‘Potentially hazardous’: Banff no stop zone to protect bears, visitors

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Hungry grizzly bears and photo-driven visitors have led to the introduction of a no stopping zone for a section of Highway 1A in Banff National Park, with violators potentially facing hefty fines.

Beginning on Friday last week, Parks Canada issued the no stopping zone for a 320-etre stretch of Highway 1A west of Baker Creek and East of Protection Mountain Campground. ‘Stopping is Prohibited’ signs are posted to indicate the affected area.

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Violators could face mandatory court appearances and be handed a fine ranging from $115 to $25,000.

The zone, a temporary restriction, was implemented due to two large male grizzlies that have frequented the area, leading to visitor interest generated by posts on social media, said Charlie McLellan, acting wildlife ecologist in Banff, Yoho, and Kootenay national parks.

“The number of people visiting the site and the location has made it potentially hazardous for both the bear(s) and potentially people as well.”

He noted that the location is adjacent to train tracks, which makes it less ideal to park in the area, and also raises concerns that bears fleeing approaching trains may run toward people stopped on the road.

Parks Canada wildlife staff were witnessing an increased visitor presence, he said.

“Things were seeming to escalate, and it was determined it wasn’t really a safe viewing opportunity for people,” McLellan said. “People were sitting there for hours on end, and we’re getting dozens of vehicles (stopped),”

The zone is meant as a “tool” to mitigate impacts to wildlife and visitors.

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Also playing into the restriction was the potential of bears becoming more habituated to people and vehicles.

McLellan said it’s most likely the bears are in the area because of grain around the train tracks that accumulated during the winter.

“That’s attractive to the bears this time of year because there really isn’t a lot of other rich food sources early in the spring.”

Some large male grizzly bears are out of hibernation earlier in the spring, foraging anything they can until other foods become available, he said.

Although it’s unclear exactly when the no stopping zone will be lifted, it will likely be tied to bear activity in the area as other food sources become available, McLellan said.

“We never like to impact people’s visits, and we respect that a lot of visitors come to see bears. When it’s safe to do so, we like to provide those opportunities.”

Outside of the no stopping zone, McLellan said their viewing guidelines recommend travelling in groups of four or more, staying in a vehicle whenever possible, maintaining a 100 metre distance, and carrying bear spray.

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“Respect closures like this. There’s reasons they’ve been put into place, and that’s for the safety of wildlife — and also people.”

‘These bears need peace and quiet to feed undisturbed’

Nick de Ruyter, WildSmart program director at Canmore’s Biosphere Institute of the Bow Valley, agreed with Parks Canada’s move.

“No stopping zones are very good, and very important,” he said.

With mostly male grizzly bears, and black bears emerging from their dens, de Ruyter said they’re focused on eating this time of year.

“I really think they need to have more of these no stopping zones, or close areas, because these bears need peace and quiet to feed undisturbed.”

“When they have hundreds or thousands of people running up and trying to take pictures, it stresses them out, and could affect how they eat and how they survive the upcoming season,” said de Ruyter.

He said that for places where stopping is allowed, the key thing for visitors is thinking about what is best for the animal, which most importantly means keeping a distance of about 10 school bus lengths.

“You don’t need to go up close, you can take pictures from 100 metres away and still get a good shot.”

The WildSmart program has resources with information about bears and other wildlife, with the goal of helping to teach the community how to safely coexist with wildlife and to reduce negative human-wildlife interactions.

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