If, as they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, then the above speaks volumes about an issue which simply won’t go away in our valley.
The sign in the photo is the second one these people would have passed en route to a triathlon event taking place at Quarry Lake in Canmore on Sunday (Aug. 6).
Even assuming some difficulty understanding the wording on the sign, we feel the image makes it pretty clear that dogs are not allowed in the area. Worse yet, these weren’t the only people who ignored ‘No Pets’ signage at the lake on the day.
It’s another illustration of the manner in which people are ignoring signage in our valley. No Pets signs are regularly ignored, as are bear in area signs and trail closure tape. On Monday, in fact, an Outlook staffer spotted a woman with a bike and dog slip under bear closure tape in the Peaks of Grassi.
Again, is all this ignoring of signage simply due to a sense of entitlement? That people feel they have an absolute right to go wherever they please? Do they feel that our municipalities and wildlife managers, for example, are simply out to ensure nobody has fun in the valley? Do they feel a bear attack would only happen to someone else?
It’s simply not enough to pay lip service to living with wildlife; there must be follow-through – by those who live here and those who visit.
Still, not all is darkness … Judging by letters to the editor, more valley residents, Canmore in particular for now, are also questioning the sense of entitlement which allows people to ignore signage.
We’ll also toss a kudo at the Town of Canmore for placing one of its portable LED road signs on Three Sisters Drive warning of this being berry season and that there are area bear closures.
This kind of signage, we feel, could be much more in evidence in bear towns like Banff and Canmore, as well at entrances to Kananaskis Country and our national parks.
