We are leaving for Yellowstone/Grand Tetons in 10 days. I've read a lot about bears going after food in camp grounds, attacking cars, etc. My question is...we are staying in NP lodges and/or cabins. Do we need to take any food stuff out of our car when it is parked in the parking lots either by the lodges/hotels or in front of the cabins? Also, if bears can break into cars, can they break into these cabins??

Also, we usually take a sandwich, etc., on our day hikes and eat somewhere along the trail. Can we do this or are we inviting trouble??

I want to avoid any and all "close encounters" with bears!

I want to avoid any and all "close encounters"!

I am sitting here laughling since we are leaving for Yellowstone Tuesday. Just got done reading information on bears in a guidebook - they went into this long explanation about how to tell difference between grizzly bears and other bears based on shape of feet, toes and claws - I can not imagine sticking around long enough to examine their toes.

Research I have done indicates that it is best not to leave food in cars at night. Have been told that decades ago bears prowling lodging areas was a problem, but since feeding bears is now strictly prohibited, bears have become once again more naturally fearful of humans. Rangers relocate bears found to be too "friendly"

Grizzlies have a big hump on their back right between their shoulder blades. It's a huge piece of muscle..thus their incredible strength. Other bear do not have that hump.

In the light of the rising frequency of human/grizzly bear conflicts, the Montana Department of Fish and Game is advising hikers, hunters and fisherman to take extra precations and stay alert for bears while in the field. We advise outdoorsmen & outdoorwomen to wear noisy little bells on their clothing so as not to startle the bears who aren't expecting them. We also advise them to carry pepper spray with them in case of bear encouter.

Outdoorsmen & women should learn to recognize the difference between black bear stool and grizzly stool. Black bear stool is smaller and contains lots of berries and squirrel fur. Grizzle bear stool has little bells in it and smells like pepper.


I'm sorry....I just couldn't resist...it is a JOKE!



Utahtea

So, I guess we are safe in the lodges/cabins, but have to take all food in with us every night.

How do people go on long hikes WITHOUT FOOD??? We'll starve!

Utahtea, that was hilarious!

Here is some bear facts from the Yellowstone Website:

http://www.nps.gov/yell/publications...ry/general.pdf

Also this information also looked very good:

http://www.outdoorplaces.com/Feature...ar_country.htm

They both say to make sure you don't carry food with strong ordor like tuna. Place food in zip lock bags for hiking to reduce the odor.

When hiking or camping I wear nonscented deodorant and I don't wear perfume. We carry a bear pepper spray. They aren't cheap!

We have seen a few bears in our time. All of them have been from the vehicle. Once in Canada we saw fresh bear droppings and hurried down the path!

Utahtea

Of course you can take food with you when you hike. Don't bring anything with too strong of an odor, keep it in your backpack/daypack until ready to eat, eat in an open enough area that you could see if a bear is coming & therefore be ready to pack the food back up & put your pack on...you don't want to contribute to problems by giving the bear any idea that humans are a potential source of food. Don't leave a backpack with food on the ground where a bear could happen upon it - that is also how problems with bears start.

But, yes, my goodness, you can eat in bear country - just take sensible precautions. Honestly, chances are you won't even see a bear at a distance, much less have any sort of encounter.

Nearly all the tent campers leave food in their cars since they can't leave it in their tents. They do have food storage boxes but they are not odor free and are right in the campsites.

There just aren't the number of bear encounters in Yellowstone as there are in other places, especially Glacier where there are many more grizzlies. Most people who visit Yellowstone wish they HAD seen a bear (from a safe distance, of course).

We've been to Yellowstone many, many times and only seen bears on a few occasions. We camped in a back country site for four days, cooked three meals a day (outside of course), hung our food between two trees, used a pit toilet, etc. No bears--just a lovely doe and fawn in our campsite.

I don't know if they have collars on all of the them but I know they do on many bears. We started to notice that every time there was a bear jam (a bear siting close to the road with lots of people stopped to watch) a Ranger would show up. We never see a Ranger show up when it's a buffalo or elk jam. Then we watched a documentary showing that they have a pretty good idea at all times where the bears are because of the collars with radio signals.

Before heading down a trail you might stop at a Ranger station and ask if there are places to avoid. If there's been a kill or some other reason for lots of bear activity in an area, they will post signs closing the trail.

More people get hurt by getting too close to buffalo than bears.

All that just to say don't get too worried. Be sensible and use good bear etiquette but have fun and enjoy your visit.

We tend to the cautious side when hiking--to us it's just sensible (first aid kit, lots of water, Swiss Army knife) and in Alaska, Yellowstone, Glacier we carry bear pepper spray. We do carry our food in Ziploc bags, eat only in the open, and then put any scraps or garbage back in the bags. We check at the ranger station for bear sightings and trail closures before starting out for the day.

We have encountered black bears on the trail and we have seen black and grizzly bears from the roads in Yellowstone. Even when we encounter black bears or someone we meet on the trail tells us they have met black bears on the trail ahead, we turnaround even though locals have told us how they won't hurt us, we just don't want to get between the mama and cubs and become the exception. Life's too short and there are too many trails to explore.

We try not to leave food in the car more than necessary (at Yosemite they used to have great displays of cars that bears had ripped the doors off to get into for picnic baskets, etc.). What we do have, we once again pack up tightly and put in trunk.

Do watch out for the bison. It's easy to be walking along a trail near the geysers or anywhere and come across them lying close to the trail. They can jump up and move really quick. The NPS often has great video clips linked to the Yellowstone website to show what can happen when tourists get too close to wild animals.

My favorite story is still the one I heard from some locals in Alaska about the tourist who stopped in his RV to look at the moose on the side of the road, then decided he wanted to be in the photo with the moose. So he asked his wife to take his photo as he stood beside the moose and acted like he was kissing the side of its face. She wisely stood in the door of the RV, but I don't think she got the photo as the moose bit his face. (Ouch)

THANK YOU to all. This was exactly what I was looking for. I will be cautious but will try not to be paranoid!

And, I am going out to buy some pepper spray!

I like to tie a cat to a nearby tree,
this keeps the bear busy while I run!

I have paid close attention as well to all this useful info - and we will probably spend an entire week and only see some stupid birds.

We bought pepper spray in West Yellowstone at an outfitter there. Not sure how helpful it would have been in a real bear attack. I don't think the bear would have stood still long enough for me to read the directions.

keysmom,

You are suppose to read the directions and know what to do with bear spray when you buy it...not when the bear is charging!

Utahtea

Utahtea - Another thing, wear your Nike's. If a bear starts chasing a bunch of people, all you have to do is not be the slowest.

Dusty, are Nike's faster than Reeboks? If so I'll just have to trip someone that is passing me!

Utahtea

Sounds like a great idea for a running shoe ad. I hope to not be testing the theory, especially since we usually wear New Balance, living close by a factory where we get good deals on seconds.

Does Pepper spray work on Rattlesnakes? Ive hiked, climbed and fished the area for years and if you are from a city environment then the sagest advice would be to give all animals space. Most will give you a warning but if is your responsibility to be aware of your surroundings. Relax and have a nice trip.

My suggestion is to follow closely the instructions from the rangers. Do exactly what they tell you to do. On the very very very rare chance that you have a bad encounter with a bear while hiking, be sure to drop your pack before you take off.

Many years ago a friend of mine didn't believe the rangers when they told her ALL toiletries (in addition to food) needed to be stored in the food lockers at the campsites. She had a box of scented sanitary napkins in the trunk of her rental car. A bear broke the windshield and ripped out the back seat (while she was off on a hike) to get to the box. (That must have been one disappointed bear.) Anyway, she had one MAD ranger on her hands and she could have been fined (but wasn't). She also had a bad drive to return the rental car...