WANNASKA, Minn. – A bear hibernating in a culvert under a road woke up a little woozy, as bears tend to do a few times every winter just to stretch, and found he was iced in. The culvert had filled with melting snow and frozen. Witnesses heard the trapped bear in distress and called game wardens. They used a long pole to tranquilize the bear. Then it took all four of them 10 minutes — big, husky guys all pulling together — to drag the bear out. The bear was estimated at 375 pounds, maybe 400, and probably was six years old.. The wardens took he bear to a state game sanctuary to continue hibernating, this time in a dry place, probably for another six weeks. This was about 20 miles from the Canada border.
