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AMERICAN FORK CANYON — The hot and dry conditions have the fire danger high, but the same conditions are also bad news for bears.
In just the past couple of weeks, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources has had to move two problem bears in Summit County. Wildlife officials are warning everyone who is heading to the great outdoors to be careful and do their part to keep bears from people.
- Store your food and scented items, such as deodorants and tooth paste, in areas where bears can't get them. Inside a trailer or in the trunk of your car are good choices.
- Keep your cooking grill clean. And clean anything you used to prepare, eat or clean up food.
- Keep your campsite or cabin area clean. Don't toss food scraps and other trash around.
- Never feed a bear.
Campers in the Timpooneke Campground in American Fork Canyon Tuesday night knew they were in bear country. But Stephanie Tasso and her fellow campers weren't worried about a bear coming to their camp.
"We heard there was a bear up here about two weeks ago, and so we put everything away in the car at night," Tasso said.
"(I) love camping and can honestly say I have not thought about a bear one time, so we just take all the precautions," said camper Kent Tasso.
While it wasn't a bear, the group got an up-close look at nature in a different way when two moose passed through their camp less than 10 yards away from their picnic table.
"A couple of moose ran through our campground," Tasso said, "and the dog got excited and went crazy and scared them off."
Precautions for avoiding contact with bears and other wild animals are posted in every Utah campground: "Store your food away and keep your campsite clean," explained Mark Hadley, with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. "It's really as simple as that."
There's just not as much natural vegetation out there for them, and so that causes bears to wander a bit more in search of food — which of course increases the chance they might wander into your campsite or near your cabin area.
–Mark Hadley, DWR
The DWR is continuing its campaign to encourage campers to be careful in areas where bears live, especially as we begin a dry, hot summer.
"The conditions are ripe for more bear sightings this year," Hadley said. "There's just not as much natural vegetation out there for them, and so that causes bears to wander a bit more in search of food — which of course increases the chance they might wander into your campsite or near your cabin area."
While bears may struggle to find food this summer, people leaving food or garbage out will quickly turn a hungry bear into a problem bear.
"I hope people will remember that doing the right things when they are camping, in regards to bears, will not only protect them, but it will keep a bear out of trouble as well," Hadley said.
If you do encounter a bear around a campground or cabin and you are concerned for your safety, it's OK to call 911 to report it to wildlife officers. But your chances of seeing a bear will be much lower if you just keep your campsite clean.
