A black bear trekked 1,000 miles over 6 months to get back to her favorite park after being relocated
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- A female black bear walked over 1,000 miles to return to her favorite park after being relocated.
- She was removed from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee after causing chaos.
- She returned to the Smoky Mountains six months later, but only after crossing through three states.
A female black bear trekked more than 1,000 miles to return to her favorite park.
Approximately six months ago, a female black bear had to be relocated from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The bear had wreaked havoc eating food off picnic tables, stealing bags from walkers, and sniffing through trash cans, local news site WBIR reported.
Prior to being released in her new home, researchers fitted the bear – known as number 609 – with a collar and tracking device to find out more about bears' behavior after relocation.
She was relocated to South Cherokee National Forest in Polk County, Tennessee, less than 150 miles away from her original location. Instead of staying put, however, 609 started moving.
She went on a 1,000-mile journey through Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, before recently returning to her favorite campsite in the Great Smoky Mountains.
Bill Stiver, a wildlife biologist who was tracking 609, told WBIR: "She never slowed down. She just kept on going." "This was definitely one of the most bizarre movements I've seen so far," he added.
Bear 609 was caught on camera wandering through a shopping mall in Georgia, per local news outlet WSB-TV. She attempted to open doors to local businesses and searched through the trash before escaping into nearby woods, according to witnesses.
Stiver noted that witnesses say she was even hit by a car on her adventures but remained unharmed.
Ironically, the bear's odyssey meant she took a pretty gratuitous route to get home. The South Cherokee Park where she was first relocated is less than 150 miles from the Smoky Mountains campsite.
Bear 609 did not complete her six-month journey without attracting the attention of fans far and wide.
Another researcher at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Lisa McInnis, told WBIR that family members sent her photos of the bear walking across their driveway in Anderson, South Carolina.
McInnis told the local news outlet she immediately recognized the animal, adding that "it's a very, very small world."