Bears are awake

“From the National Park Service morning report. A bear attack with no apparent ?attracting? behavior.

01-092 - Grand Teton NP (WY) - Employee-Bear Encounter - Park employee Jim "Ole" Olson was attacked and injured by a grizzly bear around 9:30 p.m. on the evening of March 7th. Olson was skiing alone in Berry Creek Canyon en route to the Upper Berry Creek patrol cabin when he encountered the bear in an open meadow. Olson had seen grizzly tracks earlier in the trip. He first became aware of the bear when it was approximately 20 meters to his right and behind him. Olson turned toward the bear, illuminating it with his head lamp, and changed position by crouching down. At the same time, the bear charged him and bit him on the right shoulder and buttocks. The bear was on Olson for a few seconds, then calmly retreated in the same direction from which it had come. Olson lay still for about five minutes before continuing to ski to the cabin. When he arrived, he was provided first aid and treatment by ranger Mike Nicklas, who was already at the cabin. Olson was evacuated the next morning, and rangers and a park wildlife biologist conducted an investigation of the incident. Preliminary results of the investigation indicate that the bear was an adult grizzly with no cubs present, and that it had been traversing the base of the ridge to the north of the meadow, about a mile southeast of Hechtman Lake at the edge of the woods. The bear had been headed west, but changed direction and walked to the southwest to a spot near the point where the incident occurred. When Olson appeared, the bear turned directly toward him and approached quickly. Olson underwent surgery to clean the wounds and repair a torn tricep at St. John's Hospital in Jackson and was released the following day. He is very sore but recovering nicely and back at work. The Berry Creek drainage will be closed to public entry for approximately a week to ten days. No action will be taken against the bear. [Colin Campbell, CR, GRTE, 3/15]”

“Yikes! I wonder when all our hungry black bears will be crawling out of their dens in the Northwoods. The more we learn about bear behavior, the more troublesome it seems for the hiker. Advice is getting more contradictory in the articles I read.”

“I'm scarda bearz.”

“I have heard that bears love a good meal of meat when they first come out of the den. Usually a elk calf or the like. Mr. Olson must not have tasted very good. The griz could have killed him in a flash if that?s what it intended. Maybe bears just play rough.”

“In New Jersey and Eastern PA they are completely unafraid of humans. A friend had one climb a tree going after his food and completely ignored the group of rock throwing people below. Its only a matter of time before there are serious incidents.
I'm not a hunter and I think bears are marvelous animals but I think its time to strike some fear in them before its too late. They've taken to raiding peoples homes and cars around here. Recipe for disaster!”

“Generally, bear behavior is unpredictable. But geez, startle one during the night? Predictability city!
They rule the night. Night hiking gives me the heebie-jeebies! I prefer to cower in my tent.

At least that's one more bear that has learned that we peeps taste bad...

"No action will be taken against the bear." Yeah, baby!”

“I always kept my ears perked when trout fishing alone in the U.P. Season starts in April. Once I drove out at dusk on a two-track that paralled the stream I'd fished and a cub crossed the track ahead of me going uphill from the stream not far from where I'd just been. I paused my truck where he crossed, and momma stood up from the brush to look me over. I always wondered how I'd do against a bear when clad in rubber chest waders with a light action graphite rod as my only weapon.”

“I'm currently reading Herrero's book: Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance. Freaky stuff since there seems to be no real rhyme or reason for many attacks. And some of the descriptions of attacks...YIKES! I'm not sure I could stay quiet as some bear pulled my ribs out.”

“pekka -
That's why I prefer a medium action rod! LOL!”

“I'd think a 6 weight rod would be insufficient. Perhaps a 400 lb test steel tippet on a crane would work. Wrap a whole fawn around a really big hook and tie on some marabou for effect.
Match the Hatch, Baby!!!”

“I did scare off a blackie in the Porkies, up on the Escarpment Trail, with a blast from my Acme Thunderer whistle. My ears rang the rest of the day, I blew it so hard. Nothing like having a bear come down an overgrown trail when you are standing in a blueberry patch. I think you become the cobbler component for the fruit.

I kept blowing that whistle for the next mile I think. So much for the quiet of the wilderness.”

“I think the teton bear was a democrat, it did not want to eliminate a federal employee.”

“Word in Yellowstone is that the grizzlies are coming out also. No attacks yet.”

“Flyguy, I was thinking that if you can hook the bear in a sensitive spot, like a nostril, with maybe a #00 Mepps brass blade spinner, that maybe a light action 7-foot graphite with 6-lb test could work. Gotta have enough on the spool to let 'em do some tiring runs, though.

Gojo, a medium weight rod might not flex enough for the light line.

Lost, it depends on what this employee was up to. Maybe he was scouting for drilling sites and the bear realized his mutual funds are heavy in petro stocks.”

“I wake up pretty hungry too!”

“Well, hell.
If ya wanna make a real sport of it...

I'd put a double-hook ballyhoo with a blue skirt (in case of a short strike) on my heavy seven footer with a Shimano 4500 Baitrunner front drag set reeeel light. I'd toss the bally over in the bushes and prop the rod against a rock. Then, I'd go about my trout fishing business with my light stuff, and kinda keep an ear out for the Shimano drag. As soon as the drag commence to screaming, I'd reach over, trip the drag, and give the big rod a nice long, stout set.

Hell yeah! Gimme something heavy for a griz - I would want the bastard to know something was on the other end, too!”

“If you really want to make a REAL sport out of it...
I would stalk the bear in hip waders with a small dry fly or a single blue berry on the end of my fly rod. Slowly stalking from behind make my way to the front of the animal in overhanging brush. Then just as I get face to face with him, I'd do a fast roll cast and smack him in the face with the fly.”

“I just pinch em with a pot grabber.”

“I saw my first bear of the year today and it didn`t look like it was his first day out either. He was in mighty good shape for a sleeper so, I`m just guessin` it was a boar and not a sow. Well, that and it`s head was wide between the ears.


Watch your step, happy trails!”

“Did he bring it on himself???...I quote "illuminating it with his head lamp, and changed position by crouching down"...EVERYTHING I've ever read / heard suggests that the LAST thing you do is crouch down /make yourself appear smaller (a lesser predator). What he should have done, I think...is stand TALL and wave his arms, etc. So, what DO you do when in bear territory?...also...there are different opinions depending upon where you are / what type of bear...Grizzley's are one thing, the "common" black bear is another...”

“On NPR's From The Top last night, they were broadcasting from Idlewilde, a music school/conservatory. Idlewilde is in the Daks, or so. Anyhoo, they interviewed a visiting Eastern European girl. The girl mentioned bears in the surrounding mountains.
The interviewer says "Oh? There's bears around here?" And the girl goes on to explain - with a heavy accent - how she had been instructed what to do if she encountered a bear while taking a walk along the local trails:
"Stond VEDDY steel, and don't breathe.(chuckles) But most eemportontlee, DUE NOT RUNE!"
Then the interviewer says "So, have you seen any bears?"
"Jes" says the young girl.
"OHMYGAWD! What did you do?!" he asks.
"I RUNNED!" she exclaimed...

I LMFAO!”

“gojo, nice transcription of the accent! I'm LMAO too.”

“wanderer ? Did you read the account or just the title. This was a GRIZ. You do NOT try to intimidate or bluff a griz. He was using a head lamp, it points where you look. Its unlikely that he thought he could scare the bear with a light. Try your suggested tactic with a griz and you ARE lunch. Don?t challenge a griz to a fight unless you have a death wish. Yes on occasion it can work with a black or often with a lion (mountain) but never a griz. Crouching was the right thing to do to protect more vital body parts.”

“like bears, I too fancy wild blueberrys”

“bears like, fancy blueberry jam on their human ... burgers”

“Word to the wise.

Here's part of an article from our local (NJ) paper:

A walk in the woods turned into a terrifying adventure for four Jefferson boys when they encountered a large black bear Monday afternoon.

When the frightened boys ran, the bear followed, in a predictable yet unsettling demonstration of the bruin?s "chase reflex." It pursued them onto Green Pond Road and got in the way of a tow truck.

The driver, Stephen Antonelli, told the boys to get inside the vehicle. They remained at the side of the road until police arrived 10 minutes later, at about 4 p.m. By then, the bruin had fled into the woods.

"The bear ran in front of me on the road. I slowed down, and that?s when I saw the kids. At first, I thought they were playing, but then I realized they were running from the bear," Antonelli said.

"He just kept coming closer and closer. I put the truck between the bear and the kids," Antonelli said. "One of the kids was a little hesitant about getting in the truck. I told him he was better off being in here than out there with a 500-pound bear."

Police Lt. James Staszak said the boys, ranging from 9 to 15 years old, were "scared, but all right." All four live in the Oak Ridge section of Jefferson. He did not identify the youths.

It was unclear how far the boys had been running. "They didn?t know where they were," Staszak said.

While it might be easier said then done, people who encounter a black bear should avoid running. "Bears do have a chase reflex. If you do run, a bear will run after you. That?s why we recommend you walk away, slowly," said Al Ivany, spokesman for the state Division of Fish and Wildlife, which investigates complaints about nuisance bears.

Full Article”

“Here's an excerpt from another local story:

Last week, workers trapped and killed a 545-pound black bear that ripped down Ulchinsky?s garage door to get at a box of doughnuts.

Ulchinsky has admitted feeding doughnuts to nine or 10 black bears for nearly a year, hoping to create a sanctuary for them just in case officials ordered a statewide bear hunt.

The guy caused that bears death. What, did he watch too many old Yogi Bear cartoons (jelly doughnuts).”

“he's probably in peta.”

“A fed bear
is a dead bear.”

“This is somewhat old news but important to note. On May 21, last year a black bear killed Glenda Bradley at the junction of Little River and Goshen Prong Trails above Elkmont Campground on the Tennessee side of the Park. This marks the first time in the history of the Great Smoky National Park that a Bear has killed a human. Park Rangers observed two bears guarding Glenda Bradley?s apparent lifeless body. Her ex-husband and three or four other persons were in the area. Each time Rangers attempted to approach Bradley?s body, the larger of the two bears stood up in a defensive manner as if protecting its kill. The ex-husband told Rangers that the larger of the bears had charged him each time he had gotten too close. At 6:15 pm Ranger Grubb quickly ran toward the victim and thought he observed both animals feeding on Bradley?s head and arms. After 19 rounds of gunfire were shot, both Bears were killed.

I suspect that these bears had become tame from human contact at the Campground. The largest Bear had been previously captured as a research animal on two occasions and ear tagged as well. Tame Bears are dangerous! Here where I live I have Black Bears living around me on this mountain. Only once have they gotten into my trash (that was once in the early Spring). I have seen them a few times and one Fall I pulled up beside one on my road. It made a warning charge toward my car and then ran down the hill through the rhododendrons to the creek below. I was stupid to pull up beside it and surprise it!
I've found that the wild Bears will run from you. Only if you surprise them is there any real danger from them. It's a good idea to make some noise when your hiking in bear country especially if the wind is blowing in the opposite direction in which you are heading.”

“Thanks for the reminder. I think that the Park Service concluded that it was a truly wild bear as it was a tagged female who had never shown aggression. There was some speculation that the victim tried running away.

Shortly after that tragedy, a man was attacked in Glacier Nat. Park. He managed to get his keys out and fought back with them. That little weapon was enough to deter the bear.

Don?t ever run away! Back off slowly and if attacked ? fight for your life.

Whenever I go out with partners we make a vow to help each other by whatever means possible if attacked by a bear. (Of course they can't see my crossed fingers).”

“Violin:

Fight off black bears.

PLay dead with grizzlys.”

“Right.”

“Play dead with a hungry Black Bear and he'll/she'll say, "Hummmmmmmmm, FREE LUNCH!!!" LOL

They do love an easy meal. ;)”