Bears are apparently unclear on the concept of heights; this one apparently jumped off the Old Donner Pass Highway when two cars approached. Amazingly, he lived to tell his bear friends all about it:
Two cars converging on the Old Donner Pass Highway scared a bear who had wandered into the middle of a bridge causing it to jump over the side. The massive animal managed to arrest its fall and sat on a support for the 280-foot-high for a day until animal control darted it, pushed it into an army-surplus nylon net with a pole, and then lowered it to the ground.
Found via Backcountry.com, with more pictures at Snopes.com. Hang on Sloopy…
[tags]bear on bridge[/tags]
I think the real lesson here is that bears aren’t dumb…they’re risk takers!
Like all risk takers, they occasionally get burned.
But, perhaps, this particular bear was simply overburdened with State imposed obligations (alimony perhaps?)and decided to end it all. The State of course, jumps in to ensure that the bear has to continue making payments. It’s cheaper for the State to send out the Game Warden (who have their own pay raise agenda), probably the CHP, and Animal Control to sit on the bridge for a day. Perhaps they brought in the National Guard or some private contractor, to rig up the cargo net the drugged bear was to fall into? While all the time supporting communist China, Wal-Mart, and Harbor Freight. Undoubtably, one of these two stores is where the net was purchased.
This saves the State SO much money in the long term in welfare payments to Mrs. Bear and continues to insure that Mr. Bear lives his life in misery.
I suppose there was some reason ONE of the cars couldn’t have stopped to let the bear cross the damn bridge?
Next time Mr. Bear, consider a huge dose of heroin.
Bastard Mike
Bastard Mike(Quote)
Apparently, there are bears, and then there are EXTREME BEARS. Think this one will sign lucrative MTV contract as a result of this stunt?
Tom Chandler(Quote)