Bears I Have Known: A Park Ranger's True Tales from Yellowstone & Glacier National Parks

by Bob Murphy

Book Overview

In this very entertaining book, retired National Park Service ranger Bob Murphy recounts his most memorable experiences with bears in Yellowstone and Glacier national parks. Go behind the scenes as... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1931832641
• ISBN13: 9781931832649
• Release Date: April 2006
• Publisher: Riverbend
• Length: 112 Pages
• Weight: 0.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

A MUST for former Yellowstone employees

My wife and I met in Yellowstone 49 years ago, and have read many books about the Park and its bears. This book also deals with other National Parks, but is a must-read for anyone who has lived or worked in bear country.

Not what I expected........

Well, this book should be titled "Bears I Have Shot." It is a fascinating look at an era gone by. It is honest, unapologetic and real. As I learned, however, it is not a book to buy to read to your kids on the way home from Yellowstone. What I thought would be a book of interesting bear tales ended up being detailed accounts of how and where (on their bodies) bears were shot, how long it took them to drop and how quickly the blood was was cleaned up before the guests saw it. In all fairness to the author who has a great pedigree of service, this is just how things were back then. Complete with accounts of shooting grizzlies to be stuffed for exhibits, (at the time this was viewed as being educational), to accounts of shooting bears who managed to get themselves into bad situations, these are sad stories except for the few that got away. The book has its place, the tales are a bit dry and brittle, but they provide insight into the past. There is no extraordinary insight into bear behavior but this book provides an opportunity to see human attitudes towards wildlife as well as attitudes of the Nation Park Service. It is an educational read, but not an enjoyable one.