Bear Country

A sign a couple of blocks from our home reminding us that we share the space with these furry animals

The very first week I was in Canada, there was a bear sighting alert in the community we were living at the time.  A couple of people had spotted a black bear and authorities quickly let us all know.  I remember how bad I wanted to go walking to a nearby convenience store with the hope of snapping a picture of the visitor but I chickened out remembering I had no idea of what to do if I did indeed came close to it. 

In the town where I live now, we have to be careful not to leave our food garbage out so some black bear does not pay us a home visit.  The garbage truck only comes by once a week so this is a bit challenging at best.  Especially because I always want to get rid of trash right away.  But I love knowing that bears are so close.  It gives me the feeling I am living in a less spoiled land.


Bears in BC says the black bear population in the province is growing. Well, that is great news!  It is currently anywhere between 120,000 to 160,000.  Grizzly bears have smaller population numbers though.  There are between 10,000 to 13,000 in BC but this is understandable since they are bigger and need more living space.   Canada needs to protect its forests so bears have enough space.  But they also need to make sure there is enough fish for them because when fish is scarce they turn to garbage and go to neighborhoods looking for food.  This gets them killed too many times so it is important to avoid luring them in and not leave food garbage outside in the wrong kind of containers.

I'm still a little scared of coming across a black bear. Although my husband says he is not afraid of black bears at all but of grizzly bears who are more unpredictable (and bigger!).  But gosh would I love to see one close enough to get a good picture!

If you want to know what to do in case you come across a not-hug-able teddy bear check my school's advice here.