Hiker Alert: Nuisance Bear @ Wise Shelter

[jkloehn]

Hiker/Backpacker Alert: Grayson Highlands State Park - Due to a problem bear that has become aggressive towards several hikers, it is strongly encouraged to avoid staying overnight in or around Wise Shelter. The VA Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries will be addressing the problem.

Thanks,

Joshua K.
ATC - VARO

[yaduck9]

Hiker/Backpacker Alert: Grayson Highlands State Park - Due to a problem bear that has become aggressive towards several hikers, it is strongly encouraged to avoid staying overnight in or around Wise Shelter. The VA Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries will be addressing the problem.

Thanks,

Joshua K.
ATC - VARO

Is "addressing the problem" a euphemism for termination?

[mtnkngxt]

This doesn't surprise me in the least. Wise was always full of boy scouts and other "group" camping parties when I lived nearby. Food was rarely stored well, dispersed camping was ignored, and it wasn't uncommon for people to not pack out their trash. Between the coyotes, ponies, and bears around Wise, it was only a matter of time before one of them became a problem. Unfortunately the park will most likely kill the bear to prevent any attacks.

[HikerMom58]

Yup... I wondering how long it would take for someone to post this info on here. I'll see if I dig up the info that I read on what happened, with the bear, at that shelter ... If I remember correctly the bear stole a man's backpack from the shelter, while he was using the privy.

There seems to be a lot of bear activity in VA this year. I was out for a trail run yesterday in a fairly rural area but heavily used by humans. There was a sign posted warning people about a momma bear and her 2 cubs hanging out on the running/walking trail.

There are just looking for food.... thankfully we aren't in their food chain. Unlike the deer, tho, we can't get as up close & personal with them.

brb...........

Here you go.... via Appalachian trail Section hikers page.

Last Tuesday (10 Sept) I was at Mt. Rogers Outfitters and a man from New Mexico was in the store getting new gear. It seems he had been hiking and stopped at Wise Shelter, and while he was at the privy a bear got his backpack. The man gave chase and the bear fled, taking the backpack with him, including his wallet. The response from the store owner was, "Yep, it's that time of year." Good reminder to keep your pack with you (or with some other human) while in bear country.

[HikerMom58]

And this..........via TOW

Heads up! Bear activity at Wise Shelter, very aggressive bear stole a pack last week and shredded a tent last night and chased hiker into rhododendron and kept charging at him all night!

[Lone Wolf]

This doesn't surprise me in the least. Wise was always full of boy scouts and other "group" camping parties when I lived nearby. Food was rarely stored well, dispersed camping was ignored, and it wasn't uncommon for people to not pack out their trash. Between the coyotes, ponies, and bears around Wise, it was only a matter of time before one of them became a problem. Unfortunately the park will most likely kill the bear to prevent any attacks.

yup. it's a heavily used/trashed shelter. don't understand why folks like the dirty boxes so much

[leaftye]

That was posted in another thread, but I didn't catch that part about being charged. I thought the guy was just reluctant to return. I don't believe we ever got clarification on how things went down...probably scumbag backpackers that didn't respect bears enough to store their food properly.

[wornoutboots]

I know bears roam so is this isolated to Wise or has it spread up Massie Gap to Thomas Knob? I'm taking my wife & brother out in 2 weeks hiking from Massie Gap to Damascus & want to make sure this isn't a problem. Thanks

[Pedaling Fool]

I know bears roam so is this isolated to Wise or has it spread up Massie Gap to Thomas Knob? I'm taking my wife & brother out in 2 weeks hiking from Massie Gap to Damascus & want to make sure this isn't a problem. Thanks

I would think it depends on how much food the bear finds at/near Wise shelter; if it's enough he won't be roaming too much. Humans are not the only lazy animals; animals only roam, because they have to, but give them a good source of food they will stick around.

[Hikeforbrews]

We camped a .10 of a mile from Wise Shelter on Sept 7th and were chased out of our site due to this bear. He came up when we were eating dinner and we started yelling at him and waving our hands and it didn't care at all. I just walked right into our site and took a backpack and left. My girlfriend was freaked out so she wanted to move so we started getting our gear together and it came back again during this time. He was not afraid of people at all. I told the rangers at the Grayson Highlands gate. It was quite an experience!

[MuddyWaters]

Close the area to people, leave the bear alone.

If an animal bothers you, move along immediately. Its his home, not yours.

Typical americans wanting their outdoor experience to be "safe". Heaven forbid a wild animal exists that doesnt run at first sight of you.

[ChinMusic]

Shoot it....

[Alligator]

It was a while ago that I was at that shelter, and sorry to say, but that shelter had loads of trash when I visited it last. So I wonder if it needs a better maintenance schedule or some extra attention. I have visited it twice. The first time I didn't go up to the loft area but thought it might be nice. The next time I went through I went up and there was trash throughout the loft.

[wornoutboots]

It was a while ago that I was at that shelter, and sorry to say, but that shelter had loads of trash when I visited it last. So I wonder if it needs a better maintenance schedule or some extra attention. I have visited it twice. The first time I didn't go up to the loft area but thought it might be nice. The next time I went through I went up and there was trash throughout the loft.

This happened at wise the next shelter nobo from the one I think your speaking of "Thomas Knob" I've been to both several times & have never seen any trash? Makes me rethink my plan for next week?? I may head to Roan Mountain instead?

[Alligator]

This happened at wise the next shelter nobo from the one I think your speaking of "Thomas Knob" I've been to both several times & have never seen any trash? Makes me rethink my plan for next week?? I may head to Roan Mountain instead?

I am, my bad. Thomas Knob also have the solar privy too? That's the one I was thinking of. It was several years ago, it may be better kept up (not that it is the maintainers fault, rather the hikers leaving trash). There's a tent spot not too far from Thomas Knob that we used the first time through, I think less than a quarter mile. It was a snowy cold night the first time I was there and we had gotten turned around on the trails, they weren't so well defined on the AT maps. There were folks already in the loft and it was late, so we tented. The National Geographic maps are better IMO.

[Astro]

Thomas Knob was clean when I stayed there in July.

[chiefduffy]

We camped just north of Wise and just south of Thomas Knob in late August and didn't see any trash or bears. We didn't hang around the shelters, tho.

[Majortrauma]

Clearly a nuisance bear that needs to be relocated at a minimum. It's not like there's a shortage of black bear on the East coast so shooting him may end up being the easiest and efficient way for VA DGIF to deal with this or a "packing" hiker is going to do it.
Packing up my gear at 0200 and moving on is not an option. If I'm the potential food source for it he's likely to follow me.
I stayed at Wise with alarge group in mid August and all we ahd to contend with was the Coyotes lurking around the perimeter. No big deal at all.

[Trillium]

A friend's son's brother-in-law is doing a section from Hampton, TN north. He started 8/31. His blog mentioned that several hikers told him they had seen "bears including a huge male black bear at the top of the mountain that runs really fast" somewhere between Saunders Shelter and Whitetop Mountain on 9/5. He stayed at Wise Shelter on 9/6 along with one other hiker. There were 2 hikers that tented. The other hiker in the shelter "insisted that we don't need to hang our food in trees because bears don't go near buildings where there are humans. He actually spread his food all around him on the floor of the shelter. Bears hadn't rummaged through our food but animals of some sort did go through the other hiker's food. The wrapper on his peanut butter jar was chewed off." So, at least on the evening of 9/6, no bears were around, otherwise it is likely they might have gone after the food that was out in the open. As of 9/21 this hiker was up to Four Pines Hostel and he had yet to have seen a bear.

Question: why would the "store owner" mentioned in Shmaybix's post above say "Yep, it's that time of year"? Is all the natural food for the bears already out of season in southern VA?

[Trail Bug]

That other person at Wise shelter who spread his food out on the floor is not a hiker, he's an idiot. I have had bears come right up to the shelters several times. Too bad that the bears are the ones who have to be shot.