It is a question that is often asked on our travels.
Our Home & Recording Studio are called Timberwolf, not forgetting the band !
As most John Denver fans will know, our interest in wolves, came about because
of the very last song that he wrote, just before he died. The song was called
‘Yellowstone Coming Home’ and it was written for a television special that John
was filming at that time. The show was a conservation documentary about some of the animals that had featured in John’s earlier songs. Part of the show was to
include a section about the re-
National Park. During the course of the show, John wrote the song. On his first
Trip to Yellowstone, he didn’t see the wolves, so he was scheduled to go back
for another trip, to attempt to see the wolves and be filmed with them. Sadly he
never got the chance to go back and complete the show. Thankfully after his untimely death, the show was completed, and the documentary ‘Let This Be A Voice’
Was released and broadcast.
In March 2008 we took that same trip, and went out into the wilderness within
Yellowstone Park, accompanied by a tracker, in the hope of seeing the wolves
for ourselves. We had a safari type vehicle with a roof hatch that opened up for
us to take photo’s of anything we might see. Temperature’s were -
We got real good close up’s of lots of buffalo and then a couple of coyote’s ran close by and lots of elk, deer and mountain goats. Eagles flew overhead, but no
Sign of any of the five packs of wolves that are known to have established territories within the park.
As the day progressed we drove along scanning the ridges and mountain sides for any sign of wolves or raven’s. Our tracker told us that if we spotted a klock of raven’s they would lead us to the wolves, as they share the scraps from the wolves prey, and a kill can last up to three days before the pack moves on.
Nothing ! Our tracker also had a CB radio in the car and he listened to
other wolf watchers talking to each other across the park. Occasionally
he would speak to someone. It seemed that everyone else was having the
same luck we were. We went round a corner and passed a group of about
Ten wolf watchers all aiming their telescopes and binoculars along the
surrounding hills, but they had seen nothing all day too.
As lunch time approached we stopped for a picnic lunch, sat outside a log cabin sheltering from the very cold temperatures. After an amazing feast, we packed up and set off again looking for the wolves.
Suddenly there was great excitement on the radio, one of the group
that we had just passed, had found the wolves sleeping near the top
of a ridge. We turned around and headed back to them, along with every
other wolf watcher that had heard the broadcast. Our tracker set up
Some high power telescopes on tripods and then suddenly there they were. Seven wolves all sleeping in the snow, beneath the mid day sun.
Wolves are most active in the early morning, once they have eaten they
just sleep it off. Nearby a flock of raven’s was picking over the remains
of an elk, and also three huge eagles, all of which were clearly visible
through the telescopes.
As the wolves lay sleeping, occasionally one would lift it’s head to
survey the surrounding area, and then slump back down. Then one got
up and went for a short walk round before laying back down again.
It was an amazing sight to see, and a fantastic experience. Sadly as our own pictures show, the wolves are only dots in the distance. The camera zoom was not as powerful as that of the telescope.
Our stage is very often decorated with wolves, and they are there in honour of that very special
last song that John Denver wrote They are now also there to remind us of our new found friends...
The Druid Peak Pack of Wolves in Yellowstone Park. Till We Meet Again !!!
We wouldn’t blame you for not being able to pick out the wolves in the top photo. There are four of them in the picture. They are circled in the middle photo and enlarged in the bottom one. If you look closely at the bottom picture, you can see that the second one from the right has his head raised, surveying his territory.
The photo of Gill with the telescope shows just how far away the wolves were. They are up near the top of the ridge just to the left of Gill’s head.
Why The Wolves ???
