A camper shot at a bear today after it reportedly refused to leave a campsite in west Boulder County, but wildlife officials do not believe the animal was injured.

Jennifer Churchill, a spokeswoman with Colorado Parks and Wildlife, said a man and a woman were camping near Ruby Gulch on U.S. Forest Service land today when a bear came to their campsite at around 5:45 a.m.

The campers — who had dogs with them — said the small, “scruffy” bear continued to come back and eat food outside their tent, and they felt threatened. The man then fired a shot with a .308 rifle at the bear to scare it off while it was about 15 yards away.

Churchill said rangers do not believe the bear was hit, as there was no blood trail.

Shooting at bears is not illegal if a person feels threatened, and since the bear did not injure the two campers and was not hit, rangers are not looking for it.

“At this point, we don’t believe the bear is injured so we don’t plan to pursue it and neither the man nor the woman were hurt.” Churchill said.

But Churchill did say the encounter was a reminder for campers to be cautious when in areas where bears are present.

“People need to be sure they are being bear-aware,” Churchill said. “We really need people to not store food in tents or campsites.”

Churchill said campers should keep food tied up in trees at least 100 yards away from their camp and 10 feet up in the air.

For more information on safe camping, visit cpw.state.co.us.

Mitchell Byars: 303-473-1329, byarsm@dailycamera.com or twitter.com/mitchellbyars.