Grizzly bear kills hiker in Denali National Park

[Coffey]

http://news.yahoo.com/bear-kills-den...223603495.html

[Del Q]

This is a slightly concerning line in the article...........A camera found near the backpack had several images of a bear, which will be analyzed, she said.

Was the hiker taking pics too close to the bear that attacked them?

[moytoy]

Another report said the hiker was very close to the bear taking pics.

[Maddog]

http://news.yahoo.com/bear-kills-den...223603495.html

Ouch...that sucks! Maddog

[surfnturk]

i was in Denali in May and spent tons of time hiking/walking the Toklat river. Only saw one grizzly but tons of sign. If your not carrying bear spray or the right gun your going to be at risk.

[Mrs Baggins]

I know the rules about not having food or food odors anywhere near you....but does it ever occur to people that to a big hungry grizzly you ARE food, you smell like food to them, especially a dirty sweaty hiker who hasn't showered.

[Mrs Baggins]

More details...name, age, and that he spent at least 8 minutes photographing the bear from only 50 yds away.......

http://news.yahoo.com/bear-kills-cal...064602013.html

[Wise Old Owl]

i was in Denali in May and spent tons of time hiking/walking the Toklat river. Only saw one grizzly but tons of sign. If your not carrying bear spray or the right gun your going to be at risk.

Shooting the bear can land people in jail...

Before anyone else mentions having a gun - there is so much regulation about shooting a Grizzly read up on Westmorland's outcome at self defense at 40 yards away.

"agencies basically ignore hunter safety. Through an excise tax on guns and ammo, hunters pour millions of dollars into the Pittman-Robertson that’s supposed to be used for hunter safety and education. The Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho game and fish departments fail to provide hunters with any meaningful information on how to use their firearm for self defense during a worst case scenario with a grizzly."




Heres the starter article

http://www.newwest.net/main/article/...be_prosecuted/

Here is a reverse outcome Notice the heavy investigation afterwards - what saved them was two people with coo-berating stories of a 900 lbs bear charging



http://www.orangepower.com/threads/b...ka-park.92237/

[Fiddleback]

Shooting the bear can land people in jail...

Before anyone else mentions having a gun - there is so much regulation about shooting a Grizzly read up on Westmorland's outcome at self defense at 40 yards away.

"agencies basically ignore hunter safety. Through an excise tax on guns and ammo, hunters pour millions of dollars into the Pittman-Robertson that’s supposed to be used for hunter safety and education. The Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho game and fish departments fail to provide hunters with any meaningful information on how to use their firearm for self defense during a worst case scenario with a grizzly."...

I can't speak to the whys of state game departments...especially my own which, IMO is overwhelmingly pro-hunter. Regardless of agencies' reasoning, it is extremely difficult to effectively use a firearm to stop a grizzly attack. Some studies have compared results of bear encounters with the use of bear spray contrasted with the use of firearms and bear spray was shown to be more effective, i.e. fewer resulting injuries.

It is extremely difficult...and requires an extreme amount of training...to stop a grizzly-size bear which may be closing at a rate of 20+mph and perhaps starting at a close distance andperhaps with surprise.

Aside from those studies, fatalities here in the Northern Rockies have included a high proportion of hunters...hunters who, presumably, know how to use the weapons they are carrying...

The issue is safety. The individual is safer when relying on spray for bear deterrent. Of course, spray is safer at all times for others around those who carry...see again the stats for accidental hunter shootings/fatalities. Finally, bear spray is safer for the bear, especially those who had been "...photographed...for more than eight minutes and...within 50 yards..." http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...entNews&rpc=76

More to my point of view...if one is recreating in an area and feels so at risk that a gun is necessary for protection from the wildlife then that recreation should be done somewhere else. There's less than 1400 grizzly left in a very small area of the lower-48...

FB

[Rasty]

There seem to be a common thread in Grizzly attacks, with some exceptions. The attacks happen when someone foolishly gets to close or someone else pissed the bear off by shooting it with a tranquilizer gun then setting it free to kill the first hiker it see's. The other common thing is it's in the Parks in the lower 48, not the forests or game land. I've read about maybe ten in the last five or six years and it's always our fault so far. I'm positive there are exceptions that I just can't remember.

[Wise Old Owl]

[Don H]

20 years ago I backpacked up the Toklat river, I must have seen a dozen grizzles. Never felt threatened.

[Spirit Walker]

Hunters and fishermen are much more at risk from grizzlies. They are carrying dead meat (smelly) and usually are much quieter than hikers who wander through the woods yelling out "Yo bear" and clicking their hiking sticks against the rocks. We are taught to make noise. Hunters are told to stay quiet.

One question I have about the Denali attack - since there were numerous bears in the area, it's not necessarily the bear he was photographing that got him, though that is, of course, most likely. He may have stumbled across another bear nearby. I really hope they didn't kill the wrong bear.

[surfnturk]

your absolutely correct, your life will be made miserable and they will come after you so it had better be life or death situation.However, when your in true grizzly country, arguably one of the moist concentrated areas of aggressive gizzly you had better be packing heat and be prepared to use it if all else fails. I carry bear spray and appropriate firearms. When your 60 miles from the nearest anything (where we camped for 5 days between fairbanks and valdez ) you had better be prepared to shoot , spray or you can die, period.Its no place for thre "should I carry a gun argument
Before anyone else mentions having a gun - there is so much regulation about shooting a Grizzly read up on Westmorland's outcome at self defense at 40 yards away.

"agencies basically ignore hunter safety. Through an excise tax on guns and ammo, hunters pour millions of dollars into the Pittman-Robertson that’s supposed to be used for hunter safety and education. The Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho game and fish departments fail to provide hunters with any meaningful information on how to use their firearm for self defense during a worst case scenario with a grizzly."




Heres the starter article

http://www.newwest.net/main/article/...be_prosecuted/

Here is a reverse outcome Notice the heavy investigation afterwards - what saved them was two people with coo-berating stories of a 900 lbs bear charging



http://www.orangepower.com/threads/b...ka-park.92237/[/QUOTE]

[surfnturk]

[QUOTWhat does that have to do with anything? Your suppoesed tp be prepared incase you are threathened. If you "backpack) the Toklat river with no defensed your a complete fool.=Don H;1329255]20 years ago I backpacked up the Toklat river, I must have seen a dozen grizzles. Never felt threatened.[/QUOTE]

[Don H]

I did not carry any kind of defense items with me. Guns are not allowed in Denali National Park, and if you've hiked the Toklat you would know that. The only way to get in there to hike is by the park bus and you need a permit to get off the bus in the back country.

I did take the mandatory bear training required before you can draw a permit to hike the back country and carried all "smellables" in the required bear canister which they rent at the park.

Also I tried to stay out of brushy areas with limited visibility. Most of the area there is open so there is plenty of visibility. Also there was daylight 24 hours a day.

The bears are not interested in you as food, they are only interested in digging up ground squirrels to eat. It's amazing to see them dig like a dog and watch the dirt fly. They don't view humans as a food source since they can't get to your food due to mandatory bear canister use. They will only bother you if they see you as a threat.

What will get you in trouble with bears is getting between a mom and cubs (obviously), getting near a kill they are feeding on, or accidentally coming up on one and startling it. And of course intentionally approaching one which they see as a threat.

[Lone Wolf]

I did not carry any kind of defense items with me. Guns are not allowed in Denali National Park, and if you've hiked the Toklat you would know that. The only way to get in there to hike is by the park bus and you need a permit to get off the bus in the back country.

I did take the mandatory bear training required before you can draw a permit to hike the back country and carried all "smellables" in the required bear canister which they rent at the park.

Also I tried to stay out of brushy areas with limited visibility. Most of the area there is open so there is plenty of visibility. Also there was daylight 24 hours a day.

The bears are not interested in you as food, they are only interested in digging up ground squirrels to eat. It's amazing to see them dig like a dog and watch the dirt fly. They don't view humans as a food source since they can't get to your food due to mandatory bear canister use. They will only bother you if they see you as a threat.

What will get you in trouble with bears is getting between a mom and cubs (obviously), getting near a kill they are feeding on, or accidentally coming up on one and startling it. And of course intentionally approaching one which they see as a threat.

http://www.nps.gov/dena/parkmgmt/fir...t/firearms.htm

[surfnturk]

I've made probaly 15 trips to Drenali, as well as other place in Alaska and I know from personal knowledge, not Google

[Marta]

I know the rules about not having food or food odors anywhere near you....but does it ever occur to people that to a big hungry grizzly you ARE food, you smell like food to them, especially a dirty sweaty hiker who hasn't showered.

This is not actually true. Grizzly bears do not normally track and kill large animals for food. (Unlike polar bears.) They will, however, respond to perceived threats by attacking the animal that threatens them. This past weekend I attended a presentation in Glacier NP. The ranger mentioned a study done in Alaska of the response of grizzlies to various types of noises. Speakers were set up along game trails and the reaction of the bears to all sorts of noises at various volumes. The two noises given the widest berth by the bears were the human voice and snapping sticks.

[Marta]

I second what Fiddleback says about bear spray vs. firearms. The spray is quite effective in making bears run off. We keep it handy here at the hotel for bears that start hanging around. You can tell if a bear has been sprayed before because he starts to run off as soon as you pull out the can.


That said, the main things to do are to avoid startling the bears, and if you see one at close range, don't look it in the eyes, don't run, and don't challenge it. It will generally just go back to eating and let you pass on through. I walked within 20' of triplet cubs a week ago, and just kept walking so mama wouldn't pay me any special attention. We were all fine. It cost me some pain not to stop and get pictures, but that would have been dumb and dangerous.