Huge Black Bear right now!

[Ernie S.]

Yep, coming up on a bear unexpected out in the woods is always pucker time. However, except for this one bear, every other time I have seen one he, or she, was leaving, having seen me first. Really don't have much fear of wild animals, excepting unknowingly getting between them and their young.

I've never been as close to one as you... well not alive. In my experience, they really would not want to get close to a person if they can avoid it, but I suppose bears in remote areas may never have seen a man and are currious, especially if they smell bacon.
I don't know what it is with bacon, but bears will walk miles for the stuff. Apples too.

 

[Old Rocks]

but its that moment of evaluation that really sucks....is it a cub....is it a yearly...does it matter?

is it a young male?

and the one thing you dont wanna do......come on on cubs and then hear the sow behind you......it is hard to back away slowly.....or crabwalk to the side...we just make noise.....no indian walkers with us....it is real hard to resist that urge to run......but then you remember the sow is gonna outrun you and knock your ass over...

talking to someone who has lived thru a bear attack is a scarey thing....one of my son's friend lived thru an attack....the scars on his head tell the story...but when he said he played dead as the bear chewed on him..that was too much for me...

A bear attack is very serious business. They are extremely powerful animals, one that weighs as much as the average man will flip over a 400 lb boulder with the ease that we move a chair. Fortunately, such attacks are rare.

I have worked with the Boy Scouts for over 30 years. Often parents asked about the dangers of hiking into some of the more remote wilderness areas. I pointed out to them that there are more Scouters hurt on the road trip to the trail head than on the hikes.

The year after we went to Yellowknife, one of the places we camped on the way, Pine Pass, BC, there was a hiker killed by a grizzly a mile up the trail from where we were camped. When we camped there, we were totally by ourselves, just the wife and I, and our son, 8 months old at the time.

 

[Old Rocks]

Yep, coming up on a bear unexpected out in the woods is always pucker time. However, except for this one bear, every other time I have seen one he, or she, was leaving, having seen me first. Really don't have much fear of wild animals, excepting unknowingly getting between them and their young.

I've never been as close to one as you... well not alive. In my experience, they really would not want to get close to a person if they can avoid it, but I suppose bears in remote areas may never have seen a man and are currious, especially if they smell bacon.
I don't know what it is with bacon, but bears will walk miles for the stuff. Apples too.

I really don't know what it was with that bear. He never acted belligerant at any time. Walked by the campfire we had burning, with a coffee pot perking over it, and was not at all bothered either by the fire or the sound of the coffee perking. I hope that he never ran into a human with a gun who was trigger happy.

 

[Toro]

black bears eat meat

Grizzlies will maim you then eat you over several days.

Great way to die, eh?

 

[Valerie]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_T4SaNuxZO8]Lyle Lovett - Bears - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Ernie S.]

black bears eat meat

Some yes. not people. They will defend themselves or their cubs, but they don't see you as food.

 

[Ernie S.]

The most important thing I have ever learned about black bears is NEVER shoot one out of sight of your truck. Sumbitches drag like a waterbed.

 

[Big Fitz]

guy caught this beast on his trail cam.....and its not full grown.....

this was bigger and fatter than that one...at least the view of the one in my driveway was bigger and fat fat fat...

do black bears eat meat?

All bears are omnivores. Just some are more carniverous than others like Polar Bears. A black Bear will eat anything you will, even Twinkies and carrion at times.

Oh... and bear can be VERY tasty to eat.

 

[nitroz]

There is a huge, bigger than big, Black Bear standing 20 feet from my kitchen window by the bird feeder.

WHAT DO I DO?

MY cat had just come inside....thank God she was not out there...

What should I do? Do I call Animal control? Can they do anything...

I think there is 2 of them....when i opened my back door to peak, a Black bear even bigger than the one I thought was big, ran from the drive way when he heard the door open and the one by the feeder was no longer there...

it could have been the same black bear and I had not seen him go to the driveway but I am thinking since it looked even bigger, it was the Momma bear and the one at the feeder must have been it's young one?

crud crud crud

What you should do is step right outside your door and make loud noises. Bears are just as scared of us.

What to Do if You See a Bear - Yosemite National Park

If you are in a developed area (e.g., campground, parking lot, lodging area) or if a bear approaches you, act immediately to scare it away: make as much noise as possible by yelling very loudly (don't worry about waking people up if it's nighttime). If you are with other people, stand together to present a more intimidating figure, but do not surround the bear.

 

[strollingbones]

depends on the bear....the bears on climbing trails...arent afraid of people...they like to hang about and reek havoc on people...taking shoes etc...

 

[Swagger]

I'd probably scream if I bumped into a bear in my back garden.

 

[flacaltenn]

It's a scary deal.. We rented a cabin in the Smokies.. Walked out the front door with the dogs on leash. Heard really loud noises and thought it was the neighbors. Got 50 yards from the front door and saw 2 black bears with their heads in our garbage cans.

We had walked literally within 10 yards of these guys as we came out the door!!!!

Then the problem was --- my daughter was in the cabin. Could walk out on the porch at any time and we didn't take the phone. The dogs hadn't even seen them..

nobody to run to -- so the best bet was getting the dogs into the car in the driveway. Popped the tailgate, shoved them in and we crawled into the tailgate and over the seats to back out..

When I turned the keys into the mgr at the end -- I strongly suggested the maintenance crew did a better job of EMPTYING the cans and LOCKING the doors on the garbage bin..

Kinda ruined the idea of going that far into the Smokies and casually walking around.. Next time -- we take the phone and some BEAR spray.. MAYBE even leave the dogs in a kennel.

 

[Charles_Main]

There is a huge, bigger than big, Black Bear standing 20 feet from my kitchen window by the bird feeder.

WHAT DO I DO?

MY cat had just come inside....thank God she was not out there...

What should I do? Do I call Animal control? Can they do anything...

I think there is 2 of them....when i opened my back door to peak, a Black bear even bigger than the one I thought was big, ran from the drive way when he heard the door open and the one by the feeder was no longer there...

it could have been the same black bear and I had not seen him go to the driveway but I am thinking since it looked even bigger, it was the Momma bear and the one at the feeder must have been it's young one?

crud crud crud

WOW you people freak out. I see bears on a regular Basis up at my Cabin in Michigan's Upper Pen. Just leave it alone, don't leave food out, and it will go away. It's not going to hurt your pets.

Might want to take the Feeders down for awhile. When they get the idea your house does not mean easy food, they will stop coming by.

 

[Charles_Main]

It's a scary deal.. We rented a cabin in the Smokies.. Walked out the front door with the dogs on leash. Heard really loud noises and thought it was the neighbors. Got 50 yards from the front door and saw 2 black bears with their heads in our garbage cans.

We had walked literally within 10 yards of these guys as we came out the door!!!!

Then the problem was --- my daughter was in the cabin. Could walk out on the porch at any time and we didn't take the phone. The dogs hadn't even seen them..

nobody to run to -- so the best bet was getting the dogs into the car in the driveway. Popped the tailgate, shoved them in and we crawled into the tailgate and over the seats to back out..

When I turned the keys into the mgr at the end -- I strongly suggested the maintenance crew did a better job of EMPTYING the cans and LOCKING the doors on the garbage bin..

Kinda ruined the idea of going that far into the Smokies and casually walking around.. Next time -- we take the phone and some BEAR spray.. MAYBE even leave the dogs in a kennel.

Most be some pretty bad Dogs lol no offense. But a Dog should smell a bear that close. Amazed they were not at least acting strange.

 

[flacaltenn]

It's a scary deal.. We rented a cabin in the Smokies.. Walked out the front door with the dogs on leash. Heard really loud noises and thought it was the neighbors. Got 50 yards from the front door and saw 2 black bears with their heads in our garbage cans.

We had walked literally within 10 yards of these guys as we came out the door!!!!

Then the problem was --- my daughter was in the cabin. Could walk out on the porch at any time and we didn't take the phone. The dogs hadn't even seen them..

nobody to run to -- so the best bet was getting the dogs into the car in the driveway. Popped the tailgate, shoved them in and we crawled into the tailgate and over the seats to back out..

When I turned the keys into the mgr at the end -- I strongly suggested the maintenance crew did a better job of EMPTYING the cans and LOCKING the doors on the garbage bin..

Kinda ruined the idea of going that far into the Smokies and casually walking around.. Next time -- we take the phone and some BEAR spray.. MAYBE even leave the dogs in a kennel.

Most be some pretty bad Dogs lol no offense. But a Dog should smell a bear that close. Amazed they were not at least acting strange.

I thought that too.. But they were Waaay out of their element. Too much new stimulus.. Hardly ever take them on camping or "sleepovers".. So I guess, they had no context to suspect anything not normal.. If we had been there a week -- they MIGHT have figured it out.. I'm kinda glad they didn't. Probably saved us a closer encounter..