A few years back the internet in Vancouver almost broke when a black bear made its way into the downtown core, hitching a ride in a truck, being caught, then released back into the wilderness where he belonged (LINK). This past weekend as I was scrolling through Instagram a came across a photo from my friend Cory Ashworth, and for a moment I thought he had simply taken an image of a grizzly bear from the web and posted it for fun. But as it turns out he shot this photo of a bear (below, he sent me the original to use here) while he was a hike on Grouse Mountain. 5 minutes off the gondola, he tells me, shot safely through the fence of the Wildlife Refuge area where they rescue animals and give them a safe place to roam. In their own words it's a "research, education and conservation centre on the mountain" which also offers "leading-edge interpretative programs that make learning about nature fun and fascinating". A 25 minute drive from downtown might be in your best interest this weekend if you want to check this guy and his friends out. Oh, and he's actually yawning here, not roaring!
