Bear Aware

I admit that portraying a bear with bared teeth and swiping claws as a poster for bear safety offends me.  Please understand that I am not being cavalier about the risks of camping or backpacking in bear country.  Perhaps growing up on a cattle ranch, with its singing coyotes and occasional cougar tracks, offered me a different understanding of nature.

My belief is that we have replaced respect for apex animals with fear.  If we would only take the time to educate ourselves about any animal that we fear, not only would we sleep better at night but the animals, themselves, would be infinitely safer.

Let’s begin with the facts. Bears are highly intelligent, extremely powerful, and curious creatures.  A bear’s nose is 100 times more sensitive than Roxanne’s nose.  And her nose is over 70 times more sensitive than mine.

Grizzly on parade, Dempster Highway, 2010.

Additionally, because they hibernate for over six months in the far north, bears wake up from their winter’s nap ravenous, and they remain hungry throughout their awake time.  Their main objective is to double their weight by the time their next hibernation comes around. 

In order to coexist with bears, we must understand that their drive for food, their sense of smell, and their curiosity often combine to bring them in contact with humans.  Proper food storage is critical at all times, whether living, hiking, or camping in bear habitat.  Remember the old saying:  a fed bear is a dead bear (because once a bear becomes habituated to human food, he must often be destroyed).    

Now let’s look at the danger.  What are the odds of being killed by a bear?  Wildlife Research Institute’s principle biologist, Dr. Lynn Rogers, put it in perspective when he said, “My chances of being killed by a domestic dog, bees, or lightening are vastly greater.  My chances are 90,000 times greater of being murdered.  One of the safest places a person can be is in the woods with bears.”

Statistics show that 63 people in North America were killed by non-captive bears from 1900 to 2009.  Close inspection of these statistics indicate that the vast majority of bear fatalities were the result of two types of bears.  (See http://earthsky.org/biodiversity/most-black-bear-attacks-though-rare-are-by-predatory-males-in-wilderness).  Of those 63 fatalities, mother bears accounted for roughly 12 percent.  The remaining 88 percent were by predatory bears (mostly male).  Simply stated, a predatory bear sees humans as a food source.

A Denali park ranger told us that bears become increasingly more carnivorous the further north they live.   Recognizing the decrease in available vegetation above the Arctic Circle, this makes perfect sense.  It should also come as no surprise that the vast majority of the 63 known bear fatalities occurred in Canada and Alaska.  This is also the reason that working crews on the Haul Road always include a sentry armed with a shotgun.    

When David and I began backpacking in the late 70’s, experts emphasized proper food storage and how to avoid bears.  While proper food storage is still critical, recently there seems to be a definite shift in thinking that encourages people to understand the different types of bear encounters and the proper response to each (see http://www.bearsmart.com/becoming-bear-smart/home/bear-encounters).  In several Alaskan parks, we even found posted signs that detailed how to respond to different bear behaviours.

Whether hiking or camping, educating yourself about bears and being prepared is your best line of defense.

So what do David and I do for bear safety?

First and foremost, we try to keep a meticulously clean camp.  Particularly when in remote areas, we do not cook aromatic foods.  After years of backpacking experience, we have learned to stow our food properly.  Rather than using an Ursack (see http://www.ursack.com/index.html) or hanging our food as we do when we backpack, we now stow all foods and garbage within the vehicle or our hard-side aluminum storage box. 

Because bears seem to have a penchant for dog food, we store Roxanne’s kibble in two Bear Vault food containers, each lined with OP Sak odor protection bags.  We also store our food supplies in odor protection bags (see http://www.gofastandlight.com/ALOK-OP-Sak-9x10-Bags-Set-of-3/productinfo/P%2DAL%2DOP%2D9X10/.)

When arriving at a new area, we check with local authorities for information about bear activity.  If we are uncomfortable with our surroundings, we either leave the area or sleep in the back of the Xterra rather than the tent.

Because we hope to camp near salmon runs this year, we will also use an electric fence in areas of great vulnerability (see http://www.udap.com/bearshock.htm).  Research indicates that a bear's nose is so sensitive that they are often deterred just by detecting the electric current from yards away.  The idea is to circumvent the vehicle and camper with the fence to prevent intrusion.  We’ll let you know how it works!

When hiking, David and I each carry bear spray.  (We also keep the spray in reach while we sleep.)  David uses a walking stick.  I carry a small air horn (a Tempo signal horn, like those used at sporting events).

Additionally, we sing and talk.  We hike only known trails, never bushwacking.  We walk Roxanne on lead between us.  At the sign of fresh bear scat or other bear markings, we retreat.

We definitely retreated when we came upon this pile of fresh bear scat on Alaska's Ptarmagin Trail!

(Although many consider dogs to be poor hiking companions in bear country, we discovered that many Alaskans and Canadians feel quite the opposite.  Bears do not like dogs.  In the far north, many feel that hiking with their dogs increases the size of their group/pack.  They believe that if a bear sees a combination of humans and dogs, the bear will consider the group as being too formidable to charge.  Quite frankly, I believe that this line of reasoning is only true if the dog, like Roxanne, is obedient to the point that she/he will stay with the pack and not bark at or charge the bear.)

Other considerations?  I suppose that it will come as no surprise that a number of photographers have been mauled by bears (as well as by other animals).  Unfortunately, it is often the direct result of a poor choice between getting “the perfect shot” rather than respecting these amazing animals.  As a small example from our trip up the Dempster, we were shocked to see a man step out of his vehicle for a better photo of a grizzly parading not more than fifteen yards from him!

I admit to taking a chance or two with hoofed animals in my early days of photography.  Thankfully, David has taken matters into his own hands.  As an added safety measure, he gave me a long-distance (200-500 mm zoom) lens prior to our Alaskan adventure.  Trust me, it has already proven worth the investment.

Before you travel (hike, camp, fish, or hunt) in their habitat, please educate yourself about bears and bear awareness.  For a fantastic resource, we highly recommend Stephen Stringham’s Alaska Magnum Bear Safety Manual.  In fact we recommend any bear aware book by Stephen Stringham. 

The Get Bear Smart Society also offers a wide variety of bear awareness tools on their website at http://www.bearsmart.com/.  For another online resource, visit http://www.nps.gov/wrst/planyourvisit/upload/Harmony%20With%20Bears.pdf.

If you will be camping with children, please download this wonderful little activity book to help educate your young ones:  http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static/species/livingwithwildlife/bears/pdfs/bearawarecoloring.pdf .  You can also purchase delightful playing cards that will help your children learn about bear safety (see http://www.gofastandlight.com/Bear-Smart-Playing-Card-Deck/productinfo/FU%2DSE%2DBEAR/).

By learning about these wonderful creatures, we and the bears can all be safer.