Tag: stampede

Yellowstone bison stampede like a scene from ‘old westerns’

Video footage captured in Yellowstone National Park shows dozens of bison charging downhill in a scene the photographer said was reminiscent of “old westerns.”

On Wednesday we featured video footage showing dozens of bison stampeding across a bridge in Yellowstone National Park.

They included newly born calves, or “red dogs,” and the woman who captured the footage last Sunday said the bridge shook as the bison approached her vehicle.

But also worth noting, in the same footage captured by Vanessa Lynn-Byerly, is the remarkable agility bison possess despite their hulking appearance (male bison can weigh as much as 2,000 pounds).

The first 15 seconds show the bison charging down a steep hillside and kicking up dust in a scene Lynn Byerly said was reminiscent of “those old westerns” her parents like to watch.

Two more bison are shown running downhill at 35 seconds.

Yellowstone National Park is home to about 5,000 bison and each year a handful of tourists are injured, mostly after approaching the animals and failing to show them proper respect.

The Department of the Interior notes on its website: “Bison may be big, but they’re also fast. They can run up to 35 miles per hour. Plus, they’re extremely agile. Bison can spin around, jump high fences and are strong swimmers.”

It was not clear what started the stampede witnessed by Lynn-Byerly.

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Bison stampede past Yellowstone tourists on bridge; ‘Super scary’

A woman has shared video footage showing dozens of bison charging past her group at close quarters on a bridge in Yellowstone National Park.

A woman has shared video footage showing dozens of bison charging past her at close quarters as she stood on a bridge in Yellowstone National Park.

Jessica Metts wrote Sunday on Facebook that the “super scary” encounter occurred on her group’s first day in the park on Sept. 9. They were walking on the bridge after a hike and became “cut off from the car” as the bison began to charge.

“The running of the bulls, Yellowstone style,” Metts wrote. “Climbed behind the guardrail till the herd passed.”

She later discovered that bison routinely cross the bridge near Tower-Roosevelt, in the northern portion of the park, and cautioned others not to walk on the bridge.

Her post was widely viewed on the Yellowstone Insiders Hub group Facebook page.

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Among the comments:

–“That’s definitely a little more up close and personal than I would ever want to be to a running herd of bison!”

–”Road or not it’s their land so a Buffalo has to do what a Buffalo will do, so get out of the way and let them pass.”

–”That would be scary standing there by that guard rail. Ya never know when one is going to veer off and attack. So glad one didn’t. Incredible video.”

Yellowstone guidelines mandate that tourists remain 25 yards from bison when outside their vehicles, but those guidelines are often ignored.

In Metts’ case they could not have been followed as the bison moved quickly across the bridge, forcing her to take cover and watch them pass.

To those saying she should not have been standing so close to the bison, Metts wrote, “It was super scary and my only remaining escape was an 8’ drop [off the bridge] and then down the canyon.”

Metts did not respond to a request by FTW Outdoors for more details.

–Image courtesy of Jessica Metts/Facebook