As a health precaution during the pandemic, the traditional Ute Mountain Ute Bear Dance on June 4-7 will be open to members of Ute tribes only.

Participants and audience will be limited to tribal members from the Ute Mountain Ute, White Mesa , Southern Ute and Northern Ute tribes.

Tribal membership cards and proof of COVID vaccination are required to enter the Bear Dance, tribal officials said at a May 26 Tribal Council meeting. Masks are optional.

Checkpoints and security gates in Towaoc will check tribal ID cards and proof of vaccination. Law enforcement will include officers from the Cortez Police Department.

The Bear Dance will be scaled down this year and is limited to the dance events and music only, said Ute Mountain Ute Chairman Manuel Heart. There will be no hand games, softball, powwow or parade.

The community feast for Utes will be at the end of the Bear Dance festival Monday at 3 p.m.

Heart attributed the limited activities and access to the Bear Dance to the coronavirus pandemic and the tribe’s emergency status.

Before the pandemic, portions of the Bear Dance ceremony were open to the general public. In 2020, a shortened Bear Dance was limited to Towaoc members.

The Bear Dance festival is a historic Ute tradition that shows respect for the spirit of the bear, and is a release of tension and a renewal of life.

jmimiaga@the-journal.com