2010 Yellowstone Backcountry Expedition

In the summer of 2010, Mingo spent three weeks in the remote backcountry of Yellowstone National Park observing bears and other wildlife.

Expedition Plan

The headwaters area, Thorofare area, is a fairly rugged and quite remote section of Yellowstone. It is home to many black and brown bears, moose, elk and bison, hence the reason to be there. I will fish some of the waters including Yellowstone River, Thorofare, Yellowstone Lake and some of the smaller creeks. I want to climb 2 of the 11,000 feet peaks on the eastern shore of Yellowstone Lake. I love solo climbing and just hanging it all out even on smaller peaks. Great commitment and fun.

I will probably hike close to 400 miles in this summer expedition in Yellowstone. While there I will also shoot many hours of footage on bears and other wildlife. This film will be used for TV programming as Craig and I want to produce a couple of hours of documentary film from this trip. It will show the real Yellowstone, the rugged and wild Yellowstone. I will also produce as many as 4,000 digital stills of this area, Bechtel region and in Greater Yellowstone. I can assure you that I will find a couple of Yellowstone Sunsets, the rum ones, at Roosevelt and possibly the Bear Pit at the Old Faithful Inn. Have to have some down time.

After this little day or two rest I will hike into Bechtel region. It is steep, rugged and remote. I am loving it already. Here I will perform the same mission as in the Headwaters area. More video and photo work, maybe more climbing of these remote tall peaks and of course enjoying the solitude and relaxing time, alone.

I will spend over two months in Yellowstone this summer. I will also interview park officials about the environmental issues that concern all that I love about this park. I hope that some of my research helps the park with continuing this commitment to bears and the environment.