Buffaloberry season prompts bear warning across all of Kananaskis, Bow Valley

A stock photo fo a Black Bear. (Photo by Chen Te/Pexels)

An increase in bear sightings and encounters has prompted a bear warning for the entirety of Kananaksis Country and the Bow Valley as of Tuesday (Aug 12). 

With buffaloberry season in full swing, WildSmart program director Nick de Ruyter says an excellent bumper berry crop this year is cause for the increased activity, leading to more encounters. 

“All provincial parks and protected areas in Kananaskis have seen an increase in bear sightings in day use areas, campgrounds, trails and along roadways. There has also been an increase in reported close encounters with both black bears and grizzly bears,” said an Alberta Parks advisory. 

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While there are still warnings in place for specific areas such as Galatea trail and Buller Mountain trailhead, people should prepare and expect to see bears anywhere in the Bow Valley. 

“The next few weeks are that really crucial time of year for [bears] to eat as much as possible so they can survive the upcoming winter, so for them it’s go time,” said de Ruyter. 

“Food is the only thing on their mind and because of that they’re not really paying attention to what else is going on around them.” 

Often growing in areas that have seen human disturbance, roadsides, trails, campgrounds, picnic areas and railroads are prime spots for buffaloberries. 

“I think that’s part of the reason why we’re seeing so many encounters is because people are getting too close and either people are trying to sneak past … and then those bears are either bluff charging to say, ‘stay away, you’re getting too close, stay away from my food, stay away from me,’” said de Ruyter.  

Nice weather paired with heavy rains throughout the summer could be a reason for the abundant crop, according to de Ruyter — one that he notes is the first good year in a while. 

While berries are currently ripe in the valley bottom and Canmore area, de Ruyter says the berries will start to fall off within the next week, prompting bears to move to higher elevations as they ripen farther up. 

The season can last until late August or early September, depending on temperatures. 

As bears eat up to 24 hours a day during this time of year, de Ruyter reminds hikers and recreationists to consider checking trail closures and warnings before planning a trip, carrying bear spray, making lots of noise and looking for signs of wildlife, like scat. 

“Just because people want to go for a hike, they shouldn’t be trying to sneak past bears or push them off their food sources. They need to either wait until the bear moves or turn around and go a different way,” said de Ruyter. 

“It’s important that people make noise, but they shouldn’t expect bears to move for them and they should always be expecting potential encounters.”

De Ruyter recommends that every adult in a group carry bear spray in an accessible place and know how to use it and when. 

“ People have used bear spray on a bear that’s just doing its thing, feeding and minding its own business. That’s not appropriate for using bear spray because you’re interrupting a bear from feeding,” he said. 

“However, if you’re hiking, making noise, and the bear sees you and all of a sudden the bear starts charging at you [then], absolutely, that’s an appropriate time to use your bear spray.”

If a bear approaches your picnic area or campsite, this is also an appropriate time to use bear spray in order to teach bears that it’s not OK to approach people at a campsite and seek out food, according to de Ruyter.

Dogs should also be kept on leash, to keep pets, people and wildlife safe. 

 “If people have off-leash dogs and they’re chasing bears away from their important feeding — their berry bushes — that’s not fair for the bears as well,” said de Ruyter. 

“This is such an important time for bears for their survival. They need to be able to eat undisturbed as much as possible, so we need to respect that because we are in their backyard.” 

Closures currently in place across Kananaskis include the Upper Kananaskis Lake Circuit Trail, Bill Milne trail from Kananaskis Village to Mount Kidd RV, Buller Mountain Day Use area and the area South of Gorge Creek trail where a grizzly is feeding on a cow carcass, according to Alberta Parks. 

Visit WildSmart for weekly bear reports, educational videos, current closures and warnings and online resources. 

Please report all bear sightings in Kananaskis Country to 403-591-7755 and all sightings in Banff National Park to 403-762-1470. 

By Leah Pelletier, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Rocky Mountain Outlook