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Both conservation officers and RCMP officers went into the area with their guns drawn, as an ambulance waited nearby and a helicopter circled overhead.

Hikers coming off the trail reported seeing the heavy uniformed presence.

“The chopper was watching over us,” Natasha Mazac, a Calgarian who was hiking with four friends.

Her friend Patrick Strihavka said he’s never seen police show up on a hike.

“It’s unnerving,” he said.

They were asked to wait on the trail while the RCMP officers searched the area.

Officers then let them pass and escorted more than a dozen other hikers off the trail, as conservation officers went up with shotguns, during a response that lasted several hours.

“We searched the entire area,” Spiteri said at the trailhead late Sunday. “We had good details on where they saw this bear and where they heard this noise so we basically went in with a number of different teams and we didn’t find anything.”

They were also able to match hikers with all of the vehicles at the two parking spots for the hike.

Spiteri said the area will remain closed to give the bear and her cubs some space.

“Berry season is here,” she said. “In this area, the berry crop has come in and bears are going to be feeding with their heads down, focused on packing on as many pounds and calories as they possibly can through berry season and to carry them into denning season.”

She reminded people hiking in bear country to make noise, keep their pets on a leash, carry bear spray and know how to use it.

cderworiz@postmedia.com

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