July Cover Artist: Franklin Hessler

Saturday Jul. 1st, 2023

Franklin Hessler, owner of Mountain Man Guiding, arrived in the Greater Yellowstone region in 2007 and calls the town of Livingston home. Franklin fell in love with Yellowstone National Park while working there after graduating from college. Shortly thereafter, Franklin pursued a Master of Science: Education Leadership degree focused on Outdoor Education, which led him to Wrangell-St. Elias National Park in Alaska where he spent the summer working as an intern at the visitor center working in administration and interpretation.

After returning to Montana in 2013, Franklin worked as a seasonal and interpretive park ranger for Yellowstone National Park, which entailed everything from keeping visitors away from elk during the rut to leading full-day hikes. He also spent five years working as an interpretive naturalist guide for another private company.

All of this experience led Franklin to start Mountain Man Guiding, where he enthusiastically and professionally shares his passion for Yellowstone and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem with others. Photography is naturally a part of experiencing a place like Yellowstone.

Franklin has been playing with cameras since he was a teenager with a film camera. The digital age let him hone in on more skills using the camera. He loves taking nature photos of flora and fauna of all types, as well as landscape photography. Montana and Yellowstone have it all.

If you are interested in seeing more of what is going on with Franklin or Mountain Man Guiding check his website out at www.mountainmanguiding.com. You can also follow along on the Mountain Man Guiding Facebook and Instagram pages.