Bears
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A grizzly-curious writer decides to train as a bear guide in British Columbia, and surprises himself along the way
This week, 12 of Alaska’s chubbiest bruins will face off in a bracket for the title of Fat Bear Week Champion. Here’s what you need to know.
Officials found the victims on Saturday morning and euthanized a bear that exhibited aggressive behavior
Our list includes a pair of doughnut thieves in Alaska, a selfie taker in Colorado, and the tripod of Orlando
Learn from the mistakes of our hiking columnist, who suffered a painful accident while traversing the Continental Divide Trail
The live footage from Katmai National Park usually shows grizzlies. But on September 5, a man appeared on the livestream and mouthed “help.”
The internet is flooded with clips of people making bad decisions at America’s oldest national park. Backpacker editor Adam Roy thinks the latest cringeworthy clip is the worst one to enter the oeuvre.
The attack occurred during an organized bear hunt in northern Sweden
The delinquent black bear—who is actually a female—was finally trapped by officials near South Lake Tahoe
There’s been a series of encounters in recent weeks. Research suggests that killing bruins isn’t the best way to prevent attacks.
A hiker found the woman’s body on a popular trail near the national park
During his first wilderness job, a chance encounter with a bear left the wildlife biologist with a profound respect for nature that has endured ever since
The bear attack happened near Bearhole Lake Provincial Park in British Columbia, where most of that country’s grizzlies live
Authorities say the unleashed mutt provoked the bruin, and have closed a popular trail near Asheville
A Montana trucker accidentally ran over the cub on a desolate stretch of road. Then, the mother bear showed up.
Tips and tricks to keeping your food safe and your camp bear-free
Encounters between bruins and campers led the forest service to shutter the areas
Two humongous male grizzly bears square off in one of the craziest, most mesmerizing battles caught on video
Sharing a habitat with bears, wolves, lions, and other big wild animals can be complicated, and not always safe or predictable. Here’s what I know.
Luckily for the bear, a wildlife official arrived and rescued it from the chilly predicament
Data of Sasquatch sightings in a new preprint finds a strong correlation with bear population density
A mother and her one-year-old son died after being mauled in the coastal town of Wales
This bruin’s journey across four states is a reminder that hikers and campers should be extra careful with food and trash
The real story is weirder and sadder than what we saw in the film’s bonkers preview
Two agencies will investigate bringing grizzlies back to the Pacific Northwest
Alone in the wilderness, facing a grizzly that was determined to kill him, Colin Dowler had only one option: fight for his life.
Northwest College teammates Brayden Lowry and Kendell Cummings suffered serious injuries after fighting off an aggressive bruin in Wyoming
On these expert-led trips, you’ll spot the National Park System’s wildest residents, from mysterious wolves to fat bears. Pro tip: the bioluminescent fireflies are pretty cool, too.
Despite being one of the most popular destinations in the U.S., the Smokies make it easy to plan a last-minute trip and avoid crowds year-round. Here’s our definitive guide on what to know before you go, how to make the most of all the park has to offer, and can’t-miss experiences in every season.
Rangers in the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests are asking hikers to be mindful of bears
Lessons learned at camp sometimes do come in handy
Our favorite wildlife competition crowned an aging winner this year, and reminded us that for the chubby bears we love, the stakes will always be high
To live in the small town of Haines, Alaska, is to live with bears, with roughly one brown bear for every nine human residents. Last winter, a local snowboarder woke a hibernating brown bear in the backcountry and was severely injured, furthering tensions between food-stressed bears and anxious local residents. But in most encounters, it’s the bear that ends up dead, prompting the question of what it means to coexist.
Grizzly and black bears have killed five people in North America over the last five months. Is this cause for concern?
Despite warnings, rules, and common sense, tourists in Yellowstone keep approaching bears and bison.
Katmai, in southern Alaska, is one of the few places where you can safely get up close and personal with a brown bear while it’s feeding—a life-list event says our 62 Parks Traveler about the 38th stop on her quest to visit every national park in the U.S.
Mountaineers come to summit this Alaskan park’s namesake 20,310-foot peak, the highest in North America. Our 62 Parks columnist set out on a mountain bike to see the stunning terrain and bountiful wildlife during the 36th stop of her quest to visit every national park in the U.S.
What I learned and how to avoid my mistakes
A recent incident involving a renowned wildlife photographer allegedly baiting foxes at Grand Teton sheds light on a larger issue
A close encounter in the far north offers powerful lessons about how Native people have chosen to live alongside a dangerous predator
Kale Williams’s new book, ‘The Loneliest Polar Bear,’ offers readers an adorable polar bear cub—and a roving, clear-eyed exploration of climate change and how the bears captured the public imagination
A University of Colorado Boulder skier tells the story of a camping trip gone awry
The ursine inhabitants of the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center test dozens of containers each year to see if they're worthy of bear-proof certification
These affordable digs are within driving distance from major cities but feel like far-away escapes
With more than a hundred 11,000-foot peaks, five glaciers, and some 150 alpine lakes, Colorado's most popular park has served as an idyllic backdrop for some of our writer's bigger life moments: it's where he proposed to his wife, where his kids earned their first Junior Ranger badges, and where he said goodbye to someone special. While you'll be among 4.7 million visitors who visit every year, there's something personal to be found here.
Years of underfunding and climate change are increasingly threatening the national park system. From the Everglades in Florida to Glacier in Montana, here are the ones we stand to lose.
My DIY exposure therapy didn't work
From surf cams to Fat Bear Week, live nature feeds inspire adventure and offer a break from reality
Nikita Ovsyanikov has spent decades studying polar bears on a remote Siberian island to better understand their behaviors
As red-rock meccas like Moab, Zion, and Arches become overrun with visitors, our writer wonders if Utah's celebrated Mighty Five ad campaign worked too well—and who gets to decide when a destination is "at capacity."
As one of the northernmost settlements on earth, the Norwegian hamlet of Longyearbyen has become a magnet for adventurous souls looking to start a new life. But when an unsettling crime happened, it brought home a harsh reality: in the modern world, trouble always finds you.
After a breaching humpback nearly landed on Tom Mustill's kayak, the wildlife filmmaker became consumed with trying to understand the massive mammal. The result is PBS's ‘The Whale Detective.’
Featuring fat bears, Pattie Gonia, a very good boy, and more
Everything is easier to understand with visuals
Scientists turn to high-tech solutions to protect a threatened population
After losing his bear spray, Colin Dowler was caught with nothing but a tiny Buck knife
Every year, explore.org calls on its A-team to capture the rotund glory of Katmai National Park’s brown bears
The fight to balance recreation with wildlife is coming to a head
The year's most dramatic story of a bear attack offers potentially lifesaving lessons for anyone venturing into the wild
The clock is winding down. Don't dwell on summer's missed opportunities—make new ones.
Critical habitat for the species could be destroyed
In August, Randy Scott was slapped with a fine and a restraining order against bears for feeding the animal along the Alaska Highway. Jokes about his punishment went viral, but the reality of his actions is far more serious.
The conservation icon talks about the surprising history of grizzlies in America and what comes next
The science is clear, right? Not so fast, according to, well, science.
The official Ursus of fire prevention ought to move from figurehead to spokesbear—and wearing a little Nomex wouldn't hurt either
Regulatory changes to the Endangered Species Act put many, many species at risk—but particularly the cute and cuddly ones
Eight places to (safely) spy on bears—and other big game—in their natural habitat
Want to be an asshole with a hill to die on? Here are some tips and tricks to get you there.
And other funny shit that happens in the woods
The harrowing story of a too-close encounter with a Canadian black bear
Hopefully you don't get charged by a bear in the first place. But in a worst-case scenario, here's what to do.