Finally Bears!

We had seen a grizzly a few weeks ago but the bear was so far away, and so obscured by brush, that I refused to put its picture on our blog. Meanwhile it seemed like everyone was getting great shots of grizzly 610 and even 399 with her new coy, (cub of the year). Deciding to get up early, six am, we drove to the park in hopes of getting some close ups of bears. Before we reached the park, we saw large herds of elk.

The elk migration was in full swing. The elk first move to calving grounds and then continue to Yellowstone Park. Entering the Grand Teton National Park, we didn’t see much so and did not have our cameras out of the cases. Just as I asked Renita to pull over, we both spotted a large black bear staring at us. Renita wisely took pictures with her cell phone as I hurried to get our cameras ready

I should have used my cell phone as all I got was a picture of a black bear butt. Still, we had finally been close to a bear and so we drove further, to Pilgrim Creek in hopes that 399 would make an appearance. There were quite a few cars and trucks all also waiting. Sitting there, we watched and talked and watched as almost all the cars left. Deciding to try another spot we drove around the curve where a large bear jam was in progress.

The bear was a sow grizzly , bear 1062, and she did not have any cubs. She was grazing on some lush grass on the side of the road. A member of the bear management team let us all approach to about one hundred yards away. We both took pictures and as usual Renita took better ones than mine. She had snuck in between people and gotten closer!

We finally decided to go look for another bear and as our luck would have it, we never saw another bear. However, we had taken pictures of a black and a grizzly bear and any day you encounter bears is a good day. Returning to Pilgrim we sat there for two hours, ate lunch, and napped, No bears. We next drove to the Chapel of the Sacred Heart where a large bull elk was feeding on the roadside grass. He returns there every year at about this time ,and you can take pictures weekly as his antlers grow. Leaving the elk ,we drove past the potholes and encountered another traffic jam. This time someone said it was a bear and so we parked and joined a group of bear management people. Spotting something brown I took a picture and upon enlarging it saw the unmistakable ears and head of an elk. It was getting to be late afternoon, but we still wanted to try another location.

This time we ran into a cow and yearling moose and the young moose posed for pictures. We also spotted a nesting sandhill crane and as I chased other birds

Renita watched as it rose, turned around, and repositioned the eggs.

Meanwhile I took pictures of a chipping sparrow and a hairy woodpecker.

Yellow warblers were everywhere but I was unable to get a decent pic. It was time to head home and so tired but happy we left the park. It had been a great day as we had finally gotten close to bears. Tomorrow morning, we are heading back in search of more! Clear skies