The Wild World of Buck Bray: The Wolves of Slough Creek
CG CG Gardiner North Entrance SCG Mammoth Hot Springs Slough RS Creek Sheepeater Cliff Gardner River Lamar Valley West Entrance Artists Paintpots Yellowstone River Old Faithful Firehole River Fountain Flat Road Bike Trail Grand Prismatic Yellowstone Lake YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK Park Road For the Benefit and Enjoyment Side Road of the People T R Bike Trail CG Campground River RS Ranger Station
Take 1 If a bison raced a wolf they’d tie Both can reach 35 miles per hour thursday May 15 Buck was so distracted as he walked across the parking lot that he didn’t notice the thunderous roar coming up from behind him until Toni screamed Buck quickly spun around Charging straight toward him was a wall of bison Dust filled the air as they stampeded through the piney woods beside Yellowstone’s Firehole River Branches snapped as the huge beasts plowed over small trees and trampled deadfalls in their path Before Buck could even think the herd stormed into the parking lot the noise of their stomping hooves becoming even more deafening 1
when they hit the pavement In the lead was the biggest bull bison of the herd Its small beady eyes set wide apart in its enormous head seemed to focus on Buck As it entered the parking lot it lowered its head exposing the huge hump of its back its horns now curved forward It let out a snort that steamed from its nostrils in the chilly air Then it veered toward Buck the rest of the herd following Buck turned and ran for the closest thing he saw a white SUV with a dark green stripe But the sound of hooves pounding from behind gained on him rapidly and he knew he wasn’t going to make it He still had twenty yards to go before he could reach safety behind the SUV when he was slammed to the ground As his breath was knocked from him Buck instinctively instinctively closed his eyes and curled into a ball waiting to be trampled to almost certain death Then something grabbed hold of him and pulled him backward Thinking one of the bison’s horns had hooked his belt Buck’s muscles tensed even more expecting to be tossed into the air When he didn’t go flying Buck opened his eyes 2
The fury of the beating hooves stomping on pavement continued as dozens of bison legs raced past him only inches away But a woman in a green ranger uniform had hold of his belt She had tugged him backward toward where she squatted hunched behind a big boulder in the middle of the parking lot Buck quickly scooted closer to her and the woman put her arm around him pulling him even tighter to her side They both huddled up against the rock their knees bent tight to their chests They sat that way for only a minute or two but to Buck it seemed like hours that the living wall of brown beasts stampeded around them An hour before eleven-year-old Buck and his father along with their cameraman Shoop and Shoop’s eleven-year-old daughter Toni had entered Yellowstone National Park through the west entrance before the sun was even up They were headed to Old Faithful where they were to meet a ranger who would help them as 3
