Posted: 12/24/2025 11:50:32 AM EDT
|
So basically planning a real vacation for the 1st time in my adult life. I'll try to hit the highlights and hopefully I can get a bunch of help to make this smooth. Primary goal : Video Secondary goal: Photos Current Cameras: RED Komodo X 6K, Canon C50, Canon R5 MK II Current Lens: Canon RF 24-70 2.8 IS, Canon EF 100-400L Current Accessories: Portkeys BM7 II 7" Monitor Current Travel Accessories: Condition 1 22" Camera Wheeled Case , Shimoda Explore V2 30 Liter Likely Purchases:
Best times to visit? So I need ideas on when are the best times to go. Lodging? Where are the suggested places to stay? Price certainly is a concern but rather not travel 2hrs away to get there and get back to a hotel (if possible). Airline Travel: Ok, never traveled with this much stuff before. So need some suggestions for you guys that travel on airlines with equipment. As stated above with my travel accessories.
Food? What is it like getting places to eat within the area? Equipment Recommendation? I can't take all the cameras, so my thoughts on this would be. All cameras have Canon RF mount. Primary Camera (only 1). Open to suggestions
Lens recommendation?
Telephoto Lens Purchase: I already own the EF 100-400L. pros = I own, cons = slower AF / not as great IS, possible limited reach
|
I bought all this equipment. What do you mean that the dead AREN'T coming back to life?
|
So I cant comment on any of the photography stuff, BUT I will recommend that you rent a small RV. Your bed/bathroom and kitchen will always be with you. You will probably want to work dawn and dusk and unless you want to get up at 4 to drive from some hotel, or leave the park after dark when there are animals all over the road, finding the tiny little RV spots that are all over is perfect. This gives you the ability to get up early and claim a good spot at some of the more popular overlooks and hang out all day glassing/filming. We fly into salt lake and pick up RVs there. It's a beautiful drive up to jackson (5h or so) and then into the tetons and up to the south entrance. Lamar Valley is where we primarily saw wolves. The road between Tower falls and Rosevelt junction is where we saw ~12 different black bears in a 4 day period. What animals are you looking for? |
|
Yashikamat 124G …… Wildlife requires a really long lens the faster the better. Scenics require a wide angle. Form follows function….(tools you select are based on type of results needed) Be realistic in asking yourself….how will the image be used. Then pick equipment accordingly. Because if it’s not a commercial application and it’s just for personal use you have to decide where to cut off bleeding cash on equipment. |
Joined:
Jul 2024
Posts:
158
EE: 0% (0)
USA
|
Rent a spotting scope, tripod and phone adapter. https://www.opticsyellowstonellc.com/ The Gardener entrance is open year-round, there are fewer people during the edge seasons, April and November if you primarily want to see wildlife. However, some park roads can be closed even in the spring. The Old Saloon in Emigrant is a good place to eat. Enjoy. |
|
If you want wildlife, the best times to go depend on what sort of wildlife. May is the best for babies. Bear cubs, elk calves, bison red dogs. Some snow still on the ground. Wolves denning and hunting, bears just out of the den and hungry. September/October is the best time for getting the elk and moose in rut with their full antlers. Bears in hyperphagia preparing for hibernation. January/February is the best for shots in snow, easier to find wolves and otters. If you come spring-fall, I'd recommend staying inside the park because it'll be closer, less driving. In the winter, if you're driving, stay in Gardiner, MT. If you're chartering a snow coach, you'll have to go stay in West Yellowstone. Can't answer your airline questions as I've never flown with big video batteries. As for lenses, the 100-500 is nice but the 200-800 is much more versatile for this situation. |
Author of Contact Front, Glory Boy, Wholesale Slaughter and other military science fiction.
|
Originally Posted By metalsaber: Food? What is it like getting places to eat within the area? Counter that with out of the park and the food was still expensive but a lot better. Jackson WY the food was much better. I am rating expensive as same price I would be charged in downtown Charlotte, price wise. Expect $30 to 40 per person per meal. |
“Activism is a way for useless people to feel important, even if the consequences of their activism are counterproductive for those they claim to be helping and damaging to the fabric of society as a whole.”
— Thomas Sowell
— Thomas Sowell
|
I don't think you should take the Red Komodo camera. Unless you are really a video first guy and plan to do a lot of high quality video shooting, I think it's overkill. The R5 mkII has great high end video features. If you feel the need to take the C50 go ahead, but I think it's overkill also. I'd look into possibly a second smaller body like an R6 MkII or an R8. Both of which still have good video features. Maybe get a Go Pro or DJI Osmo Pocket 3 for video and vlogging shoots? Smaller, lighter, still good features for on the go stuff. Also the National Parks can be kind of a PITA if they feel that you are doing anything that looks like professional video/film shooting as they require a permit. A stills camera doesn't bring near the amount of attention that larger dedicated cinema cameras do. Definitely buy or rent the RF 100-500 f/4.5-7.1 L IS USM. Better optics, further reach, and faster autofocus than the EF100-400. Like you said the RF24-70 f/2.8 is a given. Might be worth looking at the 70-200 f/2.8 also to get you faster shutter speeds at the 70-200 range, since the 100-500 starts at f/4.5 and goes to f/7.1. The RF200-800 isn't the best choice I think, unless you are specifically doing bird photography. It's MUCH slower, bigger, less light, and it would give you a huge coverage gap between the RF 24-70mm and the RF 200-800mm. And it's not weather sealed. Reports are that the optics aren't as good as the RF 100-500 either. I would also get the RF 16mm f/2.8 for landscapes, and a RF 35mm f/1.8 or a super low light lens like the Laowa Argus 35mm f0.95 FF. It's a manual lens, but man, the low light for night photography and night time sky photos is amazing. I would try to find a suitable smaller, lighter, and less expensive tripod. Get TSA Precheck. It will keep you from having to unpack your backpack and laptop etc.. I have had to open up my Pelicans and backpack while traveling when I was on tour. But I was also carrying microphones which looked like CO2 canisters on the x-ray machines. Your Condition 1 case is about the same size as the Pelican 1510/Air 1535 so it will fit in the carry-on space for 737 or larger planes. If you happen to be on a smaller regional plane like a CRJ or Embraer it won't fit overhead. At the same time, it's about 4lbs heavier than the Pelican Air 1535. So if weight is a consideration, a Pelican Air 1535 might be worth looking into. I don't know if that Shimoda will fit under the seat. It's a pretty big backpack and they may make you gate check one or the other. You will have to take all of your batteries in your carry-on. But they can also make you consolidate your batteries into a single bag and then gate check the other. |
|
I am NOT a video or Canon person, but have some suggestions. The Lamar valley (Gardiner to Cooke City Rd) is open all year round, and dense with wildlife. Food in the park itself is generally garbage, bring snacks and eat at the restaurants outside the park in the towns. Still expensive but much better tasting. If you're planning any night/early morning video/photos a dew heater/shield might be helpful. They aren't expensive and usually plug into a USB powerbank. I usually wander around during the day for wildlife and at night use photopills to plan astro-photography. It varies by specific date, but late spring through summer I try to get milkway photos which means you also need nights/mornings with no moon and good weather. It doesn't sound like your into astrophotos, but just in case the app has things like augmented reality to plan your specific night shot during the day, https://www.photopills.com/ Lodging and gas are stupid expensive up that way, if weather is good I usually plan to nap in my Jeep right next to my planned astroshots instead of waking up at 1AM to drive (slowly) 2-3hours to wherever my chosen location may be. If you're not interested in nightshots at all and want to save a few bucks below is the cheapest option I've ever found up there. https://buffalovalleyranch.com/ For landscapes I usually find Tetons to be absolutely amazing, though well beyond my ability to capture, because I suck at landscapes. If you're willing to wake up early sunrise is a great time to catch mist/fog coming off the lakes and the noise/movement of daytime animals waling up. For animals, especially with all the equipment you're bringing you can drive around and look for the crowds. If more than a dozen cars are stacked up you can bet it's bears or wolves. Getting your cameras lower/closer is better for any animal shots, but doing so is tricky without getting ate, or risking your camera getting stomped/gnawed on. If they are insured when you find a bear, wolf pack or small herd try to suss out which way they are going and leave the camera on a low tripod while you are safely a few hundred feet in your car. If you have remote control that's perfect otherwise set er' running and let er' go. *The bear wranglers may not be fans of this plan either, or they might not care at all if your cameras are at risk of getting smooshed. You can get portable purpose built enclosures to protect you cameras as well. Teton is smaller and fairly linear for a drive though, but Yellowstone is absolutely massive if all the roads are open so 7 days is probably the minimum. If you're hiking, maybe plan a trip for 2-3 years lol. Also if you're going to be doing anything at night bring a headlamp with red light option, and watch your footing. Someone fell into String lake when it was 38degrees out at 3AM and had to stay out there for another 90min to get all his planned shots done. |
"Dum spiro spero"
|
Thanks for the feedback so far. Lots of things to consider. Gonna definitely get the TSA precheck done. Sounds like it could save some hassles. I might consider just taking the R52. Agreed in that it has the best auto focus and can do 8K60. It can overheat but I don't think I'll be shooting extended length clips to where that would be an issue. in terms of wild life I'm open to all. Primarily bears and bison or wolves if possible. will be taking a lot of landscape shots so suggestions welcome. if ditching the tripod, I also have the following monopod with legs. https://a.co/d/hOjQO9K would I be able to put that in my checked baggage? thinking if I can fit in most of the electronics into the condition one case I can just out the backpack into my checked luggage. |
I bought all this equipment. What do you mean that the dead AREN'T coming back to life?
|
Originally Posted By metalsaber: in terms of wild life I'm open to all. Primarily bears and bison or wolves if possible. will be taking a lot of landscape shots so suggestions welcome. Wide angle primes for landscape. When I went to the Grand Canyon a couple years ago, my 24-70mm wasn't wide enough. I had to go back to my truck and get my 16mm. Next time I go, I'm taking my Sirui 35mm 1.6x FF Anamorphic and a Sirui 1.25x anamorphic adapter (will be about 17.5mm wide in the horizontal with a 35mm vertical ratio). I think the wide screen look looks great for landscapes. Telephoto for wildlife that you can't get close to, like bison, wolves, elk, birds, etc... I think the RF 100-500mm would be excellent in that regard, unless you want to drop $10 grand on on a 100-300 f/2.8 or similar. |
|
Originally Posted By Grendel-OK: Wide angle primes for landscape. When I went to the Grand Canyon a couple years ago, my 24-70mm wasn't wide enough. I had to go back to my truck and get my 16mm. Next time I go, I'm taking my Sirui 35mm 1.6x FF Anamorphic and a Sirui 1.25x anamorphic adapter (will be about 17.5mm wide in the horizontal with a 35mm vertical ratio). I think the wide screen look looks great for landscapes. Telephoto for wildlife that you can't get close to, like bison, wolves, elk, birds, etc... I think the RF 100-500mm would be excellent in that regard, unless you want to drop $10 grand on on a 100-300 f/2.8 or similar. Originally Posted By Grendel-OK: Originally Posted By metalsaber: in terms of wild life I'm open to all. Primarily bears and bison or wolves if possible. will be taking a lot of landscape shots so suggestions welcome. Wide angle primes for landscape. When I went to the Grand Canyon a couple years ago, my 24-70mm wasn't wide enough. I had to go back to my truck and get my 16mm. Next time I go, I'm taking my Sirui 35mm 1.6x FF Anamorphic and a Sirui 1.25x anamorphic adapter (will be about 17.5mm wide in the horizontal with a 35mm vertical ratio). I think the wide screen look looks great for landscapes. Telephoto for wildlife that you can't get close to, like bison, wolves, elk, birds, etc... I think the RF 100-500mm would be excellent in that regard, unless you want to drop $10 grand on on a 100-300 f/2.8 or similar. As for landscapes, I always found that in Yellowstone, I wanted to isolate the landscapes more. My most used landscape lens was my 100-400. |
Author of Contact Front, Glory Boy, Wholesale Slaughter and other military science fiction.
|
There's no way I could drop 10k on that lens. It's pretty amazing just not in my budget. I do have an older Canon EF 16-35 2.8 but figure the sharpness of the 24-70 would be better. I also have a canon RF 50mm 1.4 VCM lens. I had thought about picking up the 20mm at some point but I would get more use out of the telephoto lens. I'm still learning towards the 100-500. It would double as my airshow lens for the faster auto focus. I'd end up selling the 100-400 to recoup a little of the cost. I do have a variety of cinema lens to include anamorphic lens. i figure it boils down to a limited amount of space in my carry on assuming my camera bag won't fit as a personal bag. |
I bought all this equipment. What do you mean that the dead AREN'T coming back to life?
|
Originally Posted By metalsaber: What I need is someone to take me around to all the good spots.  |
Author of Contact Front, Glory Boy, Wholesale Slaughter and other military science fiction.
|
Originally Posted By RikWriter: Hit me up when you've settled on a date. If I'm not out of town, I'll show you around. Originally Posted By RikWriter: Originally Posted By metalsaber: What I need is someone to take me around to all the good spots. |
I bought all this equipment. What do you mean that the dead AREN'T coming back to life?
|
Make sure you've got the lenses you need - instead of the ones you think you need. As I found out on a trip the Niagra Falls, sometimes a really wide angle lens is worth packing - I was unable to get the scope of the falls into frame with an 85mm, and a 40mm. |
Gnu User, Clumsy Migratory Off-topic Herd Ungulate
|
Originally Posted By RikWriter: If you're there for landscape, 24mm is plenty wide enough. If you're there for wildlife, 500mm may not be long enough. |
I bought all this equipment. What do you mean that the dead AREN'T coming back to life?
|
We did the trip this summer but combined Yellowstone and Grand Teton. They're so close, why not? We basically started in Gardiner and worked our way down the western side of both and then back up the eastern side. Of course, there's plenty of opportunity for overlap. Airline Travel: Ok, never traveled with this much stuff before. So need some suggestions for you guys that travel on airlines with equipment. As stated above with my travel accessories. Will I be able to carry both the Condition 1 case and the Shimoda on the plane? Think the backpack will fit under a seat but not sure... Yes. I did this but replace Condition 1 with Pelican. The Shimoda held my Sony with a 70-200 and 200-600. I hope you can put a tele on the 500 you bought. I found that most of my shots (based on metadata) were shot with the 70-200, followed by 24-70, and in last place was the 200-600. Other than the buffalo, bear, and antelope, the animals were just too far off for the 600. I was able to crop to get some usable images of the coyotes/wolves. The nesting eagles/osprey were too distant. The bighorn were a blurry mess. I used the Pelican for tripods, bean bag, mics (ended up shooting very little video), filters, and misc gear like that. The 200-600 ate up a lot of the top compartment space of the Explore so it only had bare essentials. Batteries - my understanding is that you can carry up to a 99Wh batteries but as many as you want? My thought was carrying at least 3 99Wh batteries, 4-5 standard Canon LPE6 batteries, 2 SMALLRIG 10500mAh batteries That should be fine. I didn't add them up. I probably had 4-5 batteries for the Sony plus GoPro, Osmo Pocket 3, etc. Getting through TSA? Would I have to unload the backpack and hard case to go through scanners or do you just throw them on the conveyor? Trying to make this easy on myself. lol Everything goes through the scanner except for the film which I have hand scanned. However, ymmv. When we went to the Grand Canyon, our local airport pulled everything out of my neatly packed bag because I had 5-6 cameras and they said they couldn't make anything out clearly. When we flew out of Vegas, it didn't get a second glance. Is it worth flying 1st class just to have more space while traveling with all this gear? I'm too poor to know. Where is the best airport to fly into? Bozeman worked for us. We flew in, picked up the rental and drove the hour to Gardiner. First night was at the Roosevelt Hotel. Easy access to rental vehicles? See above. If you get a car that has superglue on the console, I swear I didn't put it there. Itinerary/Places to see: So assuming I'm there for a week at minimum. What all should I try to see and get photos/videos of? Here's our itinerary. I can expand if requested. June 11 - Arrive Bozeman, MT drive to Roosevelt Hotel/Gardiner, MT Roosevelt Arch Moon Shot (Didn't happen. Due to weather delays, we were in a rush to get to Gardiner before the front desk staff left for the night. June 12 - West Yellowstone Mammoth Springs Horseback riding (Also didn't happen) Misc springs (e.g. Norris Geyser Basin) on the drive from Bozeman to W Yellowstone June 13 Grand Canyon of Yellowstone June 14 I'll have to check what we ended up doing here. I think this was Old Faithful, painted pots, etc. June 15 - Victor, ID Travel/explore Day June 18 - Cooke City June 19 - Lamar Valley June 20 - Bozeman (Near Airport) via Bear Tooth Highway June 21 - Depart Some of the end was repetitive. Cooke City is a great spot for Lamar Valley which is animal rich. Hayden Valley is also the other hotspot. We would make multiple trips from Cooke City through Lamar to see what we'd see. The bison are everywhere so we got numb and would pass the hordes of people stopped. We were after bear, moose, etc. We didn't see many moose in Yellowstone. Did better in Teton. Never saw any mountain goats. Food? What is it like getting places to eat within the area? We never ate in the park. We stayed outside and brought food in. We picked up a cheap cooler which was sacrificed at the end of the trip. These are all from Yellowstone. The springs were awesome. We were there just before a bison drowned in Grand Prismatic. You want to do the short Fairy Trails hike to get the full view of it. But see it up close, also. Unfortunately, we never got a shot view of Excelsior spring. Even during midday the steam obscured it. Attached File Attached File Attached File Attached File |
"The answer to crime is always cows." -Cheesebeast
|
couple more, just because. Attached File Attached File Attached File Attached File |
"The answer to crime is always cows." -Cheesebeast
|
Very awesome shots. I'm shooting towards end of may and into June. the 100-500 does accept a teleconverter but it's a bit odd. I think you have to turn the focus up to 300mm before you can add your tele so you lose a lot of the low end range. which is why I was hoping canon would have released a 200-600 like Sony has. or a comparable Sigma version of Canon ever opens up their mount. forgot to ask as well. Are there any toll roads along the major areas? |
I bought all this equipment. What do you mean that the dead AREN'T coming back to life?
|
Originally Posted By metalsaber: Very awesome shots. I'm shooting towards end of may and into June. the 100-500 does accept a teleconverter but it's a bit odd. I think you have to turn the focus up to 300mm before you can add your tele so you lose a lot of the low end range. which is why I was hoping canon would have released a 200-600 like Sony has. or a comparable Sigma version of Canon ever opens up their mount. forgot to ask as well. Are there any toll roads along the major areas? |
Author of Contact Front, Glory Boy, Wholesale Slaughter and other military science fiction.
|
Originally Posted By metalsaber: Very awesome shots. I'm shooting towards end of may and into June. the 100-500 does accept a teleconverter but it's a bit odd. I think you have to turn the focus up to 300mm before you can add your tele so you lose a lot of the low end range. which is why I was hoping canon would have released a 200-600 like Sony has. or a comparable Sigma version of Canon ever opens up their mount. forgot to ask as well. Are there any toll roads along the major areas? We were there the 2nd week of June which seemed to be pretty good. There were a lot of people but it wasn't bumper to bumper except for a few spots due to animal sightings. Be very alert on the roads. If someone sees an animal, they'll slam on the brakes in a heartbeat. No toll roads in Wyoming. If you don't have one already, I would absolutely get a gimbal. They're a godsend for long lenses. It's so nice to be able to position it where you want it and just let it go, but still be able to swing it where you need it if something else appears, all without having to loosen knobs. And much safe than a ballhead. Originally Posted By RikWriter: Canon has a 200-800. Here's a pic of the Explore with the 70-200, 200-600, and my Leica M6. Attached File And hotel madness.  Attached File This is from Jenny Lake/Grand Teton, but one of my favorite encounters. My wife and I had just started our hike when I heard a weird scratching noise. Had no clue what it was so I stopped to listen. I'm standing a foot or so from a tree stump. A family comes up the trail headed the opposite direction and starts waving at us frantically. We casually make our way to them, they turn us around, and this guy pops out. He was less than 4' away digging for grubs and I had no clue. How the hell do you not see a bear literally on the other side of the tree you're standing beside? Attached File |
"The answer to crime is always cows." -Cheesebeast
|
Originally Posted By metalsaber: I'm thinking the 24mm on the 24-70 should cover the wide aspect. We shall see. I used the wide on my 24-70 for years and always felt it constraining for landscapes, but as I said I suck at landscapes. I purposely bought a 14mm earlier this year for astro and nightscapes. In a pinch high resolution composites of longer focal lengths are easily doable with software now too. Below are examples all at 24mm, they all feel claustrophobic to me. I haven't had too much chance to do much with my 14mm yet.  20180720_001 by Carl Peters, on Flickr 20230521_NightSky001 by Carl Peters, on Flickr 20230102_Downtown_McKinney001 by Carl Peters, on Flickr
|
"Dum spiro spero"
|
Originally Posted By JaxShooter: Thanks. It was a great trip. I ended up with over 3K shots. We were there the 2nd week of June which seemed to be pretty good. There were a lot of people but it wasn't bumper to bumper except for a few spots due to animal sightings. Be very alert on the roads. If someone sees an animal, they'll slam on the brakes in a heartbeat. No toll roads in Wyoming. If you don't have one already, I would absolutely get a gimbal. They're a godsend for long lenses. It's so nice to be able to position it where you want it and just let it go, but still be able to swing it where you need it if something else appears, all without having to loosen knobs. And much safe than a ballhead. I'd wanted to rent the Sony 400-800 but it would've arrived too late for our trip. It's going to be my next purchase in 2026, though. Here's a pic of the Explore with the 70-200, 200-600, and my Leica M6. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/97217/IMG_2535_jpg-3684443.JPG And hotel madness. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/97217/IMG_3115_jpg-3684445.JPG This is from Jenny Lake/Grand Teton, but one of my favorite encounters. My wife and I had just started our hike when I heard a weird scratching noise. Had no clue what it was so I stopped to listen. I'm standing a foot or so from a tree stump. A family comes up the trail headed the opposite direction and starts waving at us frantically. We casually make our way to them, they turn us around, and this guy pops out. He was less than 4' away digging for grubs and I had no clue. How the hell do you not see a bear literally on the other side of the tree you're standing beside? https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/97217/GTNP-20250616-0185_jpg-3684449.JPG |
Author of Contact Front, Glory Boy, Wholesale Slaughter and other military science fiction.
|
Dates all settled on. Doing 5/22 - 5/ 31. Hotels all booked up. Will have to book flights and rental vehicle. Pretty excited but also realize how modern families are perpetually poor if they spent this amount on vacations each year. |
I bought all this equipment. What do you mean that the dead AREN'T coming back to life?
|
Originally Posted By metalsaber: I'm thinking the 24mm on the 24-70 should cover the wide aspect. We shall see. I use my 24-70L a lot. Only recently has it started refusing to dial below ~28. But I always felt it was neither long enough nor wide enough in use. Canon's 70-300L is a nice choice for middling work. My 24-105L is on loan to a friend, but I use a 24L prime as needed. |
Gnu User, Clumsy Migratory Off-topic Herd Ungulate
|
Originally Posted By RikWriter: I bought the 400-800 back in September. It's a nice lens. Very handy for hiking or other times when you need a long lens but don't want to lug around a heavy prime. |
"The answer to crime is always cows." -Cheesebeast
|
Received my 100-500 lens today. Other than surface wear, functions great and clean glass. Much snappier auto focus vs my old ef 100-400. since my trip isn't till may. I saw on mpb used ef 500 and 600 f4 ii primes. Seems like those are pretty darn great. Just heavier than the newer version 3 and RF versions. tempted to see where I'm at by then. Would be cool to take a 600mm prime with a 1.4x tele. |
I bought all this equipment. What do you mean that the dead AREN'T coming back to life?
|
Originally Posted By metalsaber: Received my 100-500 lens today. Other than surface wear, functions great and clean glass. Much snappier auto focus vs my old ef 100-400. since my trip isn't till may. I saw on mpb used ef 500 and 600 f4 ii primes. Seems like those are pretty darn great. Just heavier than the newer version 3 and RF versions. tempted to see where I'm at by then. Would be cool to take a 600mm prime with a 1.4x tele. The 600+1.4X TC is ideal for static shoots when you can use a tripod, like a carcass. |
Author of Contact Front, Glory Boy, Wholesale Slaughter and other military science fiction.
|
If you are doing nighttime photography in a place like Yellowstone, bring a Bluetooth speaker. The mere suggestion will upset a lot of people who will voice all sorts of indignation; online, in a parking lot, at a bar, wherever. But, the one place they won't be bitching about it is ... out there with you ... because they aren't out there with you to even be bothered by it. No, they are asleep, back at their hotel, at their home, some place that isn't out in the field. Some people just want to be upset about stuff. You do not want to fall asleep during long exposure sessions, and wake up to thinking you are being attacked by a wall of fur. The speaker alerts animals to your presence, and they'll detour. Hopefully. The speaker also lets other people know that you are there, and they may have already had a general idea you were out there, per conversations with others coming off the trail, or just seeing you hike in with your gear, or whatever ... and it lets others know when to dim their lights on approach. |
"The answer to crime is always cows." -Cheesebeast