- Join for free
- Sign In
I was not lucky to see him (or was I lucky indeed? LOL) but I swear we (my wife and I) have heard him roaring which (I admit) scared the hell out of me, because we were deep in the forest (on the way to the Limo beach) and who could tell how far he was from us... But nevertheless, he seems to be quite nice guy, I have never heard from locals of bear attacks to livestock (there are plenty of sheeps), let alone to humans. But still BE VARY CAUTIOUS. NEVER WANDER IN AREAS WHERE BEAR MIGHT BE AT THAT TIME, REMEMBER - ISLAND IS VERY SMALL, IN JUST A COUPLE OF MINUTES BEAR CAN SURFACE IN OTHER SIDE OF THE ISLAND. HE MAY BE NEXT TO YOU, WATCHING. :) Locals say he is quite curious.
Update - It seems that somewhere in the late 2006/early 2007 this bear returned back to Latvia by sea. So the island is safe until next big brown forest king arrives.
Updated Oct 30, 2007
This ir safe place. There is not even police! :) Nearest policemen, as far as I know, are in Saaremaa.
Actually, potential criminals would find very hard to escape, since island is isolated from the rest of Estonian islands and boat traffic is usually three or four times a week (in summer) and just once a week in cold times of the year.
Written Aug 6, 2006
In late winter 2006 one bear wandered at Latvian coastline (probably, fleeing from hunters in northern Kurzeme (Kurland) region) and suddenly big chunk of ice separated, cutting beast's escape route back to coast. So ice chunk with hapless bear floated far away in the open sea. Border guards (who spotted him from choppers) thought he eventually drowned but - what a surprise - bear managed to survive long journey and landed on Ruhnu beach in the early spring, giving a shock to the inhabitants.
Since that, bear still lives quietly in the forest and does not disturb locals (in summer there are plenty of food for him in the forest without need to get too close to village) but still it's VERY ADVISABLE not to wander far away from village alone. If you are in the forest, make noise (i.e., sing loudly), so bear will not be surprised (which may prompt him to attack) and this gives him time to retire. Local authorities have declared north part of island as restricted area until bear will be caught or shot.
Previous attempts to catch him (using well trained dogs who helped to track down many bears in Norway and Finland - so I was told) flopped, because this bear is "way too smart". When he hears incoming dogs, he runs into the sea, swims a bit and dogs lose trace. Locals all hope that bear will be caught (giving him a shot of sleeping drugs and transferring to one of the mainland's nature parks), instead of killing. Nobody wants him killed.
Written Aug 5, 2006
1 - 3 of 3
Reviews and photos of Ruhnu attractions posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for Ruhnu sightseeing.
In late winter 2006 one bear wandered at Latvian coastline (probably, fleeing from hunters in northern Kurzeme (Kurland) region) and suddenly big chunk of ice...
Our members can help!
1
Like a Robinson Crusoe. Well, partly :)
I've got some interesting experiences in Ruhnu. I'd love to share with you the 7 tips I've written, the 13 photos uploaded, and 0 travelogues I've created.
Build your own Ruhnu page
