Camping In Grizzly Alley!
During the early days of the Church, persecuted Christians would be thrown to the lions for entertainment by the Romans. From that, a saying developed about sharing the good news of Jesus first and telling would be followers about the lions later. Kind of a good news / bad news scenario. On our recent RV adventure through Montana we encountered such a place. The town of Dupuyer operates a city park offering free overnight camping. The park offers picnic tables, fire rings, a play area, shade trees, a swimming hole, vault toilets, creek side campsites and more. Plus, it was right off the highway making it a convenient overnight stop for us. The city had me at free, with all the other amenities being the proverbial frosting on the cake.
Upon arriving we reviewed the posted rules for the park (not many) along with standard bear warnings we had seen everywhere else in the state. (stow food, keep a clean camp, etc.) Then we noticed the electric fence along the neighboring property. We found it odd that the neighbors didn’t have any livestock and every other wire of the fence was electrified, not just the top wire like cattle ranchers use. Upon taking a walk that evening we stopped by the community bulletin board finding a “flyer” posted about the grant received to install bear resistant garbage cans and signage in the city park where we are staying. The flyer went on to say Dupuyer Creek, that flowed through the park, was an active grizzly bear corridor and there have been many bear sightings. Wow, now the fence began to make sense, which made we wonder, was the fence there to keep the bears out of the neighbors yard or the tourist contained in the feeding zone?
I think the city council of Dupuyer applied the same wisdom of the Church to attract tourists, “tell them about the free camping first, the bears later!”
Being lured into a grizzly bear den, just another adventure in RVing!
Upon returning home, I did some research and found this article concerning Dupuyer and its bears. They also celebrate Grizzly Day!
Dave Helgeson’s many roles in the RV industry started before he even had a driver’s license. His grandparents and father owned an RV dealership before the term “RV” had been coined, and Dave played a pivotal role in nearly every position of an RV dealership. He and his wife Cheri launched their own RV dealership in the Pacific Northwest. The duo also spent 29 years overseeing regional RV shows. Dave has also served as President of a local chapter of the Recreational Vehicle Dealers Association (RVDA), worked on the board of advisors for the RV Technician Program of a local technical college, and served as a board member of the Manufactured Home and RV Association. Dave’s reputation earned him the title of “The foremost expert on boondocking,” bestowed by RV industry icon, the late Gary Bunzer (The RV Doctor). When he’s not out boondocking, you’ll find Dave in the spotlight at RV shows across the country, giving seminars about all things RVing. He and Cheri currently roam in their fifth travel trailer, with Dave doing all the service, repair and modifications to his own unit.
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