Lifelong friends on the road: Wolves, bears even people

In October 2016, in Yellowstone’s Lamar Valley, with binoculars in hand, I stood at a scenic overlook in anticipation of seeing a wolf. I had been making the 4:00 am drive from my hotel room in West Yellowstone to the northernmost of the park for five or six days in hopes of catching a glimpse of the elusive grey wolf. In the distance, I heard, ‘Hey there, see any wolves?’ I looked over and saw a man presumably in his early seventies, also with a pair of binoculars. No one else was in sight aside from a parked car where I learned laterJim’s wife, Jean, was sitting. During our encounter, Jim and I talked about my dreams of seeing a wolf in the park. To my surprise, he’d seen one! Not on that day, but previously. I was intrigued to learn more about Jim and the wolf sighting. Needless to say, I was obsessed with finding a wolf.

I walked over to the car to meet Jean, roughly the same age as Jim. Immediately I knew these people were some of the nicest folks I’ve had the pleasure of meeting. We started talking about my past life as an Army Officer and now wanderlust traveler. They were curious about my passion for wolves. Then. Of course they asked all the basic questions, “Brian, are you married.” “Do you travel alone?” “Where are you staying? etc. Finally, after a while, we learned we were staying at the same hotel, The Stage Coach Inn in West Yellowstone. Immediately Jim says, “Brian we would like to take you out to eat tonight, but first, I want to show you some black bears.” My eyes lit up! I thought to myself, what does he mean by “show” me some bears? Over the last couple of days, I’d driven dozens of hours through the park and never spotted a wolf or bear. I was elated for the opportunity to see a bear! Jim nonchalantly says, “Follow us over to Dunraven Pass, surely I will show you a bear on that mountain, and then we can go out to dinner.”

As we started our drive from the Lamar Valley, I followed Jim and Jean in their SUV with my Toyota Corolla. In my head I thought, “This is too good to be true.” I recall the way Jim said, ‘I will show you some bears before dinner.” Jean said something along the lines of, “I believe we will see one. Hopefully, we get lucky again.” We drove about half-mile down the road, and a family of black bears walked in front of my car! I was astonished by the sight of these beautiful creatures. I stopped the car, and before I know it I saw a mother bear and cubs in the meadow. To start documenting the sighting, I pulled out my Nikon Coolpix point and shoot camera, which, for the time, had an incredible digital zoom feature.

It’s all kind of a blur, but I remembered thinking, as my finger was pressing hard and fast on the shutter, “Did Jim and Jean pull over?” I remember feeling sad for a split second; what if they were gone and missed the bears? Then all of a sudden, I felt a familiar hand on my shoulder; I turned and looked to see Jim. In that emotional moment, Jim said, “Brian, I told you I would show you a bear on Dunraven Pass.” For a few peaceful minutes, the three of us watched as a trio of bears walked across a log in a serene meadow. The two cubs wrestled for a bit, and then they were gone. To this day, this prophetic moment of Jim telling me he would show me a bear, to watching the situation unfold before my eyes, is one of the most memorable moments of my five years of traveling. After our bear sighting, we went out to dinner in West Yellowstone. I ordered spaghetti and meatballs, one of my favorite meals growing up in an Italian family.

Jim and Jean have remained some of my closest friends to this day. They are just a few years younger than my grandparents and have treated me to welcoming stays at their house anytime I travel near their hometown. I mean, who doesn’t enjoy a homecooked meal made with love? And, of course, the opportunity to catch up with good friends.

I will never forget how I met Jim and Jean. Meeting them was the beginning, not the end, of my journey to find wolves in Yellowstone. If you enjoyed reading this, please leave me a comment and subscribe. Your support means the world to me.

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