A black bear attacked a couple along the Blue Ridge Parkway./Sam Hobbs via NPS
Editor's note: This story has been updated with new information from park staff. You can find the update here.
A black bear, possible aggravated by a barking dog that was off leash, inflicted minor injuries on a couple that was enjoying a picnic near the Folk Art Center along the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Parkway officials, who instituted several closures along the ridgeline park in a bid to prevent additional attacks, were trying to track the black bear. If caught, it would be euthanized, a park release said.
The attack happened Wednesday evening. According to the release, the unidentified couple was alerted to the bear's presence by their dog, which ran towards the animal while barking.
"Likely aggravated by the dog, the bear acted defensively toward the dog and the couple," the release said. "Over the next several minutes, there were repeated attacks by the bear while the couple retreated with their dog to the safety of their vehicle.
The couple, whose injuries were not detailed, then drove to an area hospital where they were treated and released.
Area closures that were instituted following the incident included:
- The Mountains to the Sea Trail from the intersection with the parkway visitor center Loop Trail near milepost 384 to Riceville Road Bridge at milepost 382.
- The Folk Art Center Nature Loop Trail and all trails accessed off of Bull Mountain Road.
- Picnicking was also prohibited between the Asheville Visitor Center and adjacent parking areas near parkway milepost 384 to the Haw Creek Overlook near milepost 380.
Park staff was working with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission staff to capture the bear, and was conducting foot patrols in the immediate area of the attack.
"If the offending bear is captured and positively identified, officials will humanly euthanize the animal per park and NCWRC protocol," the release said.
Park staff reminds visitors that fall on the Blue Ridge Parkway is a key feeding period for bears, as they try to add calories before winter hibernation. Visitors need to practice proper food storage, keeping pets leashed, and viewing wildlife from a distance, the park release said.
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Comments
Why is the bear guilty?
The bear was scared.
It's heartbreaking to think the bear will be killed for being a bear!!!
You're anthropomorphizing the bear. It's neither guilty nor innocent. A scared American black bear almost always runs away when it senses the opportunity to do so. They don't seek revenge. The behavior that this bear performed may even have been a result of conditioning as a result of previous interactions with dogs or bears. However, various wildlife authorities have to consider whether or not it is DANGEROUS and then make a call as to what's reasonable considering the public safety aspect.
Again - it is an American black bear. The kind of behavior where it would come back to confront people rather than cut and run is not a bear being a bear. That's signs of predatory behavior.
QUOTE: "Fall is one of the busiest times on the parkway for humans as millions travel the scenic byway that passes directly through Asheville to view the fall foliage. The parkway is the most visited unit of the National Park Service, with 14.1 million visitors in 2020." Comment: If I'm not mistaken, this is a highly publicized tourist destination; the NPS has roadside advertising for PICNIC areas along the stretch of parkway in addition to rest stops and hiking trails, then signs that say: "Practice Proper Food Storage" Why are PICNIC tables advertised along the parkway if the government is warning us to practice "Proper Food Storage" during a picnic. Is that possible when a bear's sense of smell is supposed to be 10 times that of a blood hound? Entrapment? I'm so tired of the Gov't putting the blame for bear maulings on humans. Okay. So take away the picnic areas and be done. Post signs along the parkway, "NO STOPPING! STAY IN YOUR CAR. DO NOT TAKE PHOTOS OF THE LOVELY SCENERY. DO NOT USE PUBLIC REST ROOMS ALONG THE PARKWAY, YOU COULD BE MAULED BY A BEAR!" The NPS needs to reread their stringent park rules while enticing the public if we are in so much danger from bears. Ahem, they are our National Parks to use and enjoy not the government's. There is something called thinning the herd and bear population has reached the point.
It's a little bit more complicated than that. Proper food storage is supposed to be more about not rewarding bears when they manage to be successful. Being successful at scoring a meal tends to reinforce the behavior. Where there are large populations of bears near large populations of humans, there may be specific recommendations or requirements for handling garbage pickup, although they rarely approach NPS or Forest Service levels.
That being said, as you noted this is not a typical National Park Service area. It's Asheville. Even if one can employ and enforce rules, that's not going to take care of the majority of the land area where NPS rules don't apply. The bear certainly wouldn't be aware of whether or not it's on NPS or Forest Service land. As far as thinning the herd goes, there is a legal hunt of bears in North Carolina. I've been to other NPS areas where there are bears. At Olympic National Park, I asked about food storage with bears, and a park ranger specifically said that they might have about 6-10 bears in the area but they would absolutely avoid humans because there was legal hunting. Their worries about food storage were more about squirrels and birds.
Here's an interesting article (from an Irish publication no less) from today that specifically addresses bears in an urban envirnment, such as these around Asheville. While previously many believed that being around people might be detrimental to their development, these bears grow up faster and even start having cubs at a younger age. The author does get a few details wrong (like reference to the "US Fire Service" when it's obvious he means the US Forest Service, but it's otherwise a very well researched article.
* "Where there are large populations of bears near large populations of humans, there may be specific recommendations or requirements for handling garbage pickup, although they rarely approach NPS or Forest Service levels."
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* I should like to bring your attention to the fact re we live in a suburban neighborhood of 200 homes on the edge of the Ocala National Forest in Central Florida. A lot of people live here and go through what I'm about to tell you: At this time we have no less than 3-4 black bear sightings Per Day in our neighborhood. One bear who is a regular appears to be a pubiscent female while the rest range from small cubs to their mature mother. Today, the regular visiting bear that had been in our garage a week ago, whom I caught red-handed eating all the Klondike bars out of my fridge-freezer, was in my driveway, back yard and next door today; wandering, scampering all about the neighborhood, and was seen on neighbor's porch last week sitting in a adirondack chair enjoying life here to the fullest; many similar stories every week. We have been in contact with Florida Wildlife Comm., Florida Forest Service and are told repeatedly about proper garbage storage: keeping garbage cans garaged. We have done all they've suggested and now have to keep our garage closed during daylight hours because the bears are going into garages. Also we cannot grow a garden for our own food consumption. We have a pineapple stand of 20+ pineapples yearly and the bear gets a good share. We are feeling like it's all about the bears; we are being forced to give in to bears by giving up all of our outdoor yard time for them. We have no idea what time garbage pick-up is (2 days wkly) and are supposed to leave our cans out by the road unsecured, in a designated arrangement so the truck's mechanical arm can easily lift the cans without a driver exiting the truck. Many times during a day neighborhood garbage is scattered all over the streets and yards. Are we supposed to sit out by our garbage cans (((ALL DAY)) waiting for garbage pick-up guarding the cans?? I would add we have ordered a bear-proof garbage can from the county for $40....months ago. We can buy the cans on open market for approx.. $200.. I would also add that the bear-proof cans are not. They operate on gravity as when inverted the hidden latch drops and the lid opens; garbage trucks with auto-arm picks up can, inverts same to dump contents and lids opens. Ha, when the bear turns over the bear proof can or gets it upside down he now knows how to open it. The latch drops and if he turns the can over on it's side.....it's opens! 50 pts for bear- 0 for human.
If anyone has a story how this scenario works in an HOA subdivision or otherwise near the forests, please let us know and keep thd subject going.
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Open season for bear hunting in Florida was in effect a short time a few years back and NPS/FWC/Fla.Forest Serv., needs to get it going again
It hasn't gotten to the point where I see black bears back in my yard. I heard they were pretty common about 120 years ago. I mean - we have places like Bear Creek Road and Grizzly Peak Blvd, which were named when there were bears here. We are hearing more reports of bears on the outer fringes of the San Francisco Bay Area such as the northern edges of Marin, Sonoma, and Napa Counties. Point Reyes National Seashore has occasional bear sightings, although it's not exactly prime bear habitat.
I'm quite familiar with Lake Tahoe, which supposedly has some of the densest black bear populations in the country, and where a bear walking into a supermarket happens from time to time. The Bear League has recommendations for how to keep bears out. I heard one was to use Pine Sol in garbage.
http://www.savebears.org/info/buggedBothersomeBear2.html
Their biggest problem there is dealing with various jurisdictions. I think there are maybe 5 counties, two states, different agencies, and the big behemoth being the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit of the US Forest Service, where parts of several national forests converge on Lake Tahoe. I read about garbage collection rules in Incline Village, Nevada, where they request that garbage isn't left out until just about time for collection. They allow for the use of bear resistant cans, although I think some are just screw top cans that have to be manually screwed off. I've heard of cans in the style that are used by mechanical lifters, with with a locking mechanism that has to be undone first. Possibly the toughest would be just ordinary trash cans in a bear-proof enclosure similar to NPS style trash receptacles and campground bear boxes. It's really more like a tall bear box that can accept one or more trash cans. There are several companies that sell these, such as Bear Saver, Bearguard, Bearicuda, TuffBoxx, and Tahoe Bear Box Company.
https://bearsaver.com/collections/bear-resistant-cart-garage
https://www.bearguardinfo.com
https://www.bearicuda.com/enclosures/garbage_can_storage.php
https://tuffboxx.com
https://bearbox.org/residential/
El Dorado County, California requires the use of an approved outdoor trash enclosure in certain areas near Lake Tahoe. They have a list of approve enclosure manufacturers.