10/13/14

Sunday was our last day of work, though we only had to work a couple of hours. We closed another one of the campground loops. Now there are only three loops open. With the good weather we've been having, they fill up anyway.

We've been having a grizzly bear sow and cub visit the campground the last few days, off and on. Yesterday they were near the dump station early in the morning, then later in the afternoon they were in the campground near our trailer. The photo below is a shot out our back window.

One of the campers who has been riding his bike all over the country (he started in Anchorage, Alaska and biked through British Columbia before coming to Yellowstone) left some food out on his picnic table (strictly forbidden by park rules) and the bears went after it. The next photo is of the mother bear finishing off some bread the guy left on the table.

 

The mother bear then proceeded to trash his tent, while the cub finished the food. Lucky for him, the guy was not in his tent at the time.

 

 

We called the rangers and they tried to chase the bears away. The bears left for the rest of the day but came back this morning. The rangers were setting up traps when we left Yellowstone this morning. Hopefully they will catch both of them. If they do, they will move them away from all the campgrounds (rule of thumb is to move them far enough that it would take them 3 days to get back). They will also put a radio collar on the mother bear. If they come back to the campground, they will have to put them down, unfortunately.

We gave a copy of all the pictures we took, so the rangers can use them as evidence when the guy that left the food out goes to court in December. He may have to pay for all the rangers time used in dealing with these bears over the last two days, plus a fine.

This morning we left the campground for good, at 11 am. We are spending tonight in an RV park near Burley, Idaho. It's right on the Snake River. We'll either stay here one more night tomorrow, or head for the Oregon border. We'll decide in the morning.