Winter Wildlife in Yellowstone

Has anyone taken one of the wildlife photography tours in Yellowstone? I am interested in hearing how it went & how you handled the frigid weather.

Have done it twice and will probably do it again sometime.
There is nothing like Yellowstone in the winter. It's cold but well worth it!
Most of the time you are in a snow coach between locations and when you are getting out what you are shooting is worth the cold so it makes it doable. Plus you know the snow coach is there when you need to warm up.

Thanks, I just put a check in the mail for my spot. I am going solo so I am hoping it is fun.

I did one with Jess Lee back in 2010. Jess is a nice guy and a great photographer, and it might be worth it to you to have someone else do the driving if you're nervous about driving in the ice and snow. On the other side of the coin, you're stuck in the back of a van with a bunch of other people and at the driver's mercy. Several times, when we were in the snow coach, people saw animals and asked the driver to stop and he took about a half a mile to stop, and by the time the last people piled out of the van, the fox or owl or moose was gone. For wildlife, I think you might be better off going on your own, if you have experience driving in snow and ice.

Thanks for the input. I have talked to a couple of people & this tour is very recommended & since I am on a limited time frame, I will be happy enough to let someone else do the driving.

The only way to drive yourself in the park during the winter is via snowmobile. I've done that. The best bet is a snowcoach tour for sure. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

I need to correct my previous post. You can drive your vehicle from Mammoth along the Lamar etc. , but when snow coaches were mentioned I thought of West Yellowstone where most of them are based.

Mel-S wrote in post #18439584
I need to correct my previous post. You can drive your vehicle from Mammoth along the Lamar etc. , but when snow coaches were mentioned I thought of West Yellowstone where most of them are based.

Most tours will drive you around in a van on the roads up through the Lamar, and most will take you in a snow coach to the otherwise inaccessible parts of the park. The thing about those parts is, there usually isn't anything out there except bison in the dead of winter, so it's mostly landscape shots.

That is okay with me... I like a mix of both.

Looking to head there later this fall

Maureen Souza wrote in post #18435563
Thanks, I just put a check in the mail for my spot. I am going solo so I am hoping it is fun.

.
So, Maureen, have you taken your trip to Yellowstone yet?

If so, how did it go?

I would love to hear all about it and see your pics.


.

I think she's there now.

So sorry for the late response, Tom. I didn’t get back until the 13th and I really just finished wading through my pictures. I had a great time, saw lots of amazing things like a wolf pack of 16 chase & take down a bison, a red fox hunting for mice under the snow, bull elk, lots of eagles, bison & beautiful scenery.

I think I am going again next year. Anyone want to join me? It would be more fun if a friend came along as almost everyone on this last trip had a partner or had traveled together before.

A couple....

Image hosted by forum (902764) © Maureen Souza THIS IS A LOW QUALITY PREVIEW. Please log in to see the good quality stuff.

We just back from Yellowstone four days ago. We travelled in our own car and saw wolves, elk, bison, otters, big horn sheep, mule deer,moose, ducks and coyotes. Of those we had photo opportunities on everything except the wolves- They were a long ways away. We did some snowshoeing and just had a ton of fun.This guy was over by the confluence, and there were two young otters popping out of the water behind us from time to time.