Barbara Lawlor,  Golden Gate Canyon.   On Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2018, the Gilpin County Sheriff’s Office and the Golden Gate Canyon State Park authorities received a report that a woman walking her dog on Coyote Trail had been attacked by a bear.

Emergency responders met with the woman while GGC rangers closed the trail and searched the area, backed up by a helicopter that hovered over the area.

It turned out to be fake news.

GCSO Information Officer Cherokee Blake reported that although the woman was injured, there was no evidence that it was due to a bear attack.

The park and the trail were reopened later in the evening. The woman has not been identified.

This is the time of year, however that bears are searching for enough food to last them until spring. With the record-breaking September heat and drought, their berry supply has dwindled, and they will be out looking for the shortest route to dinner, which could often involve humans: people on a picnic, campers and residents who are not careful with their trash. There have been no historical reports of bear attacks in the park, but that could change in a minute.

Park rangers warn people that if they come into contact with a lumbering bruin on the prowl for a berry lunch, they should stay calm, don’t run.

Speak softly to let the bear know you are there. Stop. Back away slowly, avoid eye contact and give the bear enough space to leave, to get off the path.

“Stay alert,” warns a bear safety sign. “Other bears or cubs could be in the area.”

If a bear does make aggressive moves towards you, fight back. Growl. Shake a stick. Bears have been known to retreat when people go on the attack.

When you head out into Colorado’s great outdoors, you’re heading into country that’s long been home to black bears. With so many people spending time in bear country, human-bear conflicts are on the rise. So before you go, learn more about how to enjoy the outdoors without creating problems for yourself or these intelligent and resourceful animals.

When people let bears get into food and garbage, the lure of an easy meal can overcome a bear’s natural wariness of people. Once bears learn to follow their super-sensitive noses to camp sites and picnic grounds, they can damage property and even break into cars and campers.

​Black bears are not naturally aggressive, but they are strong, powerful animals. A bear intent on getting a meal can easily injure someone who gets in its way. Every year, bears that have become too comfortable around people have to be destroyed.

Colorado Bears Need Your Help

The Colorado Parks and Wildlife is charged with protecting and preserving our wildlife. Every time we’re forced to destroy a bear, it’s not just the bear that loses. We all lose a little piece of the wildness that makes Colorado so special.

(Originally published in the September 27, 2018, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)