Colorado Bears Are Getting Dangerously Close to People in 2026

Southwest Colorado has been a hotbed for bear activity this fall. In South Fork, a bear tore through a camper's tent. Near Durango, a bear climbed through a teenage girl’s bedroom window while she was asleep. Can you imagine?

Colorado has seen a record number of bear encounters in 2026. The two events just described happened days apart, raising a bigger question: Why are bears getting so close to people this fall?

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Two Very Different Bear Encounters Happened Within Days

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While South Fork and Durango are both along the Highway 160 corridor, these bear encounters happened in two completely different places. On September 11, a woman at Park Creek Campground was bitten by a bear through her tent. Then, two days later, a bear entered a Durango home through a window and injured a sleeping girl.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife thinks the campground encounter caught the bear by surprise (rather than it being an act of aggression). The bear in Durango apparently entered more than one home.

The Question Isn't Just Why Bears Are Attacking, It's Why They're Coming So Close

Bears do not need to be aggressive to be dangerous when they lose their natural wariness of people. CPW’s research around Durango is taking a closer look at how bears use urban areas and whether human food is changing behavior. Colorado Parks and Wildlife says garbage, pet food, fruit trees, campsites, and other easy food sources are all a big part of fall hyperphagia.

2026 Has Given Colorado Bears a Tougher Food Hunt

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Read More: What It Looks And Sounds Like to Get Attacked by a Grizzly Bear

Colorado Parks and Wildlife reports that bears are breaking all the rules largely due to the severe drought. It reduces available food and contributes to more conflicts between bears and people. The fall feeding season combined with dry conditions are two important details to pay attention to. Bears are spending all their time searching for calories before winter. Some of them are finding easier meals closer to people.