When a black bear poked its nose—and claws—into a tent where two kids were sleeping at Difficult Campground near Aspen, Colorado, the U.S. Forest Service decided that “difficult” was a little too “on the nose.” The result: an emergency ban on tents and other soft-sided shelters at the site, effective immediately.
Kids cool about bear’s scratch-and-sniff test
The bear, apparently more curious than criminal, scratched the outside of the kids’ tent and left some souvenir puncture marks before ambling away. The kids, both under 12, were unharmed and reportedly “chill” enough about the incident to go hiking later that day. Their parents, snoozing in a nearby tent, only heard about the midnight guest over breakfast.
“Next morning, they were like, ‘Hey, mom, a bear was here,’” said a campground host, who spoke anonymously to the Aspen Times. “The kids were a little freaked out, but not traumatized.”
RVs don’t represent a bear “snack bag”
Still, the Forest Service isn’t taking chances. About 20 tent campers were either relocated or refunded Tuesday, and new campers are being directed to hard-sided shelters only. Translate: RVs, trailers, or anything that doesn’t crumple like a snack bag when a bear leans on it is acceptable.
And the furry foot traffic isn’t limited to one visitor. Officials say there have been sightings of four different bears at the campground over the past week. The general vibe? These bears are making the rounds—and probably hoping for an open cooler or a lazy lunchbox.
Food storage “non-negotiable”
To prevent future run-ins, the Forest Service is reminding folks that proper food storage is non-negotiable. That means everything remotely snacky—food, garbage, coolers, toothpaste—goes into a locked vehicle or one of the bear-proof lockers at your site.
“The bears at Difficult are showing up all hours of the day and night,” said Deputy District Ranger Jennifer Schuller. “That’s what happens when they get food-conditioned.”
The current tent ban will last at least two months. Officials stress this is all part of coexisting with wildlife responsibly. As the campground host put it, “This isn’t our home—it’s theirs. We’re the guests here.”
So, if you’re heading to the forest, pack smart, lock it up, and maybe leave the flimsy nylon at home. Bears in storybooks are cute. But when story time’s over, nobody wants them as bunkmates. That bear’s scratch-and-sniff test is proof enough.
For more details, visit Forest Service’s website here.
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RVT1214b
We had a Yahtzee pal who camped with us and he had a tent. He liked that we gave him a place to not get munched on if a bear was sneaking around. He had a Subaru, so being 6’4″ he wouldn’t have gotten much sleep.
They need to put up “No Bear Allowed” signs like they put up “Deer Crossing” signs on the highway so the deer know where to cross.
When in bear country, no food really means no food. What kids sleeping in a tent don’t want to sneak in a bag of chips or crackers?
About 40 years ago a couple tenters just outside Yellowstone caught their supper from a nearby stream and fried it over their campfire. Their food was secured, but in cooking the fish the scent was embedded in their clothes. The clothes were with them inside the tent. A grizzly followed its nose, probably not looking for a human snack, but startled going into the tent. Both guys died and the bear was tracked and euthanized. Sad all around.
Thank you for the news, Russ and Tina! I am glad that the children did not react in a way that caused the bear to become more aggressive. Have a great weekend and safe travels!