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Bear Tracks.

ski diva

Administrator
Staff member
Has anyone here ever run into a bear hiking? What do you do????

A friend of mine almost literally ran into one lately, and she and the bear both took off -- luckily, in opposite directions.

But what's the best way to handle a situation like that?
 
They say don't run.
Be very still.
If it comes at you, act really big and make big noises.
...I'm not sure that I could remember to do any of that in a situation like that.

Personally, I hope to never be in that situation. It seems it is happening more and more in the metro area here....not just bears, but mountain lions and coyotes & wolves (taking off with pets). It's frightening really.
 

Lilgeorg

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I agree. When my granddaughter was a little one going to grade school in rural Alaska, they had wild animal drills like fire drills here. They told her to make herself as big as possible by putting her hands up over her head and making lots of noise when she saw a bear. They also suggested wearing a bear bell when hiking. But never to turn and run as you are displaying game behavior and the bear will chase you down.

On the other hand, when you see a moose, run! The moose is short sighted and will trample you to death.

Our granddaughter is now 24 and we will be hiking in Alaska with her to the glacier fields on 6/17. We will be wearing bear bells!
 

SnowHot

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I've encountered Bear twice on Mt Bike Rides:smile: , and once on my front porch, tearing up my Bird feed bin:( . They've become quite normal to see in our area.

One time when we saw one on a MtBike Ride, we just kept riding like we hadn't seen it because it appeared to be hunting for berries, or something, and wasn't paying attention to us.
The second time we saw a bear SHE was with her 2 cubs. She was scurrying her cubs up a tree and away from us. We were more nervous on this occasion because we know above all else, ............Don't mess with a mama bear and HER cubs!
She was too busy taking them out of harms way to actually pursue us. Whew!
Why don't I make sure to have a camera every time I ride?
 

altagirl

Moderator
Staff member
I've run into a bear and her two cubs mountain biking as well. And luckily, they took off the other direction.

I also saw a mountain lion (luckily I was in my car), and then saw his tracks on the ground as I was walking around this site for work. He was hiding, stalking calves, which is the only reason I think I got close enough to see him. Yikes. He was HUGE and the tracks were gigantic.

Anyway, I've also heard that if you have a bike to pick it up over your head and yell. It makes you look really big, not to mention, is putting something between you. If all you have is hiking gear, take your jacket or whatever up over your head to make yourself look big.

The problem with mountain lions is that I don't think you'd see them first if they were after you... One of my friends literally ran into one while mountain biking - came around a blind corner and bounced off of it while it was crossing the trail. Luckily I think he scared it as much as it scared him.

What scares me are elk and moose. We've literally nearly run into them at high speed when they're crossing a trail we're riding down. I don't want to think what would happen if you ran smack into some antlers at 30mph.
 

Gloria

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Fear not the black, only the griz

Bears, with the exception of the grizzly, are really not aggressive unless they feel threatened. Black bears are especially timid. As long as you don't make direct eye contact with the bear, or turn and run (like prey) they will leave you alone. Moose are actually the most dangerous animals to run into because they don't have the austiere of the bear and people get too close and get charged. Moose kill more people than bears do by alot. We have actually had more people injured by deer than black bear ( I can't think of any bear injuries to humans, really only property damage from trying to get into garages etc to steal food ) in the urban inter-face, so just because they have hooves instead of fangs, doesn't mean they won't hurt you. Here is an interesting article on interpreting animal body language. Enjoy..
https://www.fieldandstream.com/fieldstream/hunting/biggame/article/0,13199,335266,00.html
 

SnowHot

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Gloria, this reminds me of a joke my dad always tells.
How you can protect yourself from most bears?

In light of the rising frequency of human/grizzly bear conflicts, the Alaska Department of Fishing and Gaming is advising hikers, hunters, and fishermen to take extra precautions and keep alert of bears while in the field. The department has posted the following notice:

We advise that outdoorsmen wear noisy little bells on their clothing so as not to startle any bears.

We also advise outdoorsmen to carry pepper spray with them in case of an encounter with a bear.

It is also a good idea to watch out for fresh signs of bear activity.

Outdoorsmen should recognize the difference between black bear and grizzly bear feces. Black bear feces is smaller and contains lots of berries and squirrel fur. Grizzly bear feces has little bells in it and smells like pepper.
 

Lilgeorg

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
And that reminds me...my grandson Tyler was hiking in the Alaskan woods with me when he was about 10 years old. He liked to take point and was often just out of sight on the trail ahead. All of a sudden he comes running back," Nana, I know the answer to the question!" What question? " Do bears crap in the woods!"

That's Lola's son!
 

Gloria

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Gloria, this reminds me of a joke my dad always tells.

I love the part about the bells and pepper. How funny, as if that would keep ya safe from a grizzly. Anyone ever read "Night of The Grizzly"?
 

MaineSkiLady

Angel Diva
On the other hand, when you see a moose, run! The moose is short sighted and will trample you to death.
It's true that they have poor vision. However, moose aggression is gender-specific and seasonal. (They are all over Maine.) Males in rut in November are very much capable of said anger. For the most part, moose are not aggressive. There are several that range through my neighborhood. They are quite shy and elusive. It isn't easy to see one, even living here. Their size alone is daunting, however. A large bull is, well, BIG. See below.
47b3ce30b3127cce9f503aa2827d00000006108EcOWblm0Zw
 

Gloria

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
It's true that they have poor vision. However, moose aggression is gender-specific and seasonal. (They are all over Maine.) Males in rut in November are very much capable of said anger. For the most part, moose are not aggressive. There are several that range through my neighborhood. They are quite shy and elusive. It isn't easy to see one, even living here. Their size alone is daunting, however. A large bull is, well, BIG. See below.
47b3ce30b3127cce9f503aa2827d00000006108EcOWblm0Zw
I don't know that I would apply the same logic to a moose that roams a neighborhood and is used to people as I would a moose found back in the Selway or somewhere else far away from routine human contact. Their disposition isn't as seasonal or gender specific in these cases from my experiences and the stories I've been told by others.
 

alaski

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Naw, moose are generally extremely tolerant. During the rut you might run into trouble, but if you leave them alone they'll usually leave you alone. Same with bears, though I'd much rather run into a moose than a bear.

Still, it happens all the time here (running into moose AND bears) and it just takes a little common sense. Bells and noise are a good idea in general since it alerts the animal to your presence.
 

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