On our recent ski getaway to Jackson Hole, we had the opportunity to visit the National Elk Refuge. The visit was not something we’d planned ahead of time. I had no idea such a place existed until we arrived. I like to call these surprises when I’m traveling the “bubble gum in the Blow Pop” moments — you remember the lollipops with the bubble gum at the center? The “bubble gum” moments make what’s already a great trip even better.

Each year, thousands of elk migrate from their higher elevations in Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone to the 25,000 acres of refuge in Wyoming, where they will spend the winter months. Established in 1912, the National Elk Refuge is one of 550 refuges in the National Wildlife Refuge system. Our visit on January 6th was the first day of this season when the refuge, managed by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Services, distributed pellets of alfalfa hay to the elk — providing them with food when it is most scarce. Here, some 6,000 elk will remain until the weather grows warmer and the snow line recedes up the surrounding mountains.

Typically, the elk on the refuge range from three to ten years old, though elk can live upwards of twenty years. According to our guide, about 65% of the elk are female (called “cows”) and about 60% of them are pregnant during this winter stay. Although the cows tend to be more timid than the male “bulls” with their impressive antlers, one cow came quite close to us, and stood there gazing for a while before moving on with one of her female friends of the herd. As she stood there and she and I sustained eye contact, I had a few moments of what I can best describe as pure peacefulness. Being so close to wildlife, witnessing nature going about an ordinary day, is as humbling as it is awe-inspiring.

Interesting tidbit:

The bulls shed their antlers each year, starting to grow new ones right away; and their antler patterns remain the same each time, which is helpful for identification purposes. At the Elk Refuge, local Boy Scouts have the sole permit to go onto the refuge to collect the antlers left behind, once the elk have gone back up into the surrounding mountains. The antlers can be worth in total more than $80,000. The Boy Scouts get to keep 20% of whatever is made at the annual antler auction held in the latter half of May, and the rest goes back into funding for the refuge.

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