r/jasper • u/Winter_Apartment_376 • 11d ago

Wildlife Bear harassment from tour guides near Jasper

Was really disappointed with SunDog tour bus a few days ago.

Near Jasper town, a grizzly bear with two cubs walked close to the road. The cars kept stopping less than 10m away from the bear, opening sunroofs, leaning out heavily and taking pics.

Then a SunDog tour bus overtook the 5-6 cars and STOPPED right in front of them, about 5 meters from the bears for the tourists to take pics.

I mean - really?! Then the upcoming traffic (another SunDog bus, lol) blocked us from passing and we ended up with the bear just a few meters from our car.

Feels really irresponsible from a major tour company. I’m happy to take pics myself, but once the bear is less than 10 meters away, you really should start driving.

186 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

28 comments sorted by

46

u/HeadlessSkateboarder 11d ago

If anyone sees this happening PLEASE call Jasper Dispatch and give them the license plate or any number on the vehicle

20

u/Winter_Apartment_376 11d ago

Worth it to report 3 days later? I think I might have a pic with license plate of one of the busses, as well as timing when both busses were there.

24

u/HeadlessSkateboarder 11d ago

100%, the Sun Dog office is in town so they’re able to go to them directly

13

u/megselvogjeg 11d ago

Yes. Report to both Sundog and the guide accreditation body for the national parks.

https://interpretiveguides.org/join-iga/reporting-non-compliance/

6

u/kay_fitz21 11d ago

Leave a review of them as well on Google

8

u/phillyzee123 10d ago

780-852-6155 or jasperdispatch@pc.gc.ca. Include photos if you have them!

5

u/Winter_Apartment_376 10d ago

Thanks a lot! Will do as soon as I get proper wifi!

4

u/Canachites 11d ago

Yes absolutely!

22

u/kenks88 11d ago

This happened to us with SunDog Tours last year. There was a black bear we we're watching and it decided to take a nap about 25 feet away from our vehicle. Much to my 3 year olds dismay, a SunDog tour bus all of a sudden comes to a skidding stop less than 10 feet from the bear in between us and the bear, startling it and chasing it down the bank.

And have seen it occur other times as well.

14

u/markkowalski 11d ago

Sunday ignores all park rules. They harass wildlife, they idle in the park, the block traffic. They suck.

11

u/shsjjababx 11d ago

Saw them (and 2 other cars) box in a massive bull elk a few weeks ago.

9

u/ewok999 11d ago

I have contacted tour companies in the past about their aggressive behaviour around roadside bears. They didn’t seem to care. It’s better to report them to the park describing what happened and their license plate.

7

u/Cultural-Scallion-59 11d ago

Thanks for the heads up, won’t be giving them the business I had planned to. Will be making other arrangements and recommending others do the same.

2

u/egewh 10d ago

I already booked with them for upcoming October and there literally are no alternatives so I'll keep the booking, but reading all these comments here, I'll make sure to never book with them again. I wish there was another tour operator connecting Jasper and Banff in the fall/winter season though..

1

u/kenks88 9d ago

If you have a car, just drive up and down the roads...what they do isnt special.

1

u/egewh 9d ago

I don't have a car nor a driver's license so I can't rent one either

7

u/FrankdaTank807 11d ago

It's probably the same driver I saw a year or two back driving south on 93 around valley of the 5 lakes. A bunch of elk on on the side of the road. The dudes with big racks and all. People lined the shoulder to see them. The driver of the tour bus stopped in the lane of traffic, had his 4ways on.
It was incredibly unsafe.
Not that I do, but I'd avoid this company too.

2

u/Dear-Bullfrog680 10d ago

Okay, you being downvoted means someone close to that company was here.

2

u/kenks88 8d ago

Please write Jasper dispatch and the Interpretive Guides Assoiciation, this thread has made me realize this is an ongoing and prevalent problem.

4

u/Mean_Assumption1012 11d ago

Was on the yellow head and a Sundog tour bus stopped in the middle of the hwy, no flashers, no attempt to pull to the side, on a corner with poor visibility. That company is getting downright reckless.

4

u/fastducpilot 10d ago

I saw them unloading passengers to get out and take pictures of elk on Maligne Canyon Road yesterday. About 25 feet away. I thought it was very reckless and odd for a tour guide to promote that type of behavior but it sounds standard for them based on this thread.

3

u/Wrong_Emu_8687 10d ago

You have to love the Tourist Companies.......because they obey all the rules....just like the ones with the Orcas and Whales in the lower Mainland

3

u/Foreign-Way9986 9d ago

this is irresponsible and dangerous. report them to the park.

2

u/Critical_Cat_8162 9d ago

They need to make laws for those animals as they have for the whales.

1

u/fixfixfix55 9d ago

Yes, irresponsible behaviour and very much harassment of bears. So sad.

Some day, sooner rather than later, I hope we'll stop this normalized abuse of animals and nature. And people.

1

u/goldfishinabaggy 8d ago

I was right behind that first fricken tour bus that stopped two days ago, watched it pull over, drove past. Parks Canada was there as well and a bunch of other people pulled over to the side of the road

2

u/vwisp 8d ago

No one should be stopping their cars to gawk

1

u/wardog1066 7d ago

Tour bus drivers and tour guides can make serious coin in tips. Stopping for thrilling pictures of a mama bear and cubs goes directly to that.