When encountering a bear in the wild, staying calm and following expert advice is crucial to ensure the encounter ends safely. Here are some guidelines to help you handle such situations:

Understanding Bear Behavior

1. Identify the Bear: Knowing whether you’re dealing with a black or grizzly bear can influence your response. Grizzlies are generally larger, have a hump on their shoulders, and have shorter, rounded ears. Black bears can be black, brown, or even cinnamon and lack the shoulder hump.
2. Assess the Bear’s Actions: If the bear stands on its hind legs, it usually tries to get a better view and isn’t necessarily threatening. If the bear is showing signs of aggression (huffing, jaw popping, paw swatting, or charging), it’s more serious.

 How to Respond

1. Remain Calm: Avoid sudden movements and do not run. Bears can run faster than humans, and running may trigger a chase response.
2. Speak Softly: Talk calmly and firmly to the bear. This can help the bear recognize you as a human and not a prey animal.
3. Back Away Slowly: Do not turn your back on the bear. Slowly retreat while keeping an eye on the bear, moving sideways if possible. This helps maintain your balance and allows you to keep the bear in sight.
4. Make Yourself Look Bigger: If the bear continues to approach, try to appear larger by raising your arms or standing on a rock or log. Use your jacket or backpack to appear even larger.
5. Avoid Direct Eye Contact: Direct eye contact can be perceived as a threat. Instead, glance at the bear to gauge its behaviour without staring it down.
6. Use Bear Spray: If the bear is within a close range (20-30 feet) and continues to approach, use bear spray as a deterrent. Aim slightly downward to ensure the spray reaches the bear’s face.

 Special Situations

– If the Bear Charges: Often, bears perform bluff charges. Stand your ground until the bear veers off. If the bear makes contact, play dead if it’s a grizzly bear by lying on your stomach with your hands over your neck. For black bears, try to fight back, especially if the attack seems predatory.

– If You Surprise a Bear: If you accidentally surprise a bear at close range, freeze and give it time to assess you. Speak softly and back away slowly.

 Preventive Measures

1. Travel in Groups: Bears are less likely to approach larger groups. Make noise by talking or clapping to avoid surprising a bear.
2. Secure Your Food: Store food in bear-proof containers or hang it high in a tree away from your campsite. Avoid cooking or eating in your tent.
3. Keep Clean Campsites: Dispose of food scraps and garbage properly to avoid attracting bears.
4. Know Bear Habitats: Be extra cautious in areas known for bear activity, especially during seasons like autumn when bears are in hyperphagia, eating voraciously to prepare for hibernation.

First Rule of ‘Bear Fight Club’: Don’t Fight

The best strategy for avoiding harm during a bear encounter is to never entice or provoke a wild bear. Feeding a bear or approaching bear cubs can lead to dangerous situations. Each bear encounter is unique, but general guidelines can be helpful. The US National Park Service advises keeping a safe distance from bears. For instance, Yellowstone recommends staying at least 100 yards away from bears, while Shenandoah National Park suggests 200 feet for its black bears. Getting too close can result in fines and increased risk.

Here are some tips to ensure a safe bear encounter:

– Talk calmly in low tones to identify yourself as human.

– Walk in groups and stay on designated trails.

– Pick up small children or dogs.

– Avoid positioning yourself between bear cubs and their mother.

– Avoid direct eye contact and move away slowly, ideally sideways.

If a bear stands on its hind legs, it is usually trying to get a better view and is not necessarily a threat. Most bear encounters are peaceful, and often people are unaware they are even near a bear. If a bear starts moving towards you assertively, it is crucial to stand your ground. Running is a mistake, as bears can easily outrun humans. Climbing trees is also not advisable since bears are proficient climbers.

Almost all encounters are peaceful, Pratt said. Many times, people never knew they were even close to a bear, as in this YouTube video that shows two people emerging from a basement oblivious to a nearby bear.

What If a Bear Starts Coming at You Anyway?

If a bear starts making assertive moves in your direction, it is essential to stand your ground. Running away is the wrong move, as bears can easily outrun humans. Similarly, climbing a tree is not advisable, as bears can also climb trees proficiently.

Immediate Actions to Take

With either grizzlies (a subspecies of brown bears) or black bears, it’s crucial to follow these guidelines:

– Don’t Run: Bears can outrun anyone.

– Don’t Climb a Tree: Bears are better climbers than humans.

– Make Loud Noises: Yell, bang pots and pans, or use an air horn to scare the bear away.

– Make Yourself Look Larger: Wave your arms to appear bigger.

– Stay Together: If you’re with others, stay close together to appear more intimidating.

Bluffing and Intimidation

Depending on the bear species and the situation, you can often intimidate or bluff your way out of a sticky bear situation. Making loud noises and appearing large can discourage a bear from approaching further.

But What If a Bear Is About to Attack?

In the rare situation where a bear has not moved off and is coming at you aggressively, it is crucial to identify the type of bear quickly, as your response will differ depending on whether it is a black bear or a grizzly bear.

Identifying the Bear

Black Bear

– If you’re being attacked by a black bear, do not play dead.

– Stand your ground and look as intimidating as possible.

– Throw objects near the bear, not at it, to scare it.

– Make loud noises and yell to assert your presence.

– If the bear attacks, fight back aggressively, aiming for the face and snout.

Grizzly Bear

– If you’re dealing with a grizzly, your approach should be different.

– Play dead if a grizzly bear starts to attack.

– Get into a fetal position, protect your neck with your hands, and lay on your stomach.

– Remain still until the bear leaves the area, as fighting back usually increases the intensity of such attacks.

– If the attack persists, fight back vigorously, focusing on the bear’s face.

General Tips for Both Types of Bears

– Stand Your Ground: Running triggers a chase response in bears, and they can outrun you.

– Make Yourself Look Larger: Raise your arms, stand on something nearby, and stay together if you are in a group.

– Use Bear Spray: If you have bear spray, use it when the bear is within 20-30 feet. Aim for the bear’s face.

By quickly identifying the type of bear and responding appropriately, you can increase your chances of surviving a bear attack.

It’s a Different Situation with Grizzlies

If you’re dealing with a grizzly that won’t back off and an attack seems imminent, your approach should be different. You should play dead. “Act as unthreatening as possible with a grizzly. Play dead with a grizzly if it starts to attack,” Pratt said. “Tuck and cover. Get into a fetal position. Wrap your hands around your neck. Lay on your stomach. Once you do that, 99 per cent of the time the grizzly will move on.”

The National Park Service (NPS) elaborates: “Remain still until the bear leaves the area. Fighting back usually increases the intensity of such attacks. However, if the attack persists, fight back vigorously.” Fighting back a grizzly bear is the last resort – “your Hail Mary pass” as Pratt called it – when all other options are out.

An exception to this rule is if you’re camping in a tent and are attacked; that bear likely sees you as food. In such cases, NPS and Pratt say this is a time to fight.

How to Tell a Black Bear from a Grizzly

First off, know your area and read up on the bears there. In North America, grizzlies have a much more limited range than black bears. In the Lower 48, they are in Washington, Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. They also cover large parts of western Canada and Alaska. Black bears have more territory and can be found in as many as 40 US states, much of Canada, and even parts of northern Mexico.

In areas like Quebec, the Appalachians, the Ozarks, California, or parts of Florida, you’re likely dealing with a black bear. But if you’re in Yellowstone or Glacier National Park, for instance, it could be a black bear or a grizzly. That’s when it’s crucial to know how to make a quick visual ID.

You can’t go by the colour of the fur. Black bears can be black, brown, cinnamon, blond, blue-grey, or white. One of the best ways to tell the difference, Pratt said, is to look for a hump at the shoulders. Grizzlies have them; black bears don’t. Grizzly bear faces look more like wild predators and have a dished shape, while black bear faces look a little rounder and more cuddly, with a straight nose.

Bear Spray and Weapons

Some people like to carry bear spray and/or a weapon when venturing into bear country. Pratt advocates for bear spray and advises practising its use before going into the wild. The NPS offers helpful tips on using spray to ward off bears.

Pratt is more cautious about bringing firearms, especially for the inexperienced. “Taking a grizzly out with one shot would be tough. You need to be very experienced with a gun to increase your chance of safety.” A Brigham Young University study in 2008 found bear spray is more effective than a firearm, and spray doesn’t permanently harm a bear.

Some people carry bear bells on hikes, hoping the noise will ward off the animals. However, the park service recommends yelling, clapping, and talking as more effective ways of alerting a bear to your presence.

What Campers Need to Know   

If you’re camping overnight, there are extra considerations to take into account to keep hungry bears away. Kyle Patterson, management specialist and public affairs officer at Rocky Mountain National Park, advised using a food storage locker if provided in campgrounds and picnic areas. He also recommends avoiding storing food and coolers in your vehicle, but if you must, store food in airtight containers in the trunk or out of sight and close vehicle windows completely.

Other tips include not storing food in tents or pop-up campers in campgrounds or vehicles at trailheads, not leaving food, coolers, and dirty cookware unattended, and disposing of garbage in bear-resistant dumpsters and trash cans. Human-fed bears usually end up as chronic problems and need to be removed. “A fed bear is a dead bear.”

The Ball Is in Our Court

Pratt emphasized it’s up to humans to be responsible for these creatures. “The bears are just being bears. We are way more of a threat to them. Bear attacks are so rare. And fatalities are even rarer,” she said. “The bears’ lives are more at threat than ours in encounters. I want people to have magical, wonderful experiences in the wild. I want people to feel