Cinder the bear is nowhere near the wildfires burning in Central Washington, Idaho Black Bear Rehabsays.
IBBR got the news from the Department of Fish & Wildlife, which has been tracking Cinder and Kaulana, who was released last month with Cinder.
Some people were concerned about 2-year-old Cinder, who was released after months of rehab for burns suffered in last year's Carlton Complex fire.
The then 18-month-old cub was just 34 pounds, starving, and critically injured. She was discovered crawling on her elbows and knees because extreme heat melted her paws.
Cinder was released last month north of Leavenworth, far from the devastation of the Carlton Complex fire and the Wenatchee area where the Sleepy Hollow fire continues to burn.
Cinder was released with a male bear named Kaulana, a younger, orphaned male she befriended while in Idaho rehab.
"Now for the last couple weeks, this male bear would not leave Cinder's side," Beausoleil said.
Both bears were fitted with tracking devices and late last month, IBBR said via Facebook that Washington Fish and Wildlife reported that after her release, Cinder "made a huge loop" in the forest, covering nearly 27 miles in the weeks after her release.
Kaulana also has explored Washington, but in much shorter distances, they said.
"It appears that they both are comfortable with the habitat, and currently, are not too far from each other," IBBR said.
Koa, a bear that was in rehab with Cinder and Kaulana, was successfully released in Wyoming on June 24.
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