A grizzly seen roaming around Lake Louise forced the closure of an area around the ski hill earlier this week.

Proof, hibernation is coming to an end and more bears will be making their presence felt.

Jill Sawyer with Alberta Environment says it' important hikers remember the rules for staying safe in bear country, like make lots of noise.

"A lot of the encounters that we have, particularly with bears , are around surprising a bear who's maybe focused on a food source, who doesn't realize you're there and then suddenly you're there, and if you're making noise that bear is going to know that you're there and they're going to know it's a human and just get out of the way," she says. "If that's the case then you'll probably never see one when you're out there and that's the goal for us, not just for public safety but from wildlife conservation."

She says restrictions on where people can go when a bear is spotted are as much for the bear's safety as the public's.

Sawyer says another focus for the department this year is making sure people keep their dogs on a leash when  they're out hiking.  There have been encounters with dogs running loose and coming across a bear.