Tourists Ignore Yellowstone Park Ranger’s Warnings to Take Photos of Grizzly Bear

Tourists were filmed actively ignoring a Yellowstone National Park ranger’s instructions to keep away from a roadside grizzly bear so that they could take photos of the animal.

In footage, that was filmed by travel vloggers Next Trekking Adventure, visitors were seen getting very close to a grizzly bear in Yellowstone National Park so that they could take photos of it — despite a ranger’s repeated warnings for them to keep a distance.

In the video, which was filmed in May but was first reported on by Unofficial Networks this week, a group of tourists encounter a grizzly bear near the road in Yellowstone National Park and resist getting closer for a better shot.

Even after a park ranger instructed them to step back and remain on the road, several people ignored the warning and approached the tree line to take pictures of the animal.

One tourist in a red jacket is seen ignoring the park ranger’s warnings on three different occasions and running away from the road to get a close-up photo of the grizzly bear.

In the clip, another visitor is seen leaving the roadside and venturing to the tree line to take photos of the grizzly bear. The tourist then casually takes a seat in the park to take close-up shots of the grizzly bear on his smartphone.

In a further clip, photographers and tourists are seen taking pictures of the animal as another Yellowstone National Park ranger yells at them to move away from the site.

‘Give Them Room, Use Your Zoom’

Yellowstone National Park guidelines mandate that tourists and photographers stay at least 100 yards from bears and wolves for their own safety as well as the animals.

In cases where that might not be possible, visitors are required to exercise enough common sense to create a safe environment for themselves and the animals.

There have been numerous cases of tourists and photographers getting too close to the animals in Yellowstone National Park.

In May, a Yellowstone National Park guide filmed a photographer who refused to move away as a grizzly bear and her cubs crossed a highway. In the footage, a photographer with a tripod is filmed mere yards from a grizzly bear mom as she attempts to lead her yearling cubs across the road.

Earlier this week, Yellowstone Park officials warned photographers and tourists to stay away from elk during the mating season and to use zoom when taking pictures of the animals. “Give them room, use your zoom,” the National Park Service (NPS) advised in a press release.