[pct-l] Bear Spray and Snow

Sun Dec 2 09:49:35 CST 2012

Spotting bears does not mean having trouble with them. I saw 9 bears  
on the PCT. Not once did I feel a need for bear spray.

Dropping your pack off at a picnic table while looking for a place to  
hang means a) he probably was in a highly populated area with  
habituated bears and b) he didn't have his food in a bear canister  
and left it unattended like an idiot (I bet his pack was too heavy).  
Two things not commonly done by PCT hikers.

The third incident you mention was unfortunate. San Bernardino County  
is a large area, largest county in California. The story you list is  
vague enough it could have happened in a car campground (and sounds  
like it did.)

The reality of being a PCT hiker is to not have trouble with bears  
unless you camp with your food unsecured in habituated bear country  
(i.e. the campground in Mammoth or Tuolumne Meadows, popular trail  
camp sites in SEKI or Yosemite). Having unsecured food in the areas  
where bear cans are required is where most PCT hikers have had  
trouble. Those hikers have been smart enough to blame themselves, not  
the bears and none of them whipped out any bear spray on the bear.

You can mitigate your risks to almost zero simply by eating dinner  
before you get to camp, using a bear canister where required, not  
camping in high-traffic campsites and not being an idiot who provokes  
bears.

If you prefer to fear monger on the list about bears, that's your  
right. It's the Internet and the PCT-L and winter time and where  
would we be without a bunch of overwrought hand-wringing about bears  
at this time of year? Snakes ought to be next, although we haven't  
yet done quite enough of the annual freaking out about snow.

On Dec 1, 2012, at 7:43 PM, Chris Anderson wrote:

> I wouldn't go as far as to say " Then the rest of the time you  
> don't have trouble with them
> because they run away as soon as they see you.".  I have spotted  
> bears around so cal. (big bear, arrowhead, san jacinto, angeles  
> national forest a bit before baden-powell, sespe wilderness near  
> ojai)  I haven't had any run ins with a bear being aggressive in  
> any manner, and even though it is rare, these incidents happened in  
> the area.  It doesn't mean you should be scared, and I don't ever  
> carry bear spray, but its wise to keep in mind that bear encounters  
> can happen outside of the bear canister zones.  Just because it is  
> rare doesn't mean you shouldn't take precautions.
>
> "July 2003 – A male hiker was knocked down by a bear at a remote  
> campsite along the Pacific Crest Trail in the Angeles National  
> Forest. The hiker had just reached the camp, which was empty,  
> dropped his pack on a picnic table, and was looking for a place to  
> hang his food. As he walked back toward the pack, he heard a noise  
> behind him. As he turned he was knocked to the ground by a bear.  
> After standing over him for a few seconds, the bear grabbed the  
> backpack and began dragging it off. The man shouted at the bear and  
> threw rocks until the bear finally retreated without the backpack.  
> The hiker received only minor bruises and was not seriously hurt."
>
> "San Bernardino County, August 1993 – Two separate incidents  
> occurred within three days of each other. In both cases, the bear —  
> or bears — grabbed a child by the head and attempted to drag him  
> away. In each incident, both victims were 13-year-old males and  
> were sleeping on the ground in sleeping bags at the time of the  
> attack. The bear also inflicted minor injuries on three other  
> campers immediately prior to the attacks. The attacks occurred at  
> two group campgrounds approximately two miles from each other and  
> the attacks ended when other campers aggressively came to the  
> victims’ aid. More than 100 people were sleeping on the ground in  
> the immediate area at the time of the each attack. Both campgrounds  
> were either clean or moderately clean. However, the area is  
> interspersed with cabins and garbage is available nearby. Natural  
> foods were available and abundant at the time of the attacks."
>
> ______________________________________________________________________ 
> ______________________
> Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs  
> even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor  
> spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the  
> gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat!
>
>
>
> ________________________________
>  From: Diane Soini of Santa Barbara Hikes  
> <diane at santabarbarahikes.com>
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Sent: Saturday, December 1, 2012 11:39 AM
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Bear Spray and Snow
>
> Oh, so I should worry and fret and carry pepper spray because of what
> happens in some national park where people are storing their food
> improperly all the time and chasing bears around with cameras to try
> and get a good story to tell their friends at home?
>
> The reality of the PCT is not like a national park or a tv nature
> documentary. The reality is you carry a bear can in the areas where
> it's required and probably don't see any bears there outside the car
> camps. Then the rest of the time you don't have trouble with them
> because they run away as soon as they see you. Sounds sanguine but
> it's just how it is. No need to stir up fear when it's not really
> needed (oh wait, it's the PCT-L and winter, sorry, carry on.)
>
> On Dec 1, 2012, at 10:00 AM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:
>
>> From: "JPL" <jplynch at crosslink.net>
>> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Bear Spray and Snow
>>
>> Probably don't want to be quite so sanguine about black bears.
>> They have
>> been known to attack and kill people, including not long ago at
>> Great Smokey
>> Mountains NP.  They need to be treated like the wild animals they
>> are.  We
>> don't carry bear cans in black bear territory but its wise to
>> protect your
>> food and give them plenty of room.
>
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