Bears are getting smarter. It used to be considered safe to lock up your food in your tow vehicle or RV when camping. But if not confined in smell-proof containers like RV refrigerators or bear boxes, bears are managing to break into the vehicle and rummage following food smells. And they seem to be able to identify coolers as food storage places.
According to CBS 13 in Sacramento, hungry bears have struck yet another vehicle in the Tahoe area. Truckee police posted two photos on their Facebook page Thursday, showing a mother bear and her young cub in the back of a pickup truck in Tahoe Donner rummaging through garbage after they broke a window in the camper shell on the truck.
An officer responded to a call about the bears and found them in the truck when he arrived. He was able to scare the bears with his air horn, which encouraged the mom and cub to go back into the woods.
Truckee Police reminded campers to not leave any trash or food in their vehicles. Apparently, even a stick of gum can tempt a curious bear into a car.
We walked up on a mother bear and two cubs in the Adler Creek Campground this morning around 1:15am. We came upon the family on our way to the Bathroom. Mama was big, and we calmly backed away while keeping my flashlight aimed at her. After using different “facilities” we headed back into our tent and listened to the Bears attempt to loot the rest of the campground.
Our food was stored in our locked car, as I’m sure many other campers had safely stored theirs. But in the morning there were signs of found food around the campground. We have to remember we are in their backyard as well, the bears are out there and closer than you think.