Canmore trail users need to learn to be smarter than the average bear

Canmore is home to many bears – and after an incident in which a man stumbled upon a feeding bear and was subsequently injured, park officials made the smart move and closed down the path where the conflict occurred.

What they couldn’t count on was the not-so-smart users of this path.

According to an opinion piece in the Calgary Sun, the path has bear warning signs, bright yellow closure signs and caution tape. But that’s not keeping some people out.

“In the middle of a mountain paradise with umpteen kilometres of available wilderness, this exact spot is where a large flock of pinheaded people — including parents with small children and toddlers — chose to go on nature strolls and bike rides,” wrote Michael Platt in the Sun. “With an automatic court appearance and a maximum penalty of $50,000 and up to a year in prison for entering a closed wildlife area, those who crossed the line and were caught on camera are currently under investigation — and if identified, charges will likely follow.”

It seems incredulous that people would ignore the multitude of warnings. After the original incident, Danish biologist and tourist Torben Lund noted that the signs weren’t clear that a bear was currently present at the location.

With the addition of caution tape and do not enter signs, it seems that a lot of Canmore’s trail users aren’t any smarter than the average bear.

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