Fruit pickers had their hands and buckets full on Tuesday, Sept. 3 as Revelstoke's gleaning project gears up for a busy season. 

The project, coordinated through Revelstoke Bear Aware is organized by fruit gleaning coordinator, Goldie Rich. Rich explained that fruit gleaning is an important and proactive tool when it comes to keeping bears in the wild, and out of residents' yards. 

While much of the fruit that was picked on Tuesday was ripe and ready to be eaten, some of it was in the beginning stages of going bad which is an attractant to bears. When the fruit begins to fall on the ground and go bad, it begins to ferment and that fragrant aroma is picked up by bears far and wide, enticing them over for a meal. 

"Lots of people in Revelstoke have trees and love them. They're an awesome source of food...but they are a major bear attract, especially when we don't pick the fruit, and when it lines the ground, it starts to ferment and smell," said Rich.

Rich said that the gleaning project helps connect volunteers with folks who may not be able to pick their fruit trees. 

"Maybe one season you hurt your arm, or you have a family emergency and can't pick your tree, said Rich. 

Last year the gleaning project was able to help 26 properties pick fruit in Revelstoke which resulted in approximately 1,800 pounds of fruit being donated to the local food bank and 1,000 pounds of fruit being donated to farms for livestock and compost. 

Rich also explained that the program does a lot of outreach as well as helps explain to homeowners how to care for their trees. For those who frequently rely on the gleaning project to keep their home bear safe, the program has advised these folks to consider pruning their trees, or to replace them with an alternative tree. 

Those who need assistance with gleaning can reach out to Revelstoke Bear Aware via the or email address, info@revelstokebearaware.org. After the call out has been made the gleaning project sends out an email to its volunteer list and posts on that there is a property that needs to have fruit trees picked. 

Revelstoke Bear Aware is currently looking for a new executive director. More information on this job can be found on their