Grizzly Country

Return To: The American Grizzly Bear

Return To: Carnivora - Grizzly Bears

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This page contains photographs of grizzly bears from Katmai National Park, the Alaska/Chilkat National Bald Eagle Preserve, Glacier National Park, and Yellowstone National Park.  With the exception of Diver (below), who is a veteran of Brooks Falls in Katmai, all the names associated with these grizzly bears are strictly personal.  I visited Katmai in August 1996.  There are few controls on visitation (unlike McNeil River).   Hopefully, McNeil-type regulations will be implemented before a serious tourist/grizzly incident occurs.

Diver

When I am in grizzly country, I have a feeling of wholeness.  The world seems as it was meant to be.  It’s sad that so many Americans have no need for wild places.  Grizzly country is shrinking.   Yes, there is talk of the return of the grizzly bear to the Bitterroots.  Yet, there is also talk of the disappearance of grizzlies from the Selkirks, the Cabinet-Yaak, and the North Cascades.  Where are the descendants of the grizzlies that Enos Mills lived with around what is now Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado?  The California Grizzly?

I have been lucky enough to see many grizzly bears in the wild.  Discovering a sign on a trail--scat or a track--is exhilarating. Catching a glimpse of a grizzly bear is an experience that will never be forgotten.  On May 25, 1998, I photographed this grizzly bear family (below) on Going to the Sun Road in Glacier National Park--a potentially dangerous situation for these grizzlies.  

Françoise and I watched this beautiful four-year old female grizzly (below) for two hours at Yellowstone Lake on May 24, 1997.  She was digging pocket gophers and eventually drew quite a crowd of people.  As she moved closer to the road and the Lake Hotel, Park Rangers threw rocks at her to keep her in place. This was obviously a good food source for her after a harsh Yellowstone winter.  I wonder if she will return in a couple of years with her cubs, or will she get into trouble for encroaching on this "prime human habitat" next to the Lake Hotel and be moved or removed?

Digger

This Chilkat Grizzly came out of the bushes while I was watching a couple of bald eagles in the Alaska-Chilkat National Bald Eagle Preserve north of Haines, Alaska.   In the fall the eagles are counted by the thousands when they are feasting on the Sockeye run.  Alaska and Canada still have a lot of grizzlies, although there are serious threats in many areas (Selkirk Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone).   If grizzly bear habitat is not protected in the lower 48 states, the Alaskan Grizzlies will be the only American Grizzly.

Chilkat Grizzly

The Kid

Canadian Rockies

Banff National Park, Alberta in the Canadian Rockies is an area where grizzly bears face many obstacles. The Trans-Canada Highway and railroad running through the Bow River Valley present significant obstacles to the movement of grizzlies and other wildlife.

The ski area at Lake Louise and other Lake Louise developments areas where grizzlies and humans collide.

Yukon Territory

If you would like to see more photographs of grizzly bears, go to the Grizzly Bear Gallery.

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email: fcoise49@hotmail.com