It’s a beautiful sunny day in Banff National Park
And you’ve got an entire smorgasbord in the back of your car
You’ve found the perfect grassy spot for setting up your picnic
Y’got your blanket and your cooler with your goodies all in it
You spread it out before you but before you can eat
Little Timmy yells out, I REALLY HAVE TO PEE
You run to the nearest outhouse, you’ll just be five minutes
But you left out all your food and now the deer are all up in it
A warden scares them off, the deer fade into the pine
And you’re told that feeding animals can be a hefty fine.
You’ve got to put your food away
You’ve got to keep the wildlife safe
Cause all the birds and the squirrels, and the moose and the bears
And the wolves and the deer, and the cougars and the hares
They don’t need it but they want it, so eat it if you got it
And if there’s any left you can give it to your mama
But put your food away!
Let’s look at another scenario, this time you’re out for a walk
Or traipsing up that mountain to the very tippy top
Halfway up you’re feeling hungry, and your legs start to ache
So you plop down on a rock now for a small snack break
You’re surrounded by the forest, there are grey jays in the trees
And a group of fat ground squirrels with eyes that say please
You toss out some trail mix, you think how much could it hurt
As the squirrels wobble forward, bellies dragging through the dirt
But did you know that our food can cause animals disease
These foods are unnatural; it’s making them obese
And too slow to escape from the predators that eat them
So if you love them so much PLEASE DON’T FEED THEM
You’ve got to put your food away
You’ve got to keep the wildlife safe
Cause all the birds and the squirrels, and the moose and the bears
And the wolves and the deer, and the cougars and the hares
They don’t need it but they want it, so eat it if you got it
And if there’s any left you can give it to your mama
But put your food away!
Ok one more time, who here likes to camp?
Do you have a tent or a trailer? Do you rough it or Glamp?
I’m not judging I like them both. But the thing I like the best
Is sitting round the fire with all this food to ingest
Breakfast lunch and dinner all cooked over the fire
You’ve spent the whole day eating now it’s time to retire
You scrape the scraps into the fire pit, and you think that’s OK
And leave the bottles on the table to pick up the next day
But later at night as you snore and you sleep
Along comes a bear who just wants to eat
It’s used to human food its behavior has become brash
It breaks all of the bottles and it digs through the ash
This animal is a problem and dangerous no doubt
And the only way to solve it is to take the bear out
You’ve got to put your food away
You’ve got to keep the wildlife safe
Cause all the birds and the squirrels, and the moose and the bears
And the wolves and the deer, and the cougars and the hares
They don’t need it but they want it, so eat it if you got it
And if there’s any left you can give it to your mama
But put your food away!
So don’t leave it on the table, a cooler’s not good enough
And don’t keep it in your tent with your sleeping bags and stuff
It has to go in a car, or a hard sided trailer
Or most campgrounds have lockers to put your food in for later
And don’t forget your soap and toothpaste, or anything with a smell
And if you’re backcountry camping you can hang your food as well
And I know that you know this, you’ve heard it all before
But to make sure you don’t forget, I’m gonna say it once more
PUT YOUR FOOD AWAY!!!!
You’ve got to put your food away
You’ve got to keep the wildlife safe
Cause all the birds and the squirrels, and the moose and the bears
And the wolves and the deers, and the cougars and the hares
They don’t need it but they want it, so eat it if you got it
And if there’s any left you can give it to your mama
But put your food away!
Cause all the birds and the squirrels, and the moose and the bears
And the wolves and the deer, and the cougars and the hares
They don’t need it but they want it, so eat it if you got it
And if there’s any left you can give it to your mama
But put your food away!
Put it away
And the wolverine and bison, and the raven and the crow
And the magpie and the elk, and the sheep and the goats
PUT IT AWAY!