Bull Elk crossing Madison River

Most early hunting expeditions were by pack train to the fabulous backcountry and today’s hunts remain quite the same. For many this remains part of the attraction, to saddle up the horses and load up the packhorses and mules and setting out for hunting camp high in the mountains. Many outfitters in the Greater Yellowstone region hunt this old time style, with packhorses and tent frame camps because this is still the most efficient way to get to the remote areas where the hunting is best. Many bighorn sheep and deer outfitters provide hunting camps like this as well.

Elk hunting in The Greater Yellowstone region can be one of the most remarkable experiences of a lifetime. Here in the Greater Yellowstone region you will see either the splendor of the Grand Tetons, the Gros Ventre Mountains, the Wyoming Range, the Absoraka Range, Snake River Range, or the Big Hole's. Jackson Hole is also the home of the National Elk Refuge where 6 to 12 thousand elk spend their winter taunting you into thinking that your hunt is going to be easy. In the Greater Yellowstone area there are many outfitters and guides to choose from if you choose to not go without a guide.

Gros Ventre Mountain Trophy Mule Deer Buck

Southeastern Idaho and western Wyoming are both famous for producing big mule deer bucks. Most early hunting expeditions were by pack train to the fabulous backcountry and today’s hunts remain quite the same. For many this remains part of the attraction, to saddle up the horses and load up the packhorses and mules and setting out for hunting camp high in the mountains. Many outfitters in the Greater Yellowstone region hunt this old time style, with packhorses and tent frame camps because this is still the most efficient way to get to the remote areas where the hunting is best. Many bighorn sheep and elk outfitters provide hunting camps like this as well.

Your best hunting will probably be in the higher elevations where rugged country limits access to all but the most hardcore hunters and outfitters in the know. This area has long been known for its excellent deer habitat and herd genetics. Controlled hunts in the Upper Snake region are coveted for the opportunity to hunt mule deer during the rut in late November.

Gallatin Range Big Horn Sheep

The Greater Yellowstone region is a stronghold of the bighorn and has gained a worldwide reputation for producing the some of the biggest Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep. There have been many fabulous rams harvested in the Greater Yellowstone area with a good number of them scoring over 200. Bighorn sheep are heavy horned and often broom (breaking the tips of the horns off to help vision). It is very difficult to find an old ram that reaches anywhere near 40 inches long after the loss of the lamb tips from brooming. However, most sheep hunters value a heavy horned old ram regardless of brooming as a fine trophy.

The Greater Yellowstone region bighorn sheep have always been a premier trophy for sportsmen from around the world. The sheep outfitting industry in this area has a long respected reputation as good producers of trophies for their clients.

Snake River Range Mountain Goat

The Mountain Goats of the Greater Yellowstone eco-system make a home on the vertical planes of the Rocky Mountains where they cling and move around on the impossibly steep slopes of this unforgiving and barren terrain, Mountain Goats can survive on scant food in incredibly hostile environs. Mountain goats fit perfectly into the category of "charismatic mega-fauna." Their beauty, grace, and athleticism, is a treat to watch and their cute faces are always a thrill to see. The kids are precocious, able to move on steep slopes within hours of birth, an awe-inspiring site in itself.

Although the Yellowstone Ecosystem has an abundance of Mountain Goat habitat, Goats are not endemic to the region. Between the 1940s and the 1960s, there were several hundred of the shaggy cliff dwelling creatures transplanted from western Montana to the Beartooth, Absaroka, Madison, Bridger, and Crazy mountains and the Snake River Range. Hundreds of them now inhabit the high country. Some of those animals are willing to leave their preferred high-elevation habitat to cross rivers, and valleys too colonize new places. There haven’t been any transplants in the Gallatin Range, for instance, but goats thrive there today. -----------------------------> More

Bison, Jackson Hole Wyoming

The Greater Yellowstone ecosystem is the only place in the lower 48 states where an endemic population of wild bison has survived since prehistoric times. Perhaps no other animal symbolizes the American West like the American bison. In prehistoric times millions of these quintessential creatures of the plains roamed the North America from northern Canada, south into Mexico and from Atlantic to the pacific. No one knows how many bison were in America before Columbus arrived but the guesstimate is about sixty million. They were the largest community of wild animals that the world has ever known. For a good part of the 1800s bison were considered to be in limitless supply.

After the Civil War the push to settle the west was on, new army posts were established, coinciding with the westward push of the railroads. The army and railroads contracted with local men to supply buffalo meat to feed the troops and construction laborers.

Bison were hunted nearly to extinction in the late 1800’s and were reduced to less than a thousand animals by the end of the century. Many western legends took part in the big buffalo hunt including Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, Pat Garrett, Wild Bill Hickok, and William F. Cody, just to name a few. ------------------------------------> more

Greater Yellowstone Region Cinnamon Black Bear

The black bear ranges across forested Canada from Newfoundland to British Columbia as well as much of the United States. A solitary animal most of the year, they pair up briefly during the mating season. Cubs remain with their mother for about a year, who protects which prevents them from being killed by the adult males. 
    

Black bears swim well and often climb trees to feed on buds and fruit. They have a keen sense of smell, acute hearing, but poor eyesight. They can be seen at any hour of the day, but are most active at night. When very young, the cubs cry when afraid and hum when contented.  .................................more