The black bear: a symbol of Minnesota’s wilderness. As a Minnesota RVer who enjoys camping in the great outdoors, it is important to be mindful of what type of wildlife, and in this case bears, you may encounter. Bears are most common in the northern parts of Minnesota, although they have been known to wander into more urban areas.
Conflicts between people and bears have increased as more people build homes and cabins in northern Minnesota. These types of conflicts between bear and human can arise when bears damage personal property, beehives, livestock and even agricultural crops.
The black bears natural source for food are nuts, fish, berries, insects and certain types of vegetation. However, when their natural food sources become scarce, a bear will take advantage of any food they find available and eat anything that might resemble food by its look, smell or even taste. It is when a bear’s desperate search food occurs that they will often come in contact with people.
Reducing Bear Encounters
- Move campsites if there are any signs that a bear has been there recently.
- Never leave food in your tent or outside your RV.
- Use canned or dried foods to minimize the scent of food.
- Store foods out of a bear’s reach, either in a bear safety storage box or by hanging it at least 15 feet off the ground from a
tree limb. - Burn any used napkins or paper towels in your campfire.
- Remove all garbage and any fish or other meat remains from your campsite immediately after use.
People share in the responsibility to avoid conflicts with bears. Learning effective measures to prevent bear problems will help both bears and people. The best way to avoid bear conflicts is to not attract them in the first place. If you would like more information about bear safety, we’d be happy to help!
