Yellowstone
Spring bear safety in Yellowstone
Published
5 years agoon
Posted By
Outlaw PartnersBy Christine Gianas Weinheimer EBS CONTRIBUTOR
It may seem like spring arrives late in the Greater Yellowstone area, but there’s one marker of spring that almost always comes early: the emergence of bears from hibernation. So next time you head to the park, make sure you’re prepared to avoid a too-close encounter with a bear.
In Yellowstone, male grizzlies and black bears typically come out of hibernation in March, while females with cubs tend to emerge in April and early May. The bears look for food immediately after emerging and often feed on elk and bison that died over the winter.
“These winter kills are an important source of nutrition until the first spring plants emerge in abundance,” said Brad Bulin, senior naturalist for the Yellowstone Forever Institute. “After several months without any food, hungry bears can be very aggressive at carcasses, defending these critical food sources as much as possible.”
Preventing bears from obtaining human food is one of the top priorities of Yellowstone’s wildlife managers. Bears that gain access to human food eventually become more aggressive toward humans, and may need to be removed from the population.
“The places Yellowstone bears are most at risk of finding food is in front-country campgrounds,” Bulin said. “Fortunately, bear boxes are a proven method to improve safety by keeping food locked up and away from hungry bears.”
Yellowstone Forever, the park’s official nonprofit partner, offers a unique opportunity to “Sponsor a Bear Box,” enabling Yellowstone to install bear-proof storage boxes in campgrounds. You can learn more about how to help at yellowstone.org/bear-box.
Each year the park institutes closures in some bear management areas to reduce encounters between bears and humans. Before your trip, review Yellowstone’s online list of closures and, once you arrive, inquire at a visitor center or backcountry office about any recent bear activity.
“Taking proper precautions is important, whether day hiking, in the backcountry, or even along a road,” Bulin said. “In general, never surprise a bear. Give bears the chance to see, hear or smell you. When hiking, pay attention to your surroundings, stay in groups of three or more, make noise and carry bear spray.”
Bear spray is sold throughout the park at Yellowstone Forever Park Stores, gift shops and service stations, as well as in gateway communities. Always select an EPA-approved product that is specifically designed to stop bears. Bear spray is also available to rent in the park at Canyon Village.
While it’s exciting to spot a bear during your visit, never approach them and follow the park rule of maintaining a distance of at least 100 yards. To help you enjoy bears from a safe distance, bring binoculars or use a telephoto lens on your camera.
For additional bear safety information, including a video on how to properly use bear spray, visit the park’s website at nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit.
Christine Gianas Weinheimer lives in Bozeman and has been writing about Yellowstone for 17 years.
The Outlaw Partners is a creative marketing, media and events company based in Big Sky, Montana.
Upcoming Events
april, 2024
Event Type :
All
All
Arts
Education
Music
Other
Sports
Event Details
Children turning 5 on or before 9/10/2024:
more
Event Details
Children turning 5 on or before
9/10/2024: Kindergarten
enrollment for the 2024-2025 school year can be completed by following the
registration process now.
Children
born on or after September 11, 2019: 4K enrollment is now open for
families that have a 4-year-old they would like to enroll in our program for
the 2023-2024 school year. Please complete the 4K Interest Form to
express your interest. Completing this form does not guarantee enrollment into
the 4K program. Enrollment is capped at twenty 4-year-olds currently
residing within Big Sky School District boundary full time and will be
determined by birth date in calendar order of those born on or after September
11, 2018. Interest form closes on May 30th.
Enrollment now is critical for fall preparations. Thank you!
Time
February 26 (Monday) - April 21 (Sunday)
Event Details
Saturday, March 23rd 6:00-8:00pm We will combine the heart-opening powers of cacao with the transcendental powers of breathwork and sound. Together, these practices will give us the opportunity for a deep
more
Event Details
Saturday, March 23rd 6:00-8:00pm
Time
March 23 (Saturday) 6:00 pm - April 23 (Tuesday) 8:00 pm
Location
Santosha Wellness Center
169 Snowy Mountain Circle
Event Details
We all are familiar with using a limited palette, but do you use one? Do you know how to use a
more
Event Details
We all are familiar with using a limited palette, but do you use one? Do you know how to use a limited palette to create different color combinations? Are you tired of carrying around 15-20 different tubes when you paint plein air? Have you ever wanted to create a certain “mood” in a painting but failed? Do you create a lot of mud? Do you struggle to achieve color harmony? All these problems are addressed in John’s workbook in clear and concise language!
Based on the bestselling “Limited Palatte, Unlimited Color” workbook written by John Pototschnik, the workshop is run by Maggie Shane and Annie McCoy, accomplished landscape (acrylic) and plein air (oil) artists,exhibitors at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery and members of the Big Sky Artists Collective.
Each student will receive a copy of “Limited Palette, Unlimited Color” to keep and take home to continue your limited palette journey. We will show you how to use the color wheel and mix your own clean mixtures to successfully create a mood for your paintings.
Each day, we will create a different limited palette color chart and paint a version of a simple landscape using John’s directives. You will then be able to go home and paint more schemes using the book for guidance.
Workshop is open to painters (oil or acrylic) of any level although students must have some basic knowledge of the medium he or she uses. Students will be provided the book ($92 value), color wheel, value scale and canvas papers to complete the daily exercises.
Sundays, April 14, 21 and 28, 2024
Noon until 6PM.
$170.
Time
14 (Sunday) 12:00 pm - 28 (Sunday) 6:00 pm
Event Details
Everyone is invited to join us in celebrating 2 years of arts education in the BASE Art Studio with us! Take a tour
Event Details
Everyone is invited to join us in celebrating 2 years of arts education in the BASE Art Studio with us! Take a tour of the studio, meet our instructors, and meet other artists of all levels in our community. We’ll be getting creative and you’ll have the chance to make your very own artful button pin.
Stick around for our Volunteer Appreciation and Social beginning at 6:30 p.m.!
Time
(Thursday) 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
Location
BASE
285 Simkins Dr