Black bears are common in Cook County. Photo by Pete Nuij on Unsplash.

By Joe Friedrichs - Boreal Community Media - August 8, 2024

GRAND MARAIS – It happens almost every year. 

Someone sees a black bear in town. A local resident shares something on social media about it. People start to chatter about bears roaming the coolest small town in America. 

And then the bears go away. 

This seemingly annual event kicked off earlier this week with multiple reports of a “large” black bear near 2nd Avenue West and the intersection of 5th Avenue. That’s near the YMCA, the community center, and the local public school, ISD 166. The bear, or another bear, was later spotted down the road stirring up trouble at the dumpster of St. John’s Catholic Church, according to multiple Grand Marais residents who spoke with this reporter. Bears were also observed near Great Expectations Charter School and the law enforcement center during recent days. Other than the dumpster at the church, there were no reports of bears causing trouble. 

“We live in bear country,” said Hudson Ledeen, a conservation officer for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources based in Cook County. “And bears will be bears.”

Indeed. 

During an Aug. 8 interview for this story, Ledeen said there are some basic steps people can take to prevent bears from becoming a problem. Keep food and garbage put away, Ledeen suggested, and this means inside a garage or in the home. Fencing around apple trees and gardens will keep bears moving along, the local CO said, adding that bird feeders and other similar attractants should be put away at this time. 

Black bears are naturally cautious animals that avoid human contact for their safety, according to the DNR, but conflicts between people and bears do happen. In September 2003, Kim Heil-Smith was attacked by a bear at a property on Devil Track Lake in Cook County. According to law enforcement reports, Heil-Smith was talking on the phone when she walked from her home into an attached garage. Waiting outside the door was a sow black bear and her cub. The adult bear bit Heil-Smith’s head, legs, and shoulder, according to reports. Heil-Smith was later treated for multiple puncture wounds that required treatment at the local hospital in Grand Marais.

Black bears, by nature, are wary of people and not normally aggressive, the state agency reports. They are, however, large, powerful and surprisingly fast-moving animals. Anyone who encounters a bear should have healthy respect for it, but, at the same time, do not feel that it is an inherent threat, the DNR states. 

 Bears are found in the woods throughout Cook County. Photo by Joe Friedrichs.

If you have a bear on your property and it seems like it could be a problem, Ledeen suggests making loud noises to scare it away. Putting several stones in a metal pot or saucepan and “clanking it around” is an easy and cheap method that works well, he said. Bear spray is another option, though Ledeen said it’s important for anyone trying this approach to do so with caution, as sometimes people accidentally deploy the canisters on themselves rather than the object they’re intending to, i.e., a bear. For people camping in the recreation park in Grand Marais at this time, Ledeen said people should keep all food inside a locked container or their vehicle. 

“Don’t keep food in your tent,” he said. 

Ledeen said that reports of problem bears are up statewide, including during the first week of August. Berry crops varied this year across the state. For example, officials from the U.S. Forest Service told this reporter on Aug. 8 that bear conflicts with people are down this year in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. This could be the result of a healthy berry crop in the BWCA, though it could also have something to do with new food-storage requirements for the wilderness, according to the Forest Service. All wilderness visitors are now required to use proper food storage practices in the Boundary Waters, the Forest Service announced earlier this year. That means either hanging the pack from a tree or using a bear-proof container.

Referencing what he described as “backyard biology,” Ledeen said the berry crop isn’t “great” across all of Cook County this year. A dry stretch of weather from July through early August, including some extremely warm days with temps at or over 90 degrees, may have had a negative impact on some berry crops despite an abundance of rain in June. Nonetheless, bears are on the move and looking to fatten up before winter. With that in mind, hunters will soon be taking to the woods to prepare for the upcoming bear season. Bear-baiting begins Aug. 16, and the bear-hunting season stretches from Sept. 1 to Oct. 13. 

Meanwhile, bears will continue to roam yards and neighborhoods in and around the Grand Marais area as the summer continues and fall arrives. To live peacefully with bears, the DNR says humans play a part by being responsible for their behavior. The best way to avoid problems with bears is to not attract them in the first place, according to the state agency. Once a bear finds a food source, it will return repeatedly, the DNR reminds people. Bears have an incredible sense of smell, are opportunistic, and are easily attracted to foods or food sources provided by humans, including things like dog food, birdseed, and grease. In 2022, there was a report of a bear guzzling rancid grease from a home off the Gunflint Trail near Creechville. 

“The key is to keep the bears moving along,” Ledeen said. “Don’t have things out for them to get into that will cause a problem.”