Animal Sanctuary

On the bus trip from Seward, where we started our land tour, we stopped at an animal sanctuary on the way to Denali National Park.

The animals in this sanctuary were raised in captivity as orphans from highway accidents or other circumstances where the parent animals had been killed or the animals were injured and needed medical attention to survive.

The bear, infamous "Bad Boy Bernie" was an example of a bear who liked dining in trash cans better than the hard work of beating the bush for grub.  He became a guest of the animal sanctuary for his own protection as well as the safety of the local citizens.

The incidence of bears invading back yards in Anchorage is becoming a significant problem lately and mostly the result of odiferous and highly attractive feasts often found in residential garbage cans.  The bears and other critters were there first and now the invading people appear to lack the talent to manage their garbage properly in the presence of the long-established wild life.