Bear encounters

[MikieFinn]

This is from MSN:
"Twelve people, on average, are mauled by bears each year in North America. Because you don't want to be one of those 12, heed this advice from Dr. Luanne Freer, president of the Wilderness Medical Society:
When entering a park area that's home to bears, always obey the signs.
Keep all food in sealed containers while in bear country, and never feed a bear. Bears that eat human food sometimes see humans as food.
If you see a bear, always keep your distance. Never edge closer to get a better photo. Bears are faster than you think."

My question is how many of you go fishing into the wildirness with any sort of protection and what is it?

I have purchased a bear pepper spray and carry it with me if I go fishing in places where there are no people.
To me it's real threat. I live in the center of the Poconos and left quite a few skid marks on the roads when trying to avoid hitting a black bear crossing the road. I had couple of bears in my yard - one was about 600+ pounds. Did not meet one on the stream yet but....

How about you?

[acadianfly]

Have you seen the Smith & Wesson model 500? I don't think I'd be trying to douse a bear down with pepper spray!

[Gramps]

I asked this question on another forum. I asked about bears and mountain lions. We have both here in Big Bear, but i'm moving to the Rockies and will be alone hunting down small streams. I expect to run into a lot of bears and have been thinking of what to carry for protection. Does the spray really work?

[MuddlerMinnow]

When you're in bear country, it's very important to know what kind of bear you may be dealing with. The best way to tell is from the bear scat.

If the scat contains berries and roughage, it is probably a black bear.

Grizzly scat is generally composed of small bones, hiker's bear warning bells, and smell like pepper spray.

[MikieFinn]

Smith and Wesson is fine but not for everyone. From what I understand pepper spray wil not stop mauling in progress it is jusy additional incentive for the bear to leave before the attack. I would not dare to try it on the grizzly. After I would like to stick to my "little bones".

When you're in bear country, it's very important to know what kind of bear you may be dealing with. The best way to tell is from the bear scat.

If the scat contains berries and roughage, it is probably a black bear.

Grizzly scat is generally composed of small bones, hiker's bear warning bells, and smell like pepper spray.

That is just hillarious. Especially that pepper spray smell....

[Orthoman]

The best way I have found is to do the following.

Dig a small hole and fill it with ashes.

Surround the hole with Peas -- fresh or frozen doesn't matter

When the bear comes to take a pea, kick it in the ash hole.

Good luck. Unless it is a Grizzley, don't worry.

[Flyrodde]

The best way to avoid being mauled is not **** a bear off, or let a bear think you are food when it is hungry. When you are in bear country always keep all senses on your surroundings, not on the fish. Seek out an old guide in your area and ask questions, maybe book a trip to kickstart the friendship. They will know best how to deal with bears, they have delt with them their whole lives. Good luck, I hope I never have the oppertunity to test my bear senses, hope you don't either.

[jeff98390j]

MF,

You ask who fishes where there are bears and do you take protection? My answer is yes to both questions. I live in Washington State and there are bears in most of the places i fish. I can tell you that i have not seen a bear, or even a sign of a bear in the 10 years i have lived here. They are there, i just havent seen them. I carry pepper spray most of the time as it fits in my vest better than a 12 guage. While living in Alaska, not only did i see scat and other signs of bears, i have run into them at least a dozen times. While in AK, i always carried the 12 gauge with me regardless of the weigh of the gun, but also carried pepper spray. WHile i have had to pull out the 12 due to an encounter, i have never had to use it. I pray that day never comes, but i would rather carry it and not need it than the other way around. Would it really help? I would rather find out if i need to rather than wonder if it would of by not having it.

I think one thing folks need to keep in mind is that in all of my bear encounters, the bears made their presence known to me in one way or another due to the fact that i was conciously listening for it. The wife and i were back up there a couple of years ago and fished the russian river. We both grew up as kids fishing that river, so it holds a special place in our hearts and we will make the trip there whenever we can regardless of the run of salmon. We were fishing on a gravel bar and heard something that sounded like a dog barking. We both packed up and crossed the river to the other side, letting the other guy that was fishing the same bar know what we heard. Well he stayed on the bar as we crossed over, and as we were about half way across, i heard the guy start yelling as he was running across the river. Turns out the barking was a black bear telling us to leave his hole and the guy was running as the bear was chassing him off! Being the nice guy i am, i stopped and get mr 12 in hand to help this guy if needed. The bear simply chassed him off and started to fish. The gent thanked me for sticking around, and said he will keep his ears open to other anglers warnings and the bears. I am glad he was just fine.

In an attack at a popular hiking spot outside of Anchorage, a woman and her nephew were up for a hike. The both noticed the smell of a dead animal and set out to see what it was. Well it was a dead moose, and the bear that was eating it killed the woman and badly mauled the man to protect it's kill. It would seem that they did not read the signs presented to them. If you smell a dead animal, it is likely being eaten by something, and is a darn good reason to leave that area.

A friend and i were floating the upper Kenai and were camping on a small island. It was very late and i was trying to catch some dinner, and needed to stand on a large log to see into the water. Through the top of my glasses i saw a large brown shape emerge from the other side of the river and stand up to look at me. At that point i knew what it was and stood still with pepper spray in hand. It was a large brown bear. I didnt get the words "the river is too deep for it to cross" from my head to mouth before it dove in and swam to the island we were on. I have never thrown a tent and partner on a raft and leave so fast as that time, and hope i never will. Turns out on the back side of our island was a back eddy pool that collects salmon carcasess, and was what the bear was heading for. We were camping in his kitchen. I will never make that mistake again. And i can tell you this, i felt like a fool holding that can of pepper spray! That was also the last time i was without Mr 12. We floated down river a little bit and camped out on a wide open gravel bar with no back eddies and slept with one eye open the entire night.

I feel lucky that all of my encounters have ended with no shots or pepper spray fired, but again, i will never venture into the bear's forrest without my eyes/ears/nose open to the signs, and without the means to protect myself. Bears are beautiful creatures and amazing to watch fish. They are very dangerous in the wrong situations. Make noise as you move through the woods, and choose routes that are as open as possible so you dont get suprised by one of them. A healthy bear population is a good sign of the overall health of the forrest, including the rivers, and i feel we should all feel lucky to see one in the wild. Just be careful.

Have fun and be safe, Jeff

[Micropteris]

"ASH HOLE"

That's a good one.

[J Castwell]

We always packed heat; 44mag.