I’ve seen a lot of dumb tourist videos out of Yellowstone National Park in my day… but this one might take the cake.
I regret to inform you that people are still harassing wildlife out there. People being idiotic around wild animals is an epidemic of sorts. It seems as though every time I log in to any of my social media accounts, a video is popping up of someone getting dangerously close to a dangerous animal.
The National Park Service advises tourists to stay 25 yards away from animals that are deemed “non-violent,” like bison, elk, and other creatures that tend to be relatively docile (try telling Carl the flying Yellowstone tourist that bison are docile). When it comes to bears, wolves, and other apex predators, the NPS warns park goers to keep a football-field-distance between them and the animals.
That’s 100 yards, in case there are some non-football-fans out there.
I feel like a broken record recounting those NPS guidelines. Anytime one of these videos goes viral, I try to shout out the messaging that doesn’t seem to be getting through to the masses, despite the best efforts (and plenty of signage) from our national parks. I always throw in that safety info in hopes that my words will reach one of the people that may not be informed on how to act around wild animals.
And then I come across a video like this – where a tourist is running, growling and flexing towards a bear – and I lose all hope.
For some strange reason, tourists at the uberly popular and scenic national park have a knack for putting themselves in harm’s way, which often earns them the nickname of “tourons” (tourist morons). This guy might be the “King of the Tourons,” because I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone so reckless around an animal that could kill them in an instant.
This guy saw a bear on the side of the road, then got out of his car to confront it. That’s the first rule that he broke. Once he exited his vehicle, he was well within the 100 yard buffer zone tourists are supposed to leave between them and dangerous animals. Then he took his stupidity a step further by a) charging the bear, b) flexing on the wild animal and c) growling at it.
All for the ‘Gram, as they say.
While his equally idiotic buddy (or buddies) waited in the car, this guy was literally daring the bear to attack. He’s honestly lucky the bear didn’t, because he was doing everything he could to aggravate the wild animal. It was only when the tourist turned his back to the bear (another no-no) that the apex predator started to charge back.
Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on who you were rooting for), the guy made it back to the safety of his car and miraculously avoided being mauled:
Things could have gone south fast right there. The guy is lucky to live to see another day, and maybe he learned his obvious lesson: never charge an apex predator.
Another way he could learn a lesson? Yellowstone National Park could bring the hammer down on him, and hit him with a federal misdemeanor charge of harassing wildlife. That guy could be subject to thousands of dollars in fines and even jail time if the National Park Service is able to track him down (and they usually can). The NPS says each violation can result in fines totaling upwards of $5,000 and jail sentences as long as six months.
