Bears and moose, The Best Day Ever in Grand Teton National Park

I was concentrating on the Bull Moose! It was heading our way and so I was trying to get a great image with my cell phone. As I walked up the road I suddenly noticed that a black bear had stepped onto the road only thirty feet away, (the closest I have ever been to a bear while hiking). It looked at me for a bit as I froze and I forgot all about the camera.

A lady on the other of side of the bear yelled, “The bear is going to eat me, I am heading for the car!” and took off running for the parking lot, (the wrong thing to do). Luckily the bear turned its head and ambled into the weeds moving into thicker brush. The moose also seemed to lose interest in everyone and the bear and headed for the lower ponds.

We had decided to have a picnic in Grand Teton National Park and loading up the fly rods, lunch and folding chairs headed out. On the way, I suggested that we should take a quick drive up the Moose Wilson Road looking for bear or moose.

When we arrived, we hiked down the trail and noticed that the trees were overloaded with overripe service berries. A little further we came upon a giant bear scat full of service berry seeds and then we noticed that all the berries seemed to have been eaten off the lower branches.

Heading back, we saw

George and Val were pointing to the trees and in a few more steps we saw a large bull moose. As it approached George, notice the white cowboy hat, it turned and seemed intent on something else. The something else turned out to be a black bear that was trying to get out of the way. That’s when I noticed the bear that I described in the first paragraph.

The bear headed down the hillside and people quickly crowded the edge looking for the bear. Nearing the edge, we could see a small aspen shaking and there it was feeding on some low service berry bushes, (look carefully and you can just see the bear). The bushes were shoulder high and so we only go occasional views of the bear as it reared up to feed on higher branches.

Returning to the truck we talked with some others who told of three bears feeding further down the road. Meanwhile, another moose waded into the pond below, what a start to the day! George and I decide to return down the trail and try to get another viewing of the bear. It had moved quite far away and then it started to run!

It couldn’t be afraid of us and sure enough I spotted a boar grizzly bear feeding. It was about three hundred yards away and so I was unable to get a good image of it, (we had left our best camera at home). It did raise up several times and we could just see it in a clearing as it feed on a berry bush.

After talking with more people about the three bears down the road, we drove further and finally found the bear jam. Carefully driving thought the crowd, I dropped off Renita, George, and Val and tried to find a place to park. A quarter mile past I barely found a spot large enough for our tuck and hiked back to the jam.

As I approached I saw a cub and then reaching Renita I spotted the sow grizzly! She climbed the hill and disappeared followed closely by her two cubs. I had got their just in time! Our count was now two moose and five bears, the best day ever!

It was already three pm and so we ate lunch, deciding to forget fishing and drive the Gros Ventre road, looking for more wildlife. Passing a park camp ground, I turned into the campground to check out the spaces. Right away we saw a group of people, all looking the same way and taking images. More wildlife!

As we neared there were four large moose. A giant bull moose and his harem! Tuning around I could park in an empty camping spot and we all got out to view the moose.

Several people got to close to the bull and he raised his head uttering a warning! A cow moose became nervous as others got to close and you could see its eye swivel as it was deciding what to do.

The people backed off and both laid their heads down trying to get back to sleep. We had enough images and as it was four o’clock, it was time to head back home. Six moose and five bears, what an outstanding day and what a momentous day after my birthday present!