Napping Bear Cub

From Cades Cove in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.
It has been a terriffic spring and summer for the bear population in Cades Cove ....
Mom's with 2, 3 and even 4 cubs! This shot from a Mom and three cubs

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Great shot Bob! How close were you?

Thanks Alex ... The "rule" in GSMNP is no closer than 50 yards. Since I am in there all the time (I live 20 minutes away) and have become friends with some of the Rangers ... it was probably around 35 yards.

Great shot... and trust me, there is no way I'd want to be closer than 50 yards from a bear cub unless I could see the mama bear at least 100 yards further away ... and I could run faster than whoever I was with.

Cute shot (I usually hate cute, but in this case, I'll make an exception).

Personally, (and I wish I still had the picture) I have been much closer to a mama bear and two cubs. Back in my college days, working with student publications, I went on a field trip to the NC mountains. I knew I was going to need a wide angle, so I got the photo lab's spare Nikon F and a 20mm lens--first time I had used a 20mm.

So, all the cars are stopped because a bear with cubs is in the road and everyone is gawking. I get out and being cognizant of the need to get a good tightly framed shot, close in (looking through the viewfinder) until I have the bears filling the viewfinder. But my buddies in the car are all yelling at me and I look over my shoulder and ask, "what?"

The reply, "you're too blanking close!"

I turn my head and look over the camera. The mama bear's nose is investigating the lens hood. She looks at me as if she's asking nicely, "got any cookies?"

Yes, I backed away very slowly. Thereafter, I was always aware of the dangers of seeing the world from a 20mm point of view.

Great shot.

Joe

That is too cute, Bob.

It's a very cute shot...well done! I never get to see bears here, only hairy tourists!

Thanks for the kind replies ..... I realize that I am fortunate to live so close to such a great source of wonderful wildlife (and landscape)
opportunities as those found in the GSMNP and east Tennessee.

FPP - I agree, but sometimes you just "have to"

ajosteve - That is somehow very disturbing.

advaitin - Funny story

I have been extremely close to a bear a couple of times, and on each occasion I ended up angry with myself for letting it happen.
I watch a bear and try and make sure that I do not cut off their path, either to cross a road or trail, or to leave a tree and head
down a field.

What has happened in the past is that a previous winner of the "Darwin Award" cuts the bear off trying to get a picture of it with
their cell phone camera! And then I end up in the bear's new path.

This gal ended up about 50 feet away, as you can tell she was not paying any attention to me ..... thankfully.

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Bear Jams and cell phone cameras seem to sumarize Cades Cove. Love the place but some folks just don't have a clue when it comes to wildlife! BTW, cute picture!

Great shots. The cub looks like how I feel about 3:30 every afternoon.

And great story by advaitin. I can just picture it! (no pun intended)

Great shots, when we was there a few months back we got to see a mom and 3 cubs (wonder if it was the same). Everyone stopped in the middle of the road on the loop and jumped out to take shots with cellphones and little p&s cameras and kept getting right in front of the other people trying to get a shot.

What a great image! Form what I've seen of the bear and Whitetail buck images from the Smoky Mountains NP, you guys have a great location to shoot wildlife. See, not all of the good opportunities are over here in the west!

You know more people are killed by Black Bear than Grizzly..... Great Capture..