Be Careful: Another Missoula Bear Sighting

If I was to rate my camping experience - it would be low to non-existent. I've "camped" before but it always involved an RV or a camper to sleep in. I mean, if I'm having a weekend of fun, why would I want to sleep on the ground when there's an invention that lets me sleep on a bed? Plus, running water, a fridge, and electricity.....all the comforts of home. But we were invited to do some camping with friends last month and ended up buying a tent and sleeping out under the stars. And a story like the one I saw today is exactly why I laid there in that tent thinking about all the possible ways I could meet my demise while camping.

This wasn't a legit camping situation. But I feel like it's a bear in a tent - so it still counts with my whole thing above. It seems like every few days there's a story that hits the news of a bear sighting around town. Here's the latest one - a woman was walking on Missoula's Kim Williams Trail when she came face to face face to butt with a bear. An NBC MONTANA article shares Sherene Aun's story of coming upon a black bear that was rummaging through a tent. All she saw was the bear's rear end before it stopped her in her tracks. If it was me..... I probably would have tripped, caused a commotion, and got the bear's attention. But it sounds like she played it cool - checking for cubs and then getting the heck out of there!

It sounds like this isn't the first time this particular bear has been recently spotted. The same article quotes a Wildlife Management Specialist: “It was one of the same bears that was working the University District earlier this summer. We’ve got a lot of bear activity along the edges of town right now.”

It sounds like the bear was attracted to the belongings that were from an illegal camp situation on the trail.

Just be careful when you're out and about with all these bear sightings going on. The NBC MONTANA story was posted to social media and one person posted a comment that said "I have ran into a bear twice on that trail this summer!" Although my favorite comment might have been the one that said "How do you know it wasn't the bear's tent?" Ha!