Big bear a long way from home taken!

[mkcj]

I just got a call from my taxidermist asking when I would be hunting in Wyoming (he stays at the Wyo motel in Buffalo WY during the gun season taking in mounts) and told me a costumer just brought a bear in that had a WDFW tag in it's ear saying "do not consume until contacting WDFW" so the guy calls them and finds out the bear was caught at a fish hatchery stealing fish and eating bait and was let go outside of Mead WA. Darwin Ingersoll my taxi lives in Oregon city OR and the guy shot the bear about 5 miles from his house if you look at a map that bear crossed the snake, Columbia, and 3 or 4 other river's and who knows how many highways to get to the berry patch it was shot in. I would never think a bear would travel that far and it's a big bear skull measured 20 inch's and 7ft from tip of nose to tail I will try to get so picture's from him

[vandeman17]

That is a damn long trip! Pretty impressive 

[BLUEBULLS]

sounds strange

[boneaddict]

I'm skeptical (along the lines of Bluebulls) but strange things do happen and I hate those that cry foul at everything.  Thats not normal bear behavior though......

[bobcat]

if you look at a map that bear crossed the snake, Columbia, and 3 or 4 other river's and who knows how many highways to get to the berry patch it was shot in.

Unless it only crossed the Snake, and went south into the Blue Mountains and then west, on the south side of the Columbia River.  

[MtnMuley]

One hell of a trek any way you look at it!  Thanks for posting this interesting read.

[GoldTip]

There was a Grizzly killed by an outfitted black bear hunter in Idaho, just N. of McCall I believe that had been originally trapped north of Whitefish, MT.  That happened several years ago if I recall correct.  That bear had travelled a hell of a long ways as well.  So it does happen, this was all confirmed by the two states fish and game.

[cohoho]

I believe it, there was an article several years ago in the Anchorage News.  It was based upon a tagged bear that had a radio tracker attached to it.  It was a garbage bear, so instead of killing it like they normally do with Black Bears up there into garbage, they put that tracking device on it.  Well they dropped it off on the lower Kenai Pennisula which is up to five hours by car and two hours like a crow flys.  Anyhow they tracked it every twenty minutes, it made it's way back to Eagle River, even swan across Cook Inlet.  Dots were laid out on a map to show the bears progress, it was simply cool how far that bear had traveled and it's sense of direction straight back to his garbage cans.  Of course he ate a bullet later that week, but shows how amazingly determined these creatures are...

[Ray]

Awesome

[grundy53]

thats amazing

[Hunter Dug]

I read an article about a Mt. Goat that was track the same way you are explaining about every twenty minutes, it was a transplant from the Goat Rocks, to the Columbia Gorge area up by Blalock Canyon,  Over 3 years the goat crossed the Columbia river three times, then decided he liked the Goat rocks better because he stayed near Mt. Adams for a summer, Mt. Saint Hellens for a summer and on the third year was spotted approximately 1.2 miles form where he was initially trapped.  It hard not to believe that these animals will do whatever it takes to get home after reading that. The article showed a map with dots showing where the goat had been it was amazing.  Ill try to find the article again and post it.