Bear Day 2025!
Bear Day is on Saturday, April 12 from 9am-3pm at the Canmore Nordic Centre.. To coincide with bears’ emergence from their winter dens, Alberta Parks and WildSmart are once again hosting Bear Day at Canmore Nordic Centre Provincial Park’s Day Lodge.
This event is a celebration and welcoming of bears back on the landscape for another year. It’s a great opportunity to learn more about the bears in our area and to refresh your bear safety knowledge and skills so you are prepared for the upcoming season.
Indoor and outdoor activities include bear spray demonstrations, bear safety talks, a bear trapping demonstration, bear awareness hikes (registration required), bear aversive conditioning and monitoring research presentations, kids’ bear storytimes, kids area with make your own bear scat activities, and bear-related booths and displays.
In attendance to chat with you about all things bears will be Alberta Parks Ecologists, Park Rangers and Interpretation staff, Conservation Officers, Fish and Wildlife Officers, Parks Canada Public Outreach, Town of Canmore, Volunteer Wildlife Ambassadors, Keep Wildlife Alive Ambassadors, Bear Monitoring and Aversive Conditioning Volunteers and Stoney Tribal Administration.
This is a FREE family-friendly event! Activities begin at 9:00 am and end at 3:00 pm. In the event of inclement weather, the majority of activities will take place indoors.
Schedule of Events
Program Details
Bear Safety Talks (9:15 am & 2:30 pm - Main Day Lodge Banquet Room upstairs)
Do you know how to behave when you’re in bear country? Join us for a 45-minute talk on how to reduce your risk of encounters with bears and what to do should an encounter occur when recreating in bear country.
Bear Awareness Hike (9:15 am, 10:15 am, 11:15 am, 1:15 pm & 2:15 pm - Register at the welcome table on April 12 to participate in this walk (Max. 20 people per hike))
Join WildSmart for this fun and educational 30-minute walk through bear country (Distance 1km max.) You’ll learn how to use bear spray and how to prepare for a hike in bear habitat. On the trail you’ll practice how to avoid bears and how to handle a variety of different bear encounters with help from the WildSmart bear. This hike is family friendly and children must be accompanied by an adult (Register at the welcome table at the Day Lodge Main Entrance on Bear Day).
Bear Spray Demonstrations (9:15 am, 10:15 am, 11:15 am, 1:00 pm & 2:00 pm - Outside in the stadium area west of the Main Day Lodge)
Bear spray demonstrations with inert bear spray are being offered throughout the day. Come try it out for yourself!
Aversive Conditioning Program Presentation (10:15 am - Main Day Lodge Banquet Room upstairs)
Join John Paczkowski, Ecologist and Human Wildlife Coexistence Team Lead with Alberta Forestry & Parks, for this presentation about the Aversive Conditioning Program in Kananaskis Country (45 mins).
Kids’ Bear Storytime (11:15 am & 1:00 pm - Main Day Lodge Banquet Room upstairs)
Join Laurie Schwartz from Parks Canada Public Outreach to hear the story “A Beary, Berry Good Day”. You will learn about bears, and discover how to help animals stay healthy and wild (30 mins).
Bear Day Official Welcome (12:00 - 12:15 pm - Outside at the bear culvert trap west of the Main Day Lodge)
Join us as we welcome bears back from their long winter sleep.
Bear Trapping Demonstration (12:15 pm - Outside at the bear culvert trap west of the Main Day Lodge)
How does a bear culvert trap work? Why does Alberta Parks want to trap adult female grizzly bears in the Kananaskis Valley? Join Ecologist John Paczkowski and Conservation Officer Melanie Pachkowski at 12:15 pm as they trap a grizzly bear “volunteer” in this ½ hour demonstration.
Grizzly Bear Monitoring Project Presentation (1:45 pm - Main Day Lodge Banquet Room upstairs)
Dr. Dario Fernández-Bellon from fRI Research will present about their Grizzly Bear Monitoring Project (45 mins).
Make your Own Bear Scat for Kids (10:00 am & 2:00 pm - Main Day Lodge)
Learn about what bears eat and make your own bear scat to take home. There will also be more kids activities such as colouring pages, measuring up against different bears, dressing up in bear costumes and more…(1-hour sessions).
Getting Here
Canmore Nordic Centre Provincial Park is located at 1988 Olympic Way immediately west outside of the Town of Canmore, Alberta.
Canmore Nordic Centre Provincial Park is located at 1988 Olympic Way immediately west outside of the Town of Canmore, Alberta. Click for Google Maps link.
A Kananaskis Conservation Pass (KCP) is required to park at the Canmore Nordic Centre.
KCP Passes can be purchased online here or at the Front Desk in the Canmore Nordic Centre Day Lodge.
Please use the following parking map as a reference if arriving by car:
Other info:
Hungry? The Cornerstone Café (located in the Day Lodge) serves hot and cold meals, beverages, and energy snacks! Come try their Bear Day food specials such as:
The Hibernation burger - 6oz Elk and bacon patty with Saskatoon aioli, Caramelized onion, Cheddar cheese, Lettuce and pickles on a Pretzel bun with choice of side Soup, Salad or Fries).
The Lil Hibernation burger - Burger with cheddar cheese, pickles and ketchup on a burger bun with Fries
Teddy Bear cookies.
Pets are not allowed in the Day Lodge (working service dogs permitted)