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Delaware Water Gap National Recreation AreaWait for us, Mom! NPS Photo by Andy Milazzo.
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Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area
Black Bears/Los Osos Negros
 
bear in swampy pond

Malcolm Wilbur

A summer dip near Headquarters PA.

Black Bears
The park is home to hundreds of black bears. These bears are smaller than brown bears seen in the West, and they are generally peaceful, but they are still wild animals and can seriously maul and injure people.

If you see a cub, be aware that its mother is probably nearby. Leave the cub alone! Do not approach or annoy any bear, especially a mother or cub. Keep you pet leashed and away from bears.

 
palm of a bear's paw

Don't Kill a Bear!
If you feed a bear, or leave food around for the bear to find, you "teach" the bear to approach people. Bears that approach people can be easily hit by cars or shot by poachers. "Problem bears" that annoy or threaten people must be trapped and removed from the park, or even destroyed.

People feeding bears is also a serious safety problem! If you feed a bear, you can be fined up to $5,000 and jailed for up to 6 months.

 
Prevention
• Don't leave food at a campsite or picnic site; store food in the trunk of a car if possible.
• Clean up all food scraps from your site; don't leave garbage around over-filled garbage cans.
NEVER feed a bear!
A black bear standing at the edge of a snowy cornfield
Safety:
Camping & Black Bears/El Acampar y los Osos Negros
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A colorful handful of round boy scout patches.  

Did You Know?
... that Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area includes lands which once belonged to 5 New Jersey boy scout camps. Private and religious camps also flourished along the riverbanks that are now part of the park at sites such as Turn Farm PA, Coppermine Inn NJ, and Coppermine Hiking Area NJ.
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Last Updated: June 04, 2009 at 13:11 EST