Bringing Our Experience To Bear

My coworker and I are talking to a guest about traveling in Yellowstone National Park in November.

Guest: “I think the entrances are all closed.”

Me: *Checking the website.* “Mostly, but you can travel from Gardiner to Cooke City. That road has to stay open year-round.”

Guest: “Good! I want to see bears!”

Coworker: “You might be able to, but they are getting ready to den. There’s no guarantee.”

Guest: “I WILL see bears!”

Coworker & I: “Okaaaaay…”

Guest: “Will I need bear spray?”

Me: “It’s never a bad idea, but if you don’t bring some, you can stay in your car. The camera you showed us has a good zoom.”

Guest: “But I want to get close to them!”

Coworker: “No, you don’t! And the rules are that you have to stay a hundred yards away.”

Guest: “But what if no one is watching?”

Me: “Bears are fast and—”

Guest: “—So am I!

Coworker: “You are not as fast as they are.”

Guest: “Come on! You have bears in town, right?”

Me: “We have black bears, not grizzlies.”

Coworker: “And we still don’t WALK UP TO THEM!”

The guest huffed and headed to her room. My manager cracked up the next morning when I told her. We watched the headlines the next several days but no mention of her.