Canada — A hiker in Kelowna, British Columbia had a close but entirely peaceful encounter with a young grizzly bear Friday evening, prompting local officials to issue a warning to the community that its resident bears out of hibernation and on the prowl.
CastaNet reports David Crawford just finishing up a hike on the Boulder Trail in Okanagan Mountain Park when he crossed paths with a juvenile grizzly bear. Crawford was made aware of the grizzly’s presence before encountering it thanks to an another hiker on the trail who noticed it and alerted him. The encounter happened shortly before 5:00pm.
“He was looking at me, for sure, because I’m a pretty big, tasty morsel, I would think. Just passed and everything was good.” -David Crawford
Thankfully the young grizzly did not display any aggressive and the encounter ended peacefully:
“Not wearing a bell I tinkled anyway and said bell-like things as I walked along to get away from the thing. It was not threatening in any way, and I think it was a juvenile, maybe 2 years old, fresh from the den and not with it’s mother for the first time. It was plump and apparently not starving, just like me.” -David Crawford
Following the encounter District of Lake Country posted a warning that a bear has been active through the neighborhood this week and advised local residents to take proactive steps to avoid negative encounters:
”Yogi is strolling through The Lakes neighbourhood this week. Please manage any wildlife attractants to keep wildlife in the wild, reduce conflicts, and allow them to move through the natural settings that have been their habitat long before our homes were built here.” -District of Lake Country
WildSafeBC urges residents to give wildlife plenty of space and keep pets on leashes to avoid conflicts:
– Keep garbage secure and put it out at the street at 7am on collection day.
– Clean barbeques after each use by burning of the bits of food at high heat and then giving the grill a good scrub.
– Use bird feeders only in the winter when bears are hibernating and natural bird food is limited. Bears have also been known to drink the syrup from hummingbird feeders.
