From Winter to Spring: PHOTOS FROM THE HEART OF YELLOWSTONE

By Samara Chapman Duffey

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The Iconic Bison

This image was captured on a cold (probably around or below 0) morning along the Madison River. The Madison doesn’t freeze from the West Entrance to Madison Junction and provides a wonderful winter refuge for feathered and furred animals. The bison are so well insulated the cold doesn’t seem to bother them and they are often coated in frost on these chilly mornings. On this particular day, the morning sun was just at the right angle to give this guy a beautiful halo.

The Pack

I think the #1 request of Park visitors is to see wolves. The winter of 2021/2022 gave us phenomenal viewing opportunities when a pack decided to hang out in the Lower Geyser Basin and hunt bison along the road. This winter was different. I know a pack was seen in early January, then some of us guides would see a single animal’s tracks along the road, but no other sightings were reported. Then, on February 6, I looked upstream along a thermal-fed stream and saw a single black wolf fading in and out of the steam. We were able to stop and spend 5 minutes with the larger group of about 10 wolves before they disappeared into the steam and trees, after treating us to a group howl.

SNOW-KEPT SECRETS

On the morning of January 9, I was traveling upstream in Firehole Canyon and looking toward the view of Firehole Falls when one of my passengers said, “There is a dead coyote across the river!” I put the coach in reverse and backed up. Sure enough, there was a carcass, but it was a female mule deer, not a coyote. The snow at the base of the lava flow cliff was mostly untouched except for two impact craters. The deer had made the larger and then bounced to where we saw it. Scanning the hillside, I saw a single set of tracks from the smaller crater that led up to the base of the cliff where a bobcat was sitting. For the next ten days, the cat feasted on and protected the carcass. One of the first things it did was to cover the deer with snow. This image was taken three days later during one of the few times some ravens thought about trying to share. The bobcat watched them as they flew over, then thought better about approaching the cat too closely.

Quiet Meeting

People either book individual seats or charter the entire coach. I had two days where one gentleman chartered the coach with the goal of spending time photographing wildlife in the winter. I love days like this because we get to spend more time with a subject instead of trying to balance the wishes of the entire group. We spent the day between Canyon Village and Fishing Bridge where my guest was loving the snowy landscapes and frosty bison. Before departing the area, I took him to a location a Pine Marten was known to be frequenting. We found the weasel napping in the trees near its den and were able to spend about 20 magical minutes with it sleeping, stretching, yawning, and not being bothered by our presence.

HOT-BLOODED

The entire Yellowstone ecosystem and geology is driven by the fact that it is an active volcano. The hot spot that has uplifted the area continues to heat water at great depths in the earth’s crust. This hot water rises through the ground, seeking out cracks that allow it to escape toward the sky in the different features we get to thrill with. One type of feature is the geysers that amaze and enthrall watchers when we are lucky enough to catch one in eruption.

Castle Geyser is thought to be one of the oldest geysers in the Park as determined by the size of its cone. This image was taken when I was guiding a photographer and we were lucky enough to be near it in the Upper Geyser Basin when it erupted. It was a rare sunny day this winter, and we were able to capture a rainbow in the spray.

One of my favorite geysers, Cliff, can be a challenge to see the water on cold days when the steam envelops the area during an eruption. My husband gifted me with an infrared camera that attaches to my phone so I could see the temperature gradients during my time in the Park. Cliff Geyser shoots jets of water 40’ in the area when its pool is full. The force of the jets causes water to flow over the wall of the feature into Iron Spring Creek, a tributary of the Firehole River. The brightest areas in the image are the hottest water coming out of the ground.

Images Of Birds

A wading bird that nests in colonies, this solitary Great Blue heron is a treasured surprise when it is spotted on the edges of the Madison all winter long. It typically is seen in the cattail beds or clumps of rushes that sporadically grow in the shallower waters. Sometimes we are treated to seeing it catch and eat small fish.

The main watershed I visit is that of the upper Madison. The Gibbon and Firehole Rivers merge near Madison Junction to form one of the three forks that become the Missouri about 100 miles downstream from that joining. Both the Firehole and Gibbon are drainages for many thermal features ranging from Old Faithful to Norris Geyser Basin. Because of the hot water influence, these rivers (and by extension, the Madison) flow all winter long and are refuges for a wide variety of water-oriented birds. Some that are commonly seen all winter long include Mallards, American widgeon, Gadwall, Common mergansers, Trumpeter swans, and Bald eagles. These three images show three of my favorites: a Great Blue heron, an American dipper, and a Trumpeter swan.

American dippers are North America’s only aquatic songbird and they thrive in fast-flowing waters. These fist-sized birds walk and fly under the water to catch aquatic invertebrates. This particular one lives in the Firehole River a few miles south of Madison Junction and is comfortable hunting close to the shore of the river. These are some of the first heralds of spring along my routes when they start singing in the middle of February.

Delicate Spring Blooms

Thermal areas are driven by hot water nearing the surface, causing the ground to stay warm all winter long. The area near the Fountain Paint Pots is often around 50 degrees and supports mosses, fungi, and vascular plants. I always watch the northwest end of the area for early spring flowers. This year I spotted a dandelion blooming on February 17. These mushroom caps are slightly smaller than an M&M and pop up as the daylight hours increase.