Bear forces tourists to sing on Baikalsk trail

A group of eight young tourists heading to a strawberry festival in Baikalsk encountered a bear on a popular trail and had to sing to scare it away. This was reported by the Telegram channel «Incident Irkutsk.»

The wild animal climbed a tree on the trail leading to the rock formation Devil«s Finger.

According to participant Lilia, the bear cub unexpectedly jumped out of the ferns and climbed a tree — she only managed to capture that moment on video.

The tourists reported the incident to the Ministry of Emergency Situations (EMERCOM) and a game warden, then proceeded single file along the trail singing songs to scare away the animals — as advised by the rescuers.

It all ended well — the group returned to the city.

Earlier, a bear with two cubs was spotted on the morning of 1 July on the Circum-Baikal Railway in Pribaikalsky National Park. Passengers on a train saw the animals between the 102nd and 103rd kilometers of the railway.

In late May, the Circum-Baikal Railway was closed to tourists due to increased bear activity, with restrictions in place until 11 June.