Late Summer in Yellowstone. 8/2/24: Available as a free e-book. This e-book describes the scenery and wildlife at the end of the summer.
Late summer is generally a challenging time to be in Yellowstone due to the sheer number of people and, often, ongoing road construction projects taking place in various parts of the park. But August, like all other months in the park, is a good time to see wildlife. While our trip started out a little slow on that front, it ended with a bang – specifically, a bison carcass that drew in many wolves and grizzly bears. While many species are preparing for the cold, other large mammals go about their day as they always have. The numerous people in the park are just one more inconvenience in their demanding lives.
This book depicts late summer in the world’s first national park. The scenery is in transition from the greens of summer to the browns of fall. Backcountry hikes are very popular during this time of year with less water on the trails and it’s generally a drier period to enjoy the park’s many beautiful landscapes. Accordingly, we took many treks during our time in the park. We also had great wildlife sightings, particularly at the end of the trip. I stayed so busy for all 9 days of our stay that there are many storylines – as you’ll read about – that played out during my time there.
Jonathan (Jon) Way has a B.S. (UMass Amherst), M.S. (UConn Storrs), and doctorate (Boston College) related to the study of eastern coyotes/coywolves. He is the author of the following books: 1) Suburban Howls, an account of his experiences studying eastern coyotes in Massachusetts; 2) My Yellowstone Experience, which details - in full color - the spectacular wildlife, scenery, and hydrothermal features that can be found in the world's first national park; 3) Northeastern U.S. National Parks: What Is and What Could Be makes the case to expand the National Park System in the Northeast by adding 3 new national parks that are 44,000 acres or bigger; 4) The Trip of a Lifetime: A Pictorial Diary of My Journey Out West consists of 560 pages and nearly 1,000 pictures of a 3.5 week trip out west in 2019, showcasing most of the large mammals found in North America; 5) Coywolf: Eastern Coyote Genetics, Ecology, Management, and Politics is a 280 page pictorial treatise of his over 20 years studying this creature; 6) Christmas in Yellowstone is a 200+ page, 259 picture book based on his 9 day trip to the park during the 2020 holiday season; 7) Mud, I mean April, in Yellowstone, which is a 330 page, 430 picture look at the park during the mud season when nature transitions from winter to spring; 8) Yellowstone Wildlife during Summer, which was a major project showing over 650 pictures of the park's amazing wildlife in over a decade of summers spent in the park; 9) A Yellowstone Summer with the Junction Butte Wolf Pack, which details, in 510 pictures, the life and times of a famous wolf pack followed during the summer by adoring fans; 10) Yellowstone in Winter: The Recovering Wolves of the Northern Range, which details, in over 450 pictures, the wildlife of Yellowstone, particular wolves and their prey, during the depths of winter; 11) Backpacking the Iconic Pemigewasset Wilderness, which describes my 3 day, 35 mile journey into the heart of the White Mountains, New Hampshire; 12) A Beary Special April in Yellowstone, which details his week and a half long encounter with a wild grizzly bear; and 13) Late Summer in Yellowstone. Jon founded and runs his organization, Eastern Coyote/Coywolf Research, where his goal is to conduct long-term ecological and behavioral research on eastern coyotes. He also supplements his research with regular trips to Yellowstone National Park and other national parks.
