IN CELEBRATION OF WOLVES:
DATES: JANUARY 11 – 14, 2025
PRICE: $3,221 | TUITION, LODGING, & MEALS
LOCATION: LAMAR BUFFALO RANCH
GROUP SIZE: 13
ACTIVITY LEVEL: 2
PROGRAM INFORMATION
Winter’s silence is pierced with a mournful howl, elk scatter across the landscape, and an unkindness of ravens descend on a recent kill. As classic as these scenes are, it has only been 30 short years since wolves were brought back to Yellowstone National Park, yet so much has changed. This unique and unforgettable seminar will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the reintroduction of wolves. The event will feature a full day of engaging and insightful interpretation by renowned experts Dan Stahler, Rick McIntyre, and Joanna Lambert.
Participants will have the rare opportunity to learn from these distinguished guests while searching for wolves across Yellowstone’s winter landscape. Joanna Lambert will delve into the long history and evolutionary relationship with wolves. Rick McIntyre will share captivating stories from his decades of observing Yellowstone’s wolf packs. Dan Stahler will discuss ongoing research and the ecological impacts that wolves have had in shaping the park’s landscape.
Dates & Times: The program begins at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 11, 2025, and goes through Tuesday, January 14, 2025 at 5:00 p.m.
Lodging Check-in & Check-out: Lodging check-in begins at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 11, 2025, and lodging check-out is at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, January 15, 2025.
Meals: This course is catered. Catering starts with dinner on the first evening and ends with breakfast on the morning of check-out. Please note any dietary restrictions during registration.
Optional Airport Shuttle: We provide an optional airport shuttle for those interested. The shuttle service is provided on the first day of the program with a 1:00 p.m. pickup and the last day of the program with a departure from the Lamar Buffalo Ranch at 8:00 a.m.
1st Day of Program | Shuttle Pickup Location: Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport
1st Day of Program | Shuttle Drop off Location: Lamar Buffalo Ranch
Check-out Day | Shuttle Pickup Location: Lamar Buffalo Ranch
Check-out Day | Shuttle Departure Location: Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport
If you opt-in to the shuttle service, please ensure that your flight booking will allow for you to be picked up and dropped off during the above timeframes.
Whom to Contact: For any questions, concerns, or additional information please contact the following:
Program itinerary, health forms, payment, and general program questions please contact Yellowstone Forever at [email protected] or 406-848-2400 extension 3
Road updates, park conditions, and general park information please contact Yellowstone National Park Service at https://www.nps.gov/yell/contacts.htm
If running late for a program, please contact 406-641-2185.
General Information: For general information about the facilities, preparation for classes, what to expect, cancellation policies, and more, please see the Lamar Buffalo Ranch – Winter General Information document.
DAY 1
WELCOME & ORIENTATION
The program starts with an evening orientation. Participants will get to know one another and be introduced to the program. Throughout the evening, the itinerary and seminar key concepts will be discussed, as well as what to expect to pack for the field each day.
DAY 2
The morning will be spent searching for wolves across Yellowstone’s Northern Range. Dr. Joanna Lambert will join the seminar to offer a unique perspective into the evolutionary history, behavior, and contemporary conservation efforts of this fascinating species. Lunch will be held at the Lamar Buffalo Ranch with an afternoon classroom lecture to follow.
DAY 3
The morning will be spent searching for wolves across Yellowstone’s Northern Range. Dr. Dan Stahler will join the seminar for the day to discuss current research efforts of the Yellowstone population and the ecological impacts observed over the last 30 years.
DAY 4
The morning will be spent searching for wolves across Yellowstone’s Northern Range. Rick McIntyre will join the fray to offer his unique perspective and experience formed through decades of wolf observations. Participants will return to Lamar Buffalo Ranch for lunch, stories, and a book signing by Rick McIntyre to follow.
DAY 5
CHECKOUT & DEPARTURE
ACTIVITY LEVEL 2
- Be prepared for hikes on snow-packed trails, or snowshoe or ski trips, up to 3 miles per day with climbs up to 250 feet.
- Most activities will take place at elevations between 7,200 to 8,000 feet. Participants residing at lower elevations may want to arrive a day early to adjust to the altitude.
- To learn more about how specific medical conditions can be affected by Yellowstone’s environment and our activities, please visit our site page on health information.
- All field activities will be conducted as a group. If members of the group cannot participate in the day’s activities, they need to let the educator know in advance.
- To participate in this program, each participant must fill out and sign a health questionnaire and assumption of risk waiver. These forms must be completed and returned at least 30 days prior to the program start date.
Whom to Contact: For any questions, concerns, or additional information please contact the following:
Program itinerary, health forms, payment, and general program questions please contact Yellowstone Forever at [email protected] or 406-848-2400 extension 3
Road updates, park conditions, and general park information please contact Yellowstone National Park Service at https://www.nps.gov/yell/contacts.htm
If running late for a program, please contact 406-641-2185.
General Information: For general information about the facilities, preparation for classes, what to expect, cancellation policies, and more, please see the Lamar Buffalo Ranch – Winter General Information document.
BOOK THIS FIELD SEMINAR NOW
Dan Stahler, Ph.D.
Dan Stahler is a Senior Wildlife Biologist for Yellowstone National Park. He first joined the Yellowstone Wolf Project in 1997, has served as a lead biologist since 2002, and now serves as the Project Leader since December 2022. Dan also is Project Leader for the Yellowstone Cougar Project since 2014 and leads Yellowstone’s elk research program. Additionally, Dan serves as the Park’s Threatened and Endangered Species Coordinator, working with ESA compliance for threatened species like grizzly bears, Canada lynx, wolverine, whitebark pine, and other species.
Rick McIntyre
Rick McIntyre is the acclaimed author of the Alpha Wolves of Yellowstone Book Series, which includes The Rise of Wolf 8: Witnessing the Triumph of Yellowstone’s Underdog and The Reign of Wolf 21: The Saga of Yellowstone’s Legendary Druid Pack (coming October 2020). McIntyre has recorded over 100,000 sightings of wild wolves–which is more sightings than any other person in history–and has written more than 7 million words of wolf observations, making him one of the world’s foremost experts on wild wolf behavior. In 1994 he became Yellowstone National Park’s first Wolf Interpreter, educating thousands of park visitors each year on Yellowstone’s now-famous Wolf Reintroduction Project, which sought to reintroduce wolves to the park after the last wolves were shot and killed by park rangers 60 years earlier, in the 1920s.
Joanna Lambert, Ph.D.
Joanna Lambert, Ph.D. is a scientist and tenured professor of animal evolutionary ecology and conservation biology at the University of Colorado – Boulder. She has a deep passion for the natural world resulting in a career spent publishing and teaching about the ecology, evolution, and conservation biology of wild mammals. Her wildlife research has taken her to every continent on the planet though she has spent most time working in equatorial Africa (>30 years) and more recently in Yellowstone National Park where she studies canid biology. One of her proudest recent conservation-related contributions has been in the effort to restore gray wolves to her home state of Colorado, an initiative founded on the science of reintroduction and recovery of wolves to Yellowstone National Park.
Amanda Evans | Lead Field Educator
Amanda Evans is a Yellowstone Forever lead field educator with over 5 years of experience in Yellowstone. Her passion for wildlife and wild places has taken her to working in California, Texas, Wyoming, Alaska, and Montana. Amnanda feels that it is through firsthand experience with the natural world that people build the strongest connections to it. Her goal is to use education to foster the same appreciation she feels and to inspire others to preserve and protect nature in all spaces.
An aerial photo of the Druid Pack pursuing an Elk. Aerial monitoring is one of the many ways the Wolf Research Project studies and documents packs across the park. NPS/Doug Smith
***Review our Cancellation & Refund Policies here.
