As summer winds down and bears rush to pack on the pounds before hibernation, at least a few ursines have exhibited unusually aggressive behavior.
Director of Bear Smart Durango Bryan Peterson said unprovoked, aggressive behavior is unusual for black bears, but it's not unheard of.
A recent pair of incidents were reported in which bears exhibited this type of behavior, both taking place in the heart of Durango.
"It's not like a trend or anything. ... It just happens," Peterson said Sunday. "It just indicates what can happen if we attract bears into town with food."
On Monday, Durango resident Karen Pittman recounted her recent run-in with a bear.
While exiting the Smiley Building, 1309 East Third Ave., late one night, Pittman heard the familiar click of the door locking behind her.
But another noise also caught her ear. She heard what she described as a "large, huge, primitive, guttural growl."
In an instant, Pittman's life flashed before her eyes as the large black bear lumbered toward her.
"I froze and thought 'I'm so dead,'" Pittman said on Monday. "I just imagined myself being totally mauled to death."
Trapped in the handicapped ramp leading down from the building, she frantically waved the grocery bag she was holding through the air while shouting "Back! Back!" at the bear.
The bear paused and retreated a few steps before lunging forward again.
Still shouting, Pittman dug the keys out of her purse, unlocked the door and rushed inside.
Legs shaking, she placed a call to Peterson to let him know a bear was in the area.
"I think about bears, and I knew running into one was a possibility, but it's not really real until you come face to face with it," Pittman said.
"I foresaw the Herald having the story, 'Bear eats Karen Pittman.'"
Before Pittman's encounter, the bear had been feeding on plums fallen from trees around the building.
Just like bird feeders and unsecured trash, fruit trees are a major attractant, luring bears out of the woods and into town.
Peterson said easy steps can be taken to prevent bears from coming onto someone's property.
"The best thing they can do is get fruit off the trees before it can ripen," he said Sunday. "Be proactive. ... If you don't want bears around, take steps to report (unsecured) trash to law enforcement. That's a huge factor."
In fact, the second incident reported involved two bears digging through a trash can they had knocked over near 29th Street and West Second Avenue.
Durango resident Jayme Varco was walking her dog, Izzy, at about 9:45 p.m. last Thursday. Izzy began to growl as they approached the fallen trash can.
Two bears emerged and charged at Varco. She turned on her head lamp and shined it in the bears' eyes, scaring them away. She said the entire encounter lasted only 10 to 15 seconds.
"I just froze. ... I'd never seen a black bear in my life," Varco said Sunday. "I turned around, and sprinted home as fast as I could, locked my door and shook for probably 30 minutes."
Joe Lewandowski, spokesman with the Colorado Division of Wildlife, said, "We don't advocate that people run away."
People never should approach a bear, but if confronted, Lewandowski suggested yelling at the bear or possibly throwing something at it and making yourself look as big as possible.
"Most of the time, the bear will move on," he said.
Lewandowski said it is impossible to predict bear behavior, as it is of any wild animal.
He cited the August 2009 incident in which 74-year-old Ouray resident Donna Munson was killed and partially eaten by bears. For more than 10 years before the attack, Munson had been feeding bears.
"She wasn't behaving in the smartest fashion," Lewandowski said.
Varco said she now carries a whistle with her when walking at night, along with a can of mace she had before the incident, but she did not have it with her during the encounter.
Despite receiving the scare of a lifetime, Varco has no animosity toward her assailants.
"I hold nothing against them; I think they're beautiful animals," she said. "It's a shame they're coming down to town to find food."
pyoung@ durangoherald.com
