PRESCOTT — Heading up to the pines this fall? Leave the cooler in the car.
The Prescott National Forest has put a forestwide closure order in place that requires visitors to keep food and trash stored in their vehicles or in other wildlife-resistant containers, the forest announced, as reported Monday by The Prescott Times. The order took effect Sept. 29 and applies to all lands within the forest.
Why now
Forest officials say the rule responds to a rise in bear activity. Over the past two summers, bears have increasingly gotten into trash at campgrounds near Groom Creek and around the city of Prescott. In many cases, according to the Forest Service, the bears were drawn to garbage that people left next to receptacles instead of inside them, including at campgrounds and at the historic Groom Creek Schoolhouse.
Under the order, anyone using a forest trash bin must put all refuse inside and close the lid completely.
New bear-resistant gear on the way
The forest is also working to install bear-resistant trash cans and dumpsters at all campgrounds and key day-use areas. The dumpsters are expected to be in place before the busy season opens April 1, 2027, and installation of bear-resistant cans at day-use sites and trailheads will continue through the season, officials said.
The problem with a fed bear
Bears and other animals are attracted to food and anything with a strong scent, including toiletries and hygiene products. When wildlife learn that people are a dependable source of food, they come back again and again, the Forest Service said. As they grow used to humans, they can lose their natural wariness and become dangerous, and wildlife managers often end up having to remove bears that become habituated.
What visitors should do
- Keep food, coolers, pet food and scented items in a closed vehicle or a bear-resistant container whenever you are not actively using them.
- Put all trash inside the dumpster or can, not beside it, and make sure the lid is latched.
- Never feed wildlife or leave food unattended at a campsite or picnic table.
The Arizona Game and Fish Department offers guidance on living and recreating around bears at azgfd.com, and the full Prescott National Forest closure order is posted on the forest’s alerts page at fs.usda.gov/r03/prescott/alerts.
Photo: Bureau of Land Management Arizona (public domain, via Wikimedia Commons). Game-camera image of a black bear on the Agua Fria National Monument, April 2024; not in the Prescott National Forest.