[pct-l] Fear of the dark

[A.C. Scott]

Yes there is a full proof method of bear protection. Stay home!  My advice to all. Newcomers all first time Thru hikers. Don't do it.  -ninja tortoise 

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Scott Williams <baidarker at gmail.com> wrote:

>Great post Eric.  I love the night sounds.  After a long time on trail,
>they are supremely reassuring.  Ah, it's night and I'm safe in the woods.
> I never felt that way in cities.
>
>Shroomer
>
>On Thu, Feb 7, 2013 at 1:59 PM, Eric Lee <saintgimp at hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>> C wrote:
>> >
>> I'm seriously scared to death of the dark and the fact that there are
>> animals that could rock my world...I hear a lot about protecting the bears
>> but anyone have a fool proof way of not having bear encounters...so i got
>> get messed with...i havent really been camping so where do i hide...how
>> much
>> smell is too much...i heard some people bring firecrackers?  Really??
>> >
>>
>> You could remind yourself that the statistics are very much on your side.
>> The continental US averages less than one (!) fatality per year due to
>> bears.  Compare that to the ~20 per year due to domestic dogs, ~30 due to
>> lightning, ~50 per year due to bees, or the ~32,000 fatalities per year due
>> to automobiles.  In terms of objective risk, bears are way, way, *WAY* down
>> on the list of bad things that could happen to you.  Black bears in the
>> continental US are usually very shy animals and prefer to avoid
>> confrontation.  You have to go seriously out of your way to provoke a black
>> bear enough to be dangerous.  (There are extremely rare exceptions, like
>> there are with everything, but they're so rare they don't matter in any
>> practical way.  Grizzly bears are a separate issue, but you don't have to
>> deal with them on the PCT.)
>>
>> But numbers don't really matter when you're lying there in the dark, do
>> they?  We humans are notoriously poor judges of absolute risk.  We'll
>> cheerfully hurdle down a two-lane highway at 70 miles an hour, missing
>> oncoming traffic by mere feet, implicitly trusting that the other guy isn't
>> going to sneeze at the wrong moment . . . then twitch at every little sound
>> when we're safely on the trail and away from those death-trap machines.
>> We're way too comfortable with familiar risks (even if they're actually
>> quite dangerous) and way too terrified of unfamiliar risks (even if they're
>> really quite benign).
>>
>> So knowing that, the best thing you can do is practice.  I'm not naturally
>> comfortable with the dark myself, but living in Seattle and having a
>> full-time job and family, most of my training hikes this time of year occur
>> in the dark.  Over time I've slowly gotten more accustomed to the dark and
>> these days, while I can't say that I really enjoy the night, I'm ok with
>> it.
>>
>> Try going out to a trail (or park, or whatever is practical for you) around
>> dusk, find a comfortable place to sit, and just let the darkness fall
>> around
>> you.  Listen to the natural nighttime noises, enjoy the smells, and
>> discover
>> how much you can actually see once your eyes adjust.  If you practice that
>> awhile you'll be more familiar with the dark and your fear will subside.
>>  If
>> we can't conquer our stupid irrational risk assessment circuitry, at least
>> we can make it work in our favor.  :-)
>>
>> Eric
>>
>>
>>
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