Bear spray on a couple of moose, eh? Thanks to the social media account known as “Tourons of National Parks,” we are always kept up to date on the latest (and dumbest) tourist videos coming out of each and every national park. Stupid knows no bounds, and believe it or not, there always seems to be footage of someone getting too close to a wild animal.
The latest example is this one below out of Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
The Yellowstone tourist town is a beautiful place, especially when it’s covered in snow. Though I suppose it has the potential to get ugly when people trying to take in the beauty of the area cross paths with animals that lay claim to the land. That’s what evidently played out in this video, which shows a man walking on a snow-covered walking trail and being confronted by a pair of moose. They were apparently prepared to face off with a bear, since they were armed with bear spray. And the “touron” wasn’t just armed with the defensive spray… they used it:
“This guy was pissed because he couldn’t do his morning walk because the moose were on the walking trail. We reported him to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.”
To be clear, bear spray should only be used as a last line of defense. It’s be to deployed when someone feels threatened, and by the looks of this video, this guy was just inconvenienced.
The “Tourons of National Parks” page did a good job describing the situation, and how the person would have been better off trying to distance themself from the animals:
“Guy sprays moose with bear spray in Jackson… always be aware of your surroundings and keep your distance from the wild animals! One kick in the head from a moose could knock you out!”
You know what is a real shame?
Rather recently, the Jackson Hole Travel & Tourism Board rolled out a public service announcement trying to inform locals on this very thing. They so aptly put it as “Selfie Control.” That’s the whole theme of Yellowstone National Park tourist town’s initiative to try and cut down on wildlife-human interactions. As they explained on their website:
“We’ve all seen the videos on social media: someone gets too close to a bison for a selfie and the next thing you know, they are on the news with wild-animal-induced injuries. ‘Getting the shot’ is not worth the risk to you or the wildlife, and a little self control can go a long way in Jackson Hole.”
The PSA reminds people that you shouldn’t get closer than 100 yards to a bear or a wolf and that threshold goes down to 25 yards for animals that are considered less dangerous, like bison, elk and moose.. However, Jackson Hole realizes that the National Park Service has sent out that messaging for YEARS, and it still hasn’t done much good… at least for the clueless people that visit.
So Jackson Hole created Instagram filters that presents that same set of rules in a visual sense. Visitors can download the “Selfie Control” filter, which then puts the silhouette of a bison or bear or whatever animal up on the screen. The tool basically helps people visualize how far away they should be, and can even test out distance in real time with this rule:
“If the animal is bigger than the icon, you’re too close.”
Simple as that… safe to say the guy in the above video didn’t get word of this public service announcement.
You can view the travel and tourism board’s official PSA video below:
