bear vs. vehicle

[knucklehead]

I was taking a friend to the UT med center today (8-31) from wears valley going through townsend and into maryville. in between townsend and maryville, on a 2 lane stretch, we encountered an unfamiliar scene: a bear had gotten hit by a vehicle. We saw the bear lying in the road, about 3 or 4 minutes later, the bear got up, got out of the road and climbed half way up a tree on the river side of the road. One of the biggest bears I've ever seen. any one know more info on incident?

[Kermit]

Yep, saw it this morning on the news......


http://www.wbir.com/news/local/story...=97462&catid=2

[silvercreek]

A couple of years ago a bear got hit on I-40 around Cookeville, TN. Apparently they are making a comeback on the Plateau. Imagine tooling down the interstate when a bear comes out in front of you!

[Rebelsoul]

About 20 years ago or more I saw some game wardens from Ark. with a black bear in a cage in the back of a truck parked on S.Main St. in Dickson Tn.
I went over to talk and they were meeting a couple of game guys from S.C. to transfer the bear so they could release it in S.C.
The guys from Ark. said that their release program had been so sucessful that the bears had made a good comeback.
I've always wondered if the S.C. bears had been becoming plentiful somewhere as a result.
And if the bears were around here in the middle part of TN....heaven help them,we have some of the worst drivers anywhere.

[Stonefly]

We had some posts last summer about a bear that was seen at Betty's on the Caney. I think the conclusion was it had to have traveled from east Tennessee somewhere, don't think there is any population of 'em in middle Tenn.

sb

[Rebelsoul]

There have been several sightings of black bears in Middle Tn. but they have been few and far between.One was on the Nashville news earlier this year.
I have had about 3 friends who were reliable who spotted a bear at different times over 50 years or so....they were guys who I knew were telling the truth.
I have been roaming the woods in backcountry places all my life in Middle Tn. and have never seen anything that could have been a black bear.
It sure makes you wonder how far one would actually roam.

[BlueRaiderFan]

I remember some guys next door hunting black bear in Middle Tennessee when I was a kid back in the mid 70's.

[wm1miller]

Three bears are thought to be at the South Cumberland State Park near Monteagle, TN.
See details at: http://www.friendsofscsra.org/email-...st-15-2009.htm

William

[Grumpy]

They have tried to reintroduce black bears in Big South Fork, hasn't worked to well. A few years back a private contractor hauling bears fro Ark to Mexico figured he could make more money by dumping them west of Nashville

Grumpy

[Carlito]

Originally Posted by Grumpy

They have tried to reintroduce black bears in Big South Fork, hasn't worked to well. A few years back a private contractor hauling bears fro Ark to Mexico figured he could make more money by dumping them west of Nashville

Grumpy

I'd wager those bears in the BSF are about eat up with ticks and chiggers by now!