The Boys Of Fall

Earlier this week I headed for the mountains just outside of Yellowstone to photograph the Bighorn Sheep rut. The biggest rams were hiding high in the rocky ledges. Getting to them required a bit of hiking and scrambling. After locating the sheep I found a place in the rocks to hide, and waited. Eventually the animals forgot I was there and went about their business.

A Bighorn ram in the Gallatin National Forest

The snow was coming down quite steadily at times, making it difficult for my camera to autofocus on the animals. At one point while I was photographing the rams an ewe came up from behind me and two of the rams went running after her and right on past me, in hot pursuit. Talk about excitement!

Unfortunately most of the sheep were being really docile that day and I didn’t get to see any serious head-butting between the rams. I do plan to return before the rut is over, however, because I know that it’s a combination of persistence, hard work, and patience that ultimately leads to the best wildlife photographs.

Thanks for following along with me on this blog, and I hope that you all have a great Thanksgiving!

A trio of big rams in the high country

Snow falling on a Bighorn Ram

Bighorns butting heads

A large ram pokes its head up from behind a small tree in the Gallatin National Forest

A curious ram stares down at me from above

Wolf Serenade

While on my way home this past week I had a nice encounter with the Lamar Canyon pack in Yellowstone. Although it was dark I was able to see the two alphas from the pack close to the road, while the pups stayed up a on nearby hillside. I shut the engine off and just sat there and watched them. All of a sudden the pups started howling like crazy! It was so hauntingly beautiful that I decided to record some audio with my camera. I hope that you enjoy!

November 2

This past weekend was the last weekend to drive your own vehicle into the interior of Yellowstone, so of course I just had to get in there one last time before the roads closed for the season. The morning started off slow with just a couple of mule deer does, each with a set of twins, trying to cross the Yellowstone bridge at Tower. As I pulled onto the bridge the deer turned and zigzagged back across. Not wanting to scare them into doing something crazy, I slowly backed up and pulled off the side of the road and turned the engine off. Eventually they decided that it was safe to cross and did so. After making sure they were all clear of the bridge I continued on my way.

Rush hour traffic in Yellowstone

When I arrived in Mammoth I caught a glimpse of two fleeting jackrabbits as they bounded up and over a hillside near the road. Since it was Sunday the road construction from Mammoth to Norris was nonexistent. The road from Norris to Canyon was a bit icy, but not bad. I drove towards Fishing Bridge and out to Indian Pond to check to see if the wolf that was spotted trotting up the side of the road on Saturday was still hanging around, but it was nowhere to be found.

A Bald Eagle takes off with the remaining bits of a Magpie (Hayden Valley)

After checking both Mary and Sedge bay for bears I drove back to Hayden and then continued on towards Canyon to check on a great grey owl that was spotted in the area recently. I parked and set off on foot through the forest hoping to spot the owl, but didn’t have any luck. I decided to head back to Hayden Valley and make another pass. I immediately spotted a pair of Bald Eagles across the Yellowstone River, tearing apart a Magpie that I am assuming they had just caught. After the eagles flew off I checked my phone and found a message from a friend letting me know that there was a grizzly in Hayden, but that it was a ways out. Shortly after passing Grizzly Overlook I noticed a handful of cars pulled over. It was the grizzly. The bear was digging in the sage, but was a little to far out for photos. Thinking the bear may want to cross the road I decided to wait it out.

Autumn snowflakes falling on a Grizzly (Hayden Valley)

The wait paid off when the bear decided to cross the road, nearly three and a half hours later, right in front of my vehicle! I couldn’t believe it, what a great way to end the season I thought to myself. After the bear crossed and went on its way I headed back over to the lake one last time. I stopped to photograph a couple of coyotes that were hunting near Fishing Bridge and then drove out to the bays once again, all was quiet. The drive back was pleasant and mostly uneventful, but I couldn’t help but think about the incredible bear encounter that I had, and what future encounters await when the park interior reopens next Spring!

A Coyote munching on a Tiger Salamander (near Indian Pond)

October 27

I woke early to find about 5 inches of new snow that had fallen overnight. My plan was to get over to Hayden Valley at a decent hour to look for wildlife, but when I got to Mammoth the gate was closed. I called the Yellowstone Road Report and found out that all roads within the park were closed due to winter weather conditions and that they would reopen them when conditions improved.

Two young bull Elk sparring, with Electric Peak in the background (Old Yellowstone Trail)

Instead of waiting around I headed for the Old Yellowstone Trail to catch any wildlife while there was still some decent light to be had. Not far from the north gate I spotted a couple of young bull elk up on a hill. I positioned myself so that I could capture Electric Peak in the background, just as the clouds parted for a brief moment, letting some of that nice morning light in. Besides the elk, I also saw some pronghorn, mule deer, and what I think was a white-tailed jackrabbit just starting to change into its white winter phase.

Mule Deer doe and her three fawns (Old Yellowstone Trail)

Around noon they finally opened the gates above Mammoth. The only good thing about the road not opening that morning was that it caused the road construction crew to take the day off, so no delays. I drove south to Canyon and then through Hayden Valley down to Fishing Bridge and out to Mary and Sedge Bay, not seeing much of anything. I looked for the great grey owl that has been spotted just south of Canyon but didn’t have any luck. On my way back I spotted a porcupine crossing the road between Norris and Canyon. Porcupines are one of the more seldom-seen rodents in the park so I was happy to have had my second sighting in this area this year. I arrived at the Norris junction and headed towards Gibbon Meadows to check it out before heading home. There were four bison in the meadow, but other than that it was quiet. A large bull elk finished off the day just south of Indian Creek.

Porcupine in the snow (Near Canyon)

Bull Elk and thermals (South of Indian Creek)

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The Lunar Eclipse as seen from Yellowstone

The night of April 15th marked the beginning of a remarkable series of lunar eclipses that will be visible from North America in 2014-2015. Lunar eclipses generally happen about twice a year, but often times these are only partial or penumbral eclipses. The series occurring in 2014-2015 is unique because all four eclipses will be total, meaning the entire moon will be shadowed. When four consecutive eclipses are all total it is called a Tetrad.

Photographing an eclipse can be extremely tricky, and there are a few things that you’ll need. First of all the weather must cooperate. If there are to many clouds in the sky you aren’t going to see anything, let alone photograph it. The second thing you’ll need is a sturdy tripod, a must for any type of nighttime photography. Lastly, a camera capable of producing images at high ISOs. I recommend having a shutter release of some kind, but using the self timer feature found on most cameras will be sufficient if you lack one.

“Midnight Arch” – Moonlight shining through the opening of Roosevelt Arch on the night of the Lunar Eclipse. (Prints Available)

Before the eclipse starts you will be able to get away with longer shutter speeds, but when the moon is completely in shadow you will need longer exposures to compensate for the lack of light. Here is where you must be careful, using to long a shutter speed will result in the moon being blurry due to earth’s rotation, an exposure to short and you won’t get good detail in the moon. I would suggest a shutter speed of no longer than 1/4 Sec., especially if you’re shooting the moon with a telephoto lens. During totality when the light is low simply boost your ISO to add more light for a proper exposure.

I recommend shooting multiple images of the moon as it progressives through the various stages of the eclipse, this way you can combine the images later on to create a composite image like I did in “Lunar Phases”. Composites are useful when you don’t have a long enough lens to fill the frame with the moon or you simply want to show the different phases the moon takes on during an eclipse.

“Lunar Phases” – A composite image showing the different moon phases during the total Lunar Eclipse on the night of April 14-15th. (Prints Available)

Get Creative. Cameras are capable of producing some incredible images under the right circumstances, but sometimes it takes the intervention of the photographer to fully recreate the vision in mind. My image of the lunar eclipse, titled “Earthly Visions”, is one of these cases. The image was created using multiple exposures. Two exposures were taken for the landscape for proper exposure and sharpness and another exposure was needed to retain detail in the moon and keep it from becoming a big white blob. Due to the extreme dynamic range of the scene there would have been no way to achieve an image such as this with a single exposure alone.

Some will cry that this image has been “photoshopped” due to the level of processing that went into it, but I believe that I am simply overcoming the limitations of my camera and lens to be able to record such a scene. Afterall, this is quite close to how it actually appeared, the only difference was the moon and surrounding landscape was a bit darker to my eye. Through the use of long exposure techniques I was able to brighten both of these elements for a more compelling photograph.

“Earthly Visions” – The “blood moon” over Soda Butte Cone, a large, dormant hot spring in Lamar Valley. (Prints Available)

The word “photoshopped” gets thrown around way to often these days in the field of photography, in fact, most professional photographers that I know use photoshop to develop their images, myself included. Does this mean we are somehow cheating reality or adding things that weren’t there in the first place? Of course not. We are simply developing/processing images because they require it. When you are shooting with a digital camera in RAW format it is very similar to a 35mm negative from a film camera, it needs to be developed before it becomes a photograph. To me, the word “photoshopping” means an image was altered beyond reality, which in this case it was not. You’re far more likely to see photoshopped images in fashion magazines and those cheesy tabloids you find on the newsstands in your local supermarket than you are in the field of nature photography. So please folks, grow up, enjoy the images, and stop crying “photoshopped” unless you fully understand the meaning of it!

Exploring Druid Peak in Yellowstone’s Northern Range

It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything here on my blog, I apologize for that. I’ve been busy capturing the wonders Yellowstone has to offer in the winter. Back in March, before winter officially ended, I had an opportunity to squeeze in a ski ascent of Druid Peak in the Lamar Valley, elevation 9,584ft. There are no trails, unless you count game trails, but the hike is relatively short. From an unmarked pullout on the northeast entrance road it’s about 3-3.5 miles (depending on your route), and 3,000ft of elevation gain, which makes it a rather steep climb. The area surrounding the peak also just happens to be the old territory of the famous Druid Peak Pack, often considered to be the most watched and photographed wolf pack in the world. The wolves roamed the Lamar Valley for nearly 15 years before disappearing from the park’s landscape in 2010.

Under blue skies I parked at the unmarked pullout near the cottonwood tree that is leaning over the road, about halfway between the confluence and the Buffalo Ranch. I packed my gear and left shortly after 12:00pm, a very late start for me. From here I skied straight up the low hills near the road. The higher I got the steeper the climbing became, until I finally gained one of the ridges that would eventually lead me towards the summit. I found a dozen or more Elk antlers on several of the windswept ridges along the way. The snow on the tops of these ridges was icy and very spotty and I had to ski around multiple bare patches. The snow was hard and crusty in other places and allowed me to make pretty good time most of the way.

Skinning up Druid Peak

The route is completely exposed and the wind blasted me harder and harder the higher I went. I located a small knoll about 2 miles into the climb and hunkered down on the east side of it to get out of the wind and grab a bite to eat. I sat here for a little while, soaking up the views and the sunshine, before continuing on. I only had about a mile and a half to go from here, but first I had to cross the top portion of a large drainage that isn’t shown on maps. I skied across some very steep terrain just above this drainage and was being extra cautious because of the considerable avalanche danger this year. After safely crossing I skied higher until reaching a small plateau just below some volcanic cliffs near the summit. I immediately spotted a small group of Bighorn Sheep grazing around the cliffs.

 

Shed remnant on a windswept ridge leading to the summit

Shed heaven…can you find all 5 elk antler sheds in this photo?

At this point I was at about 9,000ft. The summit is 9,584ft, so I knew I had some serious climbing still ahead of me. I took my skies off here and bare booted up the steep ridge towards the cliffs. I used the sheep trails for easier climbing in the deep snow. The sheep were easily spooked and breezed up the cliffs seemingly without any effort at all. When I got to the cliffs I debated going higher, but I knew the summit wasn’t far off so I continued up. The rocks here were loose so I had to double check my handholds at all times. After some Class 3 scrambling and some cliff hugging I managed to get above them. The sheep again crossed in front of me and headed higher towards the summit. I tried to follow in their footsteps because the snow was now waist deep in places. I struggled through the snow until I finally reached the cliffs about a 150-200ft below the actual summit. The summit is wooded and the best views are from these ledges.

Crossing some steep terrain near the summit

By now it was 3:15pm. I had to be back in Silver Gate at 5pm so I didn’t stay but only a few minutes to take in the incredible views that were laid out before me. The blue skies I was blessed with earlier in the day gave way to clouds and a winter storm was blowing in. I snapped a couple of quick shots and headed back down, being careful not to make any mistakes around the cliffs. Upon retrieving my skis I carried them back down over the steep terrain I had climbed up to get to this point. I had made it this far, didn’t want to risk it now.

Yellowstone’s Northern Range from near the summit of Druid

On the way down I decided to return over the south ridge that I spotted on the ascent. It seemed like a more straightforward route plus I didn’t have to cross that large drainage again. I skied down a few slopes before pausing to view a group of Bighorn Sheep farther down on the ridge. I stopped for a few photos before skiing down towards them. They saw me coming and headed for some nearby trees. More downhill slopes and an icy crust made the descent F-A-S-T! I had to remove my skis at one point when I skied up to a cliff with a large drop-off. Below this ledge  it was relatively easy going. The ridge was narrow at times and large cornices had formed so I was being careful not to break through here.

Bighorn Sheep on the southwest ridge of Druid, with Dunraven Mountain in the distance

Further down the ridge I reached another ledge and had no choice but to ski down into the wooded drainage I had been following. I made a few wide turns and was at the bottom in no time. From here it was easy going and I reached the road at about 4:30pm. A short ski to my vehicle and I was in Silver Gate just after 5pm. Another epic day in the Yellowstone backcountry!

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Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Farewell To Fall

The summer season has come and gone in Yellowstone once again. I missed most of the Fall season due to the government shutdown so I decided to head out on Nov 3rd, the last day many of the park roads would be open for travel, to see what I could find. We had a small storm pass through the night before and everything was coated in a fresh layer of snow. The roads in the NE corner of the park were quite icy so I drove slowly all the way out to Tower Junction. Not much happening in Lamar, I did see a coyote with a severe case of mange, and a few bison but that was all. I stopped to shoot a couple of landscapes in Lamar but my main reason for going out that day was to get to Canyon and photograph Lower Falls with the fresh layer of snow.

It was still early when I arrived at Tower Junction so I took a detour and headed up to photograph Tower Falls. I had never seen Tower Falls with snow so that was different. I hiked around for a little while, looking for some different views but it ended up not panning out. I made it back to my vehicle and proceeded towards Canyon. A little ways down the road I ran into Ranger Kerr scanning a nearby hillside with binoculars so I decided to pull over to find out what he was looking at. Come to find out a mountain lion had crossed the road, not ten minutes before I arrived. Another ranger alerted Kerr and he made his way to the scene to try and catch a glimpse of the big cat. No luck, just some footprints in the snow were all that remained of the elusive critter.

Back on the road I headed towards my destination once again, taking a short detour into Gardiner for a bite to eat. The roads from Mammoth were once again sketchy, some open road, some icy spots. I spotted a few more coyotes on my way to Norris Junction, but for the most part it was quiet. At the junction I turned and headed towards Canyon, more snow and ice. By the time I arrived at Canyon the sun that had been shining for a good portion of the day was starting to fade in and out of the clouds.

By now it was now late afternoon and I knew that the low angle of the sun at this time of the year would create some nice lighting conditions in the canyon so I made my way to Artist Point as quickly as I could. I pulled into the parking lot and there was not a soul around. I quickly gathered my gear and headed for the overlook. The wind was howling and the air was bitter cold. Just as I got my tripod set up the sun broke out of the clouds, briefly illuminating the canyon’s walls. The light only lasted for a couple of minutes and then it was gone, as quickly as it appeared. I waited around hoping for another chance but the clouds had thickened so much that I knew that it wasn’t going to happen. I packed up my gear, feeling confident that I was able to get the shot that I was after in those brief few moments that I had been given. 

It was almost 4pm now and I knew that I should probably head back soon. I had a long drive ahead of me on roads that were not improving. I debated for a few minutes and then decided to take a quick drive into Hayden Valley one last time. The valley was desolate and I only passed a handful of cars on my way out and back. On the way back I saw quite a few trumpeter swans in the Yellowstone river.

The drive back to Silver Gate was uneventful, other than a herd of bison migrating across the road near Nymph Lake. I arrived home a few hours later and warmed up next to the woodstove. What a great way to end the season in Yellowstone. While most of the roads here in the park are now closed, the adventure is not over. We’ve still got the road from Gardiner to Silver Gate/Cooke City that stays open year round!

“Farewell To Fall” – One final look into the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone from Artist Point.

See more of my photography and purchase prints at www.ZackClothierPhotography.com

*Right now I’m offering 15% off all print purchases until Nov. 15th, you can find more info on my website.

Touchdown at Mammoth

I spent a couple of hours over at Mammoth the other evening watching the elk rut. One of the bulls, a 6×6 affectionately named “Touchdown”, has a habit of going after cars that pass through town. Apparently reds and whites are his favorite, but he doesn’t discriminate. It was fun watching the rangers run around trying to round up the crowds that were gathered for the show. At times I wondered which was harder to control, the people or the wildlife. Here’s a short series of videos I put together taken that evening. Enjoy!

Watch the Video: Touchdown At Mammoth

The sign says it all…