A nighttime drive to see a grizzly bear in Yellowstone National Park ended in a devastating crash for two park workers, leaving their truck totaled, their RV stranded and their plans in disarray just weeks before the park's internal roads close for winter.
Watch the Jaskulas' story here:
Marie Jaskula and Jason Jaskula have worked and lived inside Yellowstone for two years, Marie as a retail manager for one of the park's concessioners and Jason in park maintenance.
The couple, originally from Wisconsin, spent a decade vacationing at Yellowstone before leaving their former careers— Jason in real estate and Marie running a dog boarding business and rescue— to follow their dream of living and working inside the park full time.
On the night of Oct. 8, word of a grizzly bear sighting near Mary Bay sent the couple two miles down the road to catch a glimpse alongside a crowd of other onlookers.
"About 6:45-7, we headed two miles down the road to take a look with the crowd. It gets dark pretty quick down here now," Marie Jaskula said.
On the way back, near the Storm Point Trailhead, in pitch darkness with no streetlights and no moonlight, a bison stepped suddenly into the road.
"The bison literally walked across the white line with zero notice. We didn't even have time to hit the brakes," Jason Jaskula said.
The couple was traveling at 40 mph — 5 miles per hour under the posted 45 mph speed limit— while in heavy traffic, with three to four cars ahead of them and a large semi-style RV following closely behind.
The bison, estimated to weigh between 2,000 and 2,500 pounds, stumbled, fell and stopped breathing within minutes of the impact, according to Jason.
According to the National Park Service, nearly 5,300 bison roam Yellowstone. Bull males can weigh up to 2,000 pounds and are active well into the night.
"They had to bring an end loader out to lift that bison up and put it in a truck. Traumatic, to say the least," Jason said.
A park ranger in the vicinity quickly set up cones and flashing lights at the scene. All other drivers on the road stopped safely, and Jason said everyone who was there came together to help.
The Jaskulas' truck — new this season and purchased specifically to tow their fifth-wheel RV, which serves as their full-time home — is now a total loss. The vehicle had been parked since June and was "tremendously underinsured," the couple said.
With their next work position 10 hours away in Utah, the crash has left them without a way to move their home.
"Until you need an important resource, you really don't realize how isolated you are," Marie said.
The couple got help moving their RV to their company's warehouse parking lot in the interim, but said they have not yet determined how to get their truck out of the park.
Friends in Tennessee started a crowdfunding campaign to help them get back on their feet.
The Jaskulas reported only minor injuries. Their dog, Z, a 10-year-old retired livestock dog and constant travel companion who never misses a car ride, was in the backseat at the time of impact.
Z spent three days recovering on the couch but is now doing better, according to Marie.
Despite the loss, the couple plans to return to Yellowstone next season.
"Up until the moment of this accident, this has been an amazing experience. I would not trade it for the world," Marie said.
"We love it out here... we couldn't have a better backyard than the one that we're in," Jason said.
To support the Jaskulas, visit their GoFundMe page.
