[pct-l] Real Bear Trouble in '04 -- Attacks and Raids

[yetifan at yahoo.com (Scott Herriott)]

I also read of a guy last year getting swiped at and
hit by a bear at Chicken Spring Lake (which is just
north of Cottonwood Pass in the Sierra).  Of course,
according to what I read, he tried to retrieve his
pack from the bear after it had grabbed it from its
hanging position.  Not recommended.


Squatch
www.walkpct.com




--- Karen Borski <kborski@yahoo.com> wrote:

> I have actually been holding my breath waiting for
> this topic to pop back up again.  If you don't
> already
> know, it is a much-discussed topic in the history of
> the PCT-L.
> 
> Why have I been waiting for it?
> 
> Because this last year,on my thru-hike, I actually
> had
> REAL experiences with bears ON THE PCT.  They ARE
> more
> troublesome now as compared to only a few years ago
> --
> rangers I spoke to say there has been a big increase
> in problem bear activity in the national parks of
> the
> High Sierra.  My experiences do not seem to be
> isolated.
> 
> Bears raided two of my camps along the PCT in '04 --
> one in Evolution Valley a few miles before the big
> ford and the other in Glen Aulin.  I had a bear can
> by
> the time the second assault occurred, so it was my
> next door neighbor who had gear damaged.  During the
> first raid, my hiking buddies' packs were taken out
> of
> camp, torn to shreds even though they contained no
> food and were only recovered when my friends
> literally
> chased these bears down.  The bears came into camp
> without making a noise, one weighing 300 lbs or
> more,
> walked all around our heads, slobbered all over our
> stuff, and walked off with what they could grab and
> take (our food was under our feet).  My friends
> actually woke up only when the sound of packs being
> ripped apart startled them. 
> 
> My friends, two PCT thru-hikers, went on to get
> their
> own bear canisters and follow all the rules only to
> have more bear raids in two other camps at night (I
> was not with them during their other raids)....one
> of
> which resulted in one of my friends being swatted
> while INSIDE her tent and consequently injured (in
> Yosemite Ntl Pk).  The bear who "hit" her had to be
> destroyed.  They killed it.  It was only a yearling
> and had been hand-fed by ignorant tourists the year
> before when it was a cub.  Its mom and sibling had
> been destroyed earlier in '04.  There is a newspaper
> article on the event out there somewhere--I saw it
> posted at Drakesbad.
> 
> I want to stress to all those who are heading into
> the
> High Sierra, PLEASE be careful.  The rules are for
> your protection, as well as for that of the bears,
> but
> even with bear canisters and no food in camp, I
> highly
> recommend that you sleep INSIDE TENTS (they do
> provide
> protection; see Bear Attacks: Their Causes and
> Avoidance by Herrerro) and not out in the open, DO
> NOT
> HANG your food by any method in the bear trouble
> areas
> (from Evolution Valley all the way to Glen Aulin),
> and
> NEVER LEAVE ANY of your gear, tent, pack or food
> unattended.  
> 
> This isn't meant to scare anyone, but it is reality.
> 
> The parks have a problem right now, which will
> hopefully be short-lived.  But PCT thru-hikers are
> not
> immune.  Don't sleep with your food when you are in
> this section.  Any other sections....and I really
> don't think it matters much....but not in this area.
> 
> Follow the rules in or near the national parks.
> 
> Again, make a note:  near Evolution Valley all the
> way
> past Glen Aulin.
> 
> Nocona
> 
> 
> 		
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