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Winter Animals You Can Expect to See

Winter Wildlife Tours involve a good bit of driving throughout the national park ,the town of Estes Park, and the Estes Park region, making many stops along the way, and generally only a few minor walks as we explore the park for animals. On an average winter day we will find Elk, Mule Deer, Pine Squirrels, Wild Turkey, Prairie Dogs (on nice days), Birds of Prey like Red tailed Hawks, Bald and Golden Eagles some day. 77% or so of winter days we find Bighorn Sheep ewes and lambs and the occasional great sighting of Bighorn Sheep Rams. Some days we see Coyotes, but they have become more rare sightings over the years.

Moose are very rare winter sightings, seen only about 4% of winter tours in the National Park from November to January. February tours have an 18% moose chance, and by March it's 34%. Starting in mid April the chances of moose sightings increases to 67%, because the willow and currant bush buds develop around April 15th. The only slight Moose option during the winter months is to travel nearly an hour outside of Estes Park to have a 20% chance for Moose sightings. That moose gamble is only available if road conditions are perfect and you are willing to likely not see Elk, Mule Deer, and Turkeys. See the 20% Moose Gamble section below for more winter moose info.

Wildlife Chances Page

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Winter Wildlife Estes Park Tours | Mid October - April

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Winter 20% Moose Gamble Option

Moose are rather rare sightings in the winter months in Rocky Mountain National Park with only an 4% chance most of the winter. Starting in April the chance of Moose sightings in the park increases to about 35%, and even more in May.

October to March there is an area about 30 minutes to 1 hour drive from Estes Park where winter moose sighting chances are more like 20% instead of 4% in the park. This option requires perfect road conditions with no fresh snow and ice to be safe, a very early morning start, or a later evening start, and we will likely not enter the National Park or see any Elk, Mule Deer and Turkey. It would just be a 75% Bighorn Sheep chance and a slight 20% chance of moose if you select this option.

In Mid April and May sightings of Moose in Rocky Mountain National Park increases to about 35% and grows every week.

In the summer months moose sightings are a near guarantee on an Estes Park Wildlife Tour, but in the winter with lower chances I often say if you can't come back in the summer, and the chance to see a moose would fill your soul than maybe think about taking the Winter 20% Moose Gamble Option. Remember moose lose their antlers in late Janurary.

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Estes Park Winter Wildlife Tours | Seasonal Highlights

November is prime time for the Mule Deer rut, Bighorn Sheep and Elk are very active and it snows very little. With some luck we can also find Coyote. Late October through early December is the Bighorn Sheep rut with rams smashing into each other at 35 mph, and if you're lucky you can hear the echo of their collisions over a mile away.

The New Year brings more snow and investigating animal tracks made by snowshoe hares, bobcats, elk, deer, sheep, mice, pine squirrels, birds, and coyote can be great fun. Each track tells the story of survival in the snow. Wildlife is still readily seen, especially the elk, turkey, and deer. Late February through April is prime time for big horn sheep as the female and lamb bands come down to the lower hills almost everyday. If you are lucky the big horn rams will show up as well.

March is the beginning of Spring and some years we are lucky to find nesting Great Horned Owls, Bighorn Sheep ewe bands become more visible, coyotes are hunting in the meadows and close the end of March the hibernating animals like ground squirrels, chipmunks, and marmots start waking up. Mid March through April is also Spring Gobbling season and we often see Wild Turkey flocks and sometimes fanning males. Around mid-March all of the Elk and Mule Deer have lost their antlers and in April they start shedding their heavy winter coats.

Winter is also a great time to see the various bird species that spend winter with us, nothing warms your cold toes like the song of a flock of Mountain Chickadees. Birds like Magpies, Stellar's Jays, Clark's Nutcrackers, Crows, and Ravens are all out showing just how smart they really are surviving the winter and having fun in the snow. We also find Red-tailed Hawks, rarely Golden Eagles, and if Lake Estes has open water Bald Eagles.

Tours are only offered in the early morning and late afternoons to maximize sightings, few animals are out in the mid day. The larger Rocky winter species don't eat snow, instead they migrate to much lower areas with exposed grass so we won't be snowshoeing for animal sightings.

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How Long of a Tour & Morning vs Evening?

For most Winter Wildlife Tours a 3.5 hour trip is recommend. On average we see the same species of animals on both morning and evening tours. Some mornings offer closer Elk encounters, but that is not always the case. It often comes down to the weather and luck. Morning Winter Wildlife Tours increase the chance of fresh snow overnight limiting park access and parking until they are plowed. All afternoon tours are 3.5 hours. 6 and 8 hour tours are best split between the morning and evening roughly 3 or 4 hours each increasing the number of species we can spot, or increase quality sightings of larger species like Elk, Mule Deer, and Bighorn Sheep.

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