When bears attack! – Next on WGA

[sunski]

So the thread on the cougar sightings got me researching black bears in Wisconsin. Are they a real threat? What does a person do when confronted with a black bear? A site I found said black bears are more likely to eat you than grizzly bears and that I should carry bear spray with me. One site said I should wear “bear bells” while hiking while another said “bear bells” were akin to “dinner bells” for bears.

Granted I have nothing to really worry about in winter but I am thinking to Spring. Does any one think bear spray is needed? Have you ever run into a bear while geocaching? Would a bear really want to eat me? (I am full of beer and cheese, but that’s beside the point!)

Honestly I guess I am wondering if people have actually ever had any interactions with bears and if the spray and bells are worthwhile.

[zuma]

@sunski wrote:

So the thread on the cougar sightings got me researching black bears in Wisconsin. Are they a real threat? What does a person do when confronted with a black bear? A site I found said black bears are more likely to eat you than grizzly bears and that I should carry bear spray with me. One site said I should wear “bear bells” while hiking while another said “bear bells” were akin to “dinner bells” for bears.

Granted I have nothing to really worry about in winter but I am thinking to Spring. Does any one think bear spray is needed? Have you ever run into a bear while geocaching? Would a bear really want to eat me? (I am full of beer and cheese, but that’s beside the point!)

Honestly I guess I am wondering if people have actually ever had any interactions with bears and if the spray and bells are worthwhile.

I have cached a lot in areas where there is bear scat and other evidence of bears, but have never seen one while caching. I think the conventional wisdom is that they are more afraid of us, and they avoid us is correct. I would not worry about bears much.

I worry more about going thru the ice, or falling down a cliff than I worry about bears, as that seems more likely. (I walked on the “hard” water today, and made my fat middle aged body go on rocks today where no wise man would go.)

z

[elfdoctors]

I have minimal fear of bears. I have run into them fairly often in the woods up here (and have even harvested one). Most of the time they run away (and I often run after them to see if they’ve had cubs). If they don’t run away, they tend to climb a tree. I’ve even reached inside a bear den to touch a hibernating bear.

About the only time I have any concern is if there is a mom with cubs, she has a distinctive growl which tells me to be cautious and to back away.

Over the past decade, Burnett County has had at least two bear attacks on humans and both of them were hunting related – one involved getting bit by a bear when a hunter tried to separate his hunting dog from the bear, and the second one involved a bear attack when the bear was running away from another hunter.

[cheezehead]

I have came across a bear a couple of times while in the woods nut wasn’t geocaching. Each time I was with my dogs and about a mile or 2 from my truck. Each time the bear ran in the other direction. And I retreated in the other direction even though I need to go the direction the bear went to get back to my truck. Normally, the bears won’t stick around cuz they do not want anything to do with ya. Would it pay to carry a bottle of pepper spray…….well. it nice to have it if ya need it. Somewhere there was a post and somebody said that they carried 2 pistols. Not that I am saying that is an option either. I would say just use common sense……but you now geocache, so that proves you are like the rest of us and don’t have MUCH! 😯 😕 😆 😛 🙄 😉 😉

[DGDK]

I’m more worried about ticks and mosquitoes than I am about bears.
Unless you try to sneak up on one, or approach the cubs the bear will almost always run away.
I’ve heard it said that if the bear doesn’t back down, the thing to do is make yourself as big as possible (stand erect, put arms over head), and then scream at the bear. This tip courtesy of Discovery Channel.
And most important, you could never outrun a bear. The best you could do is outrun the people you’re with. 😉

[Timberline Echoes]

We have run into bears several times and we agree they tend to run about 15 feet, turn around sniff at you and then high tail it away. We do carry spray but have never had to use it.

We have had scarier encounters with wolf and sandhill cranes. The wolf put up his hackles and stared us down. A couple times the sandhills have chased us off the trail. Those buggers are big up close.
TE

[jenhen1]

We have geocached in alot of bear territory and have backpacked over 500 total miles in the backcountry of MI, WI, MN and ME and have never actually seen a bear! Not that they aren’t there, they just avoid people in the wild for the most part. When we backpack we tie our foodsack 15 feet up a tree on a branch, mostly because bears can be attracted to our food, like raccoons. However, we see this as more of a nuisance than a danger.

The danger lies if you are unfortunate enough to cross between a sow and her cubs. However, I’ve heard that if you slowly back away and not look the sow in the eyes, you should be ok. Also, the number of people actually killed by black bears is extremely low. People have been mauled by black bears but very, very few have ever been killed.

Bears are neat animals, not to be feared, but respected. I would consider myself lucky to see a bear on the trail, but would never let the presence of bears keep me out of the woods. But, if bear spray is piece of mind, it can’t hurt. Personally, I would really think twice about carrying a gun while geocaching…..unless you’re hunting too!

[Ray]

You might string up a hammock to distract the bear…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XB-vQivWd-c&feature=related
How did he get into the hammock?…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTMb4DLr4_Q&feature=related

[kbraband]

I’ve seen lots of bears over the years. Most of them out West but some in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Last August Mary and I encountered a bear while hiking along a wooded trail on Sand Island. I saw it before it saw me so we stopped and stared, then it noticed us and stared back at us. Finally I yelled a bit and it ran off.

[3 Hawks]

I’ve seen quite a few bear up in northern WI and MN, but I’ve only been close to one. It was a fairly young fella and I held my hands over my head, waved them around, yelled at the bear quite loudly and told him to leave. It is truly amazing how fast they can crash through the heaviest of brush when running away in fear.

The U.S. averages 3 human deaths and 12-15 maulings each year that are attributed to bear attacks.

[shine_like_a_star]

@Timberline Echoes wrote:

We have run into bears several times and we agree they tend to run about 15 feet, turn around sniff at you and then high tail it away.

This has been my experience too. While it was a bit scary seeing how big a bear is close up, we knew it probably wanted nothing to do with us.

[sunski]

Thanks for the insights everyone. It makes me feel better about heading out into the woods this Spring/Summer. Don’t know if $50.00 for bear spray is worth the extra peace of mind. Maybe just a good stout hiking staff will do the trick for me. Who said it? – “Speak softly and carry a big stick” 😀

[Team Hemisphere Dancer]

@sunski wrote:

Thanks for the insights everyone. It makes me feel better about heading out into the woods this Spring/Summer. Don’t know if $50.00 for bear spray is worth the extra peace of mind. Maybe just a good stout hiking staff will do the trick for me. Who said it? – “Speak softly and carry a big stick” 😀

I have just the thing for you. See my link in the signature line.

[Astro_D]

We ran into a bear while benchmarking up in Vilas county. We were searching for a benchmark when we heard a loud crashing sound through the woods behind us. We looked up to spot a big black blob we realized was a bear. We made some noise and the bear took off in the direction it came from. We were so on edge, we packed up our stuff and headed back to the car .4 miles away rather than stay and find the last mark we were looking for.

[Author]

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