Latest / This Week in Yellowstone National Park / This Week in Yellowstone: October 22nd to October 28th, 2026

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This Week in Yellowstone: October 22nd to October 28th, 2026 · This Week in Yellowstone National Park

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From Yellowstone National Park, where fall doesn't
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seem to want to end, this is that Scott guy you
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know and love with a brand new episode of This
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Week in Yellowstone. What's up everybody, This
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Week in Yellowstone National Park from October
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22nd to October 28th, 2026. I'll tell you why
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this week is awesome for seeing the moon, let
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you know what is closing, share some information
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about Swan Lake Flats, and give you a heads up
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about what it's going to be like to hike this
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week. I'll also give you the complete weather
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forecast, a cool trail, and the wildlife report,
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as well as everything else you need to have an
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incredible time this week in Yellowstone. Standard
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disclaimer, gonna miss a few details here and
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there, that's just the nature of this podcast.
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I also mention park locations very casually,
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so if you're unfamiliar, a quick search can help.
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This podcast is a passion project of mine. I'm
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not paid. I'm not sponsored. I do it because
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I want people to have a good time in the park.
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If you enjoy what you hear, I'd love a review
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or a quick email. If you want to support my work
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more, you can check out my Hiking and Wildlife
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Watching guidebooks or join me for a guided hiking
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tour in Yellowstone's backcountry. For more information,
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you can send me an email at theoutdoorsocietyatgmail
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.com or send me a message via text at 406 -589
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-1873. As always, jam -packed episodes, we're
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going to jump right into this week's Yellowstone
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news. Pretty much everything in the park is closed
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or will be closing this week. On October 24th,
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Canyon Lodge is closing. Old Faithful Snow Lodge
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is closing on the 24th as well. The Canyon Eatery,
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the Canyon Gift Shop, Canyon Lounge, Canyon Washburn
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Lookout, the Old Faithful Snow Lodge Obsidian
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Dining Room will also close on the 25th. On the
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27th, the Old Faithful Medical Center is going
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to be closing, and then the things that are closing
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on the 31st are the Canyon Gas & Store, the Canyon
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Wrecker & Tow Service, Canyon Visitor Education
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Desk, West Yellowstone MPS Desk, Old Faithful
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Snow Lodge Geyser Grill, Old Faithful Snow Lodge
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Gift Shop, Old Faithful Visitor Education Center,
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and the Old Faithful Park Store. Roads close
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on November 1st for the interior, so Everything
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is going to be closed at the end of the day on
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the 31st in the park in that whole area. Anything
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I didn't mention that's in the interior is already
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closed. The only thing that will be open after
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the 31st will be stuff in the Mammoth region.
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So I'll talk about that more next week and the
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week after. Just wanted to give you a heads up
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there. Real quick if you are coming to the park
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this week or next know that most everything's
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gonna be closed finding food may be hard Be prepared
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bring all your food pick it up in the you know
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in West Yellowstone or out in Cook City Silver
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Gate or Gardner Cody or when you're headed up
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from Jackson and then you'll be okay, but don't
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expect much to be open in the park and then it
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will be even less open between the 28th and the
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31st and then Past the 31st again, the only road
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that's going to be open will be from Gardiner
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through Mammoth out to Cook City. The next bit
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of news is good news. There are some people that's
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saying it's not good news, but, you know, there's
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a saying, don't look at gift horse in the mouth.
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This is one of those things. Yellowstone National
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Park is getting a 105 million dollar boost, which
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officials call the largest single private gift
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in National Park Service history. The Park Service,
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Yellowstone Forever, and Tallgrass, a Blackstone
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infrastructure company, announced the new Conservation
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and Stewardship Fund on Monday. It will support
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conservation and scientific research, improve
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park infrastructure and visitor experience, and
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give more Wyoming students and families a chance
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to experience the park. The amount of money given
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is also going to include a 35 million dollar
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visitor center at the Norris Geyser basin Now
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this is controversial for a lot of people because
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Blackstone and that whole company currently building
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data centers Also, not the most ethically sound
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companies from what I have heard I don't personally
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know anybody that works for them So I can't speak
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to that but from what I've heard if you are a
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far left leaning person They're not a great company
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if you're a far right leaning person. They're
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a great company Now, the $105 million is a huge,
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huge donation. I can't even imagine how much
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good that is going to come with. Will there be
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strings attached to this? I doubt it. I know
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a lot of people, if you read like sfgate .com,
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which is always covering more inflammatory angles
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of national park stuff, they have a bunch of
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the sky is falling sort of ideals about this
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donation. I'm not gonna jump to conclusions here.
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It's a hundred and five million dollars given
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to Yellowstone with that money Being given to
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Yellowstone forever to use at their discretion
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supposedly. That's great. Now Could it be a different
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company doing this? Yes, but we're not seeing
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other people do this We're not seeing other companies
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do this There are billionaires that are not giving
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to the parks yet. We get a hundred and five million
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dollars for Yellowstone from a company This is
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great news that it's much needed infrastructure
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money. I am happy about it Hopefully there's
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nothing that's going to come from it, but you
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know, I don't know what the future is I don't
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know it's in anybody's hearts with this donation
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So I'm just going to celebrate a hundred and
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five million dollars going to the infrastructure
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and helping educational Experiences in Yellowstone
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National Park. That is a win again I know that
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there is a whole other side to this that is a
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possibility But right now it's a whole what -if
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game and I'm not gonna entertain what ifs because
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I can't control anything anyway, so there's no
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point in getting outraged about things I can't
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control. So I don't really know what else to
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say about this. I had some people that were like,
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isn't this great news? And some people told me,
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isn't this terrible news? And honestly, it's
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one hundred and five million dollars donated
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to the park. And there's going to be a new visitor
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center in the Norris Geyser Basin. That's pretty
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awesome. Complete shift in gears. The experience
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of the week. Catch the Moonrise There's something
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special about watching the moon rise over Yellowstone.
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The sky changes color and starts to get dark,
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the mountains become silhouettes as the sun sets,
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and the landscape starts taking on a whole new
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look as the moon finally climbs above the horizon.
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This coming week is a great time to experience
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a full moonrise, as the full moon is October
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25th. Whether you're hoping to take pictures,
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find a quiet spot to enjoy the scenery, or just
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having an evening outdoors in the park, a moonrise
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is kind of an event that you can plan around
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and it's a great end of the day. The full moon
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reaches its peak on Sunday, October 25th, 2026
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at approximately 9 10 p .m. The moonrise is expected
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to start at 5 48 p .m. And when it rises it's
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going to be 99 .8 percent of full. So it's gonna
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be a hundred percent full about 9 10 9 11 p .m
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But at 5 48 when it starts to rise in most of
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the park. It's at 99 .8 percent You will not
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be able to tell the difference with your eye
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or probably even with the telescope For the best
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experience get settled before the moon comes
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up You know spend a half hour waiting for it.
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Have a little snack and wait at 5 48. That's
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You know if you're like me, I don't eat till
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6 30 or 7 p .m. So you can watch the moon rise
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and then go in and have dinner Now you may be
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going to the park and you're not gonna be there
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on the 25th That's okay. You don't have to wait
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until the full moon to enjoy the show in the
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evenings leading up to October 25th The moon
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will grow brighter each night and start rising
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around 4 p .m So then you can see the moon come
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up in the daylight and have it, you know 80 85
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90 percent and that's really cool, too If you
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aren't here until after the full moonrise, it's
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okay. It just means that it's gonna raise later
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at night. So instead of at five, it's gonna come
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up at six something, and then seven something,
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and eight something, and so on. So the next couple
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days, you can just kind of time your day. If
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you have a weather app, most of the weather apps
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also have a moonrise. time on them. So I use
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weather underground and in that it tells you
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sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moon set, and then
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you have all that information. I really think
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that this is a great experience in the park.
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A lot of people don't take advantage of the moon
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or seeing the night sky, but with a full moon
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coming up with supposedly decent weather on Saturday
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and Sunday, I think this is going to be one of
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those things that you can end your interior time
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in the park. right, you get to catch a full moon
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rising and then have that glow of the moon illuminate
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the valleys and the mountains and everything.
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Most of the year I do full moonrise tours and
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when the moon is going to be full we plan a tour
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we hike out to somewhere we wait we watch the
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sunset in one direction turn around and watch
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the full moon rise in the other and then we hike
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out in the moonlight and it is truly phenomenal
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i have those coming up next year if you're interested
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in that reach out let me know when you're coming
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in 2027 and i can tell you when the full moon
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is and maybe there's something we can do to plan
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around that If you are staying out for the moon,
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remember that it's cold in October. Even if it's
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not snowy right now, it's still pretty cold.
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It's been getting down to the 30s and 20s every
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night. Have warm layers with you. Bring gloves
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and a flashlight or headlamp. Consider packing
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a thermos of a hot drink or something. And also
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know that if you're bringing a camera to take
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pictures, use a tripod. It's really hard to get
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great detail of the moon's surface with a handheld
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camera. A tripod really helps with that. but
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then you have to move the tripod because the
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moon's moving so there's all sorts of things
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that are fun when you get a moonrise if you are
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looking for a place to catch the full moon and
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you're like i really want somewhere special reach
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out to me i'll hook you up with a couple of my
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spots that are easy to drive to if you're wanting
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to hike a few things um bears wolves other animals
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very active at night and visibility is not good
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that's why i only do my night tours once a month
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because it's little sketchy at times and you
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know I think I know the park well and I know
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where we're hiking with animal activity and things
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like that but if you don't know it very well
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it can be a lot more dangerous so please don't
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do that on your own unless you're experienced
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in the outdoors all that is to say if you're
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in the park this weekend for the full moon go
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out catch it rise it's gonna start rising around
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540 to 6 o 'clock depending where you are and
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how the mountains are but It's going to be worth
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it. It's going to be awesome. And you should
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totally check it out. Every time there's a full
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moon, you should go out. Every time there's a
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new moon and no moonlight, you should go outside
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and look at the stars. But, you know, we can
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do what we can do. And right now, if you're in
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the park, this full moon, definitely something
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that you can have a unique experience. Go to
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Geyser Basin, watch Old Faithful erupt. Go to
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Grand Prismatic Boardwalk and walk around that
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and see it reflecting off the moonlight. Anything
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and everything is great. My tip of the week.
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You'll encounter mostly empty trails. How do
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you be prepared for that? If you're heading to
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the park this week to hike, especially on a weekday,
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don't expect to share the trail with many people
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or anyone. Sure, some of the popular hikes may
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be busy this time of the year, but chances are,
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even on treks like Ferry Falls and Imperial Geyser,
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you're gonna have miles of this to yourself.
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You need to be prepared to be alone. How do you
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do that? The first thing to do, Always carry
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bear spray every hike, even the boardwalks. Bears
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are everywhere. I've seen bears on the mammoth
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boardwalks. I've seen them at Old Faithful. Have
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bear spray with you. Have it out, ready to use,
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and know how to use it. One thing I always see
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is people have bear spray in a pocket tucked
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away on the side of their backpack or in their
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backpack. You might have three seconds at most
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to deploy bear spray if needed. You need to be
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familiar with it. You're not gonna have time
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to read the instructions. Know what you're doing
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before you head out. The second thing to do when
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you're hiking alone or with your own group, no
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matter how big or small it is, always make noise
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by talking. That doesn't mean you have to scream
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and yell. Just have a conversation. A human voice
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is one of the more effective deterrents for wildlife.
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They associate our voices with us. They don't
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want to be around us, so they don't. So talk
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a lot. Some people have asked about, you know,
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playing music or having bear bells or things
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like that. Just talk. I think talking is the
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best way to go about your day and make sure the
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wildlife knows you're there. One other thing
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if you're hiking with a group, I see this a lot
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and it bothers me because something bad can happen
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if you do this. Let's say you have a group of
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five people. That's plenty of people to hike
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in bear territory according to the signs. You
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should have a group of three or more is what
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the signs say. However, a lot of groups when
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they hike spread out very far. They may let the
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kids run up ahead. I've seen people on hikes
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in the backcountry of Yellowstone when they let
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six, seven, eight -year -olds run ahead a quarter
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mile. That's an ineffective way to hike as a
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group. There's no point in that. If there's a
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bear nearby and those kids scare it, not everybody
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is there. those kids are getting attacked as
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we've seen this year already. When you're hiking
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in a group, you should be pretty close together.
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You shouldn't have enough space that a whole
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herd of bison can come through between you. I
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know not everybody hikes at the same pace, so
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if you're a fast hiker and everybody wants everybody
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to hike together, slow down. You're not better
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than everybody, so just slow and hike with everybody.
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Yeah, it might be slower than your regular pace
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and you might feel tedious, but you're hiking
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together for safety and everyone's safety comes
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ahead of your split for whatever mile you want
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to hike. I have had friends who I kind of stopped
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being friends with because we'd go on group hikes
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and they would just leave the slower people behind.
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that would be their spouse, that would be anybody,
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and I'm sorry, if you're gonna hike with people,
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you hike with people and you don't shame them
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for maybe not being in the same shape as you,
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and one way that is done, that is done without
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people realizing it, is just hiking ahead, waiting
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for them to catch up, and then as soon as the
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slow person catches up, they run ahead. You know,
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if you keep doing this leapfrog where the slow
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person never gets a break, but the fast person
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always gets multiple breaks, and that should
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be the other way around. So, That's a long kind
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of rant that isn't necessarily important for
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this time of the year, but I wanted to mention
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it because I see it a lot, and this is the time
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of the year when animals are active, visibility
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might not be great, and with less people around,
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you really need to be together the entire time.
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Another thing you need to do when you're hiking
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in smaller groups or alone without lots of other
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people around is know the trail. Make sure you
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familiarize yourself with the route you're taking
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before you go, pay attention to the signs, and
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know your personal limits. Also, have more than
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enough food and water, and have some sort of
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first aid kit, and tell people where you are
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going. This is the time of year when a storm
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could roll in, and you could be stuck out there
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if it's gonna snow or something. It probably
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won't this week. Friday maybe, but that's a whole
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other story. We'll talk about that with the weather,
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but... Plan ahead tell people where you're hiking
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have extra food water Extra clothes bring a pair
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of gloves and a warm pair of pants and you know
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good jacket I always have that in my bag right
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now and I live out here I'm in shape enough to
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be able to do things and handle the weather But
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I'm always overly prepared because you never
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know Maybe you're gonna hike and you just roll
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and sprain an ankle or break an ankle and you're
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four miles out and you're by yourself or you're
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with a friend, you're still gonna have to hobble
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out. If it gets cold, if it gets dark, you need
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to be prepared for that. Along the getting dark
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lines, bring a headlamp with you on every hike
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right now. Bring extra batteries. Your cell phone
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flashlight is not going to be enough. I'm being
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serious about this because this is the time of
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the year with the shorter daylight hours. It
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can be easy to lose track of time or to overestimate
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how fast you're going to hike and have something
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go wrong. It happens every year out here. Search
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and rescue crews deal with this. Park staff deals
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with this. Guides deal with this. It's something
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that I've noticed and I want you to not be one
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of those people that everybody rolls their eyes
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at when there's a story about an ill -prepared
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hiker. These empty trails in the park do have
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a huge benefit. You're by yourself. You aren't
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gonna have lots of other people Yelling you're
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not gonna have other people to encounter So every
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time you crest a hill you need to be loud because
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you don't know if there's an animal over there
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There's a level of excitement and a level of
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uncertainty that comes with this year this time
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of the year That I absolutely love it makes the
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hiking so much more fun your fall colors You
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get that crisp air so you don't have to like
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sweat as much as you do in the summer and you
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have elk with huge racks. You might see bears
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in the distance rummaging for food. You might
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even see wolves and coyotes and who knows what
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out there. So be smart, be safe, and know that
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the more prepared you are, the better your day
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is going to be. My random Yellowstone fact of
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the week. Swans and Swan Lake Flats. Swan Lake
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Flats is a scenic meadow that you may know. It's
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south of Mammoth Hot Springs and north of Norris.
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and it's kind of this wide sweeping area that's
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near Bunsen Peak. It shows off Seppelker Mountain
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as well as Electric Peak and all the other mountains
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of that section of the Gallatin Range. This area
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has elk, bison, great birding, some grizzly bears,
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black bears, wolves, and it's a combination of
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open grasslands and mountains and forests, and
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it's just kind of everything that you want from
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the northern range of Yellowstone. There's also
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some cool hikes there. If you go a little past
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Swan Lake Flats, you get down to the Sheep Eater
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Cliffs area and Obsidian Cliffs, and all sorts
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of really interesting spots with some cool history
19:07
that I've talked about on previous podcasts.
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However, this week, I'm talking about birds.
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In Swan Lake Flats, as soon as you hear that,
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you probably think, a lake with swans on it.
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But that wasn't always the case. So in case you
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don't know about swans, You know, they have a
19:25
trumpet -like call, they can weigh more than
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25 pounds, and have a wingspan of up to 8 feet.
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Trumper to swans live in lakes, wetlands, slow
19:33
-moving rivers, and they feed on aquatic vegetation.
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Wetlands like this provide a great place for
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them to breed, eat, roost everything they need
19:45
to to ensure that they're going to survive into
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the future. During the 19th and early 20th centuries,
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hunting and habitat destruction caused trumpeter
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swan populations to collapse across North America.
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People killed swans for food, feathers, and skins
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while the loss of wetlands reduced their nesting
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and feeding opportunities. By the early 20th
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century, the species had nearly disappeared from
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the contiguous United States. Around 1930, Approximately
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70 trumpeter swans remained in the Greater Yellowstone
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Ecosystem, including Yellowstone National Park,
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and what is now Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife
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Refuge in southwestern Montana. These surviving
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birds became essential to the species' recovery.
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Wildlife researchers began documenting swans
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more carefully in the late 1920s. In 1929, George
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Wright, Joseph Dixon, and Ben Thompson began
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a multi -year survey of wildlife in western national
20:43
parks. During their work in Yellowstone, they
20:46
documented swan nesting, incubation, hatching,
20:49
feeding, courtship, and parental behavior. In
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1930, Dixon observed two pairs of swans and recorded
20:55
their struggles to raise young successfully.
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One family began with six signets, which are
21:01
baby swans, but only one survived until September.
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That signet died a little later. His observations
21:10
highlighted the challenges facing the species
21:12
and the importance of protecting its habitat.
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Dixon also filmed the birds, producing footage
21:18
later identified by the National Park Service
21:20
as the earliest known motion picture of trumpeter
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swans. There's something that I didn't know.
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The 16 minute silent film, Trumpeter Swans on
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their breeding grounds, documented their feeding,
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swimming, courtship, and care of their young.
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It was intended to increase public awareness
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of their vulnerable status. The National Park
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Service assumed responsibility for the Wildlife
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Survey in 1933 and continued it for several years.
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Systematic trumpeter swan counts in Yellowstone
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begin in 1931. The park's resident population
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eventually reached a record peak of 72 birds
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in 1961, but numbers declined after that. Nest
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flooding Predation, human disturbance, environmental
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changes, and wetland loss have all contributed
22:05
to that. Ending the supplementary winter feeding
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program at Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge
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and draining winter ponds in the early 1990s
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further reduced suitable winter habitat for the
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swans. The National Park Service recorded 29
22:19
swans in Yellowstone in 2023, including 26 adults
22:23
and 3 signets. Although trumpeter swans have
22:26
recovered across much of North America, Yellowstone's
22:29
resident population remains a conservation concern.
22:33
Continued monitoring and habitat protection are
22:35
important for the species' future. Last year
22:39
I witnessed some swans in Swan Lake Flats and
22:42
they had some signets and they were swimming
22:43
around and that was great news. The year before,
22:45
same thing. This year there's a couple trumpeter
22:48
swans the pond right now when I was there this
22:51
weekend but I didn't see any signet so they did
22:54
not breed successfully. I was also in Hayden
22:56
Valley saw some swans down there but there were
22:59
no new swans that appear to have been born. There
23:02
might be elsewhere but those are the spots where
23:04
I usually see them and didn't see them this year.
23:06
I wanted to talk about the swans because it's
23:09
easy to think of the bigger animals in the park.
23:11
wolves and bison and the recovery of both of
23:14
those and then mountain lions and how those are
23:17
some what hard to see and there's very few of
23:20
them in the park even bighorn sheep there's not
23:22
a ton in the park we don't think about birds
23:24
that much but every animal in the park is important
23:29
to the park the birds in the park the swans in
23:32
the park are very important to the park and i
23:35
wanted to talk about swan lake flats and the
23:36
swans so that way when you're driving south of
23:39
mammoth and you get to the lake it might make
23:41
you stop. Aside from seeing a great view of Electric
23:45
Peak and looking back at the other mountains,
23:47
look in the pond and see if there's a couple
23:49
of swans in there. If there are, are there any
23:52
signets around swimming behind them? Maybe I
23:54
missed them. If they're not there, will you see
23:57
them next year? We don't know, and that's why
24:00
the park continues to monitor them year in and
24:02
year out because the better they do, the healthier
24:06
the entire ecosystem is. Now I could in this
24:09
end with a bummer and just be like, yep, that's
24:11
it Maybe we won't have swans for much longer
24:13
in the park. Probably not gonna happen that way,
24:16
but You never know. I don't know. I don't know
24:19
what's gonna happen tomorrow. So Appreciate the
24:23
swans when you see them and know that they're
24:25
special to the region Also when you're in the
24:28
area know there's other special things in the
24:29
region There's the sheep eater cliffs that I
24:32
mentioned that have been really cool for lots
24:35
of people to just look at the geology of the
24:37
park and then hike along the gardener river just
24:40
south of swan lake flat you're also going to
24:42
have obsidian cliffs which were super important
24:45
to the history of humanity in north america then
24:49
you also have this area where there's lots of
24:51
wildlife lots of trails to very remote places
24:53
that are absolutely beautiful you have one of
24:56
the few biking trails in the park right off of
24:59
swan lake flats that goes around bunsen peak
25:01
down to mammoth You have mountains to climb you
25:05
have rivers to enjoy and wildlife to see so Appreciate
25:10
Swan Lake Flats. I always do it's one of my favorite
25:12
places to go and look at as soon as the roads
25:14
open And I'm always a little sad when I don't
25:17
get to see it once the roads close So that's
25:19
why I wanted to talk about it also swans are
25:21
cool the weather for the coming week As always,
25:25
this is the best forecast for the week at the
25:27
time of recording. It is Wednesday, October 21st
25:30
at 3 .25pm. This forecast can change numerous
25:34
times in the week, but it should be within the
25:36
ballpark of what you'll experience when visiting
25:38
the park. So let's start with Lamar Valley. On
25:42
Thursday, Lamar will have a high of 64 and 41,
25:45
with a 49 % chance of a little bit of rain. Friday,
25:49
high of 48, low of 25, 66 % chance of rain, maybe
25:53
about a quarter of an inch. Saturday, 49 and
25:57
23 with a 10 % chance of rain. Sunday, 51 and
26:01
24 with a 6 % chance of rain. Monday, 49 and
26:05
24 with an 8 % chance. Tuesday, 45 and 27 with
26:09
a 24 % chance. And Wednesday, 46 and 28 with
26:13
a 22 % chance of rain. Weather for Gardner, Montana
26:17
on Thursday highest 68 low of 45 Friday 52 and
26:21
25 with a 72 percent a 70 percent chance about
26:25
two tenths of an inch of rain on Saturday 51
26:29
and 25 7 percent chance of rain Sunday 53 and
26:33
27 7 percent chance of rain Monday 53 and 27
26:37
9 percent chance of rain Tuesday 48 and 29 21
26:41
percent chance of rain and Wednesday 49 and 29
26:45
with a 24 percent chance of rain. The weather
26:48
for West Yellowstone Montana on Thursday 62 and
26:51
38 with a 72 percent chance of rain maybe in
26:54
the morning and evenings at tenth of an inch.
26:57
On Friday 43 and 20 with a 70 percent chance
27:01
of rain about a quarter of an inch. Saturday
27:04
48 and 18 with an 18 percent chance of rain Sunday
27:08
51 and 27 percent chance of rain Monday 48 and
27:12
21 24 percent chance of rain Tuesday 44 and 22
27:17
with a 24 percent chance of rain and Wednesday
27:20
46 and 23 with a 37 percent chance of at least
27:23
of a third of an inch of snow Cody Wyoming on
27:27
Thursday 71 and 48 Friday, 65 and 34 with a 12
27:32
% chance of rain. Saturday, 50 and 33. Sunday,
27:37
47 and 31. Monday, 50 and 33. Tuesday, 54 and
27:42
36. Wednesday, 54 and 34. And finally for the
27:46
weather, Cook City, Montana. On Thursday, 60
27:50
and 39 with a 45 % chance of about a tenth of
27:53
an inch of rain. Friday 44 and 26 with a 67 %
27:58
chance of a quarter inch of rain might be snow
28:00
as well Saturday 45 and 25 morning snow showers,
28:05
but a 10 % chance of that Sunday 48 and 25 Monday
28:09
46 and 26 Tuesday 42 and 26 with a 34 % chance
28:15
about a third of an inch of snow and Wednesday
28:17
43 and 27 with a 24 % chance of rain or snow
28:22
It appears as if the warm weather is going away,
28:26
so if you're coming to the park, layer up. It's
28:29
gonna be a little chilly here and there. Sunrise
28:32
and sunset times. Starting the week, sunrise
28:35
is gonna be closer to 8 a .m. and sunset is gonna
28:39
be around 630, so do with that what you will.
28:45
I'm gonna be refining the sunrise and sunset
28:47
times here and there, but right now I just generally
28:50
pull up one for the area obviously mountains
28:53
will block things and blah blah blah right but
28:57
generalities you know uh first light by the way
29:00
today in cook city was 7 14 a .m and last light
29:05
will be at 6 56 p .m that's only going to get
29:09
later first light and earlier last light as the
29:12
week progresses road conditions There are no
29:16
main park roads closed right now. That includes
29:18
Dunraven Pass. There are a few spots of construction
29:21
here and there, but delays are minimal. And while
29:25
unlikely, be aware that roads can close at any
29:27
time due to inclement weather. It's probably
29:29
going to be Friday night or early Saturday if
29:33
there's anything that closes. If you need up
29:35
-to -date information on the roads, call 307
29:37
-344 -2117 for recorded information. Or you can
29:41
sign up to receive Yellowstone Road Alerts. on
29:44
your cell phone by texting 82190 to the number
29:48
888777. Camping information. The only campground
29:54
in Yellowstone that is open right now is Mammoth,
29:58
and that remains open all year long. The Wildlife
30:01
Watching update. So Wildlife Watching has been
30:05
hit and miss. Out of the east entrance, good
30:09
bear activity. There's been some grizzlies spotted
30:11
out in Lamar in the distance. There were grizzlies
30:15
in the Gardner area the other day. There are
30:18
grizzlies around Hayden. Also, there are great
30:22
gray owls near Fishing Bridge and by Canyon.
30:26
So that's been pretty cool. Usually in the evening
30:28
is when those are spotted. Wolves have been not
30:32
very common this last week. I got shut out this
30:35
week on wolves, which is very rare. So it probably
30:38
means that this coming week is going to be really
30:40
good for wolves because they haven't been seen
30:41
for a while. If we don't know where they are,
30:44
so I would go between Mammoth and Tower and go
30:50
to that area known as like the Blacktail area.
30:53
Then I would also look at Hell Roaring and then
30:55
I go out to Lamar in Little America. Hayden Valley
30:58
could also be pretty good as well. That's where
31:00
I would go, wake up early or go in the evening.
31:04
Bighorn sheep are starting to gather a bit more
31:07
out the north entrance, especially by Yellowstone
31:09
Hot Springs and Devil's Slide. There's also a
31:13
bunch of elk that have been hanging out in Mammoth
31:14
again. The big number 24 bull elk was just laying
31:18
in front of the little hospital doctor's office
31:22
in Mammoth the other day just lounging. There's
31:25
another young bull off with a bunch of females
31:27
and number 24 did not care. Bison are spreading
31:32
out in the park. Their big herds are dispersing
31:35
and now they're getting to more of their grazing
31:37
herds Pronghorn are really prevalent out in that
31:41
northern range of the park Especially the closer
31:44
you get to Gardiner and then if you drove old
31:46
Yellowstone Road, there's a lot out there You're
31:48
not gonna see a lot of birds this time of the
31:50
year the bluebirds left I haven't seen any for
31:53
about a week and a half the osprey are gone But
31:56
there are a few Eagles that have been hanging
31:57
out Lamar and that's been nice I also heard reports
32:00
of an otter down by the bathroom in Hayden Valley,
32:07
but I didn't see any pictures. I just heard a
32:11
report from one of my friends who heard it from
32:13
somebody else. So maybe there's otters were down
32:16
there, but who knows? They're really hard to
32:18
see anyway. Other than that, if you need more
32:21
information about wildlife watching, please just
32:24
contact me. Send me an email. Happy to respond
32:26
and let you know where I've been seeing things.
32:29
Also, just know that this is a time of year where
32:32
you might see lots of things or you might not.
32:34
Oh, there's also been some grizzlies hanging
32:36
out in the evening driving over near Mount Washburn.
32:40
So as you're going Dunraven Pass, they're near
32:43
that big pullout on the south side before you
32:46
get to that first Mount Washburn trailhead. So
32:49
maybe you'll see some there. Other than that,
32:51
it's just been a weird year. So, you know, I...
32:55
I haven't seen many bears in the park recently
32:57
and it bums me out, but what are you gonna do?
33:00
So as always, my advice, hit up Hayden, hit up
33:04
Lamar. If you drive from Mammoth to Cook City
33:07
and back, you'll probably see some moose out
33:09
by Cook City, and that's gonna be awesome. I
33:12
love seeing the moose right now because they
33:13
have these huge racks the bulls do, and that's
33:16
fantastic, especially with the mountain, with
33:18
Baronet Peak in the background and things like
33:20
that, if you can get that. that would be amazing
33:22
and if you do get that picture send it to me
33:24
because i would love to see it otherwise you're
33:27
going to see what you're going to see don't put
33:28
a lot of pressure on yourself but know that with
33:31
the colder temperatures things are going to be
33:32
a little more active during the day not necessarily
33:35
the wolves and the bears but other animals will
33:37
be moving around more with the colder weather
33:39
so enjoy good luck and i hope you have an amazing
33:43
time wildlife watching As always I quickly plug
33:47
my guidebooks I have a hiking guidebook to the
33:49
region and a wildlife watching guidebook Both
33:51
of these are based on my love of the region and
33:54
my hope that I can help you have an amazing time
33:56
They are written out of love and out of a desire
34:00
to give you the best Yellowstone experience if
34:03
you love hiking in the region These are my favorite
34:05
hikes. These are not just random hikes These
34:07
are the hikes that I will do over and over and
34:09
over again for your wildlife watcher This is
34:13
all the knowledge, well, a lot of the knowledge
34:15
I have in my head. I wrote a book about it that
34:18
is broken down by location. Ebooks are just $10.
34:21
If you order a paperback, they're a little more
34:23
expensive, but either thing you do is a good
34:26
way to show appreciation for the podcast, help
34:28
me out, know people are listening, and give you
34:31
a resource that's really going to help you visit
34:33
the park. Trail alerts and updates. The Backcountry
34:38
Conditions page. is no longer updated says it
34:41
is it's not uh i'll have a link to it in the
34:44
show notes maybe i don't know no one really clicked
34:47
through so it's probably not that useful but
34:50
when it is updated it's a great place so you
34:53
can go back on old show notes and see that link
34:56
if i don't link to it in this one the best way
34:59
to get trail conditions will be to talk to a
35:02
ranger or to talk to me Again, shoot me a text
35:05
406 -589 -1873 or an email at theoutdoorsocietyatgmail
35:10
.com and I will happily answer your questions
35:14
for you. As always, carry bear spray, have it
35:17
readily accessible, not in a backpack, and know
35:20
how to use it. My truck of the week, a Canyon
35:24
Adventure. Most of the time if I tell you to
35:27
hike Canyon I'll tell you like go to the brink
35:29
of the lower falls and then do Red Rock Point
35:32
and then hike out to Inspiration Point and back.
35:35
This week I want you to be on the south side
35:37
and I'm giving you a bit of a different adventure
35:41
and one that is really fun this time of the year
35:43
because there's nobody there and you get some
35:44
really cool views and experiences to yourself.
35:48
This week I'm recommending the Clear Lake Point
35:50
Sublime South Rim Loop. What you want to do is
35:54
park near the Upper Falls viewpoint parking lot
35:58
on the South Rim Drive. Now, this is going to
36:03
be the big parking lot that used to give you
36:06
access to the Uncle Tom's Trail, but that trail
36:09
no longer exists. What you want to do is park
36:10
in that parking lot, and instead of walking to
36:13
the canyon, you want to walk back to the road
36:15
along the Clear Lake Trail. This section of trail
36:19
is only 0 .7 miles long. It climbs a little bit,
36:22
129 feet. and then it joins the Clear Lake and
36:26
Ribbon Lake trail. At the junction you'll want
36:29
to stay to the left and stay on that for a while
36:32
and that goes through a little thermal area that's
36:35
pretty cool it passes by a couple lakes and it
36:39
just gives you an opportunity to wander through
36:42
a scenery that you may not see otherwise good
36:44
place to see elk and a few bison lingering around
36:47
i've seen coyotes hunting here and it's a really
36:50
nice way to get away from everybody else even
36:52
if the canyon's busy please know that the bison
36:56
out here may not be the friendliest they're kind
36:59
of the old bulls that have been put out to pasture
37:01
and so give them a wide berth and also you know
37:05
don't go too far off trail in those thermal areas
37:07
they're not thermal areas as much as areas that
37:11
are warm and smell a little like sulfur and so
37:14
the ground is warm and nothing grows there but
37:16
there aren't really pools there will be a couple
37:18
small springs but avoid going into them please
37:21
just be smart here about a mile in on this trail
37:25
you're going to come to a junction that is the
37:28
ribbon lake artist point connector trail this
37:31
is 0 .3 miles long 147 feet of elevation loss
37:37
which is pretty nice and then you get The artist
37:41
point trail which is right along the canyon rim
37:43
this section of the canyon rim trail Has a couple
37:48
of my favorite little viewpoints now point sublime
37:51
great name for a spot, right? It's not that sublime.
37:54
It's pretty but the trees have grown up around
37:57
it So your view is very limited It is further
38:00
up the canyon or down the canyon from the falls
38:03
then inspiration point on the other side But
38:06
you don't really get a good view what I would
38:09
do here is hike about a half mile going downriver
38:14
toward Point Sublime and then turn around and
38:16
come back along that South Rim Trail and then
38:19
you go the South Rim Trail all the way back to
38:22
where you parked. In total it's about 5 .5 miles
38:26
round trip and 700 feet of elevation gain it's
38:29
pretty easy to do there's good wildlife but the
38:32
canyon view from that connector trail toward
38:35
Point Sublime there's a section of it where you're
38:38
walking in a really exposed area, which is why
38:41
I didn't recommend it on the really rainy days
38:43
a couple weeks ago when it ended up snowing in
38:45
the park because I didn't want anybody going
38:47
out there. But this week it should be fine. You
38:50
walk and there's a lot of exposure and you're
38:52
right on the canyon rim. And one bad step that
38:56
you would have to really try to do. You could
38:59
slide down in the canyon, but you would have
39:01
to try. This isn't like something where you really
39:03
have to be worried. There's the main trail and
39:06
there's a boot path. The boot path goes closer
39:08
to the canyon rim. The main trail stays away
39:10
from it. You can stay on the main trail and be
39:12
perfectly fine or you can go on the boot path
39:14
and get a much better view of the canyon. There's
39:16
a couple of really good photography spots where
39:19
you can stand and have somebody take your picture
39:21
and it almost looks like a photoshopped picture
39:25
of yourself just standing. the canyon rim it
39:28
does not look real and it's awesome and it's
39:31
one of my favorite spots so do that hike then
39:34
you get to walk along the canyon rim back to
39:36
the car and you get to pass the falls and you
39:38
get to do all those things and see all these
39:40
spots that you may miss this is a fantastic loop
39:43
this time of the year it's gonna be pretty empty
39:46
but it's by stuff so if you don't want to be
39:50
way out in the boonies by yourself you can be
39:54
right next to infrastructure and feel much safer
39:56
If you do want something much more remote, hit
39:59
me up. I am happy to share some really crazy
40:02
treks to do right now if you're looking for just
40:04
serious miles. Other than that, that is it for
40:06
this week. In the next episode, I'm gonna return
40:08
with all the information you need to have a good
40:10
time in the park. That includes the wildlife
40:12
update, the weather, a trail that I love, and
40:16
I'll tell you what to do with all the roads being
40:18
closed. Until then, book a tour with me, pick
40:21
up a guidebook of mine, tell a friend, family
40:24
member, enemy, anybody about this podcast and
40:28
happy trails. Abrupt ending. This week in Yellowstone
40:42
is brought to you by the Outdoor Society. That's
40:44
my company. It's just me. I do this. It's a labor
40:47
of love. If you like it, tell your friends, rate
40:50
and review it. Shoot me a message. Otherwise,
40:53
keep listening and I hope to see you in Yellowstone.
40:56
Copyright 2026, baby.