11/13/2024
Conten Ruby Hour Photo Art
It was early May in 2022 and I just spent the most beautiful late afternoon at Jenny Lake. It was still frozen, and it was eerily quiet. It almost felt like the world has stopped. I thought there’s no way this day could get any better. Until it did 🐻
Driving back to Moran, I noticed some cars stopping around the Signal Mountain area. I was there just in time to see one furry brown teddy bear cross the road… it was 399 with her quads! She had just resurfaced in the park from hibernation (well, technically speaking, grizzlies do not truly hibernate like some other animals do). There was a Jackson Lake pull out nearby, I hoped out and there they were, all five by the lake!
They were some distance away but it’s hard to miss five big grizzlies making their way through snowy landscape. They seemed in no rush, exploring the banks of the still frozen lake and then eventually climbing back into the woods. When they did, it wasn’t, perhaps surprisingly, 399 leading the way, but one of her always runaway cubs leading everyone.
After that day, we had some ten days or so before the quads separated from their mom for good 🤍
