Another Stupid Hiker Question: Bearbells

[Yuwipi Woman]

Silly fashion accessory or useful backcountry hiking tool?

I'm doubting if the sound carries far enough to actually be useful.

I'm also reminded of the old joke about how you can tell brown bear shit from grisly shit.....

 

[quimcunx]

I definitely think you are asking the right people here.

I believe there are two schools of thought on the matter.

That they will alert the bear of your impending presence, rather than risk surprising them and making them angry.

That they will advertise the presence of a hearty meal or snickers.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

Yes, I got some good answers about the boot issue I posted earlier.

I normally wouldn't be worried, but the population of bears has risen dramatically in the area I'm planning on hiking and they've had a couple of maulings already this year. I blame the humans.

 

[quimcunx]

You'd be better asking someone with experience hiking in that area. Tourist info? A local hiking shop or association?

 

[Mrs Magpie]

We only get one sort of bear in the woods round these parts. I think they'd love tinkly bells.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

You'd be better asking someone with experience hiking in that area. Tourist info? A local hiking shop or association?

I've gotten differing views. Some claim they're just trying to sell you stuff and others think you stupid to venture out without them. I do know that in the area I'm hiking they've closed a couple of trails completely. I figure if nothing else, I can ask a ranger before I set out.

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

Silly fashion accessory or useful backcountry hiking tool?

I'm doubting if the sound carries far enough to actually be useful.

I'm also reminded of the old joke about how you can tell brown bear shit from grisly shit.....

I wouldn't hike in bear country without something like that that makes noise. The sound doesn't need to carry that far. The danger in the woods is turning a forest path and there's a bear with cubs. The bell sound will carry far enough to prevent that.

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

I've gotten differing views. Some claim they're just trying to sell you stuff and others think you stupid to venture out without them. I do know that in the area I'm hiking they've closed a couple of trails completely. I figure if nothing else, I can ask a ranger before I set out.

Grizzly bears in places like Waterton Glacier Park are just waiting for hikers from the Nebraska flatlands.

 

[Mrs Magpie]

A bear protection suit!

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

A bear protection suit!

Looks pretty good - against bikers.

My uncle used to work for a govt agency, up in central BC. He found a woman at a campsite once. The grizzly mauled her, took her scalp off etc. She lived, because the bear thought she was dead, so it buried her so it could come back and eat the body later. Amongst the stuff he went through at the campsite, was a cast iron frying pan with bites from the bear, punctured all the way through the pan.

 

[weltweit]

I am not sure I would go hiking where there are bears.

After all remember what happenned to Timothy Treadwell - and he knew about bears.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

I am not sure I would go hiking where there are bears.

After all remember what happenned to Timothy Treadwell - and he knew about bears.

He was an idiot who thought bears were fluffy little forest creatures.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

Grizzly bears in places like Waterton Glacier Park are just waiting for hikers from the Nebraska flatlands.

Yes, and bear spray is a tasty condiment.

 

[weltweit]

He was an idiot who thought bears were fluffy little forest creatures.

Some said that he may have been somewhat mentally unbalanced.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

Some said that he may have been somewhat mentally unbalanced.

Ya think?

 

[Mrs Magpie]

From what I've read about Treadwell, I think he thought he knew more about bears than he actually did. Fatal mistake.

 

[Mrs Magpie]

Since you posted this thread I've been reading up on bears a bit. This seems to be a dangerous time of year, bear-wise as they are particularly voracious, building up fat stores for the coming winter. Hiking is great, but is there somewhere you can go that will make me fret less?

 

[weltweit]

From what I've read about Treadwell, I think he thought he knew more about bears than he actually did. Fatal mistake.

Oh I think he probably knew a lot about Grizzly bears, after all he had spent so much time with them.

Perhaps he was just pushing his luck too much and in the end his luck ran out.

Shame his girlfriend had to die also though.

 

[Mrs Magpie]

He kept food in his tent

 

[weltweit]

He kept food in his tent

oh

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Treadwell

so he did..

Well that is pretty dumb.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

Since you posted this thread I've been reading up on bears a bit. This seems to be a dangerous time of year, bear-wise as they are particularly voracious, building up fat stores for the coming winter. Hiking is great, but is there somewhere you can go that will make me fret less?

I could probably head south a ways and then I'd be hiking with Bison and rattlesnakes. I'm used to both so that wouldn't bother me.

If nothing else, there's usually plenty of art galleries around national parks to keep me occupied and out of trouble.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

He kept food in his tent

Even novices know better than that.

 

[Pseudopsycho]

Saw a documentary about a man living with bears (not Treadwell) and he had one of these:

http://www.udap.com/bearshock.htm

he also had a separate tent for food with sealed canisters that you need to open with screwdrivers

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

Yes, and bear spray is a tasty condiment.

It's like hot sauce.

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

Since you posted this thread I've been reading up on bears a bit. This seems to be a dangerous time of year, bear-wise as they are particularly voracious, building up fat stores for the coming winter. Hiking is great, but is there somewhere you can go that will make me fret less?

I could probably head south a ways and then I'd be hiking with Bison and rattlesnakes. I'm used to both so that wouldn't bother me.

If nothing else, there's usually plenty of art galleries around national parks to keep me occupied and out of trouble.

Moab is nice this time of year...

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

Saw a documentary about a man living with bears (not Treadwell) and he had one of these:

http://www.udap.com/bearshock.htm

he also had a separate tent for food with sealed canisters that you need to open with screwdrivers

What you usually do with food, is keep it in backpacks or rucksacks. You then hang it on a rope strung between two trees, ten feet up, and about 100 yards from your campsite.

 

[Pseudopsycho]

A bear protection suit!

I love crazy inventors and his stuff is great - Troy Hurtubise, he's now making Halo type armour:

 

[chilango]

I've hiked and camped in bear country on many many places.

I only used a Bear bell once. As you say, opinion is divided but most folks seem to say don't bother.

Bears will smell and hear likely as not anyway, but if in doubt a bit of whistling, singing etc. In places where accidentally surprising a bear is possible is good. You hiking alone?

Bear cans/bins are a far more useful necessary thing ime.

But it does vary enormously according to the type of bear. Not just species but local populations will have developed different ways of behaving with humans.

I've hiked and camped in bear country in Alaska, BC, the US Southwest, Mexico, Romania, Finland,Slovenia, Italy and Spitsbergen each place needed different measures for different risks ( from nothing in Finland to extreme caution in Spitsbergen) only ever saw bears in BC though sadly...

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

I am hiking alone, but it's only day hikes.

What I'm thinking of doing is taking my fly fishing gear. I love fly tying, but not so much on the fishing.

 

[chilango]

Heh. I've just dug out my bear bell. Noisy, orange thing. I wouldn't use it unless the rangers strongly advised it. But then here in Europe the bears are shyer and their dinner has bells on it.