Weekend With The Wapitis Summer 2024
By Isaac Rath and Katie Milesky
Photos by Isaac Rath
On September 26th, I was visiting Katie in Yellowstone National Park on my long weekend when we noticed a few people gathered near the road at Biscuit Basin. For a moment we were concerned it was another hydrothermal event - ICYMI, Biscuit Basin has been closed since a hydrothermal explosion that took place back in July of this year. Rocks were thrown hundreds of feet, some being the size of a refrigerator! Luckily, that wasn’t the case. There were three wolves eating something in the Firehole River.
After watching for a bit, we were able to determine that it was the Wapiti Lake pack, the same pack I spent a lot of time with over the winter season. It took us a while, but eventually, we were able to tell that it was an elk that they where feeding on - the most popular choice among Yellowstone’s wolves.
Millions of people travel to Yellowstone each year, and I’m willing to bet the majority of them have hopes of catching even a glimpse of these mysterious creatures. Opportunities to watch them feed, howl, play, and just BE wild wolves is such a treat, and the fact that they were as close as they were was just icing on top. It was a surreal moment, watching these powerful predators in action. I’ve spent thousands of hours watching wolves in the past few years in Yellowstone, but this day felt like I’d been dropped in the middle of a nature documentary. The scene felt both primal and peaceful, as the wolves fed in silence while a small group of onlookers observed from a safe distance.
What really seemed to agitate the wolves, however, was the commotion from the crowd of onlookers. Some people started yelling at the person to back away, likely out of concern for both parties. The shouting only made the wolves more anxious, and we could see their behavior change—ears flattened, and their movements became more restless. It was a clear reminder of how human presence can influence wildlife behavior, especially when there’s too much noise or activity. If given the choice, they’d pick their prey going down miles from the road in Yellowstone’s vast wilderness than within view of humans any day.
One of the black wolves caught my attention, and after observing for a few moments, I was able to positively identify him as wolf 1486M. This particular wolf was born last spring and is now a yearling. He was one of the pups that had helped bring down a bison during the previous winter. It was amazing to see him thriving and to recognize him from past sightings.
We watched the wolves for a few hours and observed some interesting behavior. Since it was summer, there were many more people in the area, and a popular trail ran right by where the wolves were feeding. At one point, we noticed someone walking along the trail, getting quite close to the wolves. Although the wolves appeared slightly on edge in the presence of the person, they seemed relatively calm at first.
Even though the wolves didn’t react aggressively, the tension in the air was palpable. Katie even got in a little...disagreement with one of the people yelling. It was fascinating, yet a little unsettling, to witness how human interference, even well-meaning, could disturb the natural order of things. We heard later that evening that the rest of the pack had come and gone and a grizzly bear had stopped by to feed as well.
The next morning, we headed back to Biscuit Basin, hoping the wolves would be out there again. Katie spread out a blanket for us to sit on while we waited patiently. We didn’t have to wait long—a gray wolf came down from the woods less than an hour after our arrival.
I didn’t catch a glimpse of my favorite wolf, 1270M, until my last day in the park. He’s old enough that his fur is graying with age - a milestone many wolves don’t get to see. It was early in the foggy morning, and the atmosphere felt otherworldly. Katie had guests to pick up for a private charter at 6 am, so she kicked me out of her dorm at about 5 am when she left to pre trip her vehicle. I went to Biscuit and started to set up in the dark, hoping they’d make their appearance at first light. Katie showed up with her guests a little after 6 am and set up a scope, knowing this was going to be a good chance to get them a wolf sighting and set a great tone for the day. Just as Katie’s guests were starting to think she was insane for making them stand outside in the cold for an hour, we started to hear some howling. We started to see the outline of three wolves (led by 1270M) coming in from the south side. The steam from the thermal activity of the basin makes visibility pretty bad on a chilly morning, so after they got some howling and a few confirmed sightings, Katie and her guests took off to explore what else the park had to offer. They ended up running into the Mollie’s pack in Hayden Valley just an hour later and got to watch them take on a massive grizzly bear over a carcass. That just goes to show: You never know what a day in Yellowstone will have in store.
