"Yellowstone Bison: Hazed and Confused"

"It was a procession straight out of a children's book: A Montana sheriff's SUV and a federal law enforcement truck driving down U.S. Highway 287 toward Yellowstone National Park, bright lights flashing, followed by five shaggy bison. Make way for buffalo! Behind them were more government trucks, several guys on ATVs and seven horseback riders. Overhead, a helicopter thumped.

They kept it up for miles; the bison ran so hard their tongues hung down.

But not everyone was welcome to join the parade. A sheriff's deputy warned a vanload of journalists to stay clear or be arrested.

'Arrested for what?' asked a ticked-off Los Angeles Times reporter.

'Obstructing.'"

Ray Ring reports in the June 7, 2010 issue of High Country News.