Hunt Responsibly Near National Parks

Growing up in the south, I grew up with a dad who was gone almost every weekend during deer hunting season. Once I was old enough to wield a gun, I went into the woods with him and killed a few deer myself. I remember my dad being a very responsible hunter, making sure deer were large enough to be taken or not killing a male since he would help with the breeding population. So, it absolutely kills me when I hear of hunters being irresponsible. A hunter was recently charged for killing a bison within Grand Teton National Park boundaries. The hunter was cooperative with rangers and lead them to the location where he killed the bison. Though there are no lines drawn on the ground showing the boundaries of the park, it is the hunter's responsibility to know where he is based on GPS coordinates.

I think this really bugs me because of the long journey bison have faced as far as getting their numbers back up. There used to be millions of bison who roamed the plains of western America, up to Canada and down to Mexico. When settlers started moving west, the bison were slaughtered pretty relentlessly, to the point of near extinction. And this slaughter mostly happened for their skins, with the rest of the bison left to rot. This is depicted in the movie Dances With Wolves. Today, approximately 30,000 bison still roam freely on the range. Another 500,000 are actually captive bred for commercial purposes. 

These animals are some of my favorite to see in Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. One actually lounged around our campsite when we visited Yellowstone a few years back, and one took the time to block the roadway while we were driving in the park on the same trip. If you ever have the chance to see them, you should definitely do it. It really is quite something to see a field full of them. I don't care if you think I'm sort of liberal conservationist, I think it would really suck if I can't show my kids these awesome creatures one day. 

If you want to read the story about this (click here). Below I have pics I have taken of these amazing creatures on my trip to Yellowstone.

A herd of bison

Our bison friend who blocked the road.

Bison lounging at our campsite

Another Bear Attack in Yellowstone

If you were watching the national news yesterday, you might have heard mention of another deadly bear attack in Yellowstone National Park. Two hikers found the deceased man on the Mary Mountain trail. He was alone and there was evidence that it was a bear attack, including tracks, hair and bear droppings. You can read the full news article online (click here).

Unfortunately, the is the second deadly bear attack in Yellowstone this year. I talked about the first one in a previous post (click here). Given that this man was hiking alone, we will probably never know the circumstances of what happened.

There are several things you can do to reduce the risk of encountering a bear on a hike, as well as several tips for what to do if you encounter a bear.

First, I think as a general rule, never hike alone. If you get injured, you have no one to go get help for you. Often times you can't get cell phone reception, especially when in the middle of the parks.

Second, when hiking in bear country, make a lot of noise. Seriously, the louder you are, the more likely a bear knows you are around. If you are hiking with someone, talk loudly and often. This is what my husband and I did when hiking some backcountry trails in Yellowstone. Another option is to wear bear bells. You may sound like Christmas while you walk down the trail, but it should hopefully provide proper warning to all bears.

Third, be prepared in case a bear does show up. Some tips below to help you with that.

 -Carry pepper spray. Pepper spray can be a very good deterrent if a bear decides to attack.

 -Actually keep the pepper spray somewhere where you can get to it quickly. Don't bury it in the middle of your pack. Keep hanging on the outside of your pack if possible so you can reach in a hurry if need be.

-If you see a bear, and it is not approaching you, slowly walk away.

-Try to avoid direct eye contact with the bear. You don't want to come off as a threat.

-Do not run!!! They may look slow, but bears have some speed on them.

-Do not climb a tree to escape a bear. They can climb a lot better than you, especially black bears.

-If the bear attacks, lie flat on your stomach or curl into a ball on your side. You have more vital organs that can be reached from the front than from the back.
               
 -Try to remain calm and make as little noise as possible.

-If you see a mother bear with cubs, get out of there. Mothers are protective and will attack to make sure her cubs aren't harmed.

Hope these are some useful tips if you find yourself heading out to bear country.

Day 10-Road Trip to Grand Tetons and Yellowstone National Park

Well, it is been over a month since I've written. It's been a busy time. I'm happy to say I've submitted my

first scientific manuscript. Also, my wonderful hubby successfully defended his PhD this week, yay!!

Ok, so finally our last day in the park.

After our night in Canyon Village, we woke up to explore the area before we headed down to Grant Village. Of course, we had to start with the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. It was absolutely stunning.

At the top of the falls.

My hubby and the river that feeds the falls.

Looking over at the top of the falls.

A great view of the canyon.

The side of the canyon.

A pretty little cliff swallow.

After checking out the canyon, we headed down on the road towards Grant Village. It was a great drive that followed the Yellowstone River. This was actually one our favorite drives that we had in the park.

This picture has a heard of buffalo in the distance.

More buffalo in the distance.

A buffalo staring us down.

Elk in the distance.

This guy decided to walk out onto the road right in front of our car.

He did not want to move and cars coming from the other direction kept slowing down to look at him, so we couldn't go around him for a good 10 minutes.

We stopped at the sulphur caldron and mud volcano area.

This was my favorite geyser. I forget the name, but I like how it is a cave.

Yellowstone Lake-America's highest altitude lake.

There is a hike directly across from the West Thumb Geyser Basin to get a great view of the lake.

When we first approached the trail, we came across a small heard of elk.

Along the way came across some bones. This a vertebral column and pelvis.

A separated pelvis.

The view from the top of our hike.

Hubby and I on our hike.

On the way down from our hike, we came across this little pockets of hot water.

A miniature waterfall.

After our hike, we checked out the West Thumb Geyser area.

This geyser is called Fishing Cone. Apparently, when fisherman fished in the area, they would catch a fish and then put it directly into this hot geyser to cook the fish instantly.

This is our campsite at Grant Village.

We had an anniversary dinner that evening at the Grant Village Lake House Restaurant. 

So, that was our last day. I'll tell you about our trip home in the next post.