bears
 

We're travelling to BC and rockies in May. We enjoy day hiking. How likely is it that we will come accross a bear? (we really want to avoid seeing one.) <BR> <BR>

Not likely if you follow information provided by Parks Canada. Drop into the park center where you will be hiking and receive up to date info on how to hike in bear country.

Bears are hardly predictable in where they go. One day a grizzly walked into the bakery in Lake Louise Village. Some intrepid amateur captured the scene on video tape. As you might imagine, there was a hasty exodus from the donut and cookie line. I understand that the bear got free treats that day because there was no cashier on duty. <BR> <BR>Granted, bears in the bakery are rare, but the point is this: No one can tell you with 100% certainty that you will or will not see a bear. <BR> <BR>If you stick to the more popular trails, such as the Plain of Six Glaciers at Lake Louise or the Iceline Trail in Yoho National Park, chances are low that a bear will make his or her presence known. If you take one of the more remote trails into the back country, then your chances go up. <BR> <BR>Park wardens monitor the situation carefully, and they close areas of the park that are known to be prime bear habitat. But wardens do not always know for sure because grizzlies are known to cross the Trans Canada as they range far and wide in search of food. <BR> <BR>If you are planning to take long walk well away from populated areas, check with the wardens' office before you go. <BR> <BR>In my wanderings around the Rockies, both US and Canada, I saw a grizzly once from about 75 yards on the Grinnel Glacier trail in Glacier National Park (US). We decided a boat ride that day would be more prudent. <BR> <BR>To warm bears that humans are coming, some people wear these little bear bells on their packs that jingle while they walk. Most experts think those things help the people who sell them, but they do not do much to keep bears away. They do, however, help repel other hikers. I have seen people with cans of bear repellent but I never talked to anyone who had used the stuff. Some people shake cans of rocks as they walk, while others others sing and shout. There were no bears around, so the singers must have been doing a good job. I know I left the singing area rather quickly. <BR> <BR>Hiking in the woods is never risk free. <BR>But you can minimize your chances of running into a bear by asking the warden about bear activity before setting off on a remote trail.

Hi Georgie, <BR> <BR>We spent 2 summers doing day hikes in the Alberta rockies almost every weekend, and we only saw a bear once. And that was in a tiny parking lot in the middle of a trail in Jasper. The bear paid no attention to us. Len's advice is good. Go see the Parks Canada people and they'll help you out a lot. My only advice is, don't rely on the "bear bells" to make enough noise to warn bears you're coming. We carry a whistle and blow it periodically to alert any bears on the trail ahead to our presence, and we try to keep talking loudly to each other (if there are no other hikers around). Have fun!

My only advise to you is to NOT buy a bear bell. I live in Lake Louise before and can tell you that bears treat bear bells like a dinner bell. They are used to the sound now and it doesn't scare them away. I wouldn't worry to much about bears as long as you respect that when hiking you are in their territory and take precautions. Also remember that most times bears are more scared of you than you are of them.