May 26, 2017 My annual spring Yellowstone trip began at 5:15 Friday morning, when I left Seattle for the long drive eastward.  It wasn’t going to be as long as my usual drive, mainly because I wasn’t heading directly to the national park.  With the onset of the Memorial Day Weekend, I wanted to miss at least a little of

A few years ago I posted about this topic on Facebook, as I feel it’s an important piece of advice for those visiting Yellowstone National Park for the first time.  With the spring and summer park tourist season around the corner, I’ve written a bit more for the blog. It’s inevitable. At some point you’ll encounter a bison on the

Back when I started making more frequent trips to Yellowstone, either on my own or with friends, I would opt for what was familiar.  Trips would happen during summer, the traditional vacation period from my school and college days.  First August, then July, and eventually late June.  Wildlife sightings became more numerous the earlier I went during the season, but

Of the so-called Big Cats, the snow leopard is among the rarest and most mysterious.  It’s also been the least accessible, living at high altitudes in the Himalayas, in a harsh mountain environment that even the most fit wildlife enthusiast might consider daunting. There was no well-organized snow leopard tourism until the past ten years or so, but a couple

Here is the latest on my upcoming tour schedule for 2017 and beyond.  I’m adding some brand new tours (my first time leading a group to certain destinations!) and scheduling some old favorites for future years that may be sold out this year. Here are some more details about the tours listed above:   2017 Photo Tours As you can