Since they live right up against a mountain on the edge of Estes Park, Colorado, Chris and Jim Fisherkeller are used to having wildlife around, but a huge black bear’s visit to their front porch at 3 a.m. one morning rattled them.
A few days later, that same bear tried to chomp one of the nine Ring cameras the couple has set up around their property to capture wildlife videos.
Bears Visit In The Wee Hours
Chris Fisherkeller told Cowboy State Daily that she was awakened by some noise at that odd hour Nov. 18, and at first thought it was the wind.
The racket had come from the bear climbing up to the front porch of their house, and she discovered it “standing right by the front door,” she said.
The bear, which she estimates to be about 400 pounds, was standing on all fours just on the other side of the glass door, seemingly trying to figure out how to get in.
“He was not easily dissuaded, and that’s the first time I’ve seen that with a black bear,” she said.
Fisherkeller started pounding on the door, which convinced the bear to back off a little. Then her husband opened the door and shouted at it, and it ambled slowly away.
Wildlife Central
The couple moved to Colorado a few years ago from Illinois and was quickly enchanted by the abundance of wildlife around Estes Park, which sits just outside of Rocky Mountain National Park.
Estes Park is famous for the massive elk herd that takes over the town as they migrate in and out of the national park.
Other species, including black bears and mountain lions, have been pushing into town as well.
The Fisherkellers strictly avoid feeding wildlife and keep their garbage locked up in bear-proof containers.
But loads of animals still show up at their place, so they started setting up Ring cameras around their property to capture wildlife videos.
“We’re right up against a mountain,” she said. “I just have feeling that my driveway used to be a game trail. Animals seem to come down off the mountain and walk right down my driveway.”
And that’s made for some great wildlife images, including video of a trio of mountain lions that showed up in April.
“That’s been interesting,” Fisherkeller said. “We can’t figure out if they are siblings or a mother with cubs that are almost her size. I’ve read that mountain lions can stay with their mother for up to two years.”
They’ve also gotten footage of a bull elk sneezing all over a camera lens.
Fisherkeller frequently posts videos online and is quickly gaining a fanbase.
“People just started going crazy over these Ring videos,” she said.
Bear Tries To Gobble Camera
On Nov. 21, the same bear that had showed up on their porch reappeared, with a slightly smaller companion.
The two bears hung out in the driveway for a while, even engaging in some playful, clumsy wrestling.
“I was wondering what have those bears been into?” Fisherkeller said. “We have some funny brownies in Colorado.”
Later, the big bear walked right up to one of the cameras, sniffed around for a bit, and then apparently tried to eat the camera.
“I had thought that if I ever saw the inside of a bear’s mouth it would be the last thing I’d see on Earth,” Fisherkeller said.
Turns out, the video she captured indicates the bear is healthy.
“I thought, ‘You’ve got really nice teeth,’” she said.
She was baffled as to why the bear had tried to gobble the camera.
Then she remembered that while switching out camera batteries earlier, her husband had put the batteries in the same jacket pocket where he keeps dog treats.
Because bears have such a keen sense of smell, the bear must have thought the camera smelled like a dog treat, she said.
Not Everybody Is Cautious
Despite a couple of close encounters with bears, Fisherkeller said she isn’t afraid of them, just cautiously respectful.
She is glad that unlike Wyoming, Colorado doesn’t have grizzlies.
“I think I would be afraid of them,” she said.
However, not everybody around Estes Park is as careful about not feeding wildlife. Tourists are particularly bad about leaving garbage where bears and other animals can get to it, she said.
And the bears often show up in her back yard, and that of an adjoining neighbor, to eat what they’ve found around town.
“The bears don’t seem to like to eat stuff where they get it,” she said. “My back yard and my neighbor’s back yard are against a mountain. And I think that gives the bears a sense of privacy when they’re eating.”
She doesn’t want to see bears suffer because some people are slobs.
“They say, ‘A fed bear is a dead bear.’ And we don’t want to see a bear get euthanized because of peoples’ behavior,” Fisherkeller said.
She added that her neighbors and friends joke that there could be another reason why the black bears come around.
Her husband is a huge fan of the Chicago Bears football team, and every game day he decks out the house with the team’s swag.
“Our neighbors say this is why the bears feel welcome on our property,” she said.
Contact Mark Heinz at mark@cowboystatedaily.com
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
