illness time fell short.

Doesn’t he look proud and beautiful walking through that faint dusting of glimmering snow?

If you come to Yellowstone and don’t see any elk, it is only because you are not getting off of the road into the back country.  I found this huge herd, with an enormous bull, standing above the Yellowstone canyon, off of the Wapiti trail.  This guy definitely beats out Touchdown so our boy had better hope that he never makes it to Mammoth.

Down around the quiet lake, if that enormous body of water can ever be quiet, I found dead trees covered with snow.

Beautiful in an other worldly sort of way.

I drove from Canyon to Norris and Norris to Gibbon Meadows but nothing except beauty.  And, so north through the road construction.  The waits are very long and I am not looking forward to not having the alternative to drive Dunraven for the last two weeks of the season as it will put a damper on things.

Touchdown was kissing a girl down in the Mammoth Campground and I stopped to watch for quite some time, finally getting some nice images of him without buildings in the background, and a funny image of him and her with manmade stuff but the content makes up for that.  In my next post I will give you the final stats on Touchdown.  The rut is said to be over but he is still smelling, chasing and calling.

On the way out I stopped along Rescue Creek to capture some Fall before it fades away.

The sun was going down behind the mountains, dulling the brilliant colors of Fall and so I snapped a couple of times, hoping for the best.

SPECIAL NOTE:  All content on this page is copyright protected and for subscribers only, which includes all information about the location of wildlife sightings.  If someone wants to know where I see animals they can subscribe to this site.  I know that this has happened in the past but going forward, anyone who violates the trust of this site will lose their membership with no refund.  Thank you for your understanding.

Because it is closer than you might think.

To purchase a 2015 Wolves of Yellowstone Calendar:  http://www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/811478

See my portfolio here:

http://runningwolfnaturephotographybydebydixon.zenfolio.com