Bear Alert Near Autoroad...

[w7xman]

I came across this cross thread of a cross thread...

Seems like a 'small' sow with two cubs is a bit more tame than the autoroad would like around the two mile mark, where many trails cross.

The picture set of an encounter with a motorcycle is both amazing and alarming.

The autoroad is taking steps to prevent tourist from stopping and disturbing the bears...but I would suspect hikers should be aware as well...

MWO Cross Thread...
http://www.mountwashington.org/forums/showthread.php?t=5018

First post with pictures of bike encounter
http://www.st-owners.com/forums/showpost.php?p=742145&postcount=23

 

[Mattl]

Wow! Very lucky she wasn't attacked!

 

[TrishandAlex]

I saw those photos on another thread -- oh my goodness, I can't imagine being in that situation. I also would have been convinced that I was going to be bitten at any moment...

 

[kltilton]

I've seen them a few times while doing training runs on the auto road this spring. Hopefully F&G steps in if these guys are in danger. I'd hate to see something happen to them because someone gets too close.

It will add a level of excitement to the race next weekend!

 

[sardog1]

Before we get too excited, it's important to recognize that this sort of behavior happens in campgrounds across the country all the time. The cause is the food, in this case the very attractive odor of fish. When it comes to black bears in such cases, the very worst that "usually" happens is that someone gets scratched when they try to retrieve the food from the bear. (Brown/grizzly is a different matter and not relevant here.)

Yes, I know that black bears have killed people. But it is almost always a predatory act by a bear that targeted the human from the get-go, not while nosing around for poorly-guarded tidbits. A black bear is generally an animal that is easily dissuaded, notwithstanding prejudices to the contrary.

Don't believe me? Read what Lynn Rogers, the guy who has spent more time with them than any other human on the planet, has to say on the subject:

How Dangerous are Black Bears?

 

[TrishandAlex]

Before we get too excited, it's important to recognize that this sort of behavior happens in campgrounds across the country all the time. The cause is the food, in this case the very attractive odor of fish. When it comes to black bears in such cases, the very worst that "usually" happens is that someone gets scratched when they try to retrieve the food from the bear. (Brown/grizzly is a different matter and not relevant here.)

I logically know this and understand it. However, should I ever be in that kind of situation, it would take a lot of effort for me to not feel frightened regardless.

 

[averagejoe]

Although I've never had an encounter with a bear I always think of my brother. Two summers ago he was a host at camp 4 in yosemite. One of his duties was to, "chase", the bears out of camp. I know campground bear are a little different than truly wild bear, but I can't imagine chasing any animal that could do the damage they can. I wouldn't want to happen upon one if it were having a bad day.

Joe.

 

[Trainwreck]

One of the any reasons I'd never ride my motorcycle up Mt Washington.
Cute cubs, though. I like how her husband took pictures of his wife getting sniffed up by a bear instead of trying to shoo her away. Is this a happy marriage???

 

[TrishandAlex]

I like how her husband took pictures of his wife getting sniffed up by a bear instead of trying to shoo her away. Is this a happy marriage???

I have to admit, I found that aspect of the situation very amusing.

 

[MadRiver]

One of the any reasons I'd never ride my motorcycle up Mt Washington.
Cute cubs, though. I like how her husband took pictures of his wife getting sniffed up by a bear instead of trying to shoo her away. Is this a happy marriage???

Hmmm, maybe he just recently took out a huge insurance policy on wifey and decided to see where this was going.

 

[Breeze]

Hopefully the roar of thousands of straight-pipe Harleys in the next week/ 10 days will convince her to move away.

Being on site is not happy /fun. She is sticking pretty close to 2 Mile Park where Old Jackson Rd, Nelson Crag, Madison Gulf *AT* all converge. She is very small and her cubs are tiny but active. Its worrisome.

Breeze

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

I like how her husband took pictures of his wife getting sniffed up by a bear instead of trying to shoo her away. Is this a happy marriage???

Reminiscent of the woman spreading jam to get a photo of a grizzly licking her child's cheek in Yellowstone (aka Jellystone) back in the 60s (that event had a tragic ending).

 

[Danielle]

We saw the mama and her cubs near the base of the auto road this weekend while driving some friends to the top for a recon for next weekend's Road Race. The mama was right by the roadside and seemed pretty small. She took off down the slope as our car got closer, and we saw her with the cubs, who were adorable. We couldn't help but stop to try to take some photos, but of course, we did not get out the car!

 

[David Metsky]

Reminiscent of the woman spreading jam to get a photo of a grizzly licking her child's cheek in Yellowstone (aka Jellystone) back in the 60s (that event had a tragic ending).

http://www.snopes.com/critters/malice/bearmaul.asp

No hard evidence exists that this actually took place. It's possible, but I've never seen it verified. As the link says, there may be a basis in fact from a different (and much tamer) incident.

 

[Gris]

Ever since

having a few close encounters of the Griz kind in Katmai

Gris is now irrationally unafraid of those lil black bears

 

[Taconic]

I logically know this and understand it. However, should I ever be in that kind of situation, it would take a lot of effort for me to not feel frightened regardless.

You'd be surprised. My first (very close) encounter with a bear was in the Catskills. I had heard something rustling in the brush and it didn't sound like a deer, so I just assumed it was a human coming back to the trail from an off trail camp site. Then I came around a bend and found myself less than 20' away from a very large bear. It looked about as surprised to see me as I was to see it. I just backed away, gave it some room, and made enough noise to ensure it knew where I was. It was gone when I backtracked 10 minutes later.

I always thought a close bear encounter would be frightening, but it was more startling than anything. I'd say that if you remember what you're supposed to do, you have nothing to worry about. Frankly, I'm more worried about running into a pissed off bull moose than a bear.

I hope that these particular bears do get scared deeper into the woods. It's best for all involved.

 

[bjc]

Reminiscent of the woman spreading jam to get a photo of a grizzly licking her child's cheek in Yellowstone (aka Jellystone) back in the 60s (that event had a tragic ending).

I remember reading a news account similar to this a few years ago. I think it was in the Smokies, TN or NC or thereabouts. A mother put honey on her young child's hand to entice a black bear cub, and mama bear got involved. IIRC, the child lost a hand, the mother lost her life.

I thought I read this from a legitimate news source.

Edit: I just did a web search and turned up nothing on this, so never mind. I recall something, but could be just another memory trick. They seem to be becoming more frequent for some reason.

 

[forestgnome]

Before we get too excited, it's important to recognize that this sort of behavior happens in campgrounds across the country all the time. The cause is the food, in this case the very attractive odor of fish. When it comes to black bears in such cases, the very worst that "usually" happens is that someone gets scratched when they try to retrieve the food from the bear. (Brown/grizzly is a different matter and not relevant here.)

Yes, I know that black bears have killed people. But it is almost always a predatory act by a bear that targeted the human from the get-go, not while nosing around for poorly-guarded tidbits. A black bear is generally an animal that is easily dissuaded, notwithstanding prejudices to the contrary.

Don't believe me? Read what Lynn Rogers, the guy who has spent more time with them than any other human on the planet, has to say on the subject:

How Dangerous are Black Bears?

many dittoes

 

[DougPaul]

Before we get too excited, it's important to recognize that this sort of behavior happens in campgrounds across the country all the time. The cause is the food, in this case the very attractive odor of fish. When it comes to black bears in such cases, the very worst that "usually" happens is that someone gets scratched when they try to retrieve the food from the bear. (Brown/grizzly is a different matter and not relevant here.)

Yes, I know that black bears have killed people. But it is almost always a predatory act by a bear that targeted the human from the get-go, not while nosing around for poorly-guarded tidbits. A black bear is generally an animal that is easily dissuaded, notwithstanding prejudices to the contrary.

Don't believe me? Read what Lynn Rogers, the guy who has spent more time with them than any other human on the planet, has to say on the subject:

How Dangerous are Black Bears?

I have read that black bears in the northwestern US and western Canada tend to be more aggressive that our eastern black bears. I don't recall the source, but IIRC it was believable.

A quick scan of the above website suggests that most of Roger's black bear research is done in Minnesota.

Doug

 

[Seeker]

Slight thread drift. During a hike in Mohawk Trail State Forest this weekend to see some old growth trees with Pat, Audrey, Jazzbo and Mrs. Jazzbo, we saw a black bear just leaving a group campsite as we approached. Fortunately, we were headed down a different trail for our hike. Later while on the trip back, we saw what turns out to be the same bear in a meadow, again from a distance. I don't think the bear saw us either time, but he/she didn't stick around--just moved off.

When we got back to the campground at the trail head, we ran into a man who was unloading four dogs wearing thick radio collars from his truck. He told us that he was there to track the bear, who apparently was a problem bear. (I had wondered about that given that it's unusual to see bears just wandering around in the middle of the day.) Apparently, the bear had climbed into a school bus FULL of screaming girl scouts and proceeded to paw through their bags looking for food while they climbed out windows and up the ladder out the back to the top of the bus trying to get away. No injuries thankfully, but let's just say it ruined their trip as they left after that. We told the man where we had last seen the bear and he thanked us. The plan as he told it to us was for his dogs to tree the bear where it could be tranquilized and moved to the wilds of New Hampshire.

We had all been pretty pleased to see a bear in the wild--what a disappointment to realize we had likely only seen it because it was a problem bear.

It amazes me too, because there was information all over the place about bear etiquette. Frustrating to realize that despite all of the efforts to educate, people still feed bears and/or don't store food correctly.