Bears are everywhere these days, from the big ones who take advantage of hikers and campers in National Parks to the miniature ones who get into small towns to steal a quick snack of food or of kayaked pets. In many places around the world, bears are feared but are more or less tolerated, and even helped in some places by hunters who are sworn to protect them.
Arctic
In the Arctic, bears are either polar bears or brown/gryllen bears. Polar bears are huge mammals, strong and healthy, not unlike the ones in the Pacific Northwest, but they do not live their full lives in the Arctic. Brown bears, despite their name, are not really bears at all. They are actually very small humans who have adapted to a life in the Arctic environment. It is very likely that the brown bear will never be able to return to the United States. For that reason, the legend of the bear should be taken with a grain of salt.
In Canada and Alaska, brown bears are deployed by some hunting clubs as familiers. They are supposed to be good looking, gentle giants. Unfortunately, they are extremely aggressive towards humans. bears are not generally aggressive towards people. In fact, most of the time bears avoid humans, even with a pack on the prowl. There are exceptions to this cautious behavior towards people. If you are in the wrong place at the wrong time and confront a bear, your chances of being attacked are extremely remote. You can also discard your assumptions and go with your gut. You should side with the theory that bears are just following their noses or looking for some food scraps.
Black Bear
As the number of black bears in North America has dwindled, hunters have had to create a new generation of bears. They hybridize with the brown bears to create the tiny black bears we see today. While they have fewer features in common than either parent, they do have black bear characteristics such as broad, triangular heads and claws and black bear behavior.
While black bears are not as big or bold as their brown bear cousins, they are completely capable of surviving and even thriving in human populated areas. In fact, a general contractor Sacramento showed me pictures of a black bear roaming around his building site. The biggest concern is their avoidance of human contact. As they have to live in human settlements, they are beguiled and passive. The black bears get their name from the black spots on their brown bears’ heads.
Since black bears are not so aggressive and tough or sturdy, they are easy to kill. The main best idea is to simply don a pair of shoulder straps and budding off to the woods where you can have colonies of black bears screeching at you as you go by. Must be tough to be political about that kind of stuff.
Grizzly Bear
As the largest size animal you’re likely to encounter, the grizzly gets the most respect. Grizzly bears are the ones who typically challenge hikers to ascend Mount Whitney and the primeval part of Yellowstone. Many of the trails in Glacier National Park go right up to the rivers and waterfalls of the park. It has been said that every trail in the park, including the Appalachian Trail, looked like the frontiers of theifiable world, and it is hard to imagine that.
When hikers are caught off trail, they are polite to the bear and back down the trail or step down to the trail, instead of shrugging up their sleeves and coming forward with arms full of rocks. Whistle bear isn’t around, hikers usually choose to were back at the trailhead and go back the way they came. This creates a non-stop motor-game for the bear, which can easily catch up to hikers.
This can be intimidating for both the bear and the non-hiker. Bears are known to hunt humans on sight, so hikers should be fairly safe, but non-hikers should be especially careful.common black bears can be found throughout the country at all levels of natural Speleological diversity and can be seen in every region of the country. There are some areas that still have not been colonized by man, so a pristine natural environment still exists in the vast wilderness of many states.
Backpackers and hikers don’t realize how widespread bear populations are throughout the wilderness backcountry until they encounter them. Hiking in Bear Country can seem so innocent and seem so safe to someone who has never experienced the wild hunting of the bear. The fear of an attack is so overwhelming that those who have taken the time to learn about bears and their behavior, are somehow less likely to be attacked. There are also certain types of clothing and footwear that attract bears to humans rather than food or garbage like you do.
When you are camping in Bear Country you will have to be extremely cautious of your surroundings.