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| MONDAY January 15, 2001 Vol 5, # 4 |
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| MONDAY January 15, 2001 Vol 5, # 4 |
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| Site Search | Support Yellowstone! Discussion Free Yellowstone Email Email Newsletter | |
YELLOWSTONE ROAD
REPORT PUBLISHER EDITOR-IN-
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 PROTECTING YELLOWSTONEby Bruce Gourley Yellowstone is a national treasure which is owned by the American public. Protecting Yellowstone is the responsibility of the American public. This weekly feature will help identify and explore the issues which are crucial to the ongoing, healthy existence of the "Crown Jewel" of America's National Park system. YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK (YNET) -- Last week's column about Yellowstone's bison drew a good deal of reaction, as we hoped it would. Most of the emails we received were words of thanks for highlighting the plight of the bison. One typical note from a regular Yellowstone visitor stated, "I have been coming to Yellowstone for 10 days in August the past 4 or 5 years. I always enjoy the wildlife (especially the wolves). The past couple of years we have not seen as many bison as I did the first year. I hope people will come to their senses and realize that the bison were there first." Other emails we received expressed similar sentiments, while one reader pointed out the hardship that Wyoming ranchers in the proximity of Yellowstone endure in having to vaccinate their cattle for brucellosis (Wyoming does not shoot the bison, but rather has a vaccination program for their cattle). In truth, ranchers are not to be blamed for the killings of Yellowstone's bison, but rather the government agencies which have determined, against all scientific evidence to the contrary, that Yellowstone's bison are a threat to domestic cattle. On Saturday, outgoing secretary of the Interior Department Bruce Babbitt, while visiting Yellowstone just a week before he leaves office, acknowledged that the current policy of allowing bison to be killed is not a satisfactory policy, but should only be considered a temporary solution. The ultimate goal, according to Babbitt, should be the establishment of a protected winter range north and west of Yellowstone. Babbitt expressed his opinion that this goal will eventually be reached, as the American people are on the side of the bison. We hope Babbitt is right. And yet considering how slow the government is to react to the will of the people in such public policy matters as this, it is imperative that those of who treasure Yellowstone to continue to let our voices be known. (Yellowstone Net provides you opportunity to voice your opinion regarding the various Yellowstone issues to your congresspersons and to editorial sections of magazines and newspapers by clicking here.) |
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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AND COLUMNISTS Russ Finley
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VISITOR
NUMBERS DROP IN 2000 YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. -- The number of visitors to Yellowstone National Park dropped last year by 9.4%, according to the National Park Service. The drop is blamed on a combination of factors, including high gasoline prices and widespread misperception about the wildfires in the Western states during the late summer months. There were ongoing rumors throughout the country last summer that the Western fires had led to the closure of Yellowstone. In truth, the impact of the fires upon Yellowstone was minimal, and was mostly confined to the south entrance. According to the National Park Service, 2.84 million people visited Yellowstone in 2000, compared to 3.13 million people in 1999. Yellowstone's record visitation year came in 1992, when a total of 3.14 million people visited the Park. The south entrance from Jackson Hole showed the largest decline in 2000, with a drop of 18.1% in visitors. The smoky conditions in the area and the brief closure of that entrance during the fire season led to the significant drop. Visitation via the west entrance fell by 7.2%, while the north entrance experienced a 4.2% decline. |
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| YELLOWSTONE NET SITE
UPDATE News Brief BELGRADE, Mont. -- The Yellowstone Net site has long featured the best online videos and photographs of Yellowstone and other national parks, courtesy of award-winning photographer Russ Finley. Russ has recently upgraded both his online video tours and online photo galleries to an even easier-to-use format. To access Russ' extensive photographs and video tours of Yellowstone and other national parks, look on the left-hand side of the Yellowstone Net homepage under the headings "Pictures / Videos" and "Pop Up Tours." The Yellowstone Net site has also added two new sections to its offerings: the Education Page contains links to online education resources for grades K-12 as well as links to Yellowstone classes which count for college credit. The new Earthquake Page contains links to information about earthquakes in Yellowstone and the InterMountain West. |
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| WOLF UPDATE News Brief YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. -- On Saturday the Park Service renamed the Crystal Creek wolf pack "Mollie's Pack," in honor of the late Fish and Wildlife Director Mollie Beattie, who reintroduced the wolves during her tenure in 1995. The only other commemorative name of a Yellowstone wolf pack honors Aldo Leopold, who recommended that wolves be reintroduced to Yellowstone in 1944. |
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