I' like to see him come back home to Oregon. Probably one of the best areas for him settle in would be SW Oregon in the Kalmiopsis Wilderness between the coast and Grants Pass. A lot of roadless rugged country to stay out of trouble in. Unfortunately for him, it's all a very long way from the Wallowas. He might eventually have better luck finding a female in the Ochocos or Strawberry Mtns. Lots of Elk in there and not as much of an arduous journey from his place of origin. Certainly risky business though, as there are many out there that would just as soon shoot, shovel and shut up. I fear that is what will eventually happen. Wolves are an animal that have instilled an amazing amount of fear and hatred in our kind over the ages.
The wife and I spent a week in Yellowstone during the fall about 4 years back and were fortunate to observe numerous wolves in the Lamar Valley area over a several day period. Having a spotting scope helped, as they weren't close. Even got to see pups being pups, a half dozen or so adults napping and several running across meadows, going somewhere in a big hurry. A great place to watch wildlife. Lot's of Bison. Just in that part of the park alone we saw Elk, Mtn Goat, Fox, Wolves, Black Bear and Grizzlies, the latter several times, including a dead one. Rangers speculated another Grizzly probably killed it. By the time we saw it mid morning, there wasn't much left. The Ravens were cleaning up the scraps. Didn't take long with all the big appetites running around.
We didn't here any wolves on that trip but did on the US / Canadian border at the north end of Ross Lake National Scenic Area. It's at the north end of the Cascade National Park in Washington. The only way to put a power boat on the lake is to cross back into the US from Canada on 30 miles of gravel road. No border gate, no customs to cross back into the US. The road only goes about a half mile in and stops at a campground at the north end of the 25 mile lake surrounded by very rugged country. If one was inclined to slip in undetected, they'd need a boat or be up for a challenging stroll up and over some very rugged terrain. Certainly doable for the motivated. We spent the last night in the campground after boat camping on the lake. A small kiosk had some photos of a wolf that was seen in the campground earlier that summer. Early the next morning, we heard the unmistakeable howl of a wolf. Nothing like the Coyotes I've heard. It was almost as good as seeing one, as we weren't expecting it. As we got ready to pull out to head home, a black bear wondered into camp. He wasn't very shy and it took almost a dozen other campers making a racket to get him to scoot back into the woods.
again. Probably smells it in the Warner Mtns, seems to be heading that way! Go-OR7 and good luck!
