your safety in grizzly bear territoryThis is information for people traveling with the De Anza Outdoor Club about safety in areas frequented by grizzly bears. It is not everything you should know and it can't be updated as fast or as well as park service information.
Bear attacks are not common.
Wild animals try to stay away from people. They become aggressive if:
they are protecting their cubs/fawns, etc.
the bear has become used to people and food rewards from people
you try to get close to them for a photo, try to run by them, pet them, etc.
Each trip member should be certain to
read current info when they enter any park we travel to
consult with rangers before hikes, runs and bike rides
talk loudly, sing, shout or otherwise make noise on the trail
stay away from dead animals as bears may attack to defend their food
read and obey warning signs
store food properly according to current methods
Stay a safe distance from large animals (100 yards from bears. 25 yards from other wild animals).
To visualize 25 yards, picture four car lengths or six kayak lengths.
 NEVER ignore trail closures.
Grizzlies are getting less rare in the Grand Tetons and can be found anywhere in the park. In Yellowstone there are 280 to 610 of them. You are more likely in Yellowstone to be hurt by a bison than a grizzly. Read before a bison charges below.
We will probably not see any grizzlies on our trips, but we should be careful nevertheless. They run faster than you. Grand Tetons biking has details about rare fatal encounters between bikers and grizzlies.
Minimizing the Dangers of a Bear Encounter
http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/bearenc.htm
is a good place to start for current information.
The park newspaper said in summer of 2007:
BEAR SAFETY
. If you encounter a bear, do not run. If the bear is unaware of you, detour quickly and quietly. If the bear is aware but has not acted aggressively, back slowly away while talking in an even tone.
. Never approach a bear for any reason.
. Never allow a bear to get human food. If approached while eating, put food away and retreat to a safe distance (300 feet/91 meters).
. Never abandon food because of an approaching bear. Always take it with you.
. Never throw your pack or food at a bear in an attempt to distract it.
. Never bury food scraps, containers or fish entrails. Put them in garbage cans.
. Never leave food, containers or garbage unattended in camp
The main differences between a grizzly and a black bear are:
Photos below of a black bear, grizzly and grizzly cubs are courtesy of NPS:
 
grizzlies have a dished, or concave face; black bears have a straight facial profile, straighter from the tip of nose to ears.
grizzlies have a large hump of muscle above the shoulders
grizzlies are bigger (males 300-700 pounds, black bears 210-315 pounds)
coloration in both is so variable, that especially from a distance, it isn't a good way to tell them apart. Black bears are not just black in color, they can be light, medium or dark brown, cinnamon/reddish or blond. Grizzlies can be any of the above, sometimes with silver-tipped guard hairs that give them their grizzled gray/silver appearance.
If you have reason to report a bear sighting, try to notice the color as described above, including any colors of patches on the chest or of girth bands. Be ready to describe the size. A two year old is about 1/2 to 3/4 the size of a female, a yearling about 1/4 to 1/2 the size of a female and the cub of the year is about 1/4 the size of a female. Was there an ear tag, radio collar or paint to identify the bear?
black bears are more likely to stalk a human than grizzlies, although this is quite rare
both can climb trees
both are true hibernators, but sometimes awake during winter and leave their dens
both have occasionally become too used to humans and/or human food and have had to be destroyed
_________________________________
The Yellowstone park website said, in part, in mid-2006:
Yellowstone is home to both grizzly and black bears.
Although the risk of an encounter with a bear is low, there are no guarantees of your safety.
Minimize your risks by following the guidelines below:
Make bears aware of your presence on trails by making loud noises such as shouting or singing. This lessens the chance of sudden encounters, which are the cause of most bear-caused human injuries in the park.
Hike in groups and use caution where vision is obstructed.
Do not hike after dark.
Avoid carcasses; bears often defend this source of food.
If you encounter a bear, do not run. Bears can run over 30 miles per hour, or 44 feet per second, faster than Olympic sprinters. Running may elicit an attack from otherwise non-aggressive bears.
If the bear is unaware of you, detour away from the bear.
If the bear is aware of you and nearby, but has not acted aggressively, slowly back away.
Tree climbing to avoid bears is popular advice but not very practical in many circumstances. All black bears, all grizzly cubs, and some adult grizzlies can climb trees. Running to a tree may provoke an otherwise uncertain bear to chase you.
Some bears will bluff their way out of a threatening situation by charging, then veering off or stopping abruptly at the last second. Bear experts generally recommend standing still until the bear stops and then slowly backing away.
If a bear makes physical contact, drop to the ground, lie face down, and clasp your hands behind your neck. It may take all the courage you have, but lie still and remain silent. Resistance will only provoke the bear. Before moving, listen and look around carefully to make sure the bear is no longer nearby."
photo below courtesy of NPS:
When a bear stands in the movies it is often growling and about to charge. Bears are nearsighted. When a real bear in the wilds stands, it often is trying to better smell what it thinks it sees.
Bear Pepper Sprays
go to the Yellowstone park Bear Pepper Spray Video Transcript
http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/bearspraytranscript.htm
You will learn that pepper sprays to use against human attackers are not the same as bear pepper sprays.
You can't carry bear spray on a plane. It costs $35 ish, plus holster $10 ish, purchased in advance of a trip. We remember it costing $60 in Grand Teton park in 2004.
______________________________________
Food and Bears
Proper food and garbage storage is important to the safety
and well-being of both bears and humans. Leaving food
where bears can get it is not only illegal, but extremely dangerous
for both bears and people. Bears are always searching for food and have an acute sense of smell. If you leave
food out unattended, you are inviting a bear to your camp.
A bear that eats human food or garbage - even once - may
become conditioned to human food and garbage, or reliant on this easy source of food. These bears often become
increasingly aggressive and may damage property, threaten,
injure, even kill people in their attempts to obtain food. If
a bear becomes conditioned to human food and garbage, it
will likely have to be destroyed to protect human safety.
Food storage regulations in the Tetons and Yellowstone are not as stringent as those we are used to in Yosemite, but do include the use of bear-proof lockers in campsites and trailheads.
Food, garbage, and all items used for storing, preparing, or
eating food must be properly stored whenever they are not
being transported, prepared or eaten, both day and night.
Check the material given you when you enter the park or ask a Ranger for the most current rules on food storage.
Most Outdoor Club regular travelers to Yosemite would be more likely to follow the Yosemite rules of no food or food-like items in cars even if the parks in grizzly bear areas say that it is still okay to store items hidden in a closed, locked vehicle with windows rolled up. We don't want to be the model when the first grizzly figures out how to open cars like Yosemite black bears have.
Camping solutions for women has tips for and answers typical questions from first-time women campers,
including the question: Can menstruating women camp or backpack around bears?
Bears has links to general info about bears, then practicalities of camping and backpacking around bears, (food storage, what to do if you see a bear) mostly geared towards De Anza College Outdoor Club trips around black bears in California.
Grand Tetons biking includes statistics about cyclist encounters with grizzly bears.
Grand Tetons is the main page about the De Anza Outdoor Club trips to Grand Tetons National Park.
________________________________________________
 
before a bison charges
From a study including:
"apparently unusual actions or warning
activities by bison just before they
charged. Bison 'false-charged' in only one
case, stamped feet in one case, and snorted
in another case. In two cases, the bison
shook its head before charging. Rolling on
the ground (wallowing) immediately preceded
two charges. In three cases, bison
butted trees just before they charged
toward humans. Tail-raising is commonly
considered a sign that bison are agitated.
We found that snorting, head shaking,
foot-stomping, tree-thrashing, or wallowing
may also be warning signals that a
bison is about to charge."
to read the whole article go to:
http://www.nps.gov/yell/publications/yellsciweb/issues.htm
(But don't count on a bison giving warning. Stay 300 feet or more away from large animals so you won't need to contribute to further studies.)
__________________________________
Read about safety at wildlife jams
 A total of eight wolf packs were believed to have used parts of the Teton Valley in 2006. You don't need to be afraid if you are lucky enough to hear wolves howling or see wolves. In Rocky Mountain Natural History, by Daniel Mathews, we read: "wolves don't hurt people. I'm not saying never ever not even once, but it's so rare, we could have fun listing housepets and house hold objects that pose more danger. Um, pit bulls, bobby pins..."
__________________________________
Most animal attacks are caused by people getting too close to these WILD animals, see also the bears, elk or bison section of:
fatal, near fatal or close call incidents/accidents in camping, backpacking, climbing and mountaineering
Grand Tetons is the main page about the De Anza Outdoor Club trips to Grand Tetons National Park.
see also Grand Tetons trip pages index
NPS photo:
|
