Despite having many bear stories, I’m always at a loss to tell one when someone asks me for my best/favorite/coolest/most exciting bear story. The other day, I realized that one of the stories I don’t tell very often is one of my favorites (and involves one of my favorite bears).
One the night of July 4, 2007, I was using radio telemetry to try to catch up to a bear known as Orange 5. As I got closer, I finally caught a glimpse of her in the distance, in an Upper Pines campsite. There was a man in the campsite, standing not more than a few feet from his picnic table, with his back to the picnic table. He was doing something like washing dishes–I don’t remember exactly.
Yes, there was Orange 5 and a man in the same campsite together. Orange 5 put her paws up onto the picnic table bench and nosed around, looking completely at home, completely unconcerned–like she belonged there, like she was the man’s pet. Yet, she was a mere few feet from this man! I remember watching this several-second episode with some surprise. It was surreal. She was just so comfortable so close to this person!
Not finding anything to eat, she went to the next campsite and did the same thing, before I caught up to her and chased her away.
To this day, the man has no idea he had a 200-pound bear a few feet from him in his campsite!
That is how stealthy, quiet, and sneaky Yosemite’s black bears are.
Tales from Yosemite - Jeffrey Trust's Blog 
July 3, 2010 at 9:11 am
I was researching pictures of bears for a piece we hope to sandblast and found your blog.
I just wanted to let you know that I like it. You have a great job!
July 3, 2010 at 1:59 pm
Thanks… yours sounds fun, too!
July 18, 2010 at 9:21 pm
Sneaky bear stories…?
I was backcountry camping along the Lake Superior shore in Michigan’s Porcupine Mountains State Park, I had finished dinner and was cleaning dishes prior to hanging my food (I think it was 1994). I looked back towards the lake and saw a bear sneaking around a shoreline rock outcrop towards me, couldn’t have been more than 50 yards away. First thing I did was get all my stuff, dishes, food bags, etc., in my control. Then I grabbed rocks and started banging them together – the bear ran upslope away from the lake, then stopped and turned. I waited a bit, then made more noise with the rocks and advanced, he ran a bit, then turned around again. This went on for about 15 minutes or so before the bear finally left.
July 22, 2010 at 2:00 pm
Just found your blog (from the Yosemite blog). I will give my bear story.
I was about 8 and our family was in Yellowstone. My parents were talking to some people elsewhere, I was playing around, my sister was melting butter on a campstove for popcorn. It was around dusk.
She left the stove to get something, came back and there was a bear happily licking the butter from the pot. She screamed and ran into our trailer, closing the (screen) door behind her, leaving me to fend for myself. I ran to the car.
After the dust settled, all the butter was gone although it must have been extremely hot! Nothing to a bear.