Momma and Cub Bear encounter 1/2 mile north of Unicoi Gap (Georgia)

[Suckerfish]

I did a hike this weekend from Unicoi Gap to Tray mountain. About half a mile up rocky mountain I sat down to take a break next to a creek there. All of a sudden I see a bear cub at the base of the creek looking at me and then to the north then back at me.

Then out of the blue I hear what sounds like a bulldozer coming up the bank of the creek just north of where I was only to see a huge, I mean huge momma bear. She stopped right at the trail and was looking right at me.

I got up grabbed my pack in one hand and turned around and started walking the other direction south on the trail. I waited around the bend for about 15 minutes and I could hear them walking in the woods to my right (Creek was to my left). After it was clear I went on making noises talking to myself and whistling singing, anything I could to let them know I was coming.

I didn’t see them again; however I came up on 2 more bears during the entire 10 mile round trip hike.

Did I do the right thing when I encountered the Momma bear and her cub?

The other bears I encountered didn’t bother me, they were males and took off running as I came near, and honestly I heard them first then saw their butts running.

I was pretty freaked out with the cub and momma though, so freaked I nearly turned around and ended my trip. They were in the back of my mind the rest of the hike.

They officially spooked me; I will consider hiking with a partner from now on…

Any suggestions when encountering a bear?

[Mike2012]

You did pretty good as far as I can tell. I had a baby and momma bear encounter in the Shenandoahs about a month ago that was somewhat similar. I hiked around a corner and saw a little cub and then to its right was a momma bear. I stopped thinking "great picture" and she started approaching me. I backed up while facing her and she still approached. It was then that I noticed another cub up a tree right near the trails edge and closer to me than either of the other two bears. Well I backed up further and put out the "I am not a threat" vibe. When I was out of sight I remembered and stashed the stinky ripe banana that was on the back of my pack and sprayed a bit of OFF into the air as the breeze was blowing directly from me to them. I sang the Star Spangled Banner as someone had recommended earlier in my journey. 15 minutes on I slowly walked down the trail again and they were gone. I saw many other bears after that and some huffed or snorted a bit but I got the message and moved along. Bears don't want to waste energy on humans, they just want to be left alone.

[SouthMark]

According to the folks at The North American Bear Organization who have been studying black bears for over 40 years, momma bears protecting their cubs is a grizzly trait. They contend that a black bear female will not fight to protect her cubs, instead she will chase them up a tree bluff charge and then run away. A Maine game warden said the same thing. He said that black bears live by running away.

[Mike2012]

According to the folks at The North American Bear Organization who have been studying black bears for over 40 years, momma bears protecting their cubs is a grizzly trait. They contend that a black bear female will not fight to protect her cubs, instead she will chase them up a tree bluff charge and then run away. A Maine game warden said the same thing. He said that black bears live by running away.

I think I will continue avoiding anything resembling a bluff charge from any kind of bear.

[kofritz]

ditto mike2012.

[Razor]

Be prepared for Bears all over Georgia . They are almost everywhere except the Hawk Mtn area. I even saw one in the Plumorchard area for the first time last week. You are correct in that most Blacks will run if confronted.

[Hoofit]

Hiking up the trail, I too encountered a bear cub and what I assume was its mother.Well, I had no idea how fast a bear cub could climb a tree!Man, that cub shot up the nearest pine tree like his ass was on fire!
It was gone and out of site in a matter of seconds.....
Momm Bear just stood there and held her ground.....
ANd gave me a looooong hard stare!
LIke the proverbial 'village idiot', I wanted a picture but the MOmma decided otherwise and took off into the brush , on the other side of the trail.
THis presented a problem as I had to pass them and had no idea if MOmma would consider me a threat to her cub, who decided to stay hgh up in the pine tree.
SO I stood and waited, and waited and eventually walked on, passed the big old pine without looking up, (hey, I was sure MOmma was still watching my every move),and just kept going, trying to mentally put out my best"I love BEars" vibe .....
BOttom line is that I believe that cub had been trained by his mom to get out of harm's way and that as long as I left them alone, they would leave me alone.
THere are so few actual attacks compared to encounters that no-one should feel afraid of BLack BEars, just treat them with the respect that deserve, give them as much space as possible and enjoy the fact that there are still wild creatures out there on the trails.

[hikerboy57]

According to the folks at The North American Bear Organization who have been studying black bears for over 40 years, momma bears protecting their cubs is a grizzly trait. They contend that a black bear female will not fight to protect her cubs, instead she will chase them up a tree bluff charge and then run away. A Maine game warden said the same thing. He said that black bears live by running away.

ive heard the same thing. but you dont want to turn your back on a bear,and dont make eye contact. she may bluff charge, but she wont leave her cubs to attack.just wants her cubs safe.

[Odd Man Out]

According to the folks at The North American Bear Organization who have been studying black bears for over 40 years, momma bears protecting their cubs is a grizzly trait. They contend that a black bear female will not fight to protect her cubs, instead she will chase them up a tree bluff charge and then run away. A Maine game warden said the same thing. He said that black bears live by running away.

Here's the link if you are intersted. There are several articles on each page, and a total of 4 pages (scroll down to get to pages 2, 3, and 4).

http://www.bear.org/website/bear-pag...-a-humans.html

The mother and cub article is on page 2.

http://www.bear.org/website/bear-pag...-her-cubs.html