Latest / This Week in Yellowstone National Park / This Week in Yellowstone: October 1st to October 7th, 2026

Transcript

This Week in Yellowstone: October 1st to October 7th, 2026 · This Week in Yellowstone National Park

0:00
From Yellowstone National Park, where wolves
0:02
were feasting on an elk near the Madison River
0:04
last week, this is that Scott guy you know and
0:07
love with a brand new episode of This Week in
0:10
Yellowstone. What's up everybody? This week in
0:23
Yellowstone National Park, from October 1st to
0:26
October 7th, 2026, I'll talk about why October
0:29
is a rad time to be in the park, discuss how
0:32
September snow in the park is a thing of the
0:34
past, and give some tips to see bears in the
0:37
evening hours. I'll also give you the complete
0:39
weather forecast, a really cool trail to hike,
0:42
the wildlife report, and everything else you
0:44
need to have an incredible time this week in
0:46
Yellowstone. My standard disclaimer, I may miss
0:49
a few details here and there, and I also mention
0:51
park locations very casually. So if you're unfamiliar
0:54
with a place I'm talking about, a quick search
0:56
online can help, or you can reach out to me directly
0:59
at 406 -589 -1873 for texts, or you can send
1:04
me an email at theoutdoorsocietyatgmail .com.
1:08
Also, please know that this podcast is a passion
1:10
project of mine. If you enjoy it, I'd love a
1:13
review or a quick email. If you want to support
1:15
my work more, you can check out my hiking and
1:17
wildlife watching guidebooks, or you can join
1:19
me for a guided hiking tour in Yellowstone's
1:21
backcountry in 2027. I am now taking reservations
1:25
for next year. So if you're interested, reach
1:27
out, happy to go hiking with you and show you
1:29
the part of the parks that I love very well that
1:33
will get you very stoked to get to know the park
1:35
even more. For more information on all that reach
1:37
out to me directly at the number and email that
1:39
I said earlier or go to outdoor -society .com
1:43
and With that let's jump to this week's Yellowstone
1:46
news The first bit of news is last week I talked
1:50
about the wolf hunt in Wyoming. This week I'm
1:52
going to talk about the wolf hunt in Montana,
1:54
especially that northern range north of the park.
1:57
One wolf was slated to be taken in that region
2:00
for hunting and one wolf was taken. The wolf
2:03
hunt is now officially over in the just north
2:06
of the park in Montana so that's good news. Wolf
2:10
hunts are still going on all over the west right
2:12
now so if you want more information on that I
2:14
can send you some links. I'm not going to talk
2:16
about it too much because you know anytime I
2:18
talk about things like this I get depressed so
2:20
I'm just not going to talk about it much because
2:23
the information is out there like I said if you
2:25
want links reach out to me. Also some of you
2:27
have reached out to me to talk about the bison
2:30
that has been having a neurological issue There's
2:34
an article I will link it in the show notes if
2:36
I remember that's written about it I don't know
2:39
much about it and also it's one of those things
2:41
that I don't really like to talk about a lot
2:44
of individual animals in the park because Nature
2:48
is hard There are things that happen every day
2:51
in the park that are really sad, depending on
2:53
what side that you're on. You know, this year
2:55
I knew of a nest in the backcountry of some Sandhill
2:59
cranes. I looked at it one day, the eggs were
3:02
there, the Sandhill crane parents were taking
3:03
turns sitting on the eggs, came back a couple
3:06
days later, and it looked like coyotes had eaten
3:09
the eggs and destroyed the nest, and the two
3:12
Sandhill cranes were just walking around really
3:14
sad. Now the bison that was having the neurological
3:17
issues more than likely is a very sad story,
3:21
but injuries happen, weird things happen in nature.
3:24
The good news is that when something like that
3:26
happens, I mean it's good with the quotation
3:28
marks around it, but when things like that happen
3:30
in the park, something's probably going to eat
3:33
it and it will be put out of its misery quick.
3:36
The park will not and does not and should not
3:39
interfere with things like this in nature. its
3:41
nature. And I've talked about this with the wolves.
3:44
There's a wolf a few years ago that got kicked
3:46
in the jaw and its bottom jaw fell off. And people
3:49
wanted the wolf to get put down and take it out
3:51
of its misery. But the park said we do not interfere
3:54
with the welfare of animals like that. And so
3:57
they just waited and the wolf eventually died.
4:01
And that's just how Yellowstone works. And while
4:04
it's sad to see its nature and Every day there's
4:08
things like that that go on that just aren't
4:10
seen so that's all I'm going to talk about with
4:12
that if there's any more developments that are
4:15
Newsworthy I'll mention it, but I just wanted
4:17
to thank you all for reaching out and just briefly
4:19
talk about it Then finally for news there is
4:23
a closure date for the Beartooth Highway And
4:26
obviously this is weather -dependent, it could
4:28
close earlier, but US Highway 212, which is the
4:31
Beartooth Highway, don't know why I said that
4:34
word, the Beartooth Highway, is scheduled to
4:36
close for the 2026 season at 8 a .m. on Tuesday,
4:39
October 13th. So, Tuesday, October 13th, the
4:45
Beartooth Highway will be closed. It could close
4:47
earlier if there is bad weather moving in. Currently
4:50
doesn't look like there's bad weather moving
4:52
in, so we should be good to go. But the 13th
4:54
is a... bit of time away so we'll see other than
4:57
that that's the news there's really not a lot
4:59
going on um i will talk about some thermal activity
5:03
next week i just don't want to have it all news
5:06
oriented this week and the thermal activity is
5:09
kind of going to be staying around so i'll talk
5:11
about that in a bit but for now let's jump to
5:14
the experience of the week my experience of the
5:16
week is an emptier park when the calendar turns
5:20
its page from september to october Something
5:23
happens in the park that is pretty cool for those
5:26
seeking a little more solitude and emptiness
5:28
in the park and that is because September sees
5:32
about eight hundred thousand eight hundred and
5:34
fifty thousand people for the month and October
5:37
usually sees about three hundred thousand people
5:40
so we're getting Almost half a million less people
5:43
in the park and that's a huge drop -off While
5:46
that will mean that on average is about ten thousand
5:48
people that enter the park every day. That's
5:50
still not that many compared to what we've currently
5:54
seen or what we saw in September. Like September
5:57
you're going to have that drop off occurring
5:59
you know more toward the end of the month but
6:01
right now it's still really good. There is just
6:03
this hesitancy of people wanting to visit in
6:06
October and that's okay. Now, October is increasing
6:10
in popularity. I will mention that, so don't
6:13
expect it to be truly empty. If you want a truly
6:15
empty park, go to the Northern Range in November
6:17
when 20 ,000 people or so enter the park, and
6:20
you'll have entire areas to yourself all day.
6:23
But right now, there's still people, but it's
6:26
a lot less. And that's why I'm talking about
6:28
it this week, because I want people to know really
6:31
what it's like. So, I mentioned that there's
6:34
some closures going on. And obviously things
6:37
slow down once we get in these shoulder seasons.
6:40
Shoulder season used to be a lot bigger of a
6:43
drop off of visitation. We used to see almost
6:46
no one in October. October used to look like
6:48
how November is. But, you know, as popularity
6:52
grows, as the population of the United States
6:56
grows more and more every year, we get more and
6:58
more people visiting the park every year. If
7:00
I will talk about this probably in the off season,
7:02
I talk about this a lot. But there is almost
7:05
a one -to -one correlation of the increase in
7:08
visitation of our national parks with the increase
7:11
in the population of the United States. There
7:14
isn't really this huge increase because of that
7:18
narrative of there being love to death. The issue
7:22
is more of the infrastructure isn't built to
7:24
handle the amount of people that are visiting
7:26
the park. It has less to do with the amount of
7:28
people that slowly and steadily are visiting
7:31
the park because the population is getting bigger.
7:34
Enough of that. Let's talk about closures. So
7:37
closures this week are going to be pretty significant
7:40
I'll have a link to the operating dates with
7:42
all the closures listed on it But right now there's
7:45
a lot closing that I'm gonna briefly mention
7:47
I'm gonna fly through this so on October 3rd
7:50
Fishing Bridge Visitor Center Museum closes the
7:52
Fishing Bridge Park Store closes Grant Visitor
7:55
Center Grant Park Store West Thumb Information
7:57
Station Madison Information Station Norris Park
8:01
Store Norris Geyser Basin Museum Lake Cabins,
8:04
the Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center at Old
8:06
Faithful, Old Faithful Lodge Cabins, and the
8:09
Old Faithful Bear Spray Rental Yurt all close
8:11
on October 3rd. On October 4th, Canyon Lodging
8:15
closes, Canyon Falls Cafe closes, the Grant Mini
8:19
Store, the Mammoth Gas Station inside closes,
8:22
gas is still available, Old Faithful Lodge Bake
8:24
Shop, Old Faithful Lodge Cafeteria, Old Faithful
8:27
Lodge Gift Shop, Old Faithful Lodge Ice Cream
8:30
Shop, the Tower Fall General Store, those all
8:32
close on the 4th, and on the 6th, Grant Village
8:35
Post Office closes, and on the 7th, the Lake
8:37
Post Office closes, and then we just keep seeing
8:40
rolling closures the rest of the month. And so
8:44
this is something that I really want people to
8:45
know, is the later in the month you go, the less
8:48
is going to be available. Also, when you go to
8:51
West Yellowstone, out in Cody, Cook City, Silver
8:55
Gate, Gardner, all of these places, are going
8:58
to potentially have reduced staff and reduced
9:01
hours. Do not count on having things open after
9:05
8 p .m. They might be, but in years past, this
9:09
has been very tricky to find. This time of the
9:11
year is very tricky to find anything to eat in
9:14
the evening if you miss that dinner window. So
9:16
plan ahead with that. Grocery stores also close
9:19
at regular times out here, which could be eight
9:22
or nine. I'm not quite sure as everything that's
9:26
posted online nothing gets updated out here because
9:29
not every place has a good website. It's just
9:32
when you visit the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem,
9:35
don't expect the same level of up -to -date information
9:38
online that you get in more populated areas.
9:43
So knowing that... The closures shouldn't impact
9:46
you too much if you plan ahead. Like I said,
9:49
I'll have the link for everything in the show
9:51
notes. You can click on it, you can see what's
9:53
open, when and where, and it's a really good
9:55
resource. And then just like bookmark it or save
9:57
it somewhere so you have it from here on out.
10:00
Also, this is a time of year with variable weather.
10:03
Could be sunny and 70, could be 30 and snow.
10:07
Historically, we never know what October looks
10:09
like. And when people ask, A lot of times, people
10:12
are like, well, no one ever tells me what the
10:14
weather is really going to be like in October.
10:16
You all give these very vague generalities, and
10:20
that's because that's all we can do. Right now,
10:23
absolutely beautiful. You know, highs in the
10:25
60s, lows in the 30s. It's picture perfect. It's
10:28
wonderful. I love this time of the year when
10:30
it's like this, but it could snow, even if the
10:33
forecast isn't calling for it. It could get colder,
10:36
could be warmer. Be prepared for all the seasons.
10:39
If you're from some place very warm, then it's
10:41
probably going to be cold. If you're from some
10:43
place that you're used to being a little chilly,
10:45
it's wonderful. For me, not that you really know
10:49
me, but for me right now, it is sweatshirt and
10:52
shorts weather. It is ideal. It's perfect. It's
10:56
so great. So when you're coming to the park right
10:59
now, expect that. But also, like I said off the
11:03
top of this, expect a much emptier park. The
11:07
visitors that are coming to the park right now
11:09
tend to be more roadside visitors. Maybe that's
11:12
you, maybe that's not you. It's just a fact of
11:15
the matter. The crowds that are here, which is
11:18
crowds in quotation marks again, those are not
11:23
really historically the active type. Trails are
11:28
not that busy. We'll get hikers on. You know,
11:31
the boardwalk trails are the more popular areas.
11:33
But if you're wanting to do, say, first half
11:36
of specimen ridge or go out slew creek past the
11:40
first meadow to the second or third meadow you're
11:42
not going to see anyone if if if you do it's
11:46
going to be very few people if you're hiking
11:48
out in the backcountry on like mary mountain
11:50
very few people out there it's a very empty time
11:54
and it's absolutely great obviously with the
11:56
bears being in hyperphasia like i talked about
11:58
last week or the week before you need to be very
12:01
alert for that but if you're out here this is
12:04
the best time I know, like I said last week,
12:06
every time is the best time. If you're in Yellowstone,
12:08
it's the best time to be here. But right now
12:10
is again a very good time and your experience
12:13
this week will be fantastic. We have had some
12:16
of the best sunrises of the year this last week
12:20
in the park. It's been truly stunning. And October
12:24
is when I was looking through a lot of my pictures.
12:26
October is when I get a lot of really good sunrise
12:28
and sunset pictures. We have a lot of cool clouds
12:31
that are up high. There's not a lot drifting
12:34
from the west so when the sun sets those clouds
12:36
illuminate it's absolutely beautiful so check
12:38
that out because this is the time of the year
12:40
when we just have that. We also will have maybe
12:43
a dusting of snow coming on the mountains and
12:45
it just as some people like to say that the mountains
12:49
get their clothes put back on again and it's
12:51
really fun. So if you're in the park this week
12:53
it's a good time to be here. Expect an emptier
12:55
park day by day by day. Weekends are going to
12:58
be busier than weekdays but You know, you might
13:02
have a wildlife sighting all to yourself at this
13:04
point. You might come across a field and there's
13:07
a grizzly out there and there won't be another
13:08
car coming for a couple of minutes, if not longer.
13:13
So enjoy that, make the most of it, follow all
13:16
rules and regulations obviously, but enjoy your
13:18
time in the park. October, especially this first
13:21
week when we watch this shift happen, is a really
13:23
cool time. My tip of the week. Finding bears
13:28
in the evening. So if you want to see a grizzly
13:30
bear in Yellowstone in early October, I tend
13:33
to find that the last few hours of daylight are
13:36
my best time to see bears. The park also always
13:41
says, you know, dawn and dusk are great times
13:43
to watch for grizzlies in Lamar, Hayden, and
13:45
the north slopes of Mount Wallace and out towards
13:47
Fishing Bridge in the east entrance, but I don't
13:51
have a lot of luck in the morning. but I have
13:53
a ton of luck in the evening and that's why I
13:55
wanted to share this with you as kind of a tip
13:56
because I've been seeing a lot of people posting
13:59
online about coming to the park and all they
14:00
saw was bison and they haven't seen bears and
14:03
they're not providing a lot of information about
14:05
what times they're going out but you have to
14:08
put in the work and if you go in the middle of
14:10
the day you're probably not going to see much
14:11
grizzlies are still up high the food sources
14:14
are weird this year so it's a little bit different
14:16
but October is the best time in the fall to see
14:22
grizzlies, because like I said, they're entering
14:24
in hyperphasia, they're eating a lot, and when
14:27
they're eating a lot, they're staying in the
14:28
same areas for a longer period of time. Those
14:32
areas that they are in are generally pretty visible
14:35
from time to time, and so if there is a good
14:38
food source that's dependable this year, food
14:40
sources have been weird this year, but if there's
14:43
a good food source, you will see bears. I know
14:45
up in Lamar, up on the slopes of Mount Norris
14:49
and places like that. People have been seeing
14:51
a lot of grizzlies in the distance and as the
14:54
month progresses they should be dropping down
14:55
lower and lower moving across the valley going
14:57
to different ridges and things like that. One
15:00
reason why I really recommend evenings too is
15:04
sunrise right now in Lamar Valley is at 7 18
15:08
a .m. and sunset is at 7 p .m. and so your early
15:12
sunsets these 7 a .m. sunsets I don't know why
15:16
I keep saying a .m. I think a because I talked
15:19
about the morning sunrises which again morning
15:22
sunrises recently have been amazing please check
15:24
those out if you're here if there's clouds in
15:27
the sky they're truly wonderful but for bears
15:29
you are in good luck in the evenings because
15:33
of that earlier sunset time you're not staying
15:35
out until nine and hoping hoping to see things
15:38
if you have a little dinner you can have an early
15:41
dinner then drive back into the park or you can
15:43
just bring a snack and then have a later dinner
15:45
if you're prepared for things being closed outside
15:48
of the park. But what I like is that I get to
15:52
be in the park, watch a sunset while I'm scanning
15:55
for grizzly bears. It's awesome. When you have
15:58
this beautiful sunset above you and then you
16:00
have just a lone grizzly walking across a field
16:03
in Lamar, it's truly spectacular. And like I
16:07
said, I have really good luck in the evenings
16:09
in October. Usually my parents will come visit.
16:12
They'll stay out in Cook City or Silvergate.
16:14
I'll go hang out with them for a while and every
16:16
night we'll drive in to Lamar and look for bears
16:20
and without fail we see grizzlies near the road,
16:24
maybe 100, 200, 300 yards away, but we see grizzly
16:27
bears and as the month progresses this continues.
16:30
So I really recommend doing that. Obviously I'm
16:34
talking a lot about Lamar. That is the closest
16:36
place to me where I really get good bears in
16:39
the park. it's broad, it's open, it gives you
16:42
the ability to scan a lot, and it's a popular
16:45
place for wildlife watchers of all different
16:48
types of animals, so you should be seeing something.
16:51
If you don't see bears, maybe the wolves will
16:52
be out. If the wolves aren't out, there might
16:54
be some elk that are still engaging in the rut.
16:57
There's something that's going to be going on
16:59
in Lamar pretty much at all times, so it's also
17:02
a beautiful place for sunsets. Hayden, kind of
17:05
the same, Hayden Valley, Absolutely wonderful
17:08
if that's where you're closest to it's again
17:10
a broad place that you can just really scan and
17:13
look and they have a lot of bears out there that
17:15
are good to see and You may see them close to
17:18
the road or down by the river off in the distance,
17:21
but it's a good spot And again, you're there
17:24
and it's sunset time and you have this beautiful
17:27
sunset view So go there and then also the other
17:31
place that I like recommending There's two spots.
17:35
There's the Mount Washburn Dunraven area, and
17:38
then there's also the Sylvan Pass out by Fishing
17:41
Bridge toward the east entrance. Both of those
17:43
spots can be pretty good. The east entrance has
17:45
been more dependable than Washburn and going
17:47
over Dunraven Pass, but again, this year has
17:50
been weird, so... who knows what's going to happen.
17:53
I will keep you updated as I know in the wildlife
17:55
report but right now I'm not hearing a ton of
17:58
activity about grizzlies out the east entrance.
18:01
There's been a few sightings but there's also
18:02
been some sightings in Lamar and Hayden as well
18:04
so nothing's really like that spot to go because
18:08
it's dependable. Every place is pretty good but
18:11
hit and miss right now so knowing that try to
18:15
make the most of your day and really maybe plan
18:17
your day around being out an hour or two before
18:22
sunset and scanning until it's dark. Yes, you're
18:24
going to have to drive through the park. It's
18:26
a little dark. But if you're waking up early,
18:28
you're also going to be doing that a bit too.
18:30
So I prefer the evenings this time of the year.
18:33
That's a personal thing. That's kind of my tip.
18:36
If people were asking me what to do, that's what
18:38
I would tell them to do. Also, right now, you
18:40
know, it's a little chillier in the morning and
18:42
it's kind of nice just to, you know, sip coffee
18:45
and drive around and then do a hike or do the
18:48
boardwalks during the day. Maybe leave the park
18:51
in the early afternoon, refresh and then head
18:54
out in the early evening all the way through
18:56
sunset and have a day like that. By doing that
19:00
you don't have to feel as rushed and waking up
19:02
as super early as a lot of people tend to do
19:05
and you know as somebody who is sometimes a morning
19:08
person sometimes not a morning person right now
19:11
I'm not in I'm in my not morning person mood
19:13
and so sunset times are fantastic. If you do
19:17
go out in the sunset time in the evening make
19:21
sure you know that light will just be getting
19:25
worse throughout the evening so binoculars are
19:28
really good but there's gonna hit a certain point
19:30
of time where you're not gonna be able to see
19:33
it through binoculars if you see a bear you're
19:35
not gonna be able to see them through you know
19:37
get a picture of it nothing's gonna be there
19:39
you're just gonna kind of know and see a shape
19:41
and then that's time to go but I love that because
19:45
you end your day you in the last few seconds
19:48
of daylight Watching a bear as it gets too dark
19:51
to see the bear anymore, and then you get to
19:53
drive back to where you're staying It's great.
19:55
I hope you enjoy that that's what I would do
19:58
this week in the park That's what I'm going to
20:00
do this week in the park is catch a sunset out
20:02
there And I hope you do too my random Yellowstone
20:06
fact of the week This was asked to me a few times
20:10
via email, so I figured I would make it my section
20:13
What happened to September snow so I did some
20:17
research and I? was kind of shocked with what
20:20
I found, but it used to snow a lot in September
20:22
in the park, and now it doesn't anymore, and
20:24
I'm going to talk about that. So, here we go.
20:27
Since 1950, snowfall in September across the
20:29
Greater Yellowstone area has declined by 96%.
20:33
This is not a projection for the end of the century,
20:37
but a measured change in the region's climate
20:39
over the past seven decades. The Greater Yellowstone
20:42
Climate Assessment, produced by researchers from
20:45
the USGS Montana State University and the University
20:48
of Wyoming, described the changes as a near elimination
20:51
of September's already small snowfall totals.
20:56
This number captures something larger than the
20:59
disappearance of a few early season snow storms.
21:02
It marks a shift in when winter begins in Yellowstone
21:05
and how long the landscape spends covered in
21:08
snow. The Greater Yellowstone area has warmed
21:11
by about 2 .3 degrees Fahrenheit since 1950.
21:16
Over the same period, the growing season has
21:18
lengthened by roughly two weeks, the snowpack
21:20
is melting earlier, and peak annual stream flow
21:23
has shifted about eight days earlier. Annual
21:26
snowfall below 8 ,000 feet has declined by roughly
21:29
25 % or nearly two feet of snow over the winter.
21:34
September's 96 % decline is the most dramatic
21:38
example of that broader transformation. The significance
21:42
of September is easy to miss because it's never
21:44
been one of Yellowstone's snowiest months. Most
21:47
of the region's snowfall historically arrives
21:49
in December, January, and February. But September
21:52
marks the beginning of the seasonal transition
21:54
toward winter. Snowfall during the month is an
21:58
early indication that temperatures are dropping
22:00
enough for precipitation to remain frozen rather
22:03
than falling as rain. That transition is now
22:05
occurring later. The climate assessment finds
22:08
that measurable snowfall has become rare in September
22:10
as the snow -free season has lengthened. It also
22:13
found that temperatures at elevations between
22:15
6 ,000 and 7 ,000 feet, historically among the
22:18
region's snowiest elevations, have risen about
22:20
two and a half degrees since the 80s. The temperature
22:23
increases Mean that the precipitation that does
22:26
fall is no longer falling as snow It's falling
22:29
as rain and this distinction is critical Yellowstone
22:33
is not necessarily becoming a place where fall
22:35
storms disappear It's that the warmer atmosphere
22:37
makes it harder for precipitation to become and
22:40
remain snow October illustrates this point snow
22:44
is still a normal part in October in Yellowstone
22:47
At Yellowstone Lake, which is 7 ,782 feet above
22:51
sea level, National Park Service records an average
22:54
of about 10 .6 inches of October snowfall. At
22:58
Mammoth Hot Springs at 6 ,200 feet, the October
23:01
average is about 4 .4 inches. Individual years
23:04
can still vary dramatically, and substantial
23:07
snowstorms are possible, but these individual
23:10
storms obscure the larger trend. the total annual
23:13
precipitation has not changed substantially since
23:16
1950. Even a snowfall has declined by about 3
23:20
.5 inches per decade. The region's not losing
23:24
precipitation, it's just that most of that is
23:26
now arriving as rain instead of snow. And when
23:29
we do talk about snow, we can talk about how
23:32
this isn't just limited to September about getting
23:35
less snow. January snowfall across the Greater
23:38
Yellowstone area has declined about 43 % since
23:41
the 1950s, while March snowfall has declined
23:44
about 53%. Across the entire year, the region
23:48
now receives nearly 24 inches less snowfall than
23:51
it did in the 1950s. The most important story
23:55
is that we are not just losing winter. but we're
23:59
losing the ability of building and preserving
24:02
a deep snowpack. And that's kind of what is important
24:06
to think about, because we can get snow, but
24:08
the snowpack is what's most important. While
24:11
these September storms that we no longer get
24:13
weren't that important, the colder temperatures
24:16
up higher really allowed any precipitation to
24:20
stay there. Now we're getting October snow that
24:22
melts the way September snow used to melt. We
24:25
get November snow that melts out completely.
24:27
Last year we had November and December snow that
24:31
dumped and then melted out below 8 ,000 feet.
24:34
It was good higher than that, but we're seeing
24:36
a different snowpack that's changing and a lot
24:39
of this starts with September. And so I just
24:41
want to talk about that because the 96 % decline
24:44
in September snowfall is striking because it
24:47
represents a long -term change that is measured
24:50
across decades of weather observations. It's
24:53
concluded that declining snowfall across the
24:56
Greater Yellowstone area is linked to the region's
24:59
warming climate, and the trend is expected to
25:01
continue as temperatures rise. Now a snowy October
25:04
can still make Yellowstone look like Yellowstone.
25:07
A big November storm can bury the mountains,
25:10
and a single winter can still produce an extraordinary
25:12
amount of snow. We can have 150 % of normal snowpack,
25:17
but Climate is not weather. Weather is short,
25:20
climate is long, and climate is measured in patterns,
25:23
not individual storm. The pattern across the
25:26
Greater Yellowstone area is a later start to
25:28
the snow season, earlier snow melt, and substantially
25:32
less snowfall than in the 1950s is a trend that
25:35
is continuing and going up. Yes, we will have
25:38
some years that are better, but that trend is
25:40
going up. For an ecosystem built around winter
25:43
snow, this is a profound change. Yellowstone's
25:46
winter is not disappearing overnight. It's being
25:49
squeezed from both ends starting later and ending
25:52
earlier. September is where we can see that that's
25:57
really being impacted. And so thank you for your
25:59
questions about where is that September snow
26:02
and I hope you found this informative as I did
26:04
because I did not know it was a 96 % decrease
26:07
in snow. That is wild to me. So anyway let's
26:12
talk about the weather. As always, this weather
26:14
forecast is the best I can do at the time of
26:17
recording. It is 2 o' 9 p .m. on Wednesday, September
26:20
30th. The forecast can and will change in a week,
26:24
but this should be within the ballpark of what
26:26
you'll experience when visiting the park. So
26:28
let's start with Lamar Valley. Lamar on Thursday,
26:32
high of 67, low of 37. Friday, 69 and 38. Saturday,
26:38
69 and 36. Sunday 71 and 39, Monday 70 and 40,
26:43
Tuesday 69 and 38, and Wednesday 69 and 37. Whether
26:48
for Gardner, Montana, Thursday 70 and 41, Friday
26:52
73 and 40, Saturday 72 and 38, Sunday 75 and
26:57
42, Monday 74 and 43, Tuesday 73 and 40, and
27:03
Wednesday 72 and 39. West Yellowstone. Thursday
27:08
66 and 33 Friday 68 and 34 Saturday 70 and 33
27:14
Sunday 71 and 37 Monday 69 and 38 Tuesday 69
27:19
and 36 and Wednesday 68 and 36 Cody Wyoming Thursday
27:26
66 and 41 Friday 79 and 51 saturday 72 and 45
27:32
sunday 76 and 52 monday 81 and 56 tuesday 79
27:38
and 50 and wednesday 77 and 51 and finally cook
27:42
city montana thursday 62 and 39 Friday 65 and
27:48
39, Saturday 65 and 39, Sunday 68 and 43, Monday
27:53
67 and 43, Tuesday 66 and 41, and Wednesday 66
27:59
and 40. If you noticed, I did not mention any
28:02
rain. The highest percentage of rainfall for
28:04
any of the forecast is about 5 or 6 % currently.
28:08
Does that mean it's not going to rain at all?
28:10
No, but right now it doesn't look like it's going
28:12
to be raining at all in the park, so enjoy the
28:15
weather. With the weather being the way it is,
28:17
let's jump to road conditions. There are no main
28:20
park roads closed right now. There's still construction
28:22
going on, but those delays are minimal. And while
28:25
unlikely, just know that if something rolls in
28:28
and gets really bad, the park will close roads
28:31
at any given time due to inclement weather. If
28:33
you need to know when that happens, you can sign
28:36
up for text alerts by texting the number 82190.
28:40
to the number 888 -777, or you could call 307
28:45
-344 -2117 for recorded information. Camping
28:50
information. Bridge Bay is closed, Canyon is
28:53
closed, Indian Creek is closed, Grant is closed,
28:56
and Tower is closed. The Wildlife Watching update.
29:01
So Wildlife Watching has been really hit and
29:02
miss this last week. If you were out in West
29:05
Yellowstone, you probably had an amazing time
29:07
last week as There was a wolf pack eating an
29:11
elk carcass right next to the Madison River.
29:13
That was really cool. If you were in the northern
29:16
range, there were some wolves spotted off in
29:18
the distance. Nothing too close, but you know,
29:21
you get to see wolves. That's awesome. Grizzly
29:23
bears have been hit and miss the last couple
29:27
of days. No one's really seen a lot of grizzlies
29:30
out in Lamar or Hayden, but I know people that
29:33
have seen them out just random spots like just
29:36
north of Norris. junction and places like that
29:39
north of the park as well. We even heard a couple
29:42
of people came across fresh tracks up on Mount
29:45
Washburn and those tracks were leading down toward
29:48
that southern trailhead area so that'd be worthwhile
29:51
if you want to see some bears but really it's
29:53
just a just a matter of luck right now until
29:55
they find a good food source and like I said
29:58
this year the food source has been harder for
30:01
bears to find because we had such a weird year.
30:05
and therefore knowing where the bears are going
30:07
to be is a lot harder. I will tell you that I
30:11
do know some people that have been having really
30:13
good luck outside of Cook City headed toward
30:17
the Beartooth Highway. If I was going to be looking
30:20
for bears, I would probably do Hayden Dunraven
30:26
and out toward Lamar and back. That would kind
30:28
of be my morning or evening routine. Personally,
30:31
evening. One thing I didn't mention about the
30:33
evenings that if you're listening now, you get
30:36
as bonus information. This is the time of year
30:38
where we do have some good fog in the morning,
30:41
kind of reducing visibility. And so if you wake
30:43
up early and you're completely fogged in and
30:45
can't see anything, then you woke up. I don't
30:47
want to say for nothing, but your wildlife activity
30:50
is going to be minimal. So know that there could
30:52
be fog in the mornings. And I will try and remember
30:55
to talk about that next week earlier. But I mentioned
30:58
it here. So if you're listening still know that
31:01
fog in the morning could potentially limit your
31:04
wildlife visibility, especially in Hayden and
31:06
Lamar. Hayden I've been socked in on with fog
31:10
for hours on end and it's been frustrating, but
31:13
you're still standing outside in Hayden Valley,
31:15
so can't be that bad. If you want to see elk,
31:18
Mammoth is still where it's at. That in the northern
31:21
range beyond Mammoth out toward Gardener and
31:24
then drive old Yellowstone to like Devil's Slide
31:27
and Yellowstone Hot Springs. That is where I
31:30
would personally go if I was going to watch elk
31:32
So I think you should do that too Big Horn sheep
31:36
activity is gonna start picking up there in a
31:38
couple of weeks as well Moose are being spotted
31:41
out toward that northeast entrance a bit, and
31:44
I've heard a couple people have some moose sightings
31:47
down near that southern entrance. Also, I know
31:49
somebody that saw a grizzly down by the southern
31:51
entrance the other day, so worthwhile to check
31:53
out if you're driving through there, but I wouldn't
31:55
personally drive all the way down there just
31:57
in hopes of seeing that grizzly, because it could
31:59
be miles away at this point. If you do want to
32:03
just kind of see what's out there I talked about
32:05
a couple weeks ago grassy Lake Road That's a
32:08
really good drive to do right now for fall colors
32:10
and for potential for moose and bears So check
32:12
that out now black bears are kind of all over
32:15
and also nowhere So as I've said the last few
32:19
weeks I've had better luck seeing black bears
32:21
outside of the park than I have inside the park
32:24
next week I'm gonna talk about an incident or
32:26
next week. I'll probably talk about an incident
32:28
have a north of Bozeman where 14 bears were just
32:32
put down because they are habituated to human
32:34
food, but that's, you know, obviously awful,
32:37
but that's far enough away from the park that
32:39
it's not going to impact you. If you do want
32:41
black bear sightings, I would go up towards Jardine,
32:44
north of the park. I would head out towards Slough
32:47
Creek, maybe I would go in that bear muted triangle
32:50
around tower, all of that area and just see what
32:53
you see. It's, it's really hit and miss. If you
32:56
need any other wildlife information, reach out
33:00
to me it's it's a weird time of the year it's
33:03
a weird year i wish i could tell you like oh
33:05
here's definitely where to see things and if
33:07
you message me maybe i'll have a bit more exact
33:10
locations that are up to date and not maybe four
33:13
or five days old by the time you listen to this
33:15
so good luck out there like i said morning fog
33:18
may impact you so maybe do an evening activity
33:24
for wildlife watching, do something during the
33:26
day and then a couple hours before sunset, start
33:28
headed out to those areas, Northern Range, Hayden
33:31
Valley, up to Sylvan Pass and back and you should
33:34
have something happen that is pretty cool. And
33:36
if not, you're still in Yellowstone and it's
33:38
awesome. If you do like what you hear on this
33:41
podcast, a great way to support me is by picking
33:43
up one of my guidebooks. I have a hiking guidebook
33:45
to the region and a wildlife watching guidebook
33:48
that breaks down the park. region by region,
33:51
road section by road section of what you will
33:53
probably see, when, and where. So I wrote that
33:57
out of my decades upon decades of experience
34:00
out here, and I think it's a great resource.
34:02
Other people think so too. has told me that they
34:05
like it has absolutely raved about it and said
34:08
it really helped their trip. My hiking guidebook
34:10
I wrote because somebody said there's nowhere
34:12
to hike out here and I said oh yeah here's a
34:14
book so I wrote that and it has over 50 of my
34:17
favorite trails in the region it even has some
34:19
of the best fall color hikes highlighted so check
34:22
that out that is available outdoor -society .com
34:26
or you can contact me directly 406 -589 -1873
34:29
or email me at theoutdoorsocietyatgmail .com
34:33
and I will get back to you on that as soon as
34:36
I can. Trail alerts and updates. I will have
34:40
a link to the Backcountry Editions page. It's
34:42
currently nothing really being closed right now,
34:44
so you're good to go. Obviously, as I say every
34:46
week, carry bear spray, have it rarely accessible
34:49
and not in a backpack, and know how to use it
34:52
before you get on the trail. All right, my Trek
34:55
of the Week. Queen's Laundry and Imperial Geyser
34:59
Basin. For the next few weeks, I'm going to be
35:01
focusing on trails in the interior as we only
35:05
have a few more weeks of access to the interior.
35:07
I want to make sure if you're there, you're getting
35:09
the most out of your hiking days. If you're not
35:12
wanting to hike in the interior and you need
35:15
a hike, you can pick up my guidebook or reach
35:16
out to me. Happy to recommend a trail. So this
35:19
week I'm recommending Queen's Laundry and Imperial
35:21
Geyser Basin, and it's a lesser known area. It's
35:26
decently popular to some degree, but most everybody
35:29
that hikes this starts on the south side by the
35:34
Grand Prismatic Overlook Trail to Fairy Falls,
35:36
and then they might swing out a little further.
35:39
What I'm recommending you do is start on the
35:41
other side at the end of Fountain Flat Drive
35:44
by Ojo Caliente Hot Springs. If you do that,
35:48
you're going to get to that same old road that
35:50
runs all the way to the Grand Prismatic Trail
35:53
and Fairy Falls Trail and Grand Prismatic Overlook.
35:57
So by starting at Fountain Flat Drive, you really
36:01
get to be alone. When you try and find parking
36:04
at the Grand Prismatic Overlook, it can be difficult,
36:07
it's more popular, and obviously it's going to
36:09
be shorter to get to some of these, to the Grand
36:12
Prismatic Overlook and Fairy Falls. But if you
36:15
want a good hike, that's going to be 12 and a
36:18
half miles total, and I know that distance is
36:20
long ways, but There's only 550 -ish feet of
36:24
elevation gain. It's mostly flat. It's absolutely
36:28
gorgeous. You can make an entire day out of this
36:30
and take your time. It's truly a wonderful trail.
36:33
And I think this is one that if you want an experience
36:36
in the geyser basin that isn't necessarily the
36:39
run of the mill and it's that next level away
36:42
from the boardwalks, this is what I recommend
36:44
doing. And right now it's a great time to do
36:47
it because if you get started in those cold mornings,
36:49
There's frost everywhere from the steam rising
36:51
up from the Firehole River, and it is spectacular
36:54
at sunrise. So, start early, do this 12 and a
36:58
half miles to do this whole thing, and I'm gonna
37:00
tell you how to do it the right way that I do
37:03
it. I don't know if that's the right way. It's
37:04
the way I do it, so therefore it's the right
37:06
way for me. So, start at Fountain Flat Drive,
37:10
hike past Ojo Caliente Hot Springs, go across
37:13
the bridge, and then you get to the junction
37:15
with the Sentinel Meadows Trail on your right.
37:19
What you do is you hike that for a while, and
37:21
it just kind of goes along the river. There are
37:23
usually eagles and osprey above the river. There's
37:26
sometimes some bison out roaming there. There's
37:29
some cool migratory ducks they'll probably be
37:31
flying through as they're headed back down south.
37:33
And generally, this is a nice, leisurely area.
37:37
It's also a spot where I get some of my last
37:39
bluebird sightings. So I recommend going there,
37:44
especially if you're a birder, even if you only
37:46
do the first little bit. You might see some really
37:48
cool birds and have a great experience, but I
37:50
really feel that you should hike the entire thing.
37:53
The Sentinel Meadows Trail is 1 .7 miles long
37:57
and you basically head straight west toward an
38:01
area called Queen's Laundry. And Queen's Laundry
38:05
is a small little thermal area that is easy to
38:08
miss. But it's really cool historically because
38:11
it has the remains of the oldest surviving structure
38:14
built in Yellowstone from the park's early civilian
38:18
administration. So, big caveat there. There are
38:22
older structures built by the indigenous people
38:24
out in the backcountry. This is one of the, this
38:26
is the oldest park, official park building, not
38:30
just random building. So, know that. Don't expect
38:33
to see much, it's just a few pieces of wood there.
38:36
But... It was built in 1881 and it was supposed
38:41
to be a structure that was there to be a bath
38:45
house and then a place for people to do laundry.
38:48
No longer exists, obviously, but it's a really
38:51
cool piece of history that you can walk by. You
38:53
can see this backcountry thermal area as well.
38:56
If you want more information about it, reach
38:58
out to me or, well, reach out to me and I can
39:01
recommend some cool books or websites or something
39:03
about it. So I did talk about it last year, so
39:06
you can also search this week in Yellowstone
39:09
and Queen's Laundry and probably get a whole
39:11
bunch of information. But that Sentinel Meadows
39:14
Trail, like I said, only 1 .7 miles, you climb
39:18
96 feet total, you drop 59 feet, and then you
39:21
get to a point where you head back, and you head
39:24
back on the Imperial Meadows Trail, which is
39:28
a slightly different, but it makes a little V
39:30
shape from where you started. So you start at
39:32
the spring, Walked along the river, you got to
39:34
Queens Laundry, then you head back, but you're
39:37
going further south. This is again 1 .7 miles,
39:41
39 feet up, 41 feet down. You go across some
39:44
thermal areas. It's pretty cool. You kind of
39:46
have this really nice little experience in the
39:50
backcountry where I have seen maybe one person
39:53
of all the times I've been there. It's really
39:54
nice. I love it. And you hike that and then you
39:57
get to a junction with the Firehole Meadows and
40:01
Fairy Falls Trail. And this is a much longer
40:04
trail that you will be taking a little bit. You
40:10
won't take the whole way because if you take
40:12
the whole way, then that's going to be like a
40:14
17 mile day. What you want to do is take this
40:16
little trail, which could also be labeled as
40:18
a fairy falls trail. I'm not quite sure what
40:20
the current signage says. It's switched every
40:23
so often, but you'll want to hike this. You'll
40:25
still be in a little thermal area and there's
40:27
really cool little features as you make your
40:29
way to Fairy Falls and to Imperial Geyser Basin.
40:35
You're gonna hike about 2 .2 miles to Imperial
40:38
Geyser Basin and that will be great. I love hiking
40:42
out there because you get to see the falls from
40:44
a distance and then you see the steam rising
40:46
from the thermal area and as you get to the junctions
40:49
the signage will be good and you'll be able to
40:51
figure it out. When in doubt stay to the right
40:53
to get Imperial Geyser Basin. Then hike back
40:56
and then you get to the falls and once you're
40:58
the falls then you just cruise down the trail
41:01
back to the regular trail that everybody else
41:04
is going to take. You're going to run into people
41:06
around Imperial Geyser Basin and Fairy Falls
41:09
and then keep running into more and more people
41:11
as you get back toward that Fountain Flats Road
41:14
that is that dirt road. And as you get to the
41:17
road you have an option. You can turn left and
41:20
just hike back or you can turn right for a little
41:23
bit and then hike up to the Grand Prismatic Overlook
41:26
Trail and take in Grand Prismatic. Do it. It's
41:30
not that much more distance. It is worth it because
41:32
then you get this experience of Seeing some backcountry
41:36
thermal areas seeing some really cool thermal
41:38
areas up close that not a lot of people see get
41:41
to see Ferry Falls and you get to see You know
41:43
Grand Prismatic from above and then you get to
41:46
leave the crowds behind again and walk about
41:49
3 .3 miles along a really flat scenic road that
41:53
passes some lakes some cool viewpoints some good
41:56
wildlife activity back to your car Overall, again,
42:00
it is about a 12 and a half mile day, about 550
42:03
feet of elevation gain, but you really get out
42:06
to that next level adventure. So I want to recommend
42:09
that because I love doing this trail this time
42:12
of the year. It's a really special place to be
42:14
where you can slow down and just sit and appreciate
42:17
things without anyone else around. And with it
42:21
being October, it's even less crowded. Do this
42:24
trail, let me know what you think about it, and
42:27
I will recommend another fun one next week. That's
42:31
it for this week. In the next episode, I'm going
42:33
to return with all the information you need to
42:35
have a good week in the park that includes the
42:37
wildlife weather and trail updates. Until then,
42:40
consider booking a tour with me in 2027. Please
42:43
pick up a guidebook of mine. Please definitely
42:45
recommend this podcast to anybody you know that
42:48
may be interested. And happy trails. This week
43:03
in Yellowstone is brought to you by the Outdoor
43:05
Society. That's my company. It's just me. I do
43:08
this. It's a labor of love. If you like it, tell
43:10
your friends, rate and review it. Shoot me a
43:12
message. Otherwise, keep listening and I hope
43:15
to see you in Yellowstone. Copyright 2026, baby.