Be On the Look Out for Bears in Colorado

Colorado is synonymous with its wildlife. I'm sure you've seen the ads. Our reputation for an impressive collection of animals within our borders has given the Centennial State a reputation as one of the premiere destinations for fans of the outdoors, and to say it's a well-deserved accolade would be an understatement.

However, if you plan on spending any time outdoors in Colorado right now, take heed: you'd better watch your back, lest you be a human snack for a bear. Whether that bear will be on any kind of drugs really depends on where you see it, but in 2023 it's becoming a bit more likely that you'll run into one of our fuzzier, maul-ier friends.

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According to the Denver Post (beware paywall), human conflicts with bears are up 16% in Colorado. That's quite scary, though they say rates are actually lower on the Front Range, so I guess it's really only scary to the rest of us. Still, any increase in the number of wild animals interacting with the general human population is concerning.

Yes, I did just use a bit of prison terminology to describe society. Why do you ask?

Now, bears are far from the only species of wildlife you might be seeing more of in Colorado, but when it comes to animals I don't want to meet in my day-to-day, they are pretty close to the top. Through sheer size, alone, I'd rather they stay in the woods to do their business, lest I do my own out of fright. Luckily, you're allowed to hunt the bears in Colorado, so if you have a bad experience at the ATM, you can let out your frustration on a wholly unrelated bear.

That last part didn't sound as sinister in my head, but now that I've written it down I see it...