In January 2025, Lerro Photography sponsored two separate photo workshops at Yellowstone National Park.
World-renowned for its geothermal features, rivers, canyons, lush forests, and vast abundance of wildlife, Yellowstone is a photographer’s dream. Most of the park is closed to regular vehicles during the winter months. The only way to visit most of the park is by snow coach or snowmobile. For each of the workshops, each group spent the first day at the Grizzly & Wolf Preserve and then spent three days on a snow coach so we could access all the areas of the park. While the schedules were similar, each workshop featured different weather conditions and wildlife encounters.
Trip 1: Our first day of the workshop at the Grizzly & Wolf Preserve featured plenty of photo opportunities with the wolves and the grizzlies. Temperatures were mild, in the teens and low 20s, so the animals were very active. The grizzlies played with each other, and the wolves took turns nibbling at the elk carcass. We also got fortunate with multiple snow showers throughout the afternoon.
On day two, we ventured into the park on the snow coach and made our way towards Old Faithful and the Upper Geyser Basin. Along the way, we photographed a bison herd at the biscuit basin. Once at the Upper Geyser Basin, we spent a few hours photographing the geysers, including Old Faithful and Castle Geyser. Later in the afternoon, we photographed several coyotes along the Madison River and valley.
On day three, we started with finding two very photogenic foxes as they were leaping/mousing into the snow in search of voles and field mice. Midday, we came across several eagles in the nearby trees. The highlight of the 1st trip was in the afternoon as we encountered a herd of bison on the move. The first found them as they were walking into the Hayden Valley. Our driver predicted that the herd would eventually make it back on the road a mile ahead, so we drove up and positioned ourselves with the back door of the bus open. As he predicted, the herd walked onto the road behind our snow coach. Just as we started to take pictures, something spooked the herd in the back, which caused them all to start charging towards us. Keeping a safe distance ahead of the herd and with us buckled up in our seats, we took turns taking pictures out the back of the bus, and the herd stampeded towards us. For nearly 4 miles, the herd charged ahead, allowing us to get some fantastic photos and videos of the stampede. The herd finally went off the road into a creek to rest. Later in the afternoon, we stopped at the Grand Canyon to get a few photos since it was cloudy, which is ideal due to the poor sun angles in the winter.
On the final day, we searched for wildlife on our way to the Fountain Paint Pot. Throughout the day, we encountered bull bison, eagles, and coyotes.
Trip 2: Just 9 days later, I was back in Yellowstone for the 2nd group of photographers. Day one was at the Grizzly & Wolf Preserve. Unlike the first trip, the temperature at 9:00 am was -36F, which caused the bears to stay indoors for a couple of hours longer. The wolves were also a little slow to get moving as well. Finally, around 1 pm, the temperatures rose to around 0, and the animals became more active. We got several shots of the wolves picking at an elk carcass and the bears walking around.
Day two started with us finding a bison on the road. We positioned ourselves ahead of them, and as they started to move forward, we kept a safe distance ahead of them so we could take photos. While they didn’t stampede like the week prior, we still got some great photos. That afternoon, we encountered a fox hunting a vole. The day ended with us photographing a different bison herd, including a fairly young bison that was still light brown.
Day three featured morning shots of the Upper Geyser Basin. These included Old Faithful, Castle Geyser, and a number of thermal features around Geyser Hill. During the afternoon, we photographed a couple of coyotes. One of them was leaping/mousing, and it did catch a vole. On the final day, we encountered a Great Gray Owl, a number of bull bison, and the very elusive long-tailed white weasel, also known as an ermine.
We are considering returning to Yellowstone and Grand Teton in 2026. Look for an announcement in the future.
