Tied To Nature

19/01/2025

Day 8, with the temperature hovering around -20F this morning we headed to the geyser basins. Often the cold temperatures allow for stunning landscapes and frosty bison. The landscapes were stunning and there were a few frosty bison.

About half way through the day we decided to turn our attention back to wildlife so we headed north along the Gibbon River. We first found a fox that had a quite a few other photographers around and not wanting to add to the chaos our visit was short lived.

After leaving the fox we promptly found a Pygmy Owl that seemed to be hunting. We watched it fly once and after spending some time with it the cold got to us and we moved on.

Today was the last day with this group and the last 8 days have been terrific. Tomorrow I meet the second group and Monday morning I will be headed back to Gardiner to start it all over again.

18/01/2025

Day 7, we had the most incredible otter/coyote encounter I have ever seen today. So many photos and videos I thought I would just share a sample video of what we watched today.

Beyond the time we spent with the otters and coyotes we had a few nice bison walking down the road. We also found the same fox from yesterday and we spent some time photographing it as it was mousing.

As a bonus today we photographed a Bald Eagle, Downey Woodpecker, and some Clarks Nutcracker’s.

17/01/2025

Day 6, we went straight out to Hayden Valley again this morning, still not much going on. At least if there was anything going on we could not see it. Hayden was full of fog until around 11am.

What we did see were a lot of coyotes, at one spot by Mud Volcano there were five of them all together. We saw the Mud Volcano Bald Eagle that always seems to be hanging out.

After a half day in the valley we decided to try our luck else where and luck was on our side. We caught one possibly two pygmy owls on our way back. We got to watch one fly down and catch a vole. Shortly after that we had a short session with a fox that caught a vole.

We ended with a bang today!

16/01/2025

One of the great parts about winter in Yellowstone is the bison moving down the roads. Due to the deep snow the bison will often travel the roadways to avoid the deep snow.

16/01/2025

Day 5, we now have four days to spend on the interior by snow coach. First thing this morning we headed straight into Hayden Valley. That paid off as we did see a single black wolf, although the distance (a mile) was a little too far for any photographs. Although I do think the wolf had an influence on pushing a large herd of bison to the road.

We took a couple laps back and forth in Hayden and spent some time with a couple coyotes and some of the waterfowl along the river.

Another great day in Yellowstone.

15/01/2025

Day 4, it was a quick trip in and out today as we had to travel to West Yellowstone to get ready for our snow coach the next couple days.

We saw 3 pygmy owls on the way to Lamar Valley, it was too dark to stop and try to photograph any of them. It is Incredible how many pygmy owls are being seen right now.

Our first stop was at Roosevelt Junction where we were able to watch a couple wolves chase a bull elk. It was incredible to watch but did not lead to any great photos due to the distance. I did add one photo of the encounter.

From their we basically drove out to Round Prairie and then back into Gardiner to see what else was going on. We did see quite a few moose at a distance. After returning to Gardiner we decided to take the back road one more time and was rewarded with a great Bald Eagle encounter.

14/01/2025

Day 3, today I made a comment to part of the group about how slow the last couple days have been. I think this is mostly due to not having many bison in close proximity of the road. Although we might consider it slow we really have had spectacular sightings. Today alone we saw 7 moose, herds of bison, numerous coyotes, 2 pygmy owls, elk including our first bull elk, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, a white-tailed jack rabbit, a cottontail, and numerous bird species.

The highlight of the day was our last sighting of the day. We were on a back road outside of Gardiner and had a coyote not far too far off the road. It looked like it might be mousing as it was wandering around. A minute later it dropped behind a little hill out of sight and before we knew it a jackrabbit came running out with the coyote not too far behind.

Sadly the coyote was a little slower so it was hard to get the rabbit and coyote in the same frame until they started running down the road away from us. (The last photo shows the coyote and the rabbit running away from us.)

We have a half day on the northern range tomorrow before we move down to West Yellowstone to take snow coaches into the interior.

13/01/2025

13/01/2025

Our priority this morning was to get out and see moose—and we succeeded! We spotted two antlerless bulls not far from the road. Unfortunately, I didn’t get many photos I liked due to the heavy snowfall, but keep an eye out for the video I took. In total, we saw seven moose, though most were too far away to photograph.

After our morning moose sightings, we had lunch at a spot where otters are often seen. While we didn’t spot any otters, a Golden Eagle flew in just as we arrived and stayed for a couple of minutes before moving on. We also spent some time observing the numerous American Dippers along the water’s edge.

Farther up the road, we encountered a single coyote, followed shortly by three coyotes traveling together. Seeing the trio was a treat, but they outsmarted us when we tried to position ourselves for better photographs.

One species high on our list this year is the Pygmy Owl. Part of our group managed to see one. We worked hard to track it after it flew from its original spot, and although I caught glimpses of it flying from one location to another, no one was able to capture any photos.

We ended the day with a herd of mule deer as we drove back into Gardiner for the night.

12/01/2025

Day 1 of 16 photographing in Yellowstone has begun!

I’m thrilled to be co-leading a photo workshop with of . We started early in Bozeman, MT, and made our way to Cooke City and back. While it was a slower day for photography overall, we had some great sightings.

The highlight of the day was photographing bighorn sheep. As we arrived, several rams came down the hill to the road. In total there was a herd of about 40 grazing not far from the road.

We also spotted plenty of bison and pronghorn, and made a quick stop for a moose that was a bit too far back in the trees. We saw a fox and a coyote, but they weren’t in ideal spots to stop for photos. On the way back, there were lots of elk, and a couple of Sharp-tailed Grouse in the top of an Aspen caught my eye, but it was too dark to photograph them.

It was a great start to this trip, and I can’t wait to see what Day 2 has in store!

09/01/2025

Tied To Nature is hiring for a full time seasonal guide (naturalist) position. The season is May-September, pay is DOE. Duties will entail driving guests through Yellowstone interpreting the wildlife, geology, and history of Yellowstone. Please email [email protected] with questions and resume.

08/01/2025

I just spent the last two days driving Ledra Woodlee with around Yellowstones interior. It was a great two days with her group of photographers. It is getting me ready for this weekend when I meet up with and for a couple weeks in Yellowstone.

07/01/2025

When a coworker asked me to switch to a photography trip today, I jumped at the chance. The day began with a couple of snowy bison attempting to graze in deep snow. Shortly after, we spotted a wolf in the distance, but before long, it was chasing a coyote along the river. We ended up following the wolf along the river for about two miles. Throughout the day, we had some incredible bison encounters as herds moved along the roads.

06/01/2025

A compilation of favorite photos and moments from 2024!

05/01/2025

I went out searching for a specific bird today. I had no luck finding it, but I found quite a few others. Pictured here are Bohemian Waxwings and Pine Grosbeaks.

01/01/2025

It was a beautiful day in Yellowstone, we even saw the sun for a while today. We were headed to the Canyon today and there was wildlife everywhere. We saw large herds of bison all the way out to Hayden Valley and back. We saw wolves on the way out and the way back in. We saw two foxes, the first for me this winter. Everyone was impressed with this ermine we saw as we drove through Elk Park.

27/12/2024

Seeing the Wapiti Lake Pack was a great way to start the tour in Yellowstone today. Seeing these wolves was definitely the highlight but we also got to see Old Faithful, Fountain, and Beehive geyser erupt.

24/12/2024

My brother mentioned to me the other day that every time I visit Yellowstone I mention it was a “great day to be in Yellowstone”. My response was isn’t it great I can say that about where I work.

It was a great day to be in Yellowstone, lots of bison, eagles, waterfowl, a couple coyotes, and a lone wolf howling.