Backpacking in Bear Country?

Question

Advice or tips on backpacking in bear country. I know a lot is common sense, hanging food and stuff. I've only seen a bear once, a cub a couple hundred yards down a trail near the US/Canada border. I'll be in Wyoming this time. Thanks.

Answer 1

Hang your food at camp, make noise on the trail, and carry bear spray.
http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/bearenc.htm
http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/backcountryhiking.htm
This is a big PDF so you might not want to click it if you have a slow connection:
http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/upload/general.pdf

Answer 2

i like to follow the 50 yard rule. store any food in sealed containers at least 50 yards away from your camp preferably hung in a tree. toilet should be at least 50 yards away as well.
spring can be a very dangerous time because the animals are just out of hibernation and hungry. if you see a cub leave the area as soon as possible because momma will be very close and they are incredibly protective.
I live in the British Columbia interior and spend a lot of time hunting, hiking, and fishing. the bear population has gone crazy in the last 10-15 years so encounters with bears (black and grizzly) are very common. people are under the impression that pepper spray or bear bells are the only protection you need but that is wrong. there are areas that i won't go into without my 300 magnum and i still get chills.
it sounds like you have spent a good deal of time outdoors and are familiar with sounds and smells. every bear i have come across has a very pungent almost rotten odor. sight and hearing are not the only senses you'll need to use.
be careful and most importantly be aware.
good luck and have fun.

Answer 3

When it comes to food...or any other substance that has an odor.....keep it as far away from where you are as practically possible.

Don't forget stuff like gum, mints, lip balm, hand cream, powders, etc. Treat all this like tasty food and hang it high and far, far away from your sleeping area.

Get a good whistle....a loud, loud one. Keep it handy around your neck and if you hear something out there in the brush and are not comfortable blow it. Like the poster said, sounds silly but human noise is a great wild animal repellent!

If you see a cub.....head the other way pronto. Nothing more dangerous as you being a threat to mama bear's territory.

Answer 4

You may also want to try singing on trail. There are actually three good reasons to do this:
The bears will know you're coming and not be surprised.
It's an old hiking maxim then one should never walk faster than they can sing
If you sing as well as I do, wilderness is the only place you would be allowed to sing in public

Answer 5

Cook and eat AWAY fom where you'll be bedding down. Don't sleep in the clothes you've eaten in. Keep food away from the campsite. If you're hanging it, hang it quite a few yards away.
http://www.nps.gov/archive/glba/InDepth/learn/preserve/projects/bears/GlacierBayBearSafety.htm

Answer 6

Those are all good answers, but I would add bring a side-arm, a powerful side-arm. And if you are one who "doesn't believe" in them, at-least pack a mk-9 pepper spray. You can get them at most sporting good stores as well as some hard-ware stores like ACE.

Answer 7

Yell "HEY BEAR" frequently (seriously). This will let and bears in the area know that you are there and they will most likely avoid you.

Answer 8

don't sleep in or have near you the clothes you cooked in. cook away from where you will sleep. buy and have easy quick access to quality, reliable bear spray.

Answer 9

Get a gun. I am not saying you
should shoot a bear unless you
really have to, but you should be
prepared.