Edited to clarify my statement.

I feel bad for the woman and her family/friends but it will be used as an excuse to kill more bears,
wolves, and cougars. The bear that attacked the woman will be dead very soon.

As for the woman victim, it was surely a terrible way to die. However, the bear was, most likely, just being a grizzly bear. The woman was in the bear’s home environment.

I'll check with some friends in town and see if I can get any more info. I would like to know which trail she was on and how far from town. There are lots of trails so the article is too ambiguous.

When I find out more I'll report back.

Bears are growing in population and the grizzlies seem to be attempting to reclaim some territory in Montana in particular. See, grizzlies evolved in grasslands, not mountains and they are moving back out into their natural habitat, they seem to be fed up with our species.

ETA: I know this is the Wyoming group and 90% of the park is in Wyoming but this happened in Montana outside the park.

Last edited Mon Jul 24, 2023, 07:22 AM - Edit history (1)

And good morning!

The western and northern edges of the park are actually in Montana which means that three of the main entrances are in Montana until you get about two miles inside the park and a little corner in the SW of the park is in Idaho.

The town of West Yellowstone is real sketchy about this kind of news because they fear they might lose five bucks from people been scared off. To the Chamber of Commerce there; anyone or anything that might cause one person with five bucks to not spend it in town is something that should be downplayed to the hilt. They will not tell you, when planning your snowmobile vacation that there isn't any snow and probably won't be during their stay. They would rather people show up and get pissed because they will still spend money while they are there. Tourism is turning into a bad social problem. So they will downplay the dangers of bear country until you get there and then it's more of an invitation to hear a suggestion that you are not safe in bear territory unless you protect yourself in specific ways. It's so stupid and greedy.

But amazingly in some ways... though most of the park is in Wyoming and the fringe in Montana, Montana plays up the park far more aggressively than Wyoming does. But then, the Wyoming entrances aren't as easy to get to. On the east side Cody is an hour east of the park entrance and you have to clear either Chief Joseph Pass or the infamous Beartooth Pas to get to Cooke City to enter there, also in Montana. The other Wyoming entrance is through Jackson Hole and Teton NP to get to the south entrance.

Many people think they are in Wyoming when they are in West Yellowstone.

Yup! And when they were 1st laying out the parks boundaries they grasslands where the elk and
bison would over winter were included but those boundaries were nixed. Oh what could have been.

This issue, sadly, is entirely in my wheelhouse as my last couple jobs were about wildlife and bear safety in this region. Actually, predators were my focus, bears fall in that category.

A grizzly was sighted near Big Timber last week, that's interesting to me. I would love to see them gain more territory but humans won't allow it.

.... the park?

BTW in OH the Bobcat is making a comeback and wouldn't you know there is already
pressure to allow them to be hunted. I almost never hunt* anymore but if people want
to kill things please we have way to many white tailed deer here.

* As a father Sandy Hook really hit me.