Yellowstone: Ultimate Wolf & Wildlife Safari

On our special photo departure, you'll explore the Yellowstone ecosystem in the smallest group, with approximately 12 fellow photographers. On this adventure, your Expedition Leader is not only a naturalist, but also an expert photographer adept at helping you capture outstanding images of wolves, bison and iconic Yellowstone landscapes. Ask all the questions you want, and get expert advice for improving your photos when you need it. Fewer people also means quieter, closer photo encounters, as well as the flexibility to adapt to changing conditions in a way that maximizes photo opportunities and helps you better understand and photograph this amazing region of the world.

Day 1: Bozeman, Montana
Arrive in the Old West/New West town of Bozeman and transfer to our hotel for a welcome dinner. Fast-growing Bozeman historically relied upon mining and ranching, but today its economic base includes a booming tech industry and Montana State University.

Day 2: Paradise Valley / Northern Yellowstone
Depart early this morning, traveling in specialty North American Safari Trucks to follow the Lewis & Clark Trail over Bozeman Pass to the Yellowstone River. We spend the morning in the Paradise Valley in search of rough-legged hawks, eagles, mule deer and pronghorn antelope. The ragged heights of the Absaroka Range provide a dramatic backdrop for landscape photos. En route to Mammoth Hot Springs for lunch, look for wintering bighorn sheep in Gardiner River Canyon. Toward evening, enter Yellowstone’s Northern Range, the best place in the park to search for wolves. We often spot coyotes, elk and bison against the snow-mantled landscape. Our day concludes with a presentation at the Hartman Gallery. Owner Dan Hartman is one of Yellowstone's most renowned wildlife photographers, and we'll look forward to seeing his work and gaining insight into how to capture outstanding shots during our time in the area. Spend the night just outside the park in Cooke City, Montana.

Day 3: Wolf Quest in the Lamar Valley
As the sun breaks over the frosty meadows of the Lamar Valley, we rise early to look for wolves in this pristine natural environment. The broad glacial valley offers wide-open vistas of a sublime landscape, and if wolves are present, they are likely to stand out against the snowy backdrop. Dan Hartman, who is a naturalist as well as a famed local photographer, joins us in the field today to help us capture shots of elusive wolves. Be sure to bring your telephoto lens: if we are fortunate to spy wolves, they are often at a distance. Other wildlife is abundant, and we're sure to come away with some exhilarating images.  

Day 4: Lamar Valley / Interior Yellowstone / Norris Geyser Basin
Dawn illumines the snowy meadows of the Lamar Valley, and we return once more in search of wolves. An onboard spotting scope is always at the ready, allowing us to observe the wolves' activity from a distance without disturbing their natural behavior. Many of our Expedition Leaders have worked for years with on-site researchers who track the packs daily, and together they provide us every opportunity to find these charismatic animals in their natural surroundings.

Traveling southwest across the park, we make our next base in West Yellowstone. Aboard a chartered snowcoach, traverse Yellowstone’s wild interior, accessible in winter only by over-the-snow vehicles. Along the Madison River, a lower-elevation corridor with abundant winter wildlife, we find excellent opportunities for photos of bison, elk and winter birdlife, while large bison herds are often spotted on the Central Plateau. We'll hope for more wolf sightings, too, though they are less frequent here. Stop for photos at the hottest geothermal feature in the park, Norris Geyser Basin, flowing with acidic waters that create unique color patterns. The world’s tallest active geyser is found here—Steamboat Geyser—though its timetable for eruptions is highly erratic.

Day 5: Snowcoach Tour to Old Faithful
This morning, board our private snowcoach and head into the park for an all-day adventure in the Old Faithful region. Because winter access to the park interior is limited to snow vehicles, we enjoy a peaceful opportunity to witness the magic of Old Faithful erupting in a crystalline veil of spray. But the park's most famous geyser isn't the only attraction. This basin surrounding the Firehole River holds the highest density of geothermal features in the world, with opportunities to photograph more geysers, hot springs, mud pots and fumaroles. Because of the warmth provided by the steam vents and bubbling mud, wildlife congregates in the area during the winter—we'll hope to photograph trumpeter swans, bald eagles, elk and bison.

Day 6: Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center / Grand Teton National Park
Rise early for a sunrise photo shoot on the open landscape outside West Yellowstone. Following a hearty breakfast, visit the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center, an educational facility that houses rescued animals unable to survive in the wild for various reasons. We get close-up photos of these magnificent predators and learn how they are helping to product-test items like bear-resistant food bags, bear-proof trash cans and other products to keep wild bears out of trouble. Leaving West Yellowstone, we drive south to Grand Teton National Park, stopping for a gentle snowshoe along the way and for the first views of the Teton spires, which invariably prompt a flurry of snapping shutters. More great shots await as sunset casts alpenglow on the jagged range, providing an incomparable backdrop for wildlife such as elk, bighorn sheep and moose.

Day 7: Jackson Hole / National Elk Refuge
Our winter safari continues as we venture into Jackson Hole, the broad valley at the base of the Tetons, in search of bighorn sheep, bald and golden eagles, coyotes, bison, mule deer, moose and elk. Back in town, we stop for lunch at the National Museum of Wildlife Art, featuring more than 5,000 pieces by 550 different artists. The American collection from the 19th and 20th centuries is particularly strong, recording European exploration of the American West. Many of these works predate photography, making them vital representations of the frontier era in U.S. history. This afternoon, board a horse-drawn sleigh to glide across the snow-covered National Elk Refuge where we'll get close-up photos of the massive herd that winters there, with thousands of animals roaming the valley floor.

Day 8: Jackson / Depart
After breakfast, take the hotel's complimentary shuttle to the airport to connect with individual flights home.

Please note: Every alternate trip runs in the opposite direction, starting in Jackson and finishing in Bozeman. All inclusions are the same.

 

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