Darwin Awards Update: Tourists Try To Ride Elk in Oregon Town

It’s a sight most in Wyoming would consider extremely odd: herds of elk lounging around the beach.

That’s what’s happening in the small Oregon coastal town of Cannon Beach, where elk are taking over the beaches, looking completely out of context in the sand and surf.

And as in Yellowstone National Park, Estes Park, Colorado and other places where people and elk are in close proximity, some people behave stupidly, said James Paino, executive director of the local chamber of commerce.

“We have a lot of visitors who just don't think that it (an elk) is a wild animal,” he said. "I’ve seen people try to put their kids on an elk’s back, or walk up and feed them carrots."

The elk could possibly drawn to the beach seeking saltwater therapy for biting pests.