your safety in grizzly bear territory

Bear attacks and other animal attacks are not common, but there are no guarantees of your safety.

Wild animals try to stay away from people. They become aggressive if:

they are protecting their cubs/fawns, etc.

you surprise them

the bear has become used to people and food rewards from people

your dog provokes them

you try to get close to them for a photo, try to run by them, pet them, etc.

you see a bear, get nervous and run. Running can elicit an attack from a non-aggressive bear.

you somehow are not careful enough and a bear gets your food -- and -- you try to get it back.

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, clap hands or otherwise make noise on the trail ('bear bells' do not work)

never hike, run or bike alone (it is best to do in groups of minimum three and trail running is discouraged)

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

Park rules say do not approach wildlife, stay 100 yards from bears or wolves and 25 yards from other wildlife including nesting birds. If you have an accidental, surprise or inadvertant closer encounter with wildlife you must remove yourself to those distances.

To visualize 100 yards, picture the length of a football feild.

To visualize 25 yards, picture four car lengths, six kayak lengths or the width of an Olympic-sized pool like ours at the college.

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. (Bears can run over 30 miles per hour, or 44 feet per second, seven times faster than the fastest human.) Grand Tetons biking has details about rare fatal encounters between bikers and grizzlies.

Rules for people at bear jams in Grand Teton park changed in 2011, after grizzly 610 twice charged people while they were standing on their car roof. Read about safety at wildlife jams

The park newspaper said in summer of 2010/11/12 (summer 2013 they removed some of the text, but the main points are still the same):

Make Noise in Bear Country Grizzly and black bears live in the park and parkway. Some of the most popular trails travel through prime bear habitat. Bears will usually move out of the way if they hear people approaching, so make noise. Don't surprise bears! Calling out and clapping your hands at regular intervals are the best ways to make your presence known. Bear bells are not sufficient. Some trail conditions make it hard for bears to hear, see, or smell approaching hikers.

Be particularly careful near streams, when it's windy, in dense vegetation, or in any circumstance that limits line of sight (i.e. a blind corner or rise in the trail). Keep children close by. Hike in groups and avoid hiking early in the morning, late in the day or when it's dark. The use of portable audio devices is strongly discouraged.

Never Approach a Bear

2013:

All bears are wild and dangerous. Each bear will react differently and their nehavior cannot be predicted.

2010/11/12:

Individual bears have their own personal space requirements that vary depending on their mood. Each bear will react differently and their behavior cannot be predicted. All bears are wild and dangerous and should be respected equally.

Never leave your backpack unattended!

Never allow a bear to get human food.

If approached by a bear while eating, put food away and retreat to a safe distance.

Never abandon food because of an approaching bear. Always take food with you.

Never throw your pack or food at a bear in an attempt to distract it.

The park newspaper said in summer of 2011/12/13:

If You Encounter a Bear

Do not run; bears can easily outrun you. Running may cause an otherwise nonaggressive bear to attack.

If the bear is unaware of you or if the bear is aware of you but has not acted aggressively, slowly back away.

Do not drop your pack! This teaches bears how to obtain human food and often results in the removal or death of a bear.

Do not climb trees. All black bears, all grizzly cubs and some adult grizzlies can climb trees.

If a Bear Approaches or Charges You

Do not run! Most bear attacks result from surprise encounters when the bear is defending their young or defending a food source such as a carcass. Some bears will bluff their way out of a threatening situation by charging, then veering off or stopping abruptly. Bear experts generally recommend standing still until the bear stops and then slowly backing away.

If you are attacked, lie on the ground completely flat on your stomach. Spread your legs slightly and clasp your hands over the back of your neck. Do not drop your pack as it can protect your back if attacked. Do not move until you are certain the bear has left.

In rare cases, bears have attacked at night or after stalking people. These types of attacks are very serious because it may mean the bear views you as prey. If you are attacked at night or if you feel you have been stalked and attacked as prey, fight back.

2013: Do whatever it takes to let the bear know you are not easy prey.

2010/11/12: Use your bear spray, or shout and try to intimidate the bear with a stick or rock. In this type of situation, do whatever it takes to let the bear know you are not easy prey.

(2010/11/12/13):

If You Carry Bear Spray

Bear spray has been shown to be extremely effective in deterring bear attacks.

Use bear spray. Personal self defense pepper spray is not effective.

Keep the canister immediately available, not in your pack.

Follow the manufacturer's instructions, know how to use the spray, and be aware of its limitations, including the expiration date.

Bear spray is not a repellant! Do not spray it on people, tents or backpacks.

Under no circumstances should bear spray create a false sense of security or serve as a substitute for standard safety precautions in bear country.

Visitor Centers offer bear safety programs and can recycle your bear spray. Come visit for more information.

Besides the above info in the park newspaper, a 2012 webpage also said:

Leave the safety clip on the trigger unless you are ready to spray an aggressive bear. The spray may accidentally discharge otherwise.

Bear spray can be adversly affected by wind, rain, cold temperatures and age.

Do not store your bear spray in a vehicle. It may explode.

______________________________________

See also the Yellowstone park videos

http://www.nps.gov/yell/naturescience/bearenc.htm

Bear Pepper Spray Video Transcript

http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/bearspraytranscript.htm

______________________________________

______________________________________

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, or see what it thinks it smells.

Photos and notes about how to tell the difference between a grizzly and a black bear are at: Rocky Mountain mammal size comparisons

______________________________________

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 Yellowstone study:

"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."

"Despite their size and seemingly slow moving habits, bison are surprisingly agile and can be quick to react."

(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.)

__________________________________

A total of eight wolf packs were believed to have used parts of the Teton Valley in 2006, five packs in 2008. 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: