Looks who's coming to dinner - Bears in the Catskills

This is a good reminder that there are Eastern Black Bears throughout this Catskills.  This one was checking out the patrons at Selena's Diner in Haines Falls before he headed to the back to check out the very tasty dumpster.

It is rare to come across them in the woods, but some common sense for encounters always makes sense.  If you see a bear you should leave the area.  In all likelihood they will just high tail it the other way.  However in certain circumstances (such as a mother and her cubs), the bears can be aggressive.  In those cases, it's best to remove yourself from the situation as soon as possible and give plenty of room to any bear that you may spot, especially if they are younger cubs.

They tend to be attracted to food smells, so it is best to keep clean campsites and to hang your food if you are in area that is frequented by bears.

Generally though, it is more of a treat to see a bear in the wild than a threat.  You are much more likely to see one in a situation above than you are out on the trails.

For More Information on Catskills Hiking and Outdoors
Check out our Catskill Mountain Information Page for hikes, advice and planning information.  Need a hiking map for the Catskills?  The Trail Conference publishes the Catskills Trails Map Set, which is the best set of maps available for hiking in the Catskills. How about a guidebook?  Both AMC and ADK publish Trail Guides to the Catskill Region