Yellowstone National Park
Camping in Yellowstone National Park can be a very exciting way to view nature up close. It can also be a safe adventure if you follow some fairly simple guidelines. Bears are not the only campsite visitors that you need to prepare for. Many people don’t realize the 2000 pound behemoths we call bison, are also dangerous. American Bison The sight of an American Bison or buffalo, grazing within view of a steam vent is one of the most amazing natural sights one can witness. These creatures along with other ungulates, including deer, elk, moose, and pronghorn, are abundant in many areas of the Northern Rockies including Yellowstone. Seeing a bison with its primordial shagginess and massively large head with horns on top, seems to take you back to a time before European explorers, when perhaps tens of millions of these creatures ruled the plains.
When you see a bison in your campground or anyplace that people frequent, they seem quite harmless. They usually move through these areas fairly slowly and many times are lying down. The natural human reaction is to want to get a closer look, especially if you’ve got your camera. I’ve witnessed people send their children walking right up to a resting buffalo for a photo-op. This is a dangerously bad idea. Once a bison is on its feet you cannot outrun it and when it catches you, it will toss you or gore you. A bison’s hooves are as deadly as its horns. The danger of being gored or trampled is frighteningly higher than people realize. The best thing to do is to keep your distance. Never approach a bison and if the animal seems agitated (hoof pounding or shaking the head up and down) or makes any quick movements back away. Generally, if we leave bison alone they will give us the same courtesy.
Bears
It’s a very rare and desperate situation when a bear purposely goes after a human but in the light of the recent fatal bear attacks near Yellowstone, some extra caution couldn’t hurt. Bears generally stay away from people unless they have been exposed to human food. Every campground in Yellowstone has specific, well posted rules about food storage. All food and food products need to be locked in a hard sided vehicle, in one of the provided lock boxes or strung at least ten feet up on a tree bough. Toiletries, toothpaste, water, dog food, soap and pretty much anything that came out of the car needs to go back into the car when not in use. As an extra precaution, seal these items in a plastic zipper bag before putting them back in the vehicle, the more layers between the item and the bear the better. Campers have to be vigilant when they clean up after dinner and check for scraps of any kind that may have fallen to the ground. Of course, nothing goes in the tent with you except the bedding. Even water bottles, which can come in contact with other food products, need to stay in the car. Bears aren’t attracted to our food because it’s ours, bears are attracted to our food because of how it smells. Bears have a very highly developed sense of smell and a campsite full of human food is like ringing the dinner bell for a hungry bear. Think of how strong the smell of frying bacon is. Now imagine how a bear, with a nose more sensitive than a dogs, would react to that smell, especially a sow with hungry cubs.
Bear Spray
One of the most important precautions to take in bear country is to bring bear pepper spray. Regular pepper spray is not enough; it will only aggravate the bear. Bring the bear spray with you into the tent at night and make sure that you know how to use it.
Visiting the wilds of Yellowstone, Glacier National Park, Grand Teton National Park or any of the other parks where wild creatures reside, can make for an exciting and memorable trip. It’s up to us as humans to ensure our own safety in wild places and to ensure that the animals are kept safe and wild. This is our responsibility as the custodial species of the earth. If we treat the wilds with care and respect, they will remain for future generations to enjoy for years to come.
