im seriously concerned…im doing a bike vacation up at yellowstone next summer. anybody ever ridden out there? some good riding im hoping but my serious concern is that a 10 foot tall grizzly is going to walk out on the road and destroy me. also heard the buffalos can be aggressive there. thanks for any info and that is my first stop i also share the same concern for my second stop up in glacier national park. thanks yall
Bears? Not a concern. Buffalo can be if they are near the road. DO NOT MESS WITH THEM. But seriously, the biggest problem is that the roads are horrible. HORRIBLE. If you are in the park, ride early. My suggestion. Say near Cooke City Montana (just outside the NE entrance, and ride from there up to the Beartooths. Epic ride, and little traffic. If you want lots of fun, stay at the K-Z Guest Ranch near Crandall (google it).
If you’re riding on the main paved roads in the park you’ll be fine (road bike, I assume?). The recent bear attacks have involved hikers who were deep in the back country. Bears don’t like to hang with tourists.
I second the comment about Buffalo though. There are portions of the park where the buffalo wander right up to and across the road. I wouldn’t get myself into that situation on a bike, but the locations where that happens are pretty well established and well-known by rangers (near the favorite territory of the largest herds). So you can avoid those areas pretty easily if you just ask around.
I think you can out bike a buffalo. Their fat, heavy and lazy. I would taunt them if I were you and try to get them to chase you :0) oh… And don’t worry about the bears they don’t eat much and will most likely bury you alive and then come back later to snack on you. Have a fun trip sounds exciting.
Like the others said, bears are no concern. Buffalo can be, just don’t try to ride through a herd. The most dangerous thing to watch out for are the narrow roads with huge SUVs and RVs. Those suckers are so busy looking at the scenery and searching for wildlife that they will mistake you for a pot hole as they are running over you. And lots of traffic, especially at the height of the summer season.
I second the RV comment, those are what you need to watch for. You will probably not see a Bear the whole time you are in the park but you will see a lot of people who usually drive a Kia far too fast, swerving around children on the way to school, only now they will be armed with a rental RV driving it way too fast swerving around pretty much everything on the road.
Thank you
Good post
I like your post.
Does anybody else feel like this is just a bizarre response to a simple answer to the question?
Just in my own dealing with bulls and mother cows - bikes freak them out and piss them off. With all the crazy garb, you look like a rodeo clown on wheels. It doesn’t take much for one to take offense. Buffalo shouldn’t be much different. On the other hand, mountain lions see all that gear and look at it like a candy bar wrapper. With all the packaging, the insides must be super tasty.
Tie a couple of raw pork chops around your waist. the fresh meat smell may keep the Buffalo away.
I camped there with my family in summer 2010. We would drive in Tetons or Yellowstone, hike half a day, and then my wife would drive the kids back to the campground while I rode my bike back. The roads are not particularly wide or meant for riding, which is a shame. While I loved riding in Tetons, it was so crowded in Yellowstone that many times I just decided not to ride back. My recollection was that there were times in Yellowstone where the gates were closed to the park after a certain time in the evening and until early morning. I got some good rides in during those hours because 90% of the tourists weren’t allowed to drive into the park at that time, and everybody else was asleep. But I did do some riding with lights in order to get traffic-free roads in both parks.
I had planned to also do some trail running in both parks. After a grizzly bear entered our campground, and was a site over from my camper, I couldn’t get up my courage to solo trail run in the early mornings or evenings (which is when they like to roam for food too). We did plenty of family hikes, but my 4 kids are so loud on the trails that the bears didn’t want any part of that.
I’d second all of the comments about the buffalo. Don’t want to mess with them. Good luck
Second riding Red Lodge to Cooke City or Cooke City to Red Lodge or to the park… Also Chief Joseph highway is a good climb. The park into Gardiner is where I have hit on of my top speeds with a tail wind (65+)…Are you staying in Gardiner, or Cody?
When are you coming? I live in Montana.
About the Buffalo. If you get to a place where they are on the road, you will always have a car stop. Just ask the driver to ride on whatever side of their car while you pass. I have biked Yellowstone, you have no worry of bears. When we take our mother-in-law (86 with walker). I bike early from point to point and then meet them at the next spot. Its not only a great way to see Yellowstone but a great way to “Hear” yellowstone. In the morn without a car you can hear Elk calling ect…
Again when are you coming?
Glock 10mm, problem solved.
I have done quite a bit of hunting in areas with heavy bear populations, black and brown. I have seen quite a few up close but none have ever been aggresive, most just keep to themselves. With that being said, i know several people who have run into issue and they argue that unless you are competent with a high caliber pistol (.357mag minimum-.44/10mm/.50 are ideal) and have it readily avaliable and are allowed to carry, then bear mace is a good alternative in case of an issue. I would just bring some bear mace and not think about it any more.
bears won’t be a problem on the roads, the RVs will be. You’ll be lucky to even see a bear. As ATLDad says, ride early and late if riding in the parks, even that is marginal - the summer traffic is nasty. I rode there on vacation in 2009 and 2010 - started at first light, back by 8 or 9am, but still had a couple close calls with side mirrors.
Buffalo are fine, just don’t get close. I rode through a herd on both sides of the road, slowly and carefully, but none of them was close to the road. If there are on the road there will probably be a buffalo jam of cars and photographers anyway…
Second riding Red Lodge to Cooke City or Cooke City to Red Lodge or to the park… Also Chief Joseph highway is a good climb. The park into Gardiner is where I have hit on of my top speeds with a tail wind (65+)…Are you staying in Gardiner, or Cody?
When are you coming? I live in Montana.
About the Buffalo. If you get to a place where they are on the road, you will always have a car stop. Just ask the driver to ride on whatever side of their car while you pass. I have biked Yellowstone, you have no worry of bears. When we take our mother-in-law (86 with walker). I bike early from point to point and then meet them at the next spot. Its not only a great way to see Yellowstone but a great way to “Hear” yellowstone. In the morn without a car you can hear Elk calling ect…
Again when are you coming?
thanks everyone some good info. i have read about big bears coming out onto the road up in alaska so wasnt sure. the dates are still unsure but sometime next summer. is there a time in yellowstone that isnt filled with tourists and isnt to snowy to ride? i would probably stay in bozeman as my base and then go out to all the rides i want to do. ive always wanted to live in montana so i might end up staying!! who knows though. you ever done that huge climb in glacier? forget the name of it.
Early June would probably give you the least amount of traffic. Still can catch some snow in the park. Also the chance to see more wildlife. If staying in Bozeman and the time is right, try this run
http://www.winddrinkers.org/BRR/BridgerRidge.html
This IS Epic.
Then you have this, dates may change
http://headwatersstudio.com/headwatersevents/index.php/online-registration
Bozeman has a Tri end of July…You can PM me or when you know when your coming feel free to call 406-248-9908. More than happy to get you connected with some to ride ect…
If you are talking the “Into the Sun” road in glacier, have to go early in the morn, not much shoulder. Montana is a great secret. Only 1 million in the whole state. Can do 50 mile bikes getting passed by 5 cars. Its beautiful here…Kenney
… my serious concern is that a 10 foot tall grizzly is going to walk out on the road and destroy me…
The scariest bear to see is not the 10 foot tall grizzly. It’s the cute cuddly little bear cub. Because when you see the cub, you know momma bear is right nearby, and she’s pissed.
im seriously concerned…im doing a bike vacation up at yellowstone next summer. anybody ever ridden out there? some good riding im hoping but my serious concern is that a 10 foot tall grizzly is going to walk out on the road and destroy me. also heard the buffalos can be aggressive there. thanks for any info and that is my first stop i also share the same concern for my second stop up in glacier national park. thanks yall
Just bring someone with you thats slower put them between you and the bear and youll be fine(unless theres 2 bears).
You know the ole joke… “You can’t out run a bear” “Yea but I can out run you”
I’d figure your more likely to be taken out by a big RV anyway during peak at least.
human/bear encounters are becoming more common of late, and it seems this year we have had an uptick in incidents. i live just outside grand teton national park and a few hours’ drive away from yellowstone.
the chances of having a problem are rare, but grizzlies have been expanding their movements to the south. grizzlies (mother and cubs) have now been spotted just a few miles from where i’m typing this, near jackson, wyoming.
recent events:
july: http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2011/0707/Yellowstone-grizzly-attack-Why-did-it-happen
august: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/09/07/2-more-grizzlies-captured-after-deadly-yellowstone-attack/
and this one the other day where a friend of a friend, albeit in cody (east of yellowstone): http://www.codyenterprise.com/news/local/article_c3bc76f8-0f0f-11e1-8500-001cc4c002e0.html
firearms (and the knowledge of how to use them) are far from a guarantee of safety. good luck with the handguns (or really any weapon) against a griz who WANTS to get you.
best defense is talking to park rangers about sightings and being as aware and attentive as you possibly can. you’d be amazed at the amount of people hiking/running with ipods and totally oblivious to their surroundings.
that said, i do not (yet) fear grizzly encounters as a normal matter of course here in the parks.
With all the crazy garb, you look like a rodeo clown on wheels.
That’s gold, Jerry! I think that’s how motorists view us.
Just in my own dealing with bulls and mother cows - bikes freak them out and piss them off. With all the crazy garb, you look like a rodeo clown on wheels. It doesn’t take much for one to take offense. Buffalo shouldn’t be much different. On the other hand, mountain lions see all that gear and look at it like a candy bar wrapper. With all the packaging, the insides must be super tasty.
i ride past bison daily during the summer. (side note: we’ve got bison here, not buffalo.) i give them a healthy amount of respect, but it’s pretty easy to steer clear. cows actually seem to be more of an issue.