Long Lakers band together to become 'bear aware'

bear education poster — Garrit Clark’s poster provides instructions on how to handle a bear encounter. Photo by Jak Krouse.

Long Lake group strives to educate the public, prevent killings

By Mike Lynch and Jak Krouse

A year ago four bears were killed in the Long Lake area by the state Department of Environmental Conservation. Now, a committee is trying to prevent any more bear deaths in the area.

The state regularly kills bears that are considered dangerous to people. Often, the animals become problematic after they start associating humans with food and lose their fear of them. Bears will also seek things to eat in communities, such as garbage, if there is a scarcity of food in the woods. That can occur during seasons when there are droughts, or down years for berries, beechnuts or acorns.

In 2022, the DEC killed 16 bears in northern New York, compared to two the previous year, the Albany Times Union reported last August.

In response to the local bear killings, a committee formed and put together a petition advocating for bear-proof garbage containers. Members are also working to increase public education about bear safety.

long lake sign — Bear images are featured prominently in Long Lake. Photo by Pete DeMola/Times Union

Long Lake local Joan Collins said the town has the opportunity to be a role model for bear safety for the rest of the park.

“We have the center marker of the Adirondacks on our lake. We’re the heart of the wilderness, and our logo is a black bear.” Collins said. “We don’t want them all shot.”

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Road salt on a bridge — Salt on a bridge. Photo courtesy of Brendan Wiltse

Caleb Davis, petition coordinator for the committee, said last year was a particularly troublesome season for bear conflicts and many people reported the animals entered their homes or property. He said he saw about 10 bears last year, with one breaking a window into his garage to get bone-meal fertilizer.

The committee has received help from local teenagers. Four “Protect Our Bears” posters created by Long Lake high schoolers were unveiled last week at the Long Lake Public Library .

“Be Bear Smart,” said Harrison Hall’s poster. “Carry bear spray and keep pet’s leashed.”

“Be Bear Aware,” said Lilly Vaughn’s poster. “You are in their home now.”

people posing in front of a stone fireplace — Committee members and visitors gathered June 30 under the new “Protect Our Bears” posters now displayed in the Long Lake Public Library until Aug. 18. Visitors talked bear safety and shared their bear stories. Photo by Jak Krouse.

At an event Friday, June 30, to debut the posters everyone had a bear story to tell. “We had a cub go right across the porch last year, and I had one get into the garbage years ago. ” said Sandy Mealy, who has been coming to Long Lake for 40 years. “Take care of your trash and you won’t have any problem.”

Davis said he wants the town to lead by example when it comes to bear safety, whatever form that takes. “We’re okay with backing off and letting the town own the solution,” Davis said. “The purpose of this committee is to make the leaders feel accountable to the people, to the bears, and to the environment. It seems to be taking hold.”

The town has not installed bear-proof garbage containers, but they have been putting out trash cans less frequently as a solution to the problem.

For instance, the town didn’t put out its town beach garbage cans Memorial Day weekend this year and instead set them out mainly for special events, starting with the Fourth of July.

The committee is working with the town to produce educational materials and host events about living with bears. Earlier this summer, state wildlife biologist Jim Stickles spoke about bear issues to an audience of about 30 people at the Long Lake Town Hall.

bear awareness poster — Long Lake Central student Lilly Vaughn’s poster stresses the need for keeping distance from bears and paying attention while hiking. The posters were part of an awareness campaign for better bear safety in Long Lake. Photo by Jak Krouse.

The “Protect the Bear” posters will be up in the library until Aug.18, when DEC bear biologist Lou Berchielli will give another bear presentation at the Long Lake Town Hall. The committee will also be showing the movie “Living with New York State Black Bears” at the library on July 27.

In addition, the town’s summer newspaper will publish an article about living in bear country and how to avoid conflicts. The town is also stepping up its educational efforts on social media and other digital outlets.

“We want to work with the committee and make sure that we’re all coming together,” said Alexandra Roalsvig, Long Lake’s director of Parks, Recreation and Tourism.

She said DEC told her most of the bear problems weren’t in the hamlet, but took place in the state campgrounds.

The DEC has a webpage dedicated to reduce bear-human conflicts for people interested in learning more about the topic.

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