After the darting, the moving of the bear from the Wild Side encloure up the hill to the workup area, and the workup itself, detailed in previous posts, the still-sleeping bear is carried (rather unceremoniously, you might say) to the waiting cage on one of the officers’ trucks.

The final photo shows the bear in the cage, on the truck that will take him to freedom and his second chance at life in the wild!  It is a bittersweet moment for all of the humans involved.  For the bear it is the beginning of a wonderful new life in the wild habitat where he belongs!

Unfortunately, we do not have any photos of the actual release when the officers reached their destination and opened the cage door.  However, it’s not hard to imagine.  The report from the field was that all 11 of the bears bolted from their cages and ran for the trees in their respective locations.

There were 3 different release sites, and 3 or more bears were released at each site.  If they choose to, they can stay together for a time, perhaps even to den, since they were accustomed to crowding into the various den spots at ABR.

We wish all of them well!