Posts Tagged ‘YNP’

Yellowstone Diary: May 17, 2012

Yes, it has been a while since I’ve had the chance to catch up on things.  Rest assured that I have not been neglecting my photo interests, but we’ve been out in the field a bit this spring and summer, and I’ve just not had the time to sort out a post, well, until now.

The images of the resident Swan Lake Flat sow grizzly and her two cubs are shown above and below (five images).  Images recorded at 07:40 MDT on May 17, 2012 using the Nikon D4 and the AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4G ED VR with the AF-S Teleconverter TC-14E II (1000mm).  Exposure was f/6.7 and 1/800s, ISO 2500 (+0.67 EV, adjusted in ACR).

Although Yellow-Bellied Marmots are common in the park, many visitors never see them.  One reliable location for spotting these critters is along the Northeast Entrance road at the junction of Blacktail Plateau Drive.  There is an exposed basalt formation nearby that is a favorite environment of the YNP marmots.  Early morning is the most likely time to view marmots here.  The image below was recorded at 08:35 MDT using the D4 and the AF-S NIKKOR 200-400mm f/4G ED VR II at 400mm.  Exposure was f/5.6 and 1/800, ISO 400 (+0.67 EV, adjusted using ACR).

Pronghorn are common along the Northeast Entrance Road near the area that lies below Specimen Ridge, where the landscape flatten out along Slough Creek (following three images).  We have sometimes seen newborn animals along this section as well as small bands of adults.  Images recorded at 10:15 MDT, using the D4 and 200-400mm f/4G ED VR II at 400mm.  Exposure was f/5.6 and 1/1600, ISO 400 (+0.33 EV, adjusted using ACR).

 

One of the major attractions in the YNP during spring is the presence of newborn Bison calves.  The distinctive coloration and boisterous behavior of these youngsters is impossible to resist.  One could easily spend an entire day watching them.  The image below was recorded at 10:30 MDT at the same location that we shot the Pronghorns above, using the D4 and the 200-400mm f/4G ED VR II at 400mm.  Exposure was f/8.0 and 1/640, ISO 1000 (+0.33 EV, adjusted using ACR).

The coat of black bears display a remarkable range of hues, from jet to light cinnamon.  The lack of a shoulder hump is a clear indication that this is not Griz.  The image below was recorded along the Northeast Entrance Road at 10:55 MDT, using the D4 and the 200-400mm f/4G ED VR II at 400mm.  Exposure was f/8.0 and 1/800, ISO 1600 (+0.33 EV, adjusted using ACR).

We encountered a very bold coyote near the Mud Volcano area.  This coyote strutted about the parking area like it owned the place.  The image below was recorded at 13:25 MDT, using the D4 and the 200-400mm f/4G ED VR II at 400mm.  Exposure was f/8.0 and 1/3200, ISO 1600 (+0.33 EV, adjusted using ACR).

Near the end of the afternoon we revisited Swan Lake Flat, and found the sow Griz and her two cubs still on patrol.  Similar setup as in the AM session, but this time shooting the Nikon D800.  Exposures were at f/6.7 and 1/1250s, ISO 1600 (+0.67 EV).  Images from the D800 at ISO 1600 contain much more noise than do either the D3 or the D4, but is entirely manageable (I used Nik Dfine on these images).

Copyright 2012 Peter F. Flynn.  No usage permitted without prior written consent. All rights reserved.

The Secret Lives of NPS Rangers

Visitors to the National Parks will naturally associate Rangers with responsibilities most closely associated with their personal experience: Staffing NPS Ranger Stations and kiosks, leading tours of exhibits and nature walks, generally keeping people out of mischief, saying ‘No’ in a multitude of ways, etc.

There is another side though, duties held by a select few, which constitute the secret lives of NPS Rangers.  Law enforcement is the bulk of this – sorting out drunk driving, public intoxication, physical violence, thievery, and the rest of sources and consequences of human suffering – it must indeed be quite odd to deal with conventional cop stuff in the midst of a vast and wild environment – but there is a call, and there are those who answer.

Documented in this entry is a rarely witnessed and potentially dangerous task:  Relocation of an animal carcass – in this case a bison calf.  There are thousands of animals in the park, and when one of these creatures dies, the body is, well, recycled- mostly quickly and efficiently, and almost always beyond the view of the visiting human population.  But let’s imagine what might happen if an animal perished near one of the parks major roadways…

In fact the HP and myself don’t have to imagine, for we witnessed such an occurrence two years previously at the Blacktail Ponds – see the May 20, 2010 entry – bear fighting bear over the carcass, wolves fighting bears over the carcass, coyotes and ravens picking over the bones – a remarkable opportunity to witness the rougher edge of nature.  Now you would have to have been there to really appreciate it, but let me assure you that the event must have been a challenge for the NPS staff:  50+ vehicles, over a hundred people, with grizzly bears and wolves trying to run one another off the carcass without regard to where the humans stood to observe.

Given the predictable mischief resulting from the carcass recycling process then, it may not be surprising to learn that NPS Rangers routinely relocate carcasses, placing as much distance between the dead animal and nearby roadways and/or viewpoints as can be reasonably achieved.  Again, this is extremely dangerous work – carrying a dead bison calf in the vicinity of a grizzly bear is right-up-there-crazy with strolling around the backcountry with a cutthroat-necktie or an elk-steak-hat.

You will note that this is a two-person operation.  One ranger leads the way into the brush – armed with a shotgun and sidearm, and if it were me, loaded with the bear country standards, respectively, 12 Ga 2-3/4″ 000 buck, and 45 ACP +P 230Gr JHP, but I digress.  A second ranger follows behind, toting the carcass.

The carcass was originally located just a few meters north of the Northeast Entrance Road, near the northern end of the Lamar Valley.  The transfer took only about three minutes, and involved moving the carcass about 100 meters northwest of the road up hill to a flat section that was invisible from the road.

Images in this entry were recorded on May 16, 2012 at 16:40 MDT using the Nikon D4 and the AF-S NIKKOR 200-400mm f/4G ED VR II at 400mm.  Exposure was f/8.0 and 1/2500s, ISO 1600.  The use of f/8.0 was unnecessary – f/5.6 would have been better – but I was caught a bit off guard and decided to just keep shooting.  All of these images are extreme crops of the original source images.

Kudos to these unnamed NPS Rangers, who conducted their duties with professionalism, discretion, and respect for the natural order.

 Copyright 2012 Peter F. Flynn.  No usage permitted without prior written consent. All rights reserved.

Yellowstone Diary: May 15, 2012

We began the day with a drive westward through the Blacktail Deer Plateau.  There is a rock jumble near the junction of the Grand Loop Road and the Blacktail Deer Plateau Road, and in this area we often have seen yellow-bellied marmots.  The best chance for viewing this industrious animal is on brightly clear chilly mornings – they seem to favor basking in the sun from a vantage with readily accessible escape routes.  The images above and below were recorded at 08:00 MDT, using the Nikon D4 and the AF-S NIKKOR 200-400mm f/4G ED VR II at 400mm.  Exposures were at f/5.6 and 1/2500s, ISO 800.  Handheld (invariably, ’cause that is why you buy this lens!!!).  The light changes rapidly in the early morning and I was caught a bit off-guard – thus the silly shutter speed (1/500s would have been plenty fast enough).

We continued further on down the road, and past Tower Junction to the Northeast Entrance Road.  We made a low-probability pass along the access road to Slough Creek Camp.  Near the south end of the road we found a small group of pronghorns basking in the morning sun.  The image of a young female (Below) was recorded at 09:00 MDT using the D4 and the 200-400mm f/4.0 VR II at 400mm.  Exposure was f/5.6 and 1/2500, ISO 500.

Slough Creek Campground had not yet opened at the time of our visit, however it was clear that the mounted brigade was fully active.  Images of the horse barn located near the campground (three images below) were recorded at between 09:15 and 09:30 MDT, using the D800E and the AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8G ED lens lens at various focal lengths.

A uinta ground squirrel kept a cautious watch over us while we milled around near the Slough Creek trailhead.  The two images below were recorded at 09:30 MDT, using the D4 and the 200-400 lens at 400mm.  Exposures were f/5.6 and 1/600s, ISO 500.

We continued eastward through the Lamar Valley to the northeast entrance of the park without spotting a single animal – it’s like that some days…  From here we continued along the Beartooth Highway almost to the summit.  The image below of Index Peak was recorded at 11:07 MDT, using the D800E and the AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II lens at 140mm.  Exposure was f/8.0 and 1/320s (+0.33 EV), ISO 100.

The road was closed just a few yards beyond the point were I made this shot (looking north).  Image recorded at 11:40 MDT, using the D800E and the 24-70mm lens at 52mm.  Exposure was f/8.0 and 1/500s (+0.33EV), ISO 100.

A Google Earth image of the location at which the shot above was recorded is shown below – exact center of the image:

 

On our westward retreat we stopped at the Lily Lake Campground, where I recorded the image of Index Peak shown below.  Image recorded at 13:00 MDT, using the D800 and the 24-70mm lens at 38mm.  Exposure was f/11.0 and 1/125s (+0.33EV), ISO 100.

Then back through the Lamar Valley, and then through the Tower junction.  Just a short drive west from the junction at Elk Creek Meadows we found a sow black bear (below) and two second-year cubs.  From the road to the position of these bears is several hundred meters – the image below is a modest crop of the original image.  Image recorded at 15:00 using the using the D800E, the AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4G ED VR, and the AF-S Teleconverter TC-17E II, producing an effective FX focal length of 1000mm.  Exposure was f/6.7 (minimum value with the TC-17) and 1/1000s, ISO 500.

We then continued traveling westward all the way back to Mammoth Hot Springs – no animals.  We decided to drive south towards Norris.  Near the Grizzly Lake Trailhead we encountered the local resident shown in the following five images.  The top two images were recorded at 17:00 MDT, using the D800E, the 600mm f/4G ED VR, and the TC-17E II.  Exposures were f/6.7 and 1/1000s, ISO 1250.

The previous two images were recorded with Griz on the east side of the the Grand Loop Road.  Although the growing crowd was well-behaved, it became evident that Mr. Griz wanted nothing more than to cross the roadway – as anyone who has ever been present at the big show will attest, there are no (none, zero) gaps in the crowded mass of folks viewing the bear, and thus the bear crossing is a significant hazard for both bear and people.  Remarkably, the bear veered north along the road, then quickly west across the asphalt at the first opportunity.  The point at which the bear crossed was bounded on the west side by steep high ground, which forced Mr Griz along the inside track along the west side of the Grand Loop Road, within approx 10-30 ft (yeah, ft) of the assembled masses.  Discretion being the better part of valor, I jumped into the passenger side of the truck cab, picked up the D4 + 200-400mm, and commenced to reel-off images as Griz wandered by.  The next three images were recorded at f/5.6 and 1/1000s, ISO 1600.

This entry was mastered using an NEC model PA301W monitor calibrated to 140 candelas per meter-squared (cd/m^2).

Copyright 2012 Peter F. Flynn.  No usage permitted without prior written consent. All rights reserved.