On September 29, an encounter took place in Aspen that could have ended very differently.
A tourist from New York, Andy Barrow, was sitting calmly outside with a book when a black bear appeared nearby. The animal did not pass by, but headed straight for the man and came almost right up to him.
Andy decided not to make any sudden movements. He froze with the open book in his hands and tried to behave as calmly as possible.
The bear came closer and spent several seconds thoroughly sniffing him, as if trying to figure out whether this strange, motionless man was of any interest.
The answer, apparently, was no.
The animal turned around and calmly went on its way.
Later, Andy described everything that had happened very simply:
the bear came up, sniffed him and left.
What is especially striking in the video is the man's composure: the book stays open, the reader barely moves, and a large wild animal is right next to him.
There is, however, a perfectly understandable reason for such encounters. In autumn, bears in Colorado are especially active in searching for calorie-rich food before hibernation and may appear near people more often.
What's more, a few days earlier another bear in the same Aspen had already made a name for itself by visiting a farmers' market, where it headed straight for the bread and baked goods.
It seems the local bears have simply divided up the duties:
one checks the bakeries,the other — what the tourists are reading. 😄
