A group of Yellowstone tourists came face-to-face with a herd of huge bison! Luckily, one rider had a helmet camera and recorded the encounter!
How cool?!?
Tourism during the winter months in Yellowstone is quite huge! The national park is quite the beautiful sight during the winter months and tourists want to catch a glimpse!
The herd was casually walking along the snowmobile trail when the group pulled up to them. A few bison charged at one another during the encounter — which is to be expected as the tension level was high.
During the winter, most park roads in Yellowstone are closed to regular traffic. The only way to visit many popular destinations within the park is on guided snowmobile or snow coach tours, according to the National Park Service.
Yellowstone is home to thousands of bison. At least 4,680 bison are part of the herd, according to the National Park Service.
They’re the largest “land-dwelling mammal in North America” and can weigh up to 2,000 pounds. Bison can run up to 30 miles per hour and, if approached, can be aggressive, the National Park Service said.
“Bison have injured more people in Yellowstone than any other animal. Bison are unpredictable and can run three times faster than humans,” the National Park Service said. “Always stay at least 25 yards away from bison.”
I spent a few summers in Gardiner, Montana back in the early 2000’s, living next to the north entrance to the park. During my time there, bison had rammed a tourist, nearly killing them. Another instance, a tourist attempted to place her small child on top of a bison in order to take a photograph. The bison ended up kicking the child — again — nearly killing them.
Don’t mess with wildlife. You are in their home. Be respectful and understand that they are in fact ‘wild’ animals. A dear friend of mine was a park ranger for Yellowstone and one common question tourist would always ask was, “What time do you feed the animals?”. Yellowstone is not a zoo. It is wild, wild territory!