Europe

[Visited: July 2020]

The moment we read about the possibility to spot bears in Romania, we were adamant to actually see them. When we park the car in Zărnești, a stretched-out town in southern Transylvania, we feel excitement, and the uncertainty that comes with any safari undertaking. Will we actually spot a bear? We will be in the hands of an expert guide who has been working here for decades and, we hope, knows his stuff. He drives us out of town in his 4WD, and when we take a track into a forested valley, we know we are in the right hands. On the way to a cabin where we will hopefully see bears, he tells us about the big mammals. We learn that, while bears were hunted in most parts of Europe, they were protected in Romania, which resulted in the fact that nowadays, Romania has more brown bears than any country in Europe: around 6000.
Our guide tells us about the perception of bears, how their diet is mostly vegetarian, about the complications of local farmers who do not want to lose their livestock to brown bears, who continue to be protected. One of the solutions, actually, is to feed the bears far from the villages and farms, so they do not have to go there to take a goat or even a cow. Bears, which can weight up to 800kg, spend much of their time looking for food. They are content with whatever the forest offers, with the added advantage that it provides shelter for them. When we enter the wooden cabin, with a big glass wall, we are thrilled, sit down on the front row, and wait.We are looking at an opening in the forest, where some food has been laid down. For a minute, I ask myself: what if no bear shows up and we are just watching this open patch in the forest, but then: it happens.
A smaller bear comes in from the left, walks down the slope, does not seem to be overly interested in the food, and walks around in the open space. It is still young and playful, and restless, walking up and down the slope, and then disappearing in the forest again. Not too long thereafter, another brown bear appears, through what seem the wings of a natural theatre. This is an adult male, clearly bigger than the previous one. This bear seems more hungry, walks straight to the food, at times putting his nose up in the sky to scan his surroundings. We are asked to be quiet, not move to much, and certainly not be close to the window. Even though bears mostly use their sense of smell and listening, we do not want to make him suspicious. Instead, we just watch in awe at this mighty beast. As a bonus, the small one appears again, but they seem not to care at all about the other's presence. We are elated, and stay for another hour, listening to more bear stories of our guide. No other bear would walk out on stage, so we decide it is time to go - secretly hoping to spot one on the road back.

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Zărnești bear spotting > Romania > Europe

[Visited: July 2020]

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