A couple traveling around the United States have gone viral for showcasing a shocking moment involving a bear in a national park.
Elizabeth, 30, is originally from Pennsylvania, but now travels far and wide in a converted school bus with her husband.
With Elizabeth, who only shared her first name, working as a travel nurse, and her husband in site operations “working events across the country,” being constantly on the move suits them both, and they regularly hit the wilderness to take in the beauty of nature.
Recently however, on a trip to Glacier National Park in Montana, the couple captured a stand-off between a bear, a park ranger, and a crowd of tourists.
A bear just visible in the shrubbery, and left, tourists moving away after a warning from the park ranger.
A bear just visible in the shrubbery, and left, tourists moving away after a warning from the park ranger.
Instagram @b_wagonbus
In a video to their Instagram account, @b_wagonbus on July 18, they wrote: “This is why we can’t have nice things,” urging viewers: “You need to hear what the park ranger said.”
The clip, taken from a moving vehicle, shows a glimpse of a bear in shrubbery, with a stern-sounding ranger declaring over a speaker: “Go back to your vehicles right now. You are too close to that bear right now.
“I will get out and give you citations if you do not move now.”
As she speaks, the camera suddenly pans to a group of people, including children, walking back to the road and going towards their cars, as Elizabeth’s husband chuckles: “I like this lady.”
Glacier National Park has over 700 miles of trails for adventurers, and is home to 71 species of mammals, including grizzly bears and black bears, elk, lynx, mountain lions and wolverines.
Grizzly bears spend most of their time in meadows, but can move around to look for food, including in forests and anywhere berry bushes are plentiful, according to the National Park Service.
Elizabeth, who is currently in Deer Lodge, Montana, on their travels, told Newsweek that she and her husband “see this a lot, going to many, many national parks, state parks, or really anywhere.
“People do not have common sense, it’s like I feel like they need to sign waivers in going to national parks, and watch educational videos.”
Instagram viewers agreed, one commenter asking: “They are literally putting their lives at risk for what? A picture?”
“It’s sad she has to put the school yard duty voice on. Gotta make it easy for everyone to follow simple directions,” another said, while one praised the ranger: “Awesome, that needs to be done all the time.”
Another said they were recently at Yellowstone National Park, and “wish this lady was there,” with another agreeing: “This is the kind of instruction people need in the park, sadly.”
Newsweek has contacted Glacier National Park for comment on this story.