[pct-l] Black Bear attacks camper / gunshot scares it off.

[Don Billings]

July  2, 2010
Black bear attacks man at Eldorado National Forest
By Cathy Locke


California Fish and Game officers are searching for a black bear that reportedly attacked a man early this morning in the Yellowjacket 
Campground near Union Valley Reservoir in the Eldorado National Forest.The man required stitches for his wounds.

Frank Mosbacher, Forest Service spokesman, said 
Forest Service law enforcement officers reported this morning that the 
attack occurred between 2:30 and 3 a.m. The man, whose name and age were not available, had stepped outside his camper. When someone inside the 
camper shined a light outside, illuminating the bear, the bear swatted 
the man

At some point, someone fired a gun at the bear, but Mosbacher said Fish and Game officers don't think the bear was shot.
Mosbacher said the bear was described as about 1 year old and weighing about 150 pounds. The animal was going from picnic 
table to picnic table looking for food and is believed to have 
visited the campground in the past.

"So it has become somewhat habituated to humans," Mosbacher said.

Campers in Yellowjacket and neighboring campgrounds have been 
informed of the attack. Bear boxes are not available at those sites, Mosbacher said, but people are advised to at least 
try to hide their food in an effort not to attract bears.

"There's no guarantee that will work," he said, "because they have a 
pretty good sense of smell."
Read more: http://blogs.sacbee.com/crime/archives/2010/07/black-bear-atta.html#ixzz0sZlbwYqu