Bear Jam

Being stranded at Yellowstone was probably one of the better experiences we had on our trip.

Every morning that we set out in our rental car was a true adventure! Actually, having a rental car turned out to be a real bonus, as it was much easier to maneuver and pull off the side of the road than it would have been in our big truck, when we spotted wildlife. ..

When you are driving through Yellowstone, you may come across a section where there are many cars pulled off the side of the road. This usually indicates a wildlife sighting. The more cars there are, the bigger the possibility you have hit a Bear Jam!

We were constantly on the watch for wildlife, and for bear jams!

The first bear jam that we came across a black bear had been sighted. He was near enough to the road for my first bear photo opportunity!

My experience at Yellowstone was that when there was a Bear Jam, Rangers would come and try to control the situation to be sure that the people watching were safe and the bears undisturbed.

One day while we were driving, we came upon an unusually large bear jam. When we found a little niche where we could pull off the road, we jumped out to see what the jam was about.

To my delight, it was a mother grizzly and her two cubs!

She was leading them over to a fallen log. She pried off the bark searching for bugs and grubs, and the cubs began to pry at the wood as well.

After a while the mother grizzly moved on in search of other edibles. The cubs stayed behind a little longer filling their bellies.

She mosied around for awhile, and soon one of the cubs joined her. Full and content for the moment, they rested a while in the meadow.

Yep, I would have to say Bear Jams were my favorite part of Yellowstone.

The landscape was gorgeous, the geological wonders were incredible, and there was plenty of other wildlife to be seen.

But the bears, ah, I really enjoyed the bears!