‘It was magical’: B.C. woman sees grizzly bear and cubs from balcony

A Big White resident was treated to a rare sight of a grizzly bear and her two cubs over the weekend.

A resident of a ski resort in B.C.’s Okanagan was treated to a rare sight over the weekend.

On Saturday morning, Michelle Smith spotted a mother grizzly bear and two cubs from her balcony, right in the village at Big White.

She watched the cubs play and roll around on the hill while their mom ate grass. After about an hour and a half, a car from a nearby construction site drove through the area and the bears moved into the woods.

“It was magical to watch and to see the babies just instinctively following mum around,” Smith told CTV News. “It was beautiful to watch, absolutely beautiful, but I was glad that I was three levels up on my balcony.”

In her six years of living at Big White, Smith says she’s never seen or heard of grizzly bears entering the town.

She says the community has committed to being noisier in the coming days to encourage the bear family to move somewhere less populated, for the safety of the animals and locals.

“Obviously we’re living in their habitat, but we don’t want them right in the village around people and on the walking paths,” she said.

“I hope that all of the community work together to discourage them, like by keeping all their trash inside, keeping their dogs on leash and staying away from them, just being loud when they’re out and about, that’s my hope. I don’t want anything to happen to them, but I don’t want anything to happen to any humans either.”

The B.C. Conservation Officer Service told CTV News it is monitoring the sow and cubs, and will respond “as necessary” to ensure public safety.

“There have been no reports of aggressive or conflict behaviour. We continue to ask the public to give the bears space and an opportunity to move on,” the agency wrote in a statement.

If you encounter a grizzly bear, WildSafeBC says to stay calm and back away slowly. If the animal approaches, use bear spray, and if it attacks, the organization says the best defense is to lie on your stomach, protect the back your head with your hands and spread your feet slightly apart to avoid getting rolled over.