High Sierra Topix

Obviously this is fiction , but after reading this what was the first thought
that went through your mind, besides "Yeah right" or "Oh S**t? Did it induce a feeling of
fear, or maybe excitement?
How would such a development impact you as a backpacker/fisherman-woman/hiker?
What habits would you have to change? How many would not go solo any more? Would
you continue bring your children or pets on backpacking trips?
As a ranger working for either the NPS of FS, how would this effect you jobs especially
as a back country ranger?

My first thought was...I hope not.
I've lived "around" black bears all my life, and I'm respectful of them, but not afraid. I've heard horror stories about grizzlies, so I'd be somewhat apprehensive if I should find myself in grizzly country. I'd strongly consider carrying a loud and obnoxious noise maker, and maybe even a firearm. Also maybe bear spray but I'm not sure how effective that would be.

Being how California was historically prime grizzly habitat I would vote for it. Scared, maybe, but as with all activities in our wonderful out of doors cation is of the utmost importance. So many things could go wrong with or without grizzlies. Just another factor really.

Tom,

Stats I picked up during visit to Glacier--Using fire arm to protect oneself--survive 50% of the time. Using bear spray to protect oneself survive 90% of the time. 6 days of hiking during my time there 0 bears sighted. Saw at least 4 different griz with binoculars from inside Many Glacier hotel though and they were foraging slopes closed to human use. There were also several trails closed due to Grizz activity.

Mike

Mike,

Did knowing that grizzlies were around give you a heightened sense of awareness Mike?
More alertness, or slight feeling of fear?

I was scare s---less the whole time but found I relaxed a little more each day. The first night in the backcountry when staying at the Sperry Chalet, I got up to go pee. (there is no inside plumbing and the million dollar privey is a hundred yards away from the building). It was drizziling and foggy and there was no way I was walking that far in the dark. So I peed off the front steps . Now as I was doing that I had my headlamp on and realized that the fog blunted the usable range of the headlamp to all of 10 ft. So mid flow my pee stopped with the realization that a griz was obviously only a few steps away and just about ready to have me for a midnight snack. With some difficulty I completed the task at hand and returned to our room. Next AM I checked the place out--no tracks but I discovered that while our room had access to a balcony the room below us did not. For the next two nights problem solved (but it didn't help kathy out much) Thank god she didn't ask me to escort her to the ladies room at night or she would have learned about what a coward I am.

We also had a discussion about who would survive if we encountered a bear and the bear spray didn't work. We decided that if the escape route was up hill the bear would get Kathy as I go up faster but if the escape was down hill I was dead meat as she goes down faster than I do.

Ah wonderful thoughts to contemplate.

Mike

Mike wrote:
We also had a discussion about who would survive if we encountered a bear and
the bear spray didn't work. We decided that if the escape route was up hill the
bear would get Kathy as I go up faster but if the escape was down hill I was dead
meat as she goes down faster than I do.

Nice twist on the saying "always head to grizzly country with a partner you
can out run".

If that happened i'd have mixed feelings. I'd love to see them back but I would feel worse about sleeping with food in my tent like I often do now. :retard:

I wonder if the parks would make using bear spray legal if we had grizzlies.

oldranger wrote:Tom,

Stats I picked up during visit to Glacier--Using fire arm to protect oneself--survive 50% of the time. Using bear spray to protect oneself survive 90% of the time. 6 days of hiking during my time there 0 bears sighted. Saw at least 4 different griz with binoculars from inside Many Glacier hotel though and they were foraging slopes closed to human use. There were also several trails closed due to Grizz activity.

Mike

Thanks for the stats. I would have thought the bear spray/firearm would have been reversed. I guess you get nervous when a bear charges and miss.....

we did have this little chat on the topic prior: viewtopic.php?f=27&t=6857&hilit=grizzly" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;