Bears in Shenandoah national park

[NJdreamer]

I read recent updates in Guthooks and ATC.org about bears in the hut areas of the Shenandoah national park. I will hang all smellables and food. Does anyone have any recent bear issues or information from hiking in the SNP? I know there are many bears in the park. My concern is specifically with bears, food and their attacking food in the hut areas. Thanks.

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[Greenlight]

Saw several bears in Shenandoah in June during a sixty miler, but no aggressive ones. There were warning signs up at the campgrounds, but the ones my group spotted were between shelters. Everyone complied with hanging food or keeping it in the bear box. There's just a lot of bears in the area. You're bound to come across one whether you know it or not, whether you see it or not.


I read recent updates in Guthooks and ATC.org about bears in the hut areas of the Shenandoah national park. I will hang all smellables and food. Does anyone have any recent bear issues or information from hiking in the SNP? I know there are many bears in the park. My concern is specifically with bears, food and their attacking food in the hut areas. Thanks.

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[Slo-go'en]

Stay at shelters + put food in bear boxes = no bear problem.

[MuddyWaters]

Stay at shelters + put food in bear boxes = no bear problem.
^
All shelters have bear boxes and poles in tenting areas
Very little other legal areas anyway.

[ldsailor]

Not this year but last year in June, several bears were in the Gravel Springs Hut camp site (off to the side past the water supply). We left them alone and they left us alone.

I suggest caution at the shelters. Not everyone hangs their food on the bear poles (some find it difficult).

[BlackCloud]

The park is 300 square miles.
The NPS says there are about 300 bears in the park
There are zoos with a lower density of black bears

[johnnybgood]

^
All shelters have bear boxes and poles in tenting areas

Really !! That's news to me . All huts have bear poles to hang food bags, but most ​do not have vault style bear boxes.

[greenpete]

No experience in Shenandoah huts (shelters), but a bear crashed my trailside camp spot near Browns Gap back in 2016. He woke me up with his snorting at 3 am. No problems, though. I yelled out, and he crashed into the woods. Bear bag was undisturbed. Saw him the next morning about 100 yards up the trail...waiting for me to leave!

[Astro]

Once saw 7 bears within 24 hours in SNP back in 2015. :sun

[MuddyWaters]

Really !! That's news to me . All huts have bear poles to hang food bags, but most ​do not have vault style bear boxes.
There are 7 huts
At least 4 have boxes
So most do
And the goal is to have boxes at all

All campgrounds have boxes as well

Calf mtn shelter is not in shenandoah technically
Hightop, blackrock, pinefield huts might not still, dont know. Havent hiked thru there in 2 yrs.

But all have poles . Boxes are for those too weak, lazy, or uncoordinated to use a pole. Poles are highly effective.

[LazyLightning]

I had 4 sightings going through this year, none were aggressive or wanted anything to do with me but 2 of them could care less if I was there or not... just looked at me and kept doing what they were doing. These were all while I was hiking, the other 2 I only noticed cause I heard them running away from me first.

On another note, after having flying squirrels get into my food bag hanging in mid air 2 nights in ME, I am done hanging my food and will be getting a bear canister. You probably don't have to worry about them in VA though

[Odd Man Out]

This guy was sitting about 25 yards in front of me with his butt centered directly on the trail about 10 min south of Thornton Gap. It was noon on a hot summer day and he was not interested in moving. So much so that when I came up from behind, he couldn't even be bothered to turn around, although he did look over his shoulder and stick his nose up in the air to check me out. After a couple of minutes, I realized that we were at an impasse. Fortunately, this was at a spot where the forest was rather open and flat, so I bushwhacked a semicircle around him keeping one eye on the bear and one eye on where I was stepping, and came out on the trial about 25 yards beyond him. Since I was now in front of him and still not moving, I took a nice picture and backed away until he was out of sight. I call him Thornton. If you run into him, say hi for me.

43878

[Kaptainkriz]

Thornton looks cute!

[MuddyWaters]

Hes a young un.
Tell by the disproportionately large ears

Bears "grow into" their ears

[Bianchi Veloce]

He looks like a lazy bear.

[foodbag]

Wow, what an amazing photo of a beautiful animal.

[Odd Man Out]

Wow, what an amazing photo of a beautiful animal.

Thanks. One of the nice things about SNP it gives you a chance of getting a photo of something other than a bear's butt while it runs away from you. They don't run. They don't attack. They pose.

[NJdreamer]

I have returned from my trip to northern SNP, and saw no bears. I stayed in 2 shelters in SNP, both with bear boxes, but could not open the one at Gravel Springs hut (nor could another camper there) so we used the pole (which moved if you pushed it) to hang our food. On another forum, someone replied the boxes are just hard to open. That might be so, but we tried multiple times, and gave up. Wouldn't have been good to have my food stuff locked up and unable to retrieve it. I did see mice in the 2 shelters and their privies (super ugh). I left a note at the shelter so the caretaker could try the bear box.

[Furlough]

One of Thornton's cousins - Jeremy
43910

[Chive]

A warning on the poles: they don't prevent inquisitive raccoons. Had an experience at Rock Spring Hut where most hung their stuff from the installed bear poles (I think that may have been one of the few huts w/o a bear box if I recall). Awoke the next morning to find a shredded mess on the ground. It wasn't until after reading the shelter log book that morning that there had been a pesky raccoon (or more than one) who was making recurring raids on bags hung from the pole. The one shredded was just a stuff sack so it was easy for the critter to rip into. I had a varmant proof bag (to protect against mice moreso than bears) so mine was OK. A couple of us chipped in some instant oatmeal and Power Bars to last him until he made it to Big Meadows wayside to resupply later that day.

[Crushed Grapes]

The one shredded was just a stuff sack so it was easy for the critter to rip into. I had a varmant proof bag (to protect against mice moreso than bears) so mine was OK.

Exactly why I carry my Ursack every single time, whether in bear country or not

[Quik]

I saw six bears this year in SNP during my SOBO hike. Two were small cubs with a sow, one yearling with a sow and one adult.

[Five Tango]

Exactly why I carry my Ursack every single time, whether in bear country or not

I added the 10 oz metal liner to mine and use it as a stool with my sit pad on top.It's my understanding that Yogi can puncture the Ursack otherwise and get his teeth into your food which would include bacteria.The bear supposedly cannot consume your edibles but can still ruin them.Bags made before 2014 are more susceptible to failure.Personally,I cannot tie mine tight enough to make it mouse proof but I don't stay in shelters and it has not yet been an issue.

[shelb]

Stay at shelters + put food in bear boxes = no bear problem.

So TRUE!!!! We saw many bear during the day while hiking SNP. They all left us alone. Keep using the bear poles and don't sleep with food!

[Fredt4]

During my 2011 thru-hike a bear thought she check out my backpack as I was resting on a road crossing. When I saw her an stood up she turned tail and disappear into the forest followed by two cubs. Yes they are there and they'll get your food if you leave it out, but they won't tangle with you for the food.

[vickietyer]

I saw 10 bears in four days this summer, they scared the crap out of me, they are so close and they don't move.

[Gambit McCrae]

There will always and forever be a healthy populous of black bear in the park. I saw 3 thru the park. And only 1 charged at me. Guess that means I have been charged 33% of the time.