Grizzlies, gray wolves, bighorn sheep, mighty buffalo and elk are just a sampling of the wildlife you may see in Yellowstone's Lamar Valley. Near the northern Gardiner Gate of the park, Lamar Road is the only road open year-round. Tours of the valley include summer wildlife tours and winter wolf-watching expeditions. Slow down for wandering buffaloes as you pass through the tiny town of Gardiner and enter the park through the majestic Theodore Roosevelt Arch. Several Lamar Valley tours can be booked directly or through your hotel.
Hungry Like the Wolf
- Lamar Valley is the place to spot wolves during every season, although these crafty creatures can be more elusive during summer months. Yellowstone National Park Lodges' Winter Wolf Discovery provides four nights at Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, meals, snowshoe rental and a Yellowstone naturalist guide who will lead you through the Lamar Valley wolf pack areas. See Yellowstone offers a guided early-morning Lamar Valley wolf tour as an add-on to its snowmobile package. Yellowstone Wolf Tracker arranges private custom wolf-watching tours year-round, and these include spotting scopes and interpretive guides.
Wild, Wild Life
- The blazing white of Yellowstone's winter landscape makes the perfect background for spotting the many creatures that live here -- except for the ermine and snowshoe hare that can change color to match the snow. YNP Lodges' Lamar Valley Wildlife Tour leaves from the Mammoth Hotel, and you can order a box lunch from the hotel the night before even if you're not a guest. The snow coaches are heated, but wear warm clothing, gloves and boots for those terrific moments when you spot a herd of snow-covered bison, bighorn sheep or majestic elk and simply must step outside to get a photo. Guests are encouraged to bring a hot beverage in a thermos.
The Magic Bus
- Board a 13-passenger, fully restored 1930s White Model 706 touring bus known as the Old Yellow Bus for an early morning Wake Up to Wildlife narrated tour of the Lamar Valley. You'll start with a continental breakfast, but the tour is four hours long, so you might want to bring along a snack and a bottle of water. Bring a camera and binoculars for opportunities to see and photograph elk, bighorn sheep, lots of buffalo and perhaps even a wolf pack or a grizzly bear.
Be Beary, Beary Quiet
- Lamar Valley is prime territory for spotting grizzlies and black bears, even if you're just driving through on your own. Bears can often be seen wandering down Lamar Road, causing traffic jams, but it's not safe to approach them. Unlike wolves, bears do not run in packs, so sighting are rather random. A tour guide known as Bearman -- Kevin Sanders -- runs private tours throughout the year. YNP Lodges' Lamar Valley Wildlife Excursion also gives you opportunities to spot bears using provided scopes or your own binoculars.
