Photo by David dguttenfelder @dguttenfelder. Montana sheep rancher John Helle hugs his sheep dog at an overnight camp site h...

Photo by David dguttenfelder @dguttenfelder.
Montana sheep rancher John Helle hugs his sheep dog at an overnight camp site high in the Gravelly Mountains where the sheep would graze for the season, sharing the land with bears, wolves and other wildlife migrating from Yellowstone National Park into adjacent forests. The dog, an Akbash, stays with the sheep to protect them against attacks by wild animals.
2016 marks the 100-year anniversary of the creation of the U.S. National Park Service. I spent the past year working in and around Yellowstone National Park to understand the complicated relationship among the residents, tourists, livestock and wildlife, all meant to share this magical space.
National Geographic will devote its entire May 2016 issue to Yellowstone. Until then, please follow here, and at @dguttenfelder, @chamiltonjames, @michaelnicknichols, @ronan_donovan, @joeriis @drewtrush @coryrichards @shannon_sanders and @e.l.johns for more photographs, video and stories about the world’s first national park.