Bear spray when hiking into bear country – yes, no, maybe?

[Drew Wiley]

One of the most infamous attacks in Glacier NP was when two people rounded a blind corner on a trail and the mama bear was right there, with two cubs. They
didn't even have time to aim the pepper spray. Around the same time, three other people were attacked at night sleeping. The latter bear was downright grumpy due to eating garbage and having bit of bottle glass stuck in its gums. That set a Park precedent about garbage rules. A bear with an attitude isn't afraid of three people any more than one. Tim Treadwell was a local hippie who went north to tempt fate. Rolling the dice, time and again. My favorite line in that movie was the Aleut native who stated how they had lived in harmony with bears for centuries. The bears knew not to cross the line into their world, and the Aleut knew not to cross over into theirs; but Treadwell thought he knew better, and did cross over, and suffered the consequences.

[goamules]

True, there are some cases when multiple people still get attacked. There are some cases when people with pepper spray are attacked. So?

MOST people killed, in the past, oh....100 years or so....have been alone. Sometimes they are suddenly alone, as everyone else runs in different directions!

[goamules]

Here, let me make it easy. The data from BLACK Bear fatal attackes in the 2010s, updated up to Sept 2014. Bold mine.

1. Patel was about to begin hiking with four friends in Apshawa Preserve when they met a man and a woman at the entrance who told them there was a bear nearby and advised them to turn around.[7] They continued on, found the bear, and Patel and another hiker took photos. They turned and began walking away, but the bear followed them. The hikers ran in different directions, and found that Patel was missing when they regrouped. Authorities found Patel's body after searching for two hours. A black bear found in the vicinity was killed.[8] According to the State Department of Environmental Protection, this was the first fatal bear attack on human in New Jersey on record.[8] - ALONE

2. Weafer, a Suncor worker was attacked at the remote North Steepbank oil sands mine site while walking back to work after a trip to the washroom. Efforts by co-workers to scare off the bear were unsuccessful. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police shot and killed the bear upon arrival. A preliminary investigation determined that the attack was predatory.[9] - Not Alone

3. Weaver was attacked by a black bear while walking back to his cabin on George Lake, according to his wife, who was able to flee inside the cabin and was uninjured. A 230 lb (104.3 kg) adult male black bear on the scene was killed by troopers and found to have some of Weaver's remains in his stomach.[10] - ALONE at the end

4. Hollingsworth was attacked by a 250 lb (113.4 kg) black bear while walking her dog at a country club. Nearly a month later and after eleven surgeries, she died from a massive brain hemorrhage, which doctors believe was a result of the attack. The bear was tracked, shot, and killed.[11] - ALONE

5. Adolph's remains were found by police dogs after she was reported missing. She was an elderin the Xaxli'p First Nation. There was evidence that bears fed on Adolph's remains, and tried to enter her house. An autopsy confirmed that she died from a bear attack. Five bears suspected of being involved were killed by conservation officers, and DNA tests confirmed that one of the dead bears killed Adolph.[12] - ALONE

6. Kandra was a bear caretaker on property that kept exotic pets. The bear was out of its cage for feeding. Prior to the attack, the property's owner had his license to exhibit animals revoked, but was still allowed to keep the animals on his property.[13] - ALONE

I'll put the grizzlys next.

[Jac@stafford.net]

Just place all this in perspective, please. Humans are the ultimate predators, and we've been hunting bears for tens of thousands of years. They have a right to
defend themselves.

I believe in the right to arm bears!

[goamules]

During the 2010s, up to Aug of this year, the tally of Grizzly Bear fatal attacks is:

Alone: 8
Couple: 2
Group* of 3 or more: 1
Note that no attacks have ever been recorded against groups of six or more.

I say again, you stay in a group of 3 or more people, with dogs, and on horse or muleback, what do you have to worry about? Or, you can carry your little can of pepper spray, and use the "hope and pray" method, as you commune with nature. Look at it this way, when they used to tiger hunt in India, they would do it from elephant back. Hunters didn't tiptoe alone through the tall grass with man eating tigers. Why should they with Grizzlys? Now black bear habitat, 98% of where people hike, I won't say you must hike in groups. Because hiking alone is a joy to be experienced. Take the pepper spray, a gun, or just your chances.


*(a campground attack, but people out of sight in tents in the dark aren't really a "group" are they?)

[John Kasaian]

I can no longer find it, but there was a video of three Great Pyrenees harassing a Grizzly until it ran away in frustration. One Pyr would bite him on the butt, then the bear would turn and the next Pyr did the same, another would bite his leg, on and on. The dogs were not hurt, the bear was okay.

That's the way Pyrs work together. I miss mine.

The Lewis and Clark Voyage of Discovery used Newfoundland for bear medicine. IIRC the dog was so valued that when Indians kidnapped him the expedition came to halt until the pooch could be tracked down and recovered.
There is a lot to be said for dogs.

[goamules]

I agree, they really are man's best friend. My dog (Saluki) was giving an alarm bark at the back door just this morning. I went to see what it was, and a giant snake had crawled up on the back porch, 2 feet away from the open screen door. Thanks buddy!

[Heroique]

Um...none of those three were in areas with Grizzly bears.

Looks like two points have flown over your head, so I thought it would be helpful to state them for the thread.

1) A principal theme of Thoreau, Leopold, Abbey is the importance of experiencing wilderness alone, no matter its real or perceived risks.
2) The risk of being attacked and killed by a black, brown or polar bear in the wilderness is statistically negligible over any historical time period.

I agree that solitary individuals are more likely to be attacked than groups, but this has no bearing on the extreme rarity of lethal bear attacks. Nor does the poor wilderness behavior of any particular victim who was eaten. I think the bear stories you're reading, true as they might be, are making you see goblins.

So one might ask why my personal choice is to always carry bear spray, grizzly habitat and/or black bear habitat. I refer you to post #23 for my explanation. ;^)

[Greg Miller]

Of those 6 black bear deaths, only one was in the wilderness where you could expect someone to have considered carrying bear spray. So one death may have been prevented by carrying bear spray. Now we don't know how many people prevented death in an actual attack by using bear spray against a black bear. But we know that the total attacks by black bear is extremely rare, and we know that the vast majority of people do not carry bear spray in black bear country (excluding areas where grizzlies are also present). We also know that moose are far more dangerous than black bears, but we don't see people getting silly over preventing moose attacks.

Anyone see the video this week of the mama bear and 5 cubs frolicking in the back yard swimming pool in NJ? And nobody died This looks to be a bumper acorn year, so I'm expecting large black bear litters next spring in my area.

[Jerry Bodine]

Question: Do grizzlies LIKE pepper?