I was surprised to see any bears at all, given how late we got going that morning, arriving at Cades Cove (Great Smoky Mountains National Park) just before noon, but we saw a few, at 3 different locations around the loop. This one was the closest and clearest. I did crop a bit from my 200mm, I wasn’t really that close! The bear was quite unconcerned, but I remained aware of our relative locations at all times.
One of the really nice things about Cades Cove was I saw Park Rangers at every single sighting, keeping people at a reasonable distance and telling them when to move.
Comments
Cropped or not it’s a great shot!!
I won’t even ASK how you got this. WOW :)
wow what a day out you had, fab picture dawn
Thanks all. Yes it was an incredible day with all the animals and scenery there.
Micki, this bear was just at the side of the road!
Fabulous photo! My bear photos end up being dots in the brush, lol. What state was this?
Thank you Stephanie. This was at Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, in TN.
Great shot, he looks like a really big one.
Thanks Marvin. He was big enough, but I have not seen many black bears so I couldn’t say.
I envy you seeing bears in the wild! I’m not even sure I’ve ever seen a bear like this! Great natural capture!
Thank you Krys. This was my first wild bear too.