Posted on 08/20/2013 8:47:24 PM PDT by Jet Jaguar
FAIRBANKS - A hiking trail in the White Mountains National Recreation Area north of Fairbanks has been closed after a big grizzly bear accosted a family picking berries along the trail last weekend.
The Bureau of Land Management temporarily closed the Table Top Mountain Trail off Nome Creek Road about 45 miles northeast of Fairbanks while it investigates the incident. The 3-mile loop trail is a popular hiking and berry-picking destination.
BLM spokesman Craig McCaa said the bear, described as a large grizzly, approached the family of four, which included two small children, several times as they were picking berries near their camp on Saturday night. The father fired several warning shots at the animal with a .44-caliber handgun to scare it away but the bear persisted with its aggressive behavior, McCaa said.
“They pulled camp and hustled down the trail and heard a crashing noise in the brush,” he said.
The bear then evidently charged the father, who put himself between the bear and his family, McCaa said. The man fired his last two shots at the bear but wasn’t sure if he hit it.
“It was quite dark at that point,” McCaa said.
According to a narrative written by BLM ranger Jonathan Priday, who interviewed the man, the bear “made an unnatural movement into some thick vegetation” after the father shot at it. Priday checked the trail on Sunday but found no sign of the bear, McCaa said.
Priday and the father returned to the area on Tuesday to see if they could find any sign of the bear and to determine if the bear was possibly wounded or killed.
The man reported the shooting to Alaska Wildlife Troopers as a defense of life and property shooting and plans to skin the bear if he finds it, as law requires, McCaa said.
BLM put up signs to alert hikers and berry pickers that the trail is closed because of the bear encounter, McCaa said.
It’s possible the bear is the same one that uprooted and pilfered a pair of bear-proof trash cans at the nearby Ophir Creek Campground back in June. Nobody ever saw that bear but tracks on the road indicated it was a large grizzly, McCaa said. The trail is about two miles from the campground.
“We don’t know if it’s the same bear or not,” he said. “There’s no way to tell, especially since nobody ever saw that bear.”
Accosts?! Must've tried convincing them to support Obamacare!
Buy farmed berries. Seriously.
Great. The BLM will probably place the bear on paid administrative leave.
Crap. Wait 'til Al Sharpton hears about this.
Accosts.
So da beh sez, Hey, youse, commih.
Accosted - “Gimme your wallet”
Ping
“Hey Boo-Boo, let’s see what’s in their pic-a-nic basket.”
Do not EVER fire warning shots at an aggressive bear. Don’t be stupid. Kill it before it kills you.
‘a large grizzly, approached the family of four, which included two small children, several times as they were picking berries near their camp on Saturday night.”
Well hell, you come into my home and steal my food and I might get a little uppity too.
Not only did he accost a berry picking family but he might have been the bear that uprooted and pilfered a pair of bear-proof trash cans. If he’d gotten to those berry baskets, we’d have proof who the pilferer was. His name is probably Yogi who’s smarter than the average bear.
What doesn’t fit the story is why in the world would the accosted family take the time to pull up camp? Makes you wonder what other parts of his story doesn’t fit.
Coulda been worse, at least it was a grizzly...
Wait, if you shoot a bear the law states you must “skin” it? WTH? lol
Grizzlies support Agenda 21.
The hunting regs say that you must salvage the entire hide, including claws attached and skull of a brown / griz bear.
It don't say why....
Its just anti human propaganda that we are invading the so called bears home.
This person might regret not killing it, if some body else goes to the area and getting badly mauled or killed.
Might even be his self or one of his kids.
He might not have time to take care of the matter the next time.
“It’s possible the bear is the same one that uprooted and pilfered a pair of bear-proof trash cans...”
Classic.
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