Exploring Nature by Sheila Newenham
The Theodore Roosevelt National Park North Unit is more rugged than the expansive South Unit. Sixty-five miles of private land separate the two. There is one 14-mile out-and-back road in the North Unit that snakes up to acrophobic overlooks along the river gorge. In light … Continue readingTheodore Roosevelt National Park – North Unit
A guest post by Rob I went out fishing during our most recent stay in Alaska at Silver Salmon Creek Lodge in Lake Clark National Park. One afternoon I went out with a guide and another couple to fish. We fished a bend in the … Continue readingA Fed Bear
Getting There Driving west on I-94, it’s fast and flat through Minnesota and most of North Dakota. I pass crowded fields of sunflowers, their dry seed heads fixed toward the sky, flat terrain pockmarked by small lakes and rolling fallow crop fields. Until suddenly, the … Continue readingTheodore Roosevelt National Park – South Unit
Don’t Mess with Mama Bear Mama bears are notoriously, fiercely protective of their cubs. It’s unusual for adult male bears (boars) to hang out here. In other places where I’ve watched bears fish, the opposite is true; sows with cubs are rare. This stretch of … Continue readingBrown Bear Stories (Part Two)
The salmon run congregates bears closer together and in higher numbers than they would otherwise tolerate. Like Big Brother on television, this creates drama. Family Drama When a sow with cubs begins fishing, the hungry cubs watch with rapt attention. Once she catches a salmon … Continue readingBrown Bear Stories (Part One)
It’s all about the timing. Life in coastal Alaska is dictated by the tides – for both human and non-human animals. On the shore of Lake Clark National Park, the annual silver salmon run has just begun. A few days ago, there were a few … Continue readingFishing Bears
“Go to Theodore Roosevelt for the wild horses. Sure, there are bison, elk, mule deer, coyotes, burrowing owls, black-footed ferrets, badgers galore, prairie dogs, and a unique sub-species of turkey that you will likely photograph while there, but the wild horses are the real draw … Continue readingWild Horses of Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Communication This bear argument is loud, powerful, and impassioned, yet fairly benign. All social species require a way to resolve conflict without risking their lives or their relationships. Just because you have power does not mean you need to use it. Nature has so much … Continue readingBears: A Heated Discussion
The Trail I’m moving purposefully up the half-mile trail from the parking lot in Point Reyes National Seashore. If I’m going to see the river otters and still find a bobcat, this detour can’t take too long. Along my way, there are birds all about … Continue readingRiver Otters
It’s a classic Glacier National Park hike. Mid-day in July or August you’ll find people circling the parking lot for an hour or more looking for a place to park as traffic backs up on the narrow, winding, two-lane Going to the Sun Road as … Continue readingHidden Lake Trail at Logan Pass