Can you believe it? This was our last morning waking up to a sky covered in stars, looking out the car windows eagerly looking for wildlife, and losing feeling in our fingers and toes. We spent our last morning as students of Ranger Mike at the Mammoth Terraces. Just like our students, we got distracted easily when Melissa spotted a Northern pygmy-owl. It was hard to focus with the excitement of the owl sighting, but we were able to record the temperature and pH of the hot spring under Ranger Mike’s guidance. It was a great educational experience to end our journey.

We waved goodbye to Yellowstone as we made our way back to the hostel to pack up and head to the airport. The drive to the airport gave us a nice send off surprise: we finally had falling snow!  It sparkled and shined as it landed on the evergreens and rock outcrops. Our wonderful leaders, Emma and Sam, got us safely to the airport in plenty of time to make our journey back to North Carolina.

Our last dinner together provided an opportunity for us to reflect on our experience. We spent time revisiting the goals we set for the week:

• To learn about the winter adaptations of Yellowstone’s wildlife.
• To practice our wildlife observation skills.
• To learn about the geology that shapes this park.
• To develop or deepen our appreciation of Yellowstone and its leading role in conservation.
• To be inspired by the severity and serenity of winter.

Although we did not see every animal on our checklist, we gained so much more knowledge, community, and beauty than we ever could have expected.

We all left behind a piece of our hearts in Yellowstone, yet we plan to bring back many things—a sense of wonder and curiosity, time for silence and serenity, an understanding of the importance of conservation and history, and the lifelong bond that links us together and also with Yellowstone.

We are so full of the many moments that built these bonds whether it was the laughter that connected us over silly moments or the intrigue we shared as we huddled to look through scopes to spot wildlife. Yellowstone is truly a magical place. Each and every one of us are excited to bring this connection back to our classrooms and communities. See you all soon!

Today we got up early and headed out to the Lamar Valley to see what wildlife we could find. First we returned to the lookout point where we met Kira on Thursday to listen for the wolves. But, alas, it was a mostly silent stop. It’s amazing how loud cars sound when moving through a natural landscape instead of moving through the towns and cities we live in!

We made a few more stops before sunrise around 8:10 am. At one stop, Melissa pointed out the rendezvous point of the Junction Butte wolf pack, located by its proximity to the “Marge Simpson” tree (a tree that appears oddly similar to the shape of Marge Simpson’s hair). This area is used by the pack in the summer when their pups are growing, as it’s very close to their denning site. 

We continued on our journey, singing the Disney tune “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” from Mulan. But instead of “let’s get down to business,” we created new lyrics to match our goal of sighting a wolf, and sang, “Is today the day that we spot a wolf?”

Today seemed colder than yesterday even though the sun was out. The actual temperatures hovered under 12 degrees Fahrenheit and our cold toes offered confirmation of the chill.  By lunchtime it was warmer and we were able to eat without our gloves. The temperature soared up to a whopping 22 degrees Fahrenheit in the afternoon. 

Throughout the day we searched for creatures large and small and helped each other find the animals using the clock method. The clock method is a way of helping each other locate wildlife by using the numbers on an analog clock face to indicate what direction we should look. We saw a golden eagle sitting on a branch and yawning. Close to the eagle were some American dippers standing in the icy water as they gathered food from below the shimmering surface. The ever-present bison nibbled on some grassy patches showing through areas of melted snow and occasionally wandered across the road in front of our cars. We saw bighorn sheep that kept their backs to our scope. Some camouflaged elk were barely visible under the trees east of the Roosevelt area.  Six coyotes traveled across the frozen landscape, catching small prey and taking care of their “business” as all living things do. A moose tried to play hide and seek with us by standing behind a tree. 

After lunch we visited sites along the main road looking for more wildlife before heading east through the park to find a good spot to go snowshoeing. We trudged through fresh snow and created our own path. The snow was waist deep and most of us stayed above ground, while Josh and Holly found ways to explore the subnivean environment. We found many tracks and even found a moose bed and bathroom. 

On the drive home we found an elk skeleton. We scoured the sagebrush for additional bones that were separated from the body by wolves. We found several bones and discussed the wolf behavior that resulted in this distribution of body parts. 

As we left the park tonight we encountered a surprise goodbye from a bull elk with 13-point antlers. Shoutout to Colton from Mr. Reed’s class – this is for you!

We arrived back at the cabin and found that the Aurora Borealis was shining overhead. It has been a fantastic last full day at Yellowstone – even if today was not the day for wolves.

Top three animals spotted by North Carolina teachers while traveling through Yellowstone in winter?

Survey says….

#1 Bison
#2 Coyotes
#3 Common ravens

Top three animals that North Carolina teachers want to check off their list while traveling through Yellowstone?

#1 – Gray wolves 
#2 – River otters 
#3 – The elusive ermines 

Our day started with breakfast at 5:30 am and then a pass through the Roosevelt Arch before the sun was up.

We have learned that spotting wildlife is not for the faint of heart — patience is definitely a virtue in this line of work! We made several passes through Lamar Valley looking for wildlife, spotting many coyotes along the way. But the real star of the show this morning was how the ice glittered across the valley as the early morning sun rose. Our most impressive find was a bison carcass that had been picked clean by predators and scavengers. Our group made passes across the area like crime scene investigators, looking at every bite mark and clump of hair. It was truly learning brought to life for us.

We moved through the park and made our way to Silver Gate to meet with acclaimed naturalists and wildlife photographers Dan and Cindy Hartman. Mr. Hartman spoke with the group about his work, especially photographing and filming great gray owls and pine martens. The group thoroughly enjoyed time bird watching around the Hartman’s home.

We finished our day animal spotting. No luck with wolves, but we did catch another look of the mountain lion and her cubs on the side of Mount Everts and saw herds of pronghorns and bighorn sheep outside of Gardiner. 

The group also took a dip in the Yellowstone Hot Springs, a local place that utilizes heated water from a hot spring in its pools.  Another full day. Fingers crossed that we can mark more animals off the list tomorrow!

Today we were up and out of the lodge by 6:17am, picked up breakfast on our way to the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, and then loaded up in our snowcoach for the day.

BRRR! Our first stop was Swan Lake where we checked air and ground temperatures using tools like a Kestrel and an infrared thermometer. Temps were hovering between -2 and 1 degree Fahrenheit.

FALLING… As we continued our snowcoach journey, we moved to the next stop to view the Upper and Lower Falls in the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. We learned about the artist Thomas Moran, who panted visions of the falls and other nature scenes in Yellowstone. Ultimately, these paintings influenced enough support in Congress for Yellowstone to become our nation’s first national park in 1872 under President Ulysses S. Grant.

IN and OUT! Today’s trip involved the first flush toilets and running water we’d encountered inside the park. We enjoyed talking to the park rangers, seeing the skins of various animals (ermine, red fox, coyote, beaver) and seeing a bison skull up close.

CRITTERS GALORE! We watched a coyote and a red fox as they crouched and waited for their subnivean prey (aka a warm meal on a cold day) under the snow. Only the coyote was successful and they chomped their food as they went along the ridgeline. The trumpeter swans were seen floating in both water and air, stretching their long necks out.

HOT, HOT, HOT!! We visited several geothermal features. The sulfur gas bubbled and troubled us much like we imagined the cauldron of Macbeth. The Dragon’s Mouth Spring rumbled and released an odor akin to the smell of rotten eggs. The temperature of the springs reportedly reached 170 degrees Fahrenheit but we cannot confirm or deny this info.

GOIN’ FISHIN’ – Our next stop was the Fishing Bridge on the Yellowstone River. We met Ranger Mary at the warming lodge where she maintains a fire to keep park visitors warm. Fishing Bridge was a place where we stood and simply looked up and down the river seeking the elusive river otter (alas, there were none) and enjoying the serenity of the moment.

THUMBS UP! We drove and drove and drove, at 25mph, until we finally arrived at the West Thumb Geyser Basin on Yellowstone Lake. We walked out to the lake and saw more geothermal features. Norm, our driver, shared a lot of great stories and kept us entertained and informed about Yellowstone history.

ARRIVED! We had a nice dinner at the Old Faithful Snow Lodge before heading to bed. We’ll be up before sunrise tomorrow to watch the geysers put on a show!

Imagine a school day that starts before the sun comes up, where the dress code is wear as many layers as you can, and animal spotting tells you to move from place to place instead of the tardy bell; where teachers’ passion and enthusiasm for their subject matter is met with students eager to learn. If you can picture such a day and such a place, then you would’ve been with us today as we toured the Lamar Valley.

Our day started with a speedy pass through the Roosevelt Arch while the moon was still up. Our first “class” of the day was with Kira Cassidy, the program manager with the Wolf Project in Yellowstone. Surprise guest was Joe Madison with the Red Wolf Project in NC! No wolves spotted just yet…but we are holding out hope.

Wolf biologists Kira and Joe teach the group about their favorite subject matter.

Second block was an Animal Science Field Trip. As we drove around Lamar Valley, sudden stops on the side of the windy roads were not uncommon. No….no one got car sick. We were on a scavenger hunt to spot the animals in the distance. With our binoculars at the ready, we got amazing views of an adult moose with a calf. Spotting bison was not a difficult task, especially when they were walking along the side of the road. A quick stop was made beside a river to catch a sighting of a majestic bald eagle flying over trying to catch up to the flock of mallards.

Lamar Valley revealed many hidden residents today- here, an adult moose with calf.

We stopped in Lamar Valley, with an overlook across the Lamar River for lunch and animal watching. A pack of coyotes joined us. The pack consisted of 6-7 coyotes? No, more like eight, which is an unusual number in Yellowstone.

PE today consisted of snowshoeing at Pebble Creek, where we spotted a couple of grouse and were quizzed on our animal track identification skills. Matt gave his expert topic speech when we spotted an American dipper! Our snowshoe trek ended in a race – can you guess who won?

Physical Education has a whole new meaning at elevation and in the snow- the group learned new skills and had fun while snowshoeing.

Instead of bus traffic holding us up from going home, we hit a bison jam!

After-school remediation consisted of reviewing tapes of eastern NC red wolf behaviors with expert Joe Madison.

A full day.