So very sad to hear about Nakoda bear and her cubs being killed on the highway recently.
I was extremely lucky to have spent a few short moments with Nakoda at Lake O’Hara a few years ago.
I have had lots of bear encounters over the years but non as peaceful or memorable as meeting Nakoda. It was amazing to see her in her natural environment away from the roadways.
Nakoda, her cubs, her mom, and sibling bear were all killed on either the highway or train tracks over the past 3-4 years right around the same area.
#Nakoda
Another video of Nakoda, the white grizzly bear, at Lake O’Hara recently.
This was taken just after I first saw her. Once she left I retraced her steps trying to get a photo of her paw prints in the snow. I was surprised to see no sign of her tracks at all and discovered that she was licking up a bunch of little black bugs that were all over the top of the snow. She did not seem to have a care in the world and was causally strolling around licking up all of the bugs she could find. There were thousands of them all over the area. I first noticed the bugs (about the size of a mosquito) when I was getting snow to melt for water. I was being careful at first trying to not get any in the snow I was going to melt, but after I saw her eating them I figured a few left in the pot wouldn’t be so bad…!
On a sad note, Nakoda’s grizzly sister was just hit by a car and killed on the highway last week in the same area where I saw her. Tragic end for a beautiful bear. Apparently her mother was also killed in a similar accident a few years ago. Hoping Nakoda has a long and healthy life away from the roadways and train tracks…!
Noel