Rising Sun closes to trap bears

Glacier National Park officials announced Aug. 5 that the Rising Sun Campground would close temporarily because of recent bear incidents.

The upper loop of the campground was closed early Monday morning, and the lower loop was only open to hard-sided camping. As of Tuesday, Aug. 6, the entire campground will be closed to all camping. Campers will be provided an opportunity to relocate to another campground within the Park.

Park officials say a small sub-adult black bear lay down on a corner of a tent that was occupied by sleeping campers early Sunday morning, Aug. 4. The campers awoke and started yelling, and the black bear was seen running away. Iin two other incidents, the same bear is believed to have snatched a pillow from a sleeping camper and gone through some clothing along the lakeshore. There were no injuries.

Park officials believe the bear is not looking for a food reward or has received one but is learning to approach and handle human materials. Park rangers and wildlife managers will conduct aversive conditioning to modify the bear’s behavior.

This will include trapping and tagging the bear and then conducting hazing techniques using bean bags, rubber bullets and/or noise stimulus. These conditioning actions could take a few days to complete.

In addition, a grizzly bear has recently been sighted in the area. The trap for the black bear might trap the grizzly bear instead, so the entire campground will be temporarily closed for visitor and bear safety.

The nightly Rising Sun campground programs will be moved to the St. Mary Campground during the closure. For more information, visit online at http://home.nps.gov/applications/glac/cgstatus/cgstatus.cfm or call 406-888-7800.