Spotting Yellowstone Grizzly Bears
We spent three days in Yellowstone National Park in September of 2018 and our highlight was definitely spotting Grizzly Bears.
One of our main objectives was to see a Grizzly Bear but you have to have luck on your side.
It seemed as though luck was on our side because we got to see not only one Grizzly but three of these amazing creatures.
So here’s how we managed to see Yellowstone Grizzly Bears.
Yellowstone Park Entrance
We stayed in Cody and drove into the park each day via the East Entrance.
By the time we’d reached the park entrance, it was just getting light and we continued on following the one park road West.
As we approached Yellowstone Lake we saw a few cars parked by the side of the road and a group of people all looking at something.
So we parked and wandered over to take a look.
At first, it wasn’t obvious what everyone was looking at but someone soon helped us spot the female Grizzly Bear foraging for food down in the trees.
Another Female Grizzly Bear
She blended in with the landscape so well that we could see why we hadn’t been able to see her.
Some kind photographers let us look through their very powerful cameras to get a better look at her and wow was she beautiful.
This was our first wild Grizzly Bear and it was quite a moment.
We stood watching her for ages, unable to tear ourselves away from the stunning spectacle.
Our First Yellowstone Grizzly Bear
I think we would have been quite happy with just that one Yellowstone Grizzly Bear spotting but there was more to come.
On our third day in the park and in a very similar area to that first day, we saw cars parked again and people watching.
This time it was a different female digging around for food but she was much closer to us than the previous one had been.
Park rangers were in attendance to make sure she and everyone watching stayed safe.
Female Grizzly Bear
The rangers are so knowledgable.
This ranger told us that there was actually another Grizzly fairly close and he said that it was possible he may make his way toward the female from across a meadow and she would run from him across the road and up the hill the other side.
Unbelievably this exact scenario unfolded right before our eyes.
A huge male Grizzly appeared out of a thicket of trees across the meadow.
The Female Grizzly Spots The Male
The female smelled him straight away and after realising he was coming for her, she turned and ran across the road just where the ranger had said ( and where he’d cleared the cars from parking ).
Amazingly the male grizzly followed her and also crossed the road and tracked her up the hill.
As we watch we saw her keep stopping to see if he was following and he did for some time before he headed off in a different direction, leaving her be.
The Big Male Grizzly Follows The Female Across The Road
We must have been watching this amazing series of events unfold for well over an hour or more.
It was such a privilege to see nature in action this way.
It’s something you would normally see on a wildlife programme rather than witnessing it first hand right there in front of us.
What we saw will stay with us forever and we know how lucky we were.
We met a family who also visited Yellowstone and they never saw any bears whatsoever.
It’s all luck and being in the right place at the right time.
You can read all about our Yellowstone National Park adventure here
