The Grizzly

The Grizzly Bear

Grizzly Bear © Parks Canada

Grizzly bears are more plentiful than black bears in Banff National Park. Most of the backcountry wilderness in the park is subalpine forest, alpine tundra or rock and ice, and is thus more suited to grizzlies than blacks. However, visitors are more likely to see black bears because black bears frequent the low-lying valleys that our park roads run through.

Park grizzlies are currently part of a comprehensive grizzly bear study in the Central Rockies Ecosystem. Over twenty silvertips have been radio collared and are being monitored weekly using telemetry technology.

Visitors hoping to spot a grizzly can drive the Icefields Parkway and the Bow Valley Parkway, but extreme caution should be taken if a bear is encountered. Grizzly bears are unpredictable and have seriously injured tourists in the past -- please stay in your vehicle and give the bear lots of space.