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  1. #1
    Registered User bwb49's Avatar
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    Default hikers find man’s remains near Great Smoky Mountains campsite

    https://www.charlotteobserver.com/ne...245685550.html

    As a bear lurked, hikers found a man’s remains scattered near a campsite in the North Carolina portion of Great Smoky Mountains National Park on Friday, rangers said Saturday.

    After finding an unoccupied tent, the backpackers saw what appeared to be human remains scattered across a nearby creek, “with a bear scavenging in the area,” according to a park news release.

    The hikers “quickly left” to get cell coverage and reported what they encountered to authorities, rangers said.
    Rangers said the remains were found near Hazel Creek Trail. Park visitors can access the trail by catching a 30-minute boat shuttle across the western end of Lake Fontana, according to SmokiesInformation.org.

  2. #2
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    I am not going to tell my wife about this incident.

  3. #3
    GSMNP 900 Miler rmitchell's Avatar
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    Quick action by the rangers considering the remote location.

    A good reason to carry a GPS with messaging capability as there is no cell coverage in that area.

    Too soon to know details the cause of death of the camper.

    Condolences to his/her family and friends.

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  5. #5
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    Methhead was out poaching ginseng, died of a drug overdose, the bear came across his dead body. It wasn’t a “bear attack”.

  6. #6
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    ??? The link posted by doritotex is to a death that happened two years ago and has nothing to do with the incident that is the subject of this thread.

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  8. #8
    GSMNP 900 Miler
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    The GSMNP Facebook group was/is going crazy over this story. Seems no one can bring it up without the discussion taking a turn for the worst and the tread getting deleted.

  9. #9

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    HooKooDooKu-
    Not that I need more craziness, but what's the name of the Facebook group?
    Thanks
    Rusty

  10. #10
    GSMNP 900 Miler
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rusty Joints View Post
    HooKooDooKu-
    Not that I need more craziness, but what's the name of the Facebook group?
    Thanks
    Rusty
    Hiking the Smokies

    Based on what I've seen today, it looks like posts about the incident have started to peter off... For the last week, everyone that seemed to have just learned about it had to post to the group as if it were the first announcement on the subject. But usually the comments quickly would turn nasty (like comments on the euthanized bear or some other aspect of the situation) the admins would soon have to lock or delete the thread

  11. #11

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    Update on that link Traffic Jam posted says they've identified the deceased. RIP Mr. Madura. Sympathies/condolences to his family and friends.

    Seeing "Hazel Creek" and it being called a "remote location", had me wondering if it was near were the 16 y.o. boy (Gabriel Alexander), was attacked/bitten on his head/face while sleeping in his hammock back in 2015.
    A quick check shows yes. Both Hazel Creek. One at/near campsite 82 and the other at/near campsite 84. The boys father was able to stop the bear from dragging his son off.

    willin'

  12. #12
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    Sadly, this bear will have to be destroyed

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by stephanD View Post
    Sadly, this bear will have to be destroyed


    it was killed friday night.........

    once the rangers got there and saw what was going on....

  14. #14
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    A quick check shows yes. Both Hazel Creek. One at/near campsite 82 and the other at/near campsite 84


    hazel creek is notorious for having campsites closed down over the years/decades due to bears and bad human activity...

    that's one of the three trails that people are allowed to bring carts to wheel their stuff in...

    and with that-----means more food...

    some of those fisher people bring a ton of food....

    one year i was over at one of the sites and for breakfast for 4 dudes-----cooked up 3 pounds of bacon and 3 dozen eggs.....

    ton of food and one of the rare times i have had a breakfast out on the trail as they had extra.....

    and that lower stretch of hazel---along the roadbed before it turns into a regular trail-----is very popular....

    and can't forget that the Park brings people over on the barge and uses the suburban for the may celebration days at the cemeteries...

    and those are typically a picnic type affair-----hence the tables and the out houses they have set out for that purpose....

  15. #15
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    Quick action by the rangers considering the remote location.


    it's actually pretty easy for a ranger to get over there.....

    considering how remote it is....

    they have a couple of boats (including a barge) that are anchored over at the marina....

    they take that over to hazel and then get in either the 4 wheeler or the ford suburban that they have over there....

    then just drive up to the area....


    years ago, i hitched a ride on one of the four wheelers going up....

  16. #16
    Registered User JNI64's Avatar
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    And there is no hunting or thinning out of the bear population in the park correct? Unless there's interactions with humans? Quite the quagmire of a situation for sure.
    Last edited by JNI64; 09-13-2020 at 21:21.

  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by JNI64 View Post
    And there is no hunting or thinning out of the bear population in the park correct? Unless there's interactions with humans? Quite the quagmire of a situation for sure.



    that is correct....

    outside (and literally right at the boundary) one is allowed to hunt but not inside the Park...

    i have seen lots of bear hunting dogs on the north carolina side that are inside the Park........obviously they don't know the boundary
    but their owners release them that close to the Park...

    on the TN side----in the area where cove mountain fire tower is, there's an area to hunt there...

    and yes, imo, a thinning of the herd would help things out somewhat....

    of course, it also boils down to better human activity but seemingly over the years, there's more human-bear interactions
    than ever before...

    gatlinburg by passing their (soft) law regarding trash has somewhat helped out but not really...

    bears are still coming into town because they are baited to do so and business owners know that people
    want to see bears....


    the Park does hire hunters to go and shoot hogs though....

    they get a couple hundred each year but it really doesnt make a dent in that population....

  18. #18
    GSMNP 900 Miler
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    Quote Originally Posted by TNhiker View Post
    the Park does hire hunters to go and shoot hogs though....

    they get a couple hundred each year but it really doesnt make a dent in that population....
    Didn't realize that got rid of that many per year.

  19. #19
    Registered User JNI64's Avatar
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    It's very rare when a bear acts up and alot times It's the humans fault for lnt practices or lack of. Considering how many bears are in there 1or2 every square mile, I'm surprised that there isn't more interaction. I'm also curious why the wild hogs don't act up .they get big and nasty and eat everything and anything. But we never hear about wild boar attacks or them even coming in and tearing up camps. Given the chance a wild hog will probably eat you before a black bear.

  20. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by JNI64 View Post
    It's very rare when a bear acts up and alot times It's the humans fault for lnt practices or lack of.

    To be clear it's not necessarily the fault of the particular humans involved in the bear encounter. At times, such as with the hammocking father/son combo, it was determined that they did everything right. To the extent that we suppose human behavior led to the mauling, it would have had to be people who came before them that didn't hew to best practices.

    And there's always the chance that there's just some predatory black bear, not necessarily driven to it by human behavior. Rare, yes, but not unprecedented.

    That said, I certainly support efforts to improve human behavior in bear country.

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