Collin, Jude and I went for a hike in the Cherokee National Forest on Thursday and I decided it would be a great idea to know what to do IF we were to encounter a bear. So here are a few bear safety tips. Hopefully we will never run into one but better know safety tips to be overly cautious.
-Black bears are the ones in our area and yes they are awake now. If you plan on going hiking try to go in a group and make noise by talking, singing camp songs ;) or wearing a bell. Yes you may feel like an idiot wearing a bell but it could save your life!
Bears tend to be more active at dusk and dawn so plan to hike between those times.
-STAY ON THE MARKED TRAILS! Leave your pets at home.
-If you encounter a bear, remain calm and avoid sudden movements. NEVER run from a bear. They will chase you and can run faster than 30 mph. NEVER climb a tree, they can and usually will climb after you as it provokes them.
- If it sees you, makes sure it knows you are human by talking and waving your arms.
-If it does not see you, quickly and quietly detour to get away from it.
-NEVER feed a bear.
-If it comes at you, throw something like a camera on the ground to try and distract it, this may allow you time to escape.
-Bring bear spray or pepper spray and spray it 40 feet in front of the bear so that the bear will run into it.
-Be loud, wave your arms and fight back with whatever object you have if a black bear attacks you. If it sees you as a threat it will more than likely retreat.
There is a lot of good info on this site
http://usparks.about.com/od/backcountry/a/Bear-Safety.htm
and if you are planning on hiking or camping anytime soon I would browse over it.
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