Be Bear Aware

2026 has been a rough year for our bear population. Normally used to foraging for insects, nuts and berries in the forests, the persistent, multi-decade megadrought that’s been plaguing Colorado since around the year 2000, low mountain snowpack and even wildfires have resulted in a significant reduction in available natural food for bears.

With the forest depleted of foodstuffs, mother bears’ milk will dry up, encouraging them to move toward other food sources – where humans live – and they bring their cubs with them.

In a typical year, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) will euthanize 60 to 90 bears who violate their 2-strike policy; this year, by the end of August, 294 bears had already been euthanized. Unfortunately, euthanizing adult bears can leave behind orphan cubs.

With reduced forage, the mother bears’ milk will dry up, forcing them to abandon these youngsters. There have been observed instances of mother bears bringing their cubs close to towns and leaving them behind. There are thoughts that some mothers are doing this because they don’t have enough fat reserves to sustain themselves through hibernation and raise cubs, so abandoning cubs near food sources (human garbage, especially) is thought to be the lesser of two evils.

Colorado has two state-licensed facilities that are authorized by CPW to rehabilitate orphaned, injured or underweight black bear cubs, the Frisco Creek Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Del Norte and the Pauline S. Schneegas Wildlife Foundation in Silt.

The Frisco Creek Center in Del Norte has taken in 41 orphaned black bear cubs this season, compared to 29 rescued cubs in 2025. More than 30 bear cubs are being taken care of at the Schneegas Wildlife Foundation in Silt. Last year at this time the center had just three cubs under its care.

The point of this lead-in is to make you, the reader, aware of the real possibility of encountering bears on the trail. Since most of our Open Space parks are in high country, some of which includes elevations of over 8,000 feet (where rehabilitated orphan cubs are placed in denning enclosures for the winter), it’s wise to know what to do if you do meet a bruin while you’re enjoying our wonderful but primitive Open Space parks and trails.

General Hiking Safety Tips

• Make noise while walking: Clap, call out, or talk loudly when rounding blind corners or walking near loud rushing rivers so you don’t surprise a bear.
• Leash your dog (this is a requirement for all JCPOS parks and trails except in the Beaver Ranch dog park).  Loose dogs frequently chase bears and then run straight back to their owners with an angry bear trailing closely behind.
• Carry bear spray, just in case.

If you encounter a bear while hiking in the forest, the absolute most important rule is to stay calm, stand your ground, and never run. Running can trigger the bear’s chase instinct, and you cannot outrun them—bears can sprint at speeds over 30 miles per hour.

Your response should depend on the bear’s distance and behavior:

If the Bear Doesn’t See You

• Back away quietly: slowly and calmly walk backward the way you came.
• Keep your eyes on the bear: do not turn your back, but avoid making direct, aggressive eye contact.
• Give it space: give the bear a wide berth and let it continue its natural behavior.

If the Bear Sees You but is Stationary

• Make yourself look large: Stand close to your hiking partners, hold your jacket open, or raise your arms above your head.
• Speak in a calm, assertive tone: talk out loud (e.g., “Hey bear, it’s okay bear”) so the bear recognizes you as a human and not a prey animal.
• Do not scream or imitate bear noises: high-pitched screams can sound like a distressed prey animal.
• Prepare your bear spray: unholster your bear spray, remove the safety clip, and hold it ready.

If the Bear Approaches or Charges

• Stand your ground: bears often perform a “bluff charge,” where they run at you at high speed but stop or veer off at the last second to test you.
• Use your bear spray: if the bear gets within 30 to 40 feet, aim slightly downward in front of the bear and spray a 2-to-3-second burst to create a cloud of pepper medicine.
• Know how to react based on the species:
  • Black Bears (most common in Colorado): if a black bear actually attacks, do not play dead. Fight back aggressively using rocks, sticks, trekking poles, or your bare hands. Focus your blows on the bear’s face and nose.
  • Grizzly Bears: if a grizzly attacks, play dead. Lie flat on your stomach, clasp your hands behind your neck, and spread your legs to make it harder for the bear to flip you over. Keep your backpack on to protect your spine. Fight back only if the attack persists and becomes predatory.

Should you encounter wildlife while on the trail, you can file a report with Open Space:

https://www.jeffco.us/3620/Human-Wildlife-Interactions > click Report a Human-Wildlife Interaction

Miss Mountain Manners wants all hikers, runners, bikers, equestrians to stay safe out there.

Please be respectful to each other, and to all the park residents.

Sources:

https://coloradonewsline.com/2026/10/20/repub/bear-killings-skyrocket-west/

https://coloradosun.com/2026/10/22/bear-cub-wildlife-rescue-colorado-silt/

Google. (2026). Gemini [Large language model]. https://gemini.google.com