Subject: [Tweeters] The Power of Pishing (Fear of Bears)
Date: Jun 8 19:37:04 2005
From: Roger - r_craik at shaw.ca



Hi All

Not a bear expert here but I have had three encounters with bears while
birding were the closest I actually came was within 15' of a bear that just
did not know I was there. This was in an area that is routinely posted for
bears and there is usually very little contact. In two of the three cases
(same bear) I had a choice, either walk 2 1/2 miles back to my car or make
a request for the bear to move instead of the 1/4 mile that was what I had
left.

Requests can be made by backing up a reasonable distance then finding a
dead branch and smacking it against a tree trunk or something else where it
will create a loud cracking sound. It's a strange feeling to see a big
black head all of a sudden loom over the top of bushes along side a trail
were you were just about to pass when you saw those bushes moving in a
manner that did not suggest the wind. In both of these cases the bear
obligingly moved off the trail and after a suitable wait I made my way by.
Bears are actually quite noisey if the underbrush is thick so you can hear
them move off.

The close encounter was very much like Joy's were I was standing at the
side of a rural road and could bearly (pun intended) hear some movement
through the brush. It took a few seconds to click in as to the fact that I
was probably listening to a bear so I backed up to my vehicle which was
about 100' away. As I reached it a very large bear crossed the road exactly
where I had been standing and went merrily on it's way. I don't think it
even knew I was there. The wind was blowing from behind it.

I don't know what I would have done if either of these bears had charged
but running was not an option as there was really not too may places to go
plus the fact that if you run you automatically lose any authority that you
may have had to run a bluff.

Bears, for the most part, are predictable but there is always the chance
you will stumble on to a cranky one. Within a couple of miles of where I
had my bear encounter there was a young female with a cub that took to
chasing down women bike riders that passed close to where she was holed up.
Fortunately they were not seriously hurt and the bear was dicovered to have
a tooth abscess when she was finally shot.

Roger Craik
Maple Ridge BC