NFR Wolf Encounters

[klq@stl]

Since there seems to be some interest in wolves, here is my one and only encounter.

During a 14 day trip to Dust to Dawson for Summer Solstice (not a motorcycle rally) in Dawson City, Yukon, I was on day 9 riding a Honda ST 1100 from Johnson Crossing to Liard Hot Springs. Having crossed the Teslin Bridge around 7am I was cruising around 74 mph/120 km approaching the Continental Divide between the Liard watershed to the Arctic and the Yukon watershed to the Pacific. Traffic was light and as I approached the top of the ridge there was a large turnout with bear can garbage bins. I noticed an animal 30ft off the road, assuming it was a deer I began to decelerate. I looked again and it was a black wolf. I had seen bears, moose, and fox but no wolves on this trip. I looked again and it was crossing the road. Shifting down I noticed the wolf's ears were back and it was chasing me like a mail truck. Got on the gas and swerved into the oncoming lane. A motorhome was parked 100 yards at the other end of the turnout. I could not believe I had been chased by a wolf. I pulled over to the motorhome and asked, "Is that a wolf?". They had been watching the animal for 15 minutes and agreed it looked like it was in chase mode. Why a guy wearing full motorcycle gear and helmet looked like something to chase is still beyond me.
Let's hear your wolf encounter stories.

Photo taken around 2:00am depicting where the Klondike River runs into the Yukon. Sun goes down for 10-15 minutes.

 

[Zak]

I have never seen a wolf in the wild. But once I heard them howling from a two ridges above our campsite. It was maybe 1995 and my friend Pete and I had driven his ancient Chevy truck from northern Wisconsin to Glacier Park, along Route 2, on our way to Missoula via Whitefish. We camped near the eastern end of the Going to the Sun highway and well after dark the wolves staring howling from one side, then the other. It was beautiful, eldritch, magical. Very different from coyotes. I dig wolves.

 

[dirty dog]

In 1977 my friend and I were driving on Hwy 97 south of Bend, OR.
We were on our way to fish the inlet creek to Davis lake.
It was 04:00 mid August, when a very large gray wolf jogged across the Hwy just a short way south of La Pine, OR.
We looked at each other and said "wolf".
I'm not sure we ever told anyone.

 

[Salmo_g]

2002, Yellowstone, Lamar Valley. Made the trip specifically to see wolves. Saw a fair number that came daily to an elk kill a pack made just across the Lamar River from the road. Also saw a couple wolves find an elk calf bedded down on a hill side. The wolves just started munching on the poor helpless calf, but that's what wolves do. Not just wolves, it was elk calving time, and we also saw a black bear that found a bedded down elk calf on another part of the same hill. And the bear did the same thing, just started munching down on the calf, no putting it out of its misery first or anything like that. This is the main reason why I'm not keen on being eaten by a bear; I don't want that happening while I'm still alive.

On the same 2002 trip, we took a hike up the Specimen Ridge trail that separates the Lamar from the Yellowstone. Hiking off trail we came upon an area that reeked of dog urine. I suspect it was a day bed resting area for the five wolves we apparently kicked out of there, as they had moseyed down the trail from us. We looked at them; they looked at us, and then walked up an adjacent hillside, spacing themselves about 100 feet apart and layed down, still wathcing us. So we sat on some large boulders by the urine reeking area and watched the wolves watching us for about an hour, long enough to begin getting a sun burn. Then the wolves all got up and walked on up the hill into a forested area and out of sight. That was pretty cool.

2020, Yellowstone, Lamar Valleyl. My SIL and I had gone fishing on the Lamar River and were making our way back to the car. Had to zig zag around the couple bull bison so as to avoid any confrontation and noticed a large, off white male wolf up on the largest boulder in the vicinity, just watching us as we hiked out way back to the car. We figured he must be the sentinel, keeping track of who and what was in the neighborhood.

I have not seen any wolves in WA. Yet.

 

[Mossback]

This is the main reason why I'm not keen on being eaten by a bear; I don't want that happening while I'm still alive.

I was unaware that there were other reasons...

 

[DoesItFloat]

I saw one a few years ago from my buddy's back yard in Hood River - there was an orchard behind us, and we both saw it trotting along among the pear trees. It was huge, but gaunt. We agreed it looked sickly.

 

[Greg Armstrong]

One year ago this week camped in the Teanaway just after dark. I had just stepped down from the camper to join the evening campfire when I heard the first wolf howl just across the river from us.

I grabbed my phone and recorded a solid minute of it. Black phone screen with the muffled sound of the river, and that mournful howl.

I just now listened to it again and it still brings a smile.

 

[Pescaphile]

I've had a lot in Alaska but this one was kinda fun. In late summer in 2020, I was piloting my boat down to Washington from southeast Alaska. On my first night on my trip, I was enjoying the solitude as I stayed in a small cove on the west side of Prince of Wales Island when I heard a wolf howl about a half mile down the beach from my anchorage. I'd thought I'd see if the wolf would talk to me, so I howled hoping for a response. I had barely finished my howl when another wolf, probably less than 200 yards away from me in the other direction from the first, howled from the trees on the shore in my cove to answer to my (admittedly poor) howl. The wolf that answered me was so close it really surprised me and made me jerk my head in its direction. It answered all my howls but usually didn't let me finish before howling over the top of me. This went on for about fifteen or twenty minutes until I tired of the game and conceded he was the boss. I never did hear the first wolf howl again.

 

[O' Clarkii Stomias]

Shortly after the reintroduction of wolves in Yellowstone, I watched 3 wolves takedown and eat 2 elk in Gibbon Meadows. Watched it from about 100 yards away. Mutual of Omaha Wild Kingdom shit right there.

 

[Scudley Do Right]

I've only seen one and it was in Washington. It was 10-15 years ago outside Republic. My buddy and I were turkey hunting. It was a cold spring and there was still snow on the ground. It was a black wolf running through the trees about 75 yards away. We walked up to see the tracks in the snow just to make sure it we weren't seeing things.

 

[Jim F.]

I was watching 2 Coyotes in the Upper Big Hole along the North Fork. They suddenly went on alert and raced away from the area. Within seconds, a Wolf appeared coming down the draw. That was in 1971.

 

[headduck]

5-6 yrs ago in YNP we saw a loner gorge himself on elk liver, while taking a break dragging the carcass out of the river. ... a brief encounter, unencumbered by the hoard of wolf lurchers.

The crowd kinda sours the experience for me... but this was awesome.

 

[Bob Rankin]

I was Quail hunting the Yakima training center about 10 years ago with my brother. We had hopped into the truck and we’re heading to our next spot and had a pair of wolves run across the road in front of us. We were speechless for a minute, it was pretty cool.

The next time I saw one was about 8 years ago.I was calling coyotes out in Grant county in the wheat fields. The farmers had some sheep that they kept around the house and had told me something was trying to get at there sheep. So I hiked straight up the hillside behind the barn and started calling. I ended up calling in and shooting the biggest male coyote I’ve ever seen. I got a call a week later from them saying they were still having problems. So, I went back and did the same thing. This time I had a very large jet black wolf work its way in. At some point it winded me and took off, and I’m really took off! I walked back to the farm house and told them there was nothing I could do about that Wolf and that they needed to contact WDFW. I guess when predator calling you just never know what may show up.

 

[Chadk]

Haven't laid eyes on them yet, but the area I hunt near Colville has some.

 

[Tom Butler]

I had braked hard 3 previous times for deer this morning, but the 4th time was for BIG black wolf near the top of the Patit this morning. Long, full black coat, well fed . We made eye contact and it slowly crossed the road about 25' in front of me. By the time I stopped starring and thought about it and grabbed my phone, it was gone over the bank. Now I guess I know why the elk are so far north. What an amazing animal.

 

[krusty]

Met four of them in the Yukon Territory, face to face, while sitting in the roadside brush fixing one of my many flat tires* on my solo 1999 AlCan bicycle tour starting in Anchorage.

I saw a movement out of the corner of my eye, turned my head, and there they were about 8 feet away looking at me...apparently interested in what I was doing. Never heard a thing.

In flash they were gone. Not a frightening experience in any way. I could see the intelligence in their beautiful eyes.

One of the peak experiences of my life. I very much hope their descendants continue to prosper.

* And why was I sitting far off in the roadside brush fixing a flat tire on my bicycle? I learned early on that if I stopped anywhere on the Alcan to work on my bicycle near the road where I could be seen somebody invariably would stop to give assistance and a 15 minute repair job would easily turn into an hour long conversation.

The reason I got so many flats on the Alcan were the widespread needle-like steel belted vehicle tire wire remnants that littered the road...especially right after the sections under construction (and there's always 10% to 20% of the Alcan under construction).

Travelers in the far north really look out for one another....

While very interesting discussions often ensued, I needed to keep pedaling my lazy ass down that long road.

 

[Bakerite]

Saw one last year near Meacham on I 84 between La Grande and Pendleton. It was a black one standing watching the traffic pass by at 70+mph. At first I thought it was a bear, that big, but way too skinny and regal. Made my day.

 

[Otter]

As I walked out of Nanaimo's recycle centre about 15 years ago, I saw a pickup truck parked on the other side of the quiet road. There was a jet black wolf standing in the bed, and a woman standing on the road beside it. Never one to pass up a once-in-a-lifetime experience, I approached the woman, and asked, "Is that a wolf?" It was obvious that it was, but I didn't know what else to say to start the conversation. She said, "Yes", and we began a conversation beside the truck.

She and her husband, who was still inside the recycle centre, owned this wolf. I didn't get into how that came to be, or the legalities of owning one, or where they lived, because I was just so mesmerized with being so close to this awesome animal.

I instinctively avoided eye contact with the wolf, and just spoke calmly with its owner for awhile, just as I do when I meet a new dog.

I will try to describe this animal. It was chained to the truck, and the owner and I were about five feet from it. Apart from its massive size, it just oozed pure wildness, power, and intelligence. It was obviously using all its senses to consantly scan its environment, on full alert, looking all around with an intensity that I have never seen before. It hardly glanced at me, no doubt because it had sized me up already, plus the fact that its owner was fine with me being there.

For some reason, I felt no fear. Maybe its calmness transfered to me. I am a naturally calm person anyway, plus insatiably curious. Before I could think of what to do or say next, I found myself asking the lady if I could touch it. She said yes, and said to just put my arm out first, which I did. The wolf very gently put its jaws around my forearm. I could barely feel any pressure. I said to the owner something like wolves don't have hands, so I guess they use their mouths to feel things. The wolf seemed satisfied with just a brief, light squeeze, then let go and went back to hyper-scanning its surroundings.

Then I reached out and touched the side of its shoulder. That fur was so coarse, that it left no doubt that this was a wild animal.

Thanks to the OP for starting this topic. Writing this down has reminded me of one of the most intense experiences of my life.

 

[Westfly Refugee]

While I didn't actually see the wolf.....I was in YNP fishing Slough Creek, First Meadow, working along the bends and came to small sandy/muddy beach. With tracks. I was able to get both a very clear, very distinct Grizz track and adjacent Wolf track in the same frame...a decent pic.

 

[SurfnFish]

2002, Yellowstone, Lamar Valley.

x2...after a stint in the Bob Marshall one early fall, wife and I were mosing along through Yellowstone on our way to Glacier, pulled over to watch a herd of buffalo on the move in the Lamar Valley when we spotted a couple of 'big dogs' approaching the herd, put the Steiners on them, coupla of wolves looking for a pull down. The buffalo started trotting and suddenly changed direction towards us, wife and I jumped into the Suburban, the buffalo crossed the road so close to us one rubbed the front of the truck. We had the windows down...the smell off those buff was something to behold...lol