This seems like a good place to help you with bear identification.
(this is not original, I unfortunately forgot who I'm quoting.)
To distinguish a Black Bear from a Grizzly, slap it on the rump, run away and climb a tree. If the bear climbs the tree and eats you, it was a Black Bear. If the bear knocks over the tree and eats you, it was a Grizzly.
DW and I in our Gulfstream Amerilite 21MB
Chevy Silverado 2500 HD - Duramax Diesel 6.6L - Allison Tranny
"We can categorically state that we have not released man-eating badgers into the area." - Major Mike Shearer - British Army - Basra, Iraq
canoe on top wrote: Fortunately, most campgrounds where bears may be present have suitable garbage containers. If you leave your garbage where a bear can get it, you are training the bear to associate people in that campground with food. This is a bad idea. Read Dr. Stephen Herrero's book "Bear Attacks". Herrero is probably the foremost expert in the world on bears. There are two kinds of bear attacks, defensive and predatory. Interestingly enough, black bears are more likely to attack as a predator than Grizzlies. Black bears are usually easy to scare away. When I was a kid, we would see the occasional bear near our cabin and all the kids would run after it. Not something I would recommend today. The best bear deterrant is Bear Spray. An extensive U.S. Fish and Wildlife study concluded that in over 90% of the cases where spray was used to deter an attack, the person was uninjured. When a firearm was used, the person was injured about 50% of the time. As far as carrying "protection", "carrying" suggests handgun and a handgun for bear protection is largely an illusion. The illusion is really all you need most of the time because bear attacks are pretty rare. Before you get all excited about that statement, I know you can kill a bear with a large caliber handgun. Last year, a guy threw a chunk of firewood at a bear that was chasing his kid and hit the bear in the head and killed it. Here is the reality. A bear can run 30mph. Very few big bore pistol shooters can deliver a fatal shot on a target moving that fast even at 20ft. You are much better off with a short barreled 12 gauge with slugs or a high power rifle. Even if you are able to deliver a fatal shot, a bear has an enormous volume of blood and can continue to function after being mortally wounded. In the minutes or more that it may take for the bear to die, it can do an awful lot of damage to the guy that p****d it off by shooting it. That being said, I also carry a gun but I carry bear spray. I travel in the Yukon and the arctic and am a "belt and suspenders" kind of guy. I like a back up system. So, if you are worried about bears, get some spray. I suggest "Counter Assault" though there are other brands. Don't depend entirely on the idea that your TT will keep you safe. A bear can tear the door off a car and those are much sturdier than the door on your TT. Years ago, a woodcutter was living in a pick up camper in Colorado. A bear tore the door off the camper and dragged the guy out and ate quite a bit of him before somebody discovered what had happened. Considering the millions of people in the woods every year and the thousands of bears, there are very few problem incidents. It shouldn't be something you worry about but, use a little sense, keep a clean camp, put trash in the proper recepticles, put your coolers out of sight and don't leave food laying around. Seeing a bear is a great outdoor experience. I watched Grizzlies catching salmon this summer in British Columbia and it was incredible. Keep your distance and don't make it personal.
Is this a joke? did anybody read this? Not trying to be rude, but this seems a little extreme. I think this is hightower from Ploice Academy.
I just read this bit from "canoe" myself. I think a little perspective is in order (that's another way of saying, yes, there is some truth to this).
#1. To the best of my knowledge, there have been only a handful of cases of a BLACK bear attacking a human, APART from cases where a human attempts to hand food to a bear, or take food away from it, or actually taunt the bear. By comparison, a mountain lion, which ranges all across California, will, when it's starving, actually HUNT humans.
Black bears are attracted to garbage because it's easier and they are VERY lazy. Yes, a black bear can easily kill a human, but not as easy as a mosquito can, or nearly as frequently. And to do so requires EFFORT. This is an animal that will sit there eating huckleberries all day while deer walk past it because the berries don't need to be chased.
#2 Much of the really alarming talk about "bears" has to do with the Grizzly, which has more in common with the T. Rex than it does with the docile "little" black bear. A Grizzly is far more territorial than a blacky and will chase you and kill you just because it doesn't like the look of you.
Unfortunately, all bears have an element of unpredictability, and this is why you're not going to feed it or leave food out or approach it.
#3. I've never been near a Grizzly. But having hiked all through the Sierras, I've had plenty of black bear encounters. If you spend time in the high Sierras you're going to spend significant time with bears, I'm sorry.
For me, the most uncomfortable encounter was when I was hiking alone from the cottonwood lakes area north towards guitar lake and the east end of the John Muir trail. This is in the mid section of the high sierra and one of 2 true wilderness areas in that range, the other being the Bighorn. I spent 2 days of hiking without seeing another human. What I didn't realize, was that apparently this was an area they had released troublesome bears from Yosemite into. I was alone, and hiking "light" without a tent, just a bivy sack. And I had no gun. I was tired and I slung all my food up in a bear back and dropped off to sleep.
I woke up in a couple hours to find a giant brown mound near my sleeping bag, calmy ripping apart all my packaged food. I got out of my bag and tried everything I could to chase it off. I shined a light in it's eyes, I banged pots in its ear, but it didn't even look up at me. And I want to emphasize, I was as close to this animal as you would be to a dog if you were trying to read its dog collar. But this bear was so used to humans and their feeble tricks, he didn't care in the least, he just kept on munching my stuff.
I eventually fell asleep with the bear still there. In the morning I examined my food and it was all coated in bear saliva as thick as tapioca. This giant animal had put a fang through every one of the little lemonade packs I had. He had ripped open all the dried food. I carried no fresh food or candy or anything that would smell, and the bear still went for the bag and pulled open the packages, just to taste them.
Moral of the story (kind of): many people describe black bears as giant rats, but they're really giant blood-sucking ticks, obsessed with one thing only. They are going for your garbage (or food), and that is what they want because it's easy and it's worked for them in the past. I'll grant you, a rat or a tick can't turn and kill you with a casual swipe of it's paw, but stay out of paw range and you'll be fine.
And yes, if I do anymore OVERNIGHT hiking in bear country I will carry protection, for piece of mind. But I would not for day hikes, because bears aren't waiting to jump out at you during the day. On the other hand, doing day hikes in Los Angeles I would ALWAYS carry a knife in case of lion attack. As silly as it sounds, lions ARE waiting in the brush for food to walk past, and very occasionally DO jump humans and try to eat them. FWIW.
schnarfin, Hmmm, no, I wasn't joking but, re-reading my post, I can see where the points I was trying to make could get lost in the wordiness. The points I was trying to make, and I was responding to more than one post, were: 1. Problems with bears are rare, 2. It is a good idea to carry bear spray if you travel in bear country, 3. Shooting an attacking bear ain't as easy as it sounds. If you want to get some emotional responses on just about any outdoor forum, mention bears or firearms or both. For the record, according to Herrero, during the decade of the 1990's bears killed 29 people in North America. Grizzlies killed 18 and black bears killed 11. But, as Herrero points out, each year there are millions of times when bears and people are close and no threat or injury results. The highest number of injuries to people from grizzlies in National Parks in the U.S. and Canada were in Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks. Fewer bears but lots more people. During the 70's, the injury rates in Glacier were one injury per 1.3 million visitors, in Yellowstone, one injury per 1.5 million visitors. The rate is, not surprisingly, higher for people hiking and backpacking than it is for people in campgounds in RVs. Once again, bears seldom bother people and even less often injure them. In Colorado, it is not unheard of for bears to break into cabins and homes in the mountains. Especially if natural food is in short supply. So, though it seldom happens, a bear would have no trouble beaking into an RV. They usually just don't want to. Most bears don't like to be where there are a bunch of people. The other point was, a gun gives most people a false sense of security. Shooting a bear at 100 yard while hunting is quite different from shooting one that is charging you. Most people just do not have the skill level to fatally hit a charging bear. Here again, it usually doesn't matter because people very seldom get charged. If a bear isn't attacking you, you have no business shooting it. If it is attacking you, shooting it can be difficult. Adam12, technically, you could shoot a bear in a National Park because you can carry a firearm in a vehicle in a national park. People traveling with a firearm can still go into national parks but the firearm is supposed to be secured and separated from the ammunition. But, like a Ranger once said, "If you shoot a bear in a national park, you better have tooth marks on you." And, you are correct, a short barreled 12 gauge with slugs is very effective if you know how to use it. To reiterate, seeing bears in the wild is truly an exciting experience. They seldom bother people. Don't leave food out and put garbage in the big metal containers made available for that purpose. Mainly, just enjoy yourself use a little common sense and don't worry about it. And, once again, I got pretty wordy. Hope this was more clear than the previous post???
Canoe, I still believe you're not properly communicating the way that black bears have adapted to human society, at least in the high-traffic "wilderness" areas of California.
Yes, a bear will break into an UNOCCUPIED cabin (providing he sees or smells something there). But he will come no closer than the garbage can of an occupied cabin.
True, if a bear is charging you a gun is better used on yourself. But I've never heard of a black bear charging a human.
As far as Yellowstone and Glacier go, these are Grizzly areas. Better yet, they are heavily used by people who want to feed and photograph bears. Grizzlies aren't bears, they are monsters. And people who try to feed bears occasionally get what they deserve (IMO).
Once a decade or so, I read about a blacky pulling someone out of a tent and mauling them. Usually, there are no direct witnesses to verify that the person wasn't trying to feed the bear. But even so, once a decade I can live with (hopefully). And I think the OP needs to remember that in California a bear attack isn't even going to enter the top 10 risks of death he faces camping. Let me name a few:
--Death on the highway to the CG from a drunk driver.
--Death via murder from a fellow human at the CG.
--Death via Carbon Monoxide poisoning from "safe" heaters.
--Death via electrocution from the type of wiring I generally install.
--Death via HACE (high-altitude cerebral edema, or altitude sickness).
--Death from allergic reaction to bee stings.
--Death from injury trying to scale steep cliffs or some other stupid activity.
--Death from hypothermia (even in summer).
--Death from alcohol poisoning (my personal favorite). Yes, more people drink themselves to death than die from bear attack, at least in the Sierras.
skipnchar wrote: leaving cooking equipment and ice chests is very similar to tying a dead dear around your neck and going for a hike.
Umm, Skip, have you just considered divorce?
Leaving a cooler out is not a good idea, in fact, in some Natl Parks (GSMNP) there is a $50 file for unattended coolers at any time. I would be checking in at the Ranger Station for some tips, pointers and up-to-date info on bear activity.
Canoe - I find it hard to see points when a post is one big paragraph... Just a thought.
schnarfin wrote: Thanks for the input all. I'll be taking everything inside at night. and Yes I always carry "protection" when camping, and im not talking about a condom.
Not allowed inside Sequoia National Park. Allowed in the surrounding National Forest.
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Log off and go camping!
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It's a good idea when hiking in bear country to carry some pepper spray ... and wear a bell.
No, that won't deter a bear from attacking and eating you, if it decides you are part of the food chain.
But perhaps the next hiker might smell pepper and hear the bell tinkling when the bear does its business later ... and be able to avoid the bear and its scat
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