2009 Event is a Success! - click here to read the article from Apalach/Carrabelle Times 

The Forgotten Coast Black Bear Festival is a one-day, free educational event that is fun for all ages.

Festival highlights include:

• Live music and dance performances
• The Procession of the Species Parade at 1:00.  Join in the celebration!  Be creative!  Plan to participate in your costume or mask with the Carrabelle Boys and Girls Club and Carrabelle CARES.  (no pets and no motorized vehicles)
• Authors’ Corner
• Presentations by bear experts
• Demonstrations on how to retrofit trash cans and other ways residents can co-exist with bears
• A family activity pavilion
• A variety of vendors and exhibits will be on display.

Guided field trips to Tate’s Hell Forest are by bus and include a moderate hike to a site where biologists will provide participants with interactive lessons about bear biology, behavior and management.

Click here to download the 2009 Sponsorship Letter
Click here to download the 2009 Registration and Guidelines for Vendors and Exhibitors

Testimonials from the 2009 Forgotten Coast Black Bear Festival:

News Articles on the 2008 Forgotten Coast Black Bear Festival:

Tallahassee Democrat
Carrabelle & Apalachicola Times

Pictures from the 2008 Forgotten Coast Black Bear Festival

Note: The "bear cape"  is a replica of a Native American ceremonial garment.

For more information contact the Carrabelle Area Chamber of Commerce at 850-697-2585.

Release of the Florida Black Bear cubs

The bear cubs came to Big Bend Wildlife Sanctuary, Inc. on February 3rd weighing 2.0 and 2.5 lbs. There was a wildfire on a plantation near Lloyd on the Aucilla River. Florida Forestry had been called in to assist and one of the Forestry people was on a tractor plowing a line around the fire. His tractor started making a strange noise, so he stopped the tractor and turned it off to see if he could find something wrong. It was then he heard the baby bears screaming. The cubs were about 5 ft. in front of the tractor and he would have run over them had he not stopped. The wildfire was within six or seven feet of the cubs, so the Forestry Employee grabbed his phone, called FWC and received permission to take the cubs. The mother was never seen and probably left at her first whiff of the fire. Four days later, Forestry officials went back to the site of the den and it was nothing but ashes--powdery ashes.

The cubs were raised at Big Bend Wildlife Sanctuary, Inc. this year and were released back to the wild yesterday, December 19th at an undisclosed location not far from where they were born. The smaller of the cubs (who was originally the larger one) weighed 129 lbs while the larger one (originally the smaller) weighed in at 140 lbs. During their stay at the Sanctuary, they had thrived. Volunteers at the Sanctuary would like to take this opportunity to thank all the wonderful folks who gave donations or who brought food for them to eat (it takes a tremendous amount of food to raise a bear!). All the berries, apples, pears, grapes, garbage bags full of Oak leaves and acorns, palmetto berries, heart of palmetto, perssimmons, dates, and all the other fruit and other foods were eaten with relish.

Now that the bears have left for this year, there are still much needed donations of money to buy food for the eagles. If anyone has a used golf cart or ATV in good working order, there is certainly a great need and would be a tax deductible item since BBWS is a 50l (3) (c) tax deductible organization. Big Bend Wildlife Sanctuary stands ready and waiting for the next cubs that need help to grow up in this State where hazzards for Florida Black Bears are many.

Donations:
Your generous donation will be entirely used to support the Big Bend Wildlife Sanctuary in it's mission to rehabilitate animals.

Thank You to our 2009 Partners & Sponsors:


 

Click here to watch Bear Festival video

 
Click here to view other Franklin County Events