Tips on surviving a bear encounter
September 22, 2009 by Personal Liberty News Desk
With the beginning of the fall season bears are becoming more active in some parts of the country, and those who plan to spend time outdoors may want to keep in mind a few tips on how to behave if they encounter the large animal.
Mark Ternent, a black bear biologist, says the likelihood can be reduced if people refrain from feeding wildlife, such as birds or deer, while on a trip or storing food or garbage in places such as backyard. Even squash, pumpkins, corn stalks or other Halloween or holiday decorations outside may attract bears.
"Once bears become habituated to an area where they find food, they will continue to return, which is when the bear can become a real problem for homeowners and neighbors," says Ternent.
He advises to stay calm if a bear has wondered onto your property. Often shouting at it from a safe distance can persuade the animal to leave. If not, it is a good idea to slowly retreat and call for assistance.
When coming into contact with a bear in the wild, it is best to slowly back away while quietly talking. While withdrawing, it is important to face the animal, but avoid direct eye contact. Turning and running can spur the bear to chase, and humans cannot outrun bears.
It is also important not to block the bear’s escape route, to move away from cubs and to avoid climbing a tree.
Some bears may bluff charge, and if this occurs the best approach is to wave your arms wildly, and shout at the bear.
Finally, the expert says in the event of an attack, fight back as you continue to leave the area as bears have been driven away with rocks, sticks, binoculars, car keys or even bare hands. 
(3 votes, average: 3.67 out of 5)
Somehow, Mark forgot a large calibre rifle and/or handgun will also sort out the problem rather quickly with regard to black bears and/or grizzly’s.
Amazing how that solution was missed. Guess it’s more exciting to suggest you fight off one of the most powerful beasts in the food chain with a set of car keys.
I agree with Lebo. It is best to always stay in the yellow zone (being fully aware of your surroundings) but to be prepared is to be safe. Do follow the retreating instructions, but don’t leave your life to fate. Carry a gun!
The best thing is to always hike with someone ’slower’ than you.
Don’t bears & dogs love a good fast chase followed by a meal?
Interesting solution to the bear problem, however, probably unkind to the “slower” hiker -
Libertytrain: He didn’t say “Take a friend.”
You could, you know, take your congressperson or state senator, or any one of the lobbyists they do lunch with. (Hmm…this puts the idea of “taking someone to lunch” in a whole new perspective.)
Perhaps, Ms. Pelosi?
Best tip: You see a bear don’t say “boo just RUN!
How do we survive an encounter with this guy?
http://www.newsmax.com/headlin.....ode=8961-1
As Strothr Martin once so famously noted (in “Cool Hand Luke), “What we have here, is a failure to communicate”. the increase of bear/human incidents, at least in the eastern half of this nation, is due primarily to two things. A lessening of the general awareness of proper outdoor behavior and the reduction and/or outright banning of bear hunting. The “Animal Rights” crowd, teaming up with the “Bambist’s”, howl, rant and rave about “Trophy Hunters”, animal cruelty, et cetera, ad nauseam, while a’busilly blaming humans for being fruitful and multiplying. Necessitating, of course, new places for them to live. While the above chance encounter defense admonitions will go a long way to somewhat lessening the number of encounters, a population of any big game animal that is well managed by wildlife biologists, will include hunting as one of their “tools”. Unless, of course, the “anti’s” are put in charge. Where do you think most of the money for wildlife management comes from in the first place? First clue: It’s not Bird watchers or Hikers.
BEARS, are good if you follow the rules. Most where already there, so all I can say is follow those rules. Some of us are different, I know (since age 16) that I could go up to a bear, pett him, enjoy his company, an leave. This is not recommended for you to TRY!!! My name in “APACHE” is “STANDING BEAR”(LOOKING AROUND HIS MOUNTIAN TO SEE WHAT NEEDS DONE!), I was given this name as I sit in a clear area of the READOSA,NM APACHEE RESERVATION. I do not recomend this for people as I am the only one how has tried and done this.
sarg,
i think the artical was about real bears not bear head trophies on a hunting lodge or bar wall.
if a bear was to find something to eat on the rez, only the spirits could save its life after it ate what it found.
bears love the taste and smell of tuna fish, peanut butter and scented skin lotions, baby wipes some wines and apple juice.
if you smell like whats in a trash can, you may become a play toy or a chewy toy for a young bear.
also, watch what you step in, one bears scat can be another bears calling card .
I don’t believe in killing animals unjustly, but if i follow the experts advice and the bear still comes after me, i would shoot it.
I wouldn’t play with my life,because once the bear decides he’s going to attack, i don’t think you can reason with it, a bear doesn’t understand English.
MACE,PEPPER SPRAY,WASP SPRAY…THE BEARS NOSE IS THE MOST SENSITIVE OF ALL ANIMALS AND WILL SUFFER WITH THESE ITEMS USED ON THEM.44 MAG OF COURSE IS ALSO A GOOD ALTERNATIVE.
IUn Northern New Jersey we are heading for a real disaster. This being the Garden State we have the highest number of cubs being born. 3-4 cubs is not uncommon and some she bears have been seen with 5 cubs. One day last month, there were three different sightings of bears by one person within a half hour and bear and two cubs were in my pond at the same time within 100 feet of my house.
Fish and Game know how to control the bear population and how to put the fear of man back into bears. Hunting controls the population and the aggresive bears are the first to be hunted. Bears are now rountinely being sighted in congested areas. Govenor Corzine has given way to the animal rightist and stopped hunting. Bears are cute and cuddley but they must be controlled. We need to listen to the wildlife people before someone gets hurt by overpopulation of bears.
I have spent thousands of hours in the woods in Alaska in some very dense bear populations and they have always steered clear of me. I have watched a bear with cubs walk about 150′ from me while cooking a BBQ roast over an open fire… and only have known of one actually walking through my campsite.
I have taken firearms with me, and gone solo with almost no gear… and only have seen bears a dozen times in the wild. From what I hear, the bears are getting closer and bolder even up there… learning that where people are, there is food.
If you don’t carry a firearm, stick with group hiking, camping, etc… In larger groups of 10 or more people, you have enough to ward off just about any bear without cubs where they are separated.
I have been planning to buy a nice weapon for years but can’t afford one… mainly for bears… there is a company in alaska that makes a .375 lever action into a break-down weapon that comes apart in the middle. Made for pilots to put under a seat, etc.
They also make it in a few bigger calibers like .444 mag.
I have 4 boys, and I suspect that I will be armed when going into the back woods…
Keep it real….
What kind of Libs are we in this country? Don’t you know that it is common knowledge that the bears have the right to the wilderness and you are intruding on their turf? Just remember if you think you have a right your wrong. Better yet it would be just great if we all killed our selves to get the population down so that someone else could enjoy the earth more fully.
I never go into the forests.
Oh good grief! Of course the bears have a right to the wilderness. No more and no less than we do who enjoy the outdoors. My dog and I hike throughout the south almost daily and yes, we have encountered bears. They are without exception afraid of us and run the other direction. I give them a wide berth when possible and I don’t travel armed with anything more lethal than my camera (usually). Those that don’t want to hunt bears, don’t, but leave those that do alone to help us all in the proper population control for these magnificent beasts.
Jim,
Unfortunately too many animal rights groups have never seen a starved deer or other animals. It’s just heartbreaking to see a doe that once stood proudly and majestically in the woods down to skin and bones and too weak to lift a leg to walk when it used to be able to clear a 6 ft fence like it wasn’t there. When the population of deer gets higher than what it’s area can feed then nature takes over with starvation and disease. I wish they could get that into their head. Putting out bales of hay won’t work either as the deer stomach won’t digest it.