Worthington State Forest

I grew up camping here and it pains me to give them a bad review, and I’m doing it to try and call attention to serious need for improvement: ANIMAL SAFETY! The bear and coyote population have become extremely brazen and accustomed to people.nnLast time I camped there I saw multiple coyotes in the area and heard them yipping and carrying on in the bushes a few meters away from our tent and playing children at neighboring campsites. The kids at the front desk responded with “there are no verified sightings of coyotes in the park” and the rangers are nowhere to be found on a regular basis.nnSame thing with the bears: even 20 years ago you felt a little cheated if you didn’t see a bear once over the course of several weeks of camping, but now there’s a palpable fear of bears in the staff...but they won’t admit there’s a problem. They make it clear that this is the bears’ natural habitat but seem to neglect their responsibility in keeping the people visiting that habit safe. And the bears don’t feel at all threatened, which is a disservice to them because first attack and bears are going to be slaughtered as a matter of policy and also for revenge, on top of someone dying.nnOn top of that, the rangers and staff don’t seem to take issue with people partying loudly in campsites. Years ago you wouldn’t dare bring booze in and last three times there I had to put up with blaring music day and night, next to people who were clearly chugging from a flask. I like partying as much as the next person, but not here. The park needs to do something about it because it is attracting the wrong element.nnMost serious is the animal control issue, and I fear nothing will be done until someone dies a horrific death and animals will be destroyed. Here is a clipping of what happened at another park, to illustrate how this will play out. I hope you take this warning seriously.