Dealing with bears, what's the best thing to do?

[Liquid]

For the first time in all my years of camping, I had a couple of bears visit me in the early hours of the morning. I woke up to a thump...thump...thump...of a bear walking past me as I was sleeping. I instantly knew what it was, and from the thump, that she was very big. She walked right next to me, within a couple of feet. I felt very small.

A minute or so later, I hear two of them eating something....that's where I realized I had f'ed up. I then remembered I forgot to put away a box of cereal breakfast bars. They were really enjoying them, I could tell since I was only a few feet away. Listening to bears eating only a few feet away is quite an experience actually, only separated by a tent, I felt like I was right at the table with them.

I thought, should I shine a flashlight on them to scare them away? Or, make a lot of noise? But, then I thought since I was so close to them, and that they were enjoying a meal, that might be a bad idea. Plus, I didn't want to wake the whole campground up. So, I decided that if they try to get into my truck, I'd try and scare them off. So, I just said ah forget it, my campsite's going to get trashed..and went back to sleep.

When I woke up, to my surprise, they turned out to be thoughtful guests. They didn't trash my campsite, other than knocking a few things around. No damage! Just a missing box of cereal bars and some wrappers lying about.

I spoke to a ranger, and a couple other camper's reported a mother bear and a cub.

So, since it was a mother and a cub, what would have happened if I had tried to scare them off?

I've heard you can bang pots and pans to scare them away, but can you do that if you are only a few feet away from them? I've also heard never to get near a mother bear with her cub.

[Fortyone]

30-06

[chad]

depends on the type of bear. i have black bears all over my property. if i yell at them, they run away. grizzlies, maybe not...

[V10Silver]

If it's brown lay down...(play dead)
If it's black back away...
If it's white kiss your ass goodbye....

NEVER EVER EVER get between a sow and her cub.....your dead

You did the right thing by ignoring them.

[General of Darkness]

:dunno

At least they didn't steal your dreams.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHduCQQYdPk

[Liquid]

NEVER EVER EVER get between a sow and her cub.....your dead

You did the right thing by ignoring them.



Yeah, that's what I thinking. Of course, at the time I didn't know it was a cub. Crazy to think I was within 5 feet of a mother bear and cub eating.

I'm glad I didn't do anything. ;D

[Liquid]

depends on the type of bear. i have black bears all over my property. if i yell at them, they run away. grizzlies, maybe not...


This is black bear county, could you scare them away if they were very close to you? The last thing I'd want, would be to startle one, and then have it attack because of the close proximity.

[Ponce]

A big brown one comes into my yard every year to eat from the apples trees and about three weeks ago a mama bear and two cubs rans across the road about 50 feet infront of me while taking my nightly walk.

[Fortyone]

depends on the type of bear. i have black bears all over my property. if i yell at them, they run away. grizzlies, maybe not...


This is black bear county, could you scare them away if they were very close to you? The last thing I'd want, would be to startle one, and then have it attack because of the close proximity.



word of advice, They will absolutely fuck you up if you startle them or pose a threat to those cubs. Male bears EAT cubs! Females assume anything near them is a threat.

[MNeagle]

Glad to hear you kept your wits & are O.K.

(though I'd never be able to go back to sleep! lol)

[Liquid]

Glad to hear you kept your wits & are O.K.

(though I'd never be able to go back to sleep! lol)


Thanks MNeagle, though, after reading fortyone's post....it's more me being glad I didn't do something stupid! ;D

I'm surprised I was able to fall back asleep, especially since I really had to use the bathroom.

Listening to those bears eat is something I will never forget, they were really enjoying themselves. Little grunts of pleasure and they smacked away.

Going forward, I will hang my food in bear country. I know that, and was just careless. The other thing I regretted, was leaving my can of bear spray in the car. I would have felt better having that in the tent with me. Being trapped in a tent is a powerless feeling.

[chad]

depends on the type of bear. i have black bears all over my property. if i yell at them, they run away. grizzlies, maybe not...


This is black bear county, could you scare them away if they were very close to you? The last thing I'd want, would be to startle one, and then have it attack because of the close proximity.


no, not if they were that close, then they'd probably charge you. i round the path through my woods and encounter them maybe 75 feet away. i yell at them and they take off.

[Liquid]

no, not if they were that close, then they'd probably charge you.


Man, gives me the creeps that I was actually thinking about trying to scare them off...

What a learning experience, for me.

[Desolation LineTrimmer]

A 50 caliber handgun will kill a bear. I camp seldom but if I was out there in bear country regular I would buy a .50 caliber, and keep it beside me in the tent. As it is I sleep in the back of my truck with a .357 next to me. I'm not clear on the benefit of hanging food from a branch. Won't that broadcast the smell, and what is to stop a bear from pulling on the rope?

[hoarder]

The latest wisdom is that the sow and cubs risk is over-rated and that most problem bears are juvenile males. I think female bears have more fear. My 3 bear encounters were with lone bears, sex unknown, but no cubs.
Bear spray is the best defense provided the bear is downwind and provided the equipment works. They are considerably less reliable that firearms. I'd rather have a large handgun that works than bear spray that doesn't work. In a tent I'd rather have a large handgun. You don't have many options trying to spray through a tent.
Rattling a spoon against a tin cup would scare most Black bears away, IMO, unless you do it when they are 5 feet away.

[EE_]

454 casull or 50 cal
http://static.desktopnexus.com/thumbnails/7759-bigthumbnail.jpg

[platinumdude]

This one looks like a nice friendly bear

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Polar_Bear_-_Alaska.jpg

[bellevuebully]

The original question is hard to answer.

Bears in the bush are one thing. Bears being where they are not supposed to be are in a different class altogether, so asking how they are supposed to act when they are not acting like they are supposed to be acting makes it difficult to anticipate how they will or should act. <<<<<if you read that carefully, it actually makes sense. Bears that move into human territory are NOT predictable, period. Had you come out of the tent, the odds were pretty even that she would

-walk away
-run away
-walk toward
-run toward

You probably did the exact right thing by laying low.

[gunDriller]

i was hiking on Mt. Rainier in Wash. state on Saturday (with another ex-GIM'er, actually) and as i was walking down the trail back to the visitor center, there was a group of people standing there watching 2 black bear cubs in a meadow about 75 yards away.

then Mama Bear came out into the open.

http://www.bear.org/website/images/stories/images/images-new/bear_mother_and_cubs_running_away.jpg

Mama Bear just stared at this group of 2 legged creatures. i wonder if could hear all the clicking whirring & chirping sounds from everybody's digital gadgets.

the other GIM'er was resting lower down the mountain and said he saw one bear cub, so he was perhaps even closer to the Mama Bear. he was open-carrying a .45 and i was wondering if we were going to hear it.

i talked to the ranger at the visitor center about the marked lack of huckleberries/ blueberries. last year the mountainside was carpeted with mile after mile of blueberries. this year, nothing. he said there was a very cool spring and so, no blueberries.

which means the bears are walking all over looking for food.

as far as the bears, he said ... not to worry ? there are dozens of trails in a small area, so it's inevitable the baby bears will be on one side of a trail, the mother bear on the other side, with tourists sashaying in between.

anyway, it was nice to see Mother Nature.

[Rebel Yarr]

Yes, we have a huge black bear pop in W WA - I see them all over the place. They really don't want anything to do with humans - letting them know you are a human is the key. Talk loud - yell at the bear - clap your hands raise hands in the air ect.... all fine things to do if you want them to go away. Most the black bears are only 200-250 lbs - maybe peaking out before a big winter in the 300 - 400 lbs zone. 400 would be a rare sight.

The rare case where you put yourself between cubs and momma or piss off a hurt/hungry bear - the worst thing they are going to do to you is false charge/snap at you. Basically sh*tting your pants is the worst you are going to get with a black bear encounter...unless it is rabid or hurt/starving.

Cougars on the other hand - far greater of a chance running into an issue - they are known to stalk people often - however again - rare chance of an issue unless they are rabid/starving...which is usually the case when cougars out in WA attack something. Unsuccessful cougars attacking kids/small adults.

As far as caliber to take down a black bear...some peeps always claim to need a bazooka for personal safety in the woods...12 gauge or .44 on the heavy end is more than enough...most any deer hunting caliber is more than adequate - ammo type is more critical if going for quick drop.

[Awoke]

The latest wisdom is that the sow and cubs risk is over-rated and that most problem bears are juvenile males. I think female bears have more fear. My 3 bear encounters were with lone bears, sex unknown, but no cubs.

This is untrue.
Sow mothers have been know to chase away much bigger boars on a regular basis.
You don;t mess with mother, period. I hunt bear, and I know a lot of bear hunters, and you don't fuck with mama.

Most bears will scare easily, both sows and boars, but not a sow with a cub. They do not scare. They get on the offense immediately.



Liquid, you did the wrong thing by leaving food around. You did the right thing by not spooking them during their feeding. Next time, hang it in a tree 50 yeards away from your sleeping area.
If you were walking through the bush and didn;t want to encounter a bear, make lot's of non-natural noises and they will spook long before they see you. (Whistle, sings, talk, etc)

Last time I was camping I heard a large animal sniffing my tent so loudly it woke both myself and my wife up. We whispered for a few seconds, confirming that we both heard the same sounds, then I let my dog out of the tent.

Whatever the animal was, it was gone by the time I found the zipper and let the dog out, and she didn't chase it.

I figured it was a Moose at first, but when it disappeared without clacking hooves (We were on rocky terrain) I thought it might be a black bear. Chances are good, as we were in bear country.

[kregener]

Do you go camping unarmed?

[hoarder]

Do you go camping unarmed?
Shooting bears is not an easy solution. They are very fast and nothing short of a brain shot will stop them. Shoot one in the heart and it can run 100 yards and kill you before it drops.

[Liquid]

Shooting bears is not an easy solution. They are very fast and nothing short of a brain shot will stop them. Shoot one in the heart and it can run 100 yards and kill you before it drops.


I've done a lot of back country hiking and camping, I do usually take a firearm, but normally take a can of bear spray. I'd rather use bear spray, I've heard it works great and nobody gets hurt. I always hung my food, and never had any problems. I have run across a few bears, but always from a distance.

As Awoke said, I screwed up by leaving food out. I was in a crowded campground, car camping, plenty of folks around and just was careless.

Funny though, I don't regret it at all because it was a cool experience. I'll never forget the sound a bear thumping by a couple feet from my head, how loud and heavy that actually sounded, or the bears eating right there either...enjoying their meal. Pretty cool actually, especially since they were considerate enough not to damage anything in my campsite.

Going forward, I'll make sure to always hang my food, and make sure the campsite is well tended to before sacking out. Also, if bears do come again, just to lay low and let them do their thing. However, keep a firearm and/or bear spray handy in the tent should they get fiesty. :)

[Libertarian_Guard]

Liquid

You've reminded me of the age old advice, that when you're not sure of what course of action to take, it's best to do nothing!

I've got to tell my wife your story. We both love stories about bear encounters. We've only once seen one in the wild, but we were driving in the car and it was running away from us. I backed up the car and stoped about where it ran off and opened the back door, asking my daughter to take a look and see what direction it headed off to. You should have seen the look she gave me!

[JDRock]

....having lived in yellowstone country for most of my life i can tell you,
1. dont trust bear spray

2.there are no predictable rules regarding bear behavior

3.never sleep in a tent, you cant see whats out there even a few inches away....sleep next to a mini mag and a gun.

3.bring ENOUGH gun!

[Awoke]

Do you go camping unarmed?
Shooting bears is not an easy solution. They are very fast and nothing short of a brain shot will stop them. Shoot one in the heart and it can run 100 yards and kill you before it drops.


Sorry Hoarder, I am not trying to pick on you brother, but this is not necessarily true with bear either.

Heart and/or Lung shots will drop a bear anywhere between 8 to 25 yeards usually.
They don't go far with a heart/lung shot. Not like deer, which can run a Kilometer or more.

However, if you are within pistol range of a bear, and shoot it, there is a good chance that it could maul you before it expires, just due to anger and adrenaline alone.

If you hit it unsuspecting and by surprise, it would drop rather quickly.

[Low_five]

The gentlemans course of action when it comes to bear, and the route I partake, is to challenge said bear verbally to spar in the brutal realm of violent fisticuff. Approach the bear and rapidly close with the bear until manual contact is possible. Issue the declaration: "put up your dukes, bear." Skillfully deliver blow upon blow with clenched fist if possible, to the bears most vulnerable points. Footwork may be required to evade counterattack from bear claw or mandibles. Continue the assault until the spirit to fight of the bruin has been vanquished. Should you find yourself leaking in a most profuse manner, a hasty retreat to a waiting slug or cannister type smoothbore firearm is prudent! As previous authors have noted, 30 caliber rifle round of 06 is also suitable, and this author finds himself in agreement. Deliver projectiles in rapid succession to the face of the beast. With any luck, your foe will be defeated and your foodstuffs will remain unmolested.

[Awoke]

The gentlemans course of action when it comes to bear, and the route I partake, is to challenge said bear verbally to spar in the brutal realm of violent fisticuff. Approach the bear and rapidly close with the bear until manual contact is possible. Issue the declaration: "put up your dukes, bear." Skillfully deliver blow upon blow with clenched fist if possible, to the bears most vulnerable points.

Yes.

Punch the bear right in the mouth, with your face and throat.

Then punch it in the claws with your stomach. Then, to finish it off, punch it in the bowels with your semi-digested muscle-tissues.

That'll teach it!

;D

[Libertarian_Guard]

The gentlemans course of action when it comes to bear, and the route I partake, is to challenge said bear verbally to spar in the brutal realm of violent fisticuff. Approach the bear and rapidly close with the bear until manual contact is possible. Issue the declaration: "put up your dukes, bear." Skillfully deliver blow upon blow with clenched fist if possible, to the bears most vulnerable points. Footwork may be required to evade counterattack from bear claw or mandibles. Continue the assault until the spirit to fight of the bruin has been vanquished. Should you find yourself leaking in a most profuse manner, a hasty retreat to a waiting slug or cannister type smoothbore firearm is prudent! As previous authors have noted, 30 caliber rifle round of 06 is also suitable, and this author finds himself in agreement. Deliver projectiles in rapid succession to the face of the beast. With any luck, your foe will be defeated and your foodstuffs will remain unmolested.


Low Five

You almost sound like a Brit.

[kregener]

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game issued this bulletin...

"Warning: In light of the rising frequency of human/grizzly bear conflicts, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game is advising hikers, hunters and fishermen to take extra precautions and keep alert of grizzly bears while in the field.

We advise outdoors men to wear noisy little bells on their clothing, so as not to startle bears that aren't expecting them. We also advise outdoors men to carry pepper spray with them in case of an encounter with a bear.

It is also a good idea to watch out for fresh signs of bear activity. Outdoors men should recognize the difference between black bear and grizzly bear scat: Black bear scat is smaller and contains lots of berries and squirrel fur. Grizzly bear scat has little bells in it and smells like pepper.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rISk6rr7tCM

[uranian]

The gentlemans course of action when it comes to bear, and the route I partake, is to challenge said bear verbally to spar in the brutal realm of violent fisticuff. Approach the bear and rapidly close with the bear until manual contact is possible. Issue the declaration: "put up your dukes, bear." Skillfully deliver blow upon blow with clenched fist if possible, to the bears most vulnerable points. Footwork may be required to evade counterattack from bear claw or mandibles. Continue the assault until the spirit to fight of the bruin has been vanquished. Should you find yourself leaking in a most profuse manner, a hasty retreat to a waiting slug or cannister type smoothbore firearm is prudent! As previous authors have noted, 30 caliber rifle round of 06 is also suitable, and this author finds himself in agreement. Deliver projectiles in rapid succession to the face of the beast. With any luck, your foe will be defeated and your foodstuffs will remain unmolested.


Low Five

You almost sound like a Brit.


lulz from a brit. this being a brit who considers it slightly nuts to go a-wandering unarmed in norwegian woods where there are wolves and bears a-plenty. if i were camping out in places that bears frequent, i'd definitely be sleeping next to a decent sized hand gun.

[palani]

Mind you I make no claims about being an expert but .... I would guess spreading around 20-30 sticky mouse glue boards around the campground would provide a distracting experience to any bear. Peanut butter flavor would be the best.

Word of caution if you tend to get up and wander around the campsite at night yourself ... avoid all sticky mouse glue boards or else you will end up finding out why bears get distracted by it.

[Awoke]

Well, when I camp, I bring a shotgun with 000 Buck and keep it handy.

[Liquid]

3.never sleep in a tent, you cant see whats out there even a few inches away....sleep next to a mini mag and a gun.


I agree a tent is an illusion of safety in a way, and you are blind and trapped inside...but bears I think know that people are in tents. Without a tent, what's to stop a bear from accidentally stepping on your head while you are asleep?

It's your campsite, but they think it's theirs, that they own the place!

[hoarder]

When I came home from bowhunting today I saw a 300 pound Black Bear in my driveway. It was headed straight for my house. This portion of my driveway is an easement through neighbors property so I couldn't go after him. besides all I had was a bow and a handgun. I drove up another 3/4 mile and looked down and could see it strolling up the rocky ridge, blubber dancing around on it's back. It had some kind of white tag or something on it's ear. It didn't even try to get out of sight into the trees.
I drove up to the house and secured my puppy, grabbed a rifle and coasted back downhill on my ATV. Never saw him again.
I'll have to keep my pup safe a few days.