Knowing how to recreate in bear country is critical to a good and safe experience. Whether you’re camping, hiking, backpacking, hunting, huckleberry picking, shed hunting, rafting, and more, know what to do to prevent a tragedy. From camping in bear country and proper food storage to making enough noise while hiking, read on to ensure you’re well-prepared for your next outdoor adventure. 

Recreating in Bear Country

Bears are large predators that can quickly turn dangerous if they are surprised, protecting food or cubs, are injured, or are hungry. A starving bruin could be due to a long winter’s hibernation, an older bear with missing teeth, or an injured one. You can do several things to protect yourself when hiking or camping where bears live. Remember that bears usually aren’t actively seeking you out. They are just doing bear things, using their instincts to survive. 

Make Noise 

One of the most important things you can do in bear country is to make noise, so you don’t surprise one. Some people will attach bells to their packs, so there is a constant ringing. Talking loudly to others or yourself can alert a bear that a human is coming its way. So while you may feel silly at first, there is nothing wrong with loudly saying “hey bear, hey bear” as you walk down the trail.

Travel in Groups

In bear country, it’s much safer to travel in groups. Going alone can be dangerous, especially if something happens. Nobody will be around to get help. In groups, people can make more noise, talk to each other, and work together to make the best decisions.

Don’t Travel at Night

Bears can be active day and night, but they have an advantage over you at night. They can smell much better and will know you’re there long before you know they are there. So while I hunt in the dark, I only recommend most people recreating like this if you are very experienced. Still, the best practice is to move through bear country in the daylight. 

Avoid Carrion

If you are off trail (or on) and happen upon the carcass of a dead animal, the best thing to do is get out of the area quickly. This is especially important if you notice the carcass has been covered in dirt and grass. This likely means a bear has been burying it to keep it from competitors. Bears will turn aggressive and dangerous when protecting a food source; if there is one around, you could be in serious trouble.

Story Time

I was hunting one morning with my ex-husband deep in grizzly bear country. We hiked down a trail in the dark we’d gone down lots of times. We crossed a deep ravine to get to the mountain we wanted to hunt. I remember seeing something light that morning in the dark, like a big rock in the drainage about 20 yards away, but I didn’t give it much attention. 

Coming back down the ravine in the daylight later that day, we realized a dead horse was at the bottom. We were immediately on high alert for bears. The horse was lying quite close to the trail, and had a bear been on that horse, we, or any other people coming down the trail, would have been in trouble. 

Luckily we had a satellite phone and called the U.S. Forest Service. They were already sending a crew in to blow the horse up to keep bears away and prevent a tragedy. We passed them on their way in, and they were pretty jittery, wondering if there had been bears on it yet. No bears had found it yet, but it was only a matter of time. So the USFS crew was able to destroy it before something terrible happened. 

Give Bears a Wide Berth

If you see a bear, hopefully, you have some distance between you and it. Bears run faster than you, so don’t think you can outrun them. If they are still a ways away and wandering away from you, stop and let them. Give them time to move out of the country. If they are coming your way, you have a few options, but the best may be to turn around and quickly go back the way you came. Continue to make noise but don’t run. Their instincts could kick in, and you’ve just made yourself prey. 

You could also choose to go in a different direction. There may be another trail you can take or a way to skirt around the bear safely. So much depends on the terrain and what the bear is doing. Use common sense. Is the bear eating berries or grubs, minding its own business? You might be able to use this tactic as long as it’s safe, which means going a long way around the bear. 

Don’t Ditch Your Backpack

If you have to retreat quickly, whatever you do, don’t ditch your backpack. There are two reasons for this. First, if you have food inside the pack, you’ve just fed the bear and trained them to equate humans with food. Second, it may help protect you should you be mauled. 

Carrying Bear Spray

Carrying bear spray and knowing how to use it is one of the smartest things you can do when in bear country. Bear spray is essentially pepper spray on steroids. It comes in a much larger canister. Its purpose, if executed correctly, is to inflame the sinuses and eyes of a bear, distracting it long enough for you to get away. Knowing how to properly use bear spray is critical.

Opponents of bear spray argue if the wind is in the wrong direction, the bear spray won’t be effective and will blow back in your face, rendering you helpless. Additionally, it is not to be used to repel bears. It smells like food to them since it is made of capsaicin. Bears can smell food and other enticing scents from several miles away. Therefore, you will ATTRACT bears if you try to use this as a repellent.

Handguns for Bear Protection

Some people believe it is better to carry a handgun. It needs to be a .44 or .45 caliber to be effective on a bear. These are heavy guns with a lot of kick. It takes considerable practice to be comfortable shooting one. If faced with a charging bear, only some people could effectively use it. Most people are far better off with bear spray.

Horseback Riding in Bear Country

If you’re riding horses in bear country, you have less to fear than if you’re on foot. First, the bear’s food chain or pecking orders are typically dictated by the larger animal. Therefore, bears that see an animal larger than them, such as a horse, are less likely to want to take that animal on. A human on a horse is even more prominent, and several humans on several horses are even more significant than that. A bear is usually going to move away from these bigger animals. 

Story Time

I guided trail rides in Grand Teton National Park. I’d take up to 10 people on 10 horses through bear country every day. We often saw grizzly and black bears. I always told the guests what I said above. If we saw a bear, we’d talk to them, saying, “hey bear, hey bear,” so they knew we were there. Every time they moved away from us and left the area (except the one swimming in the lake. He was quite a ways away). 

I also used to pack horses and mules into the Bob Marshall Wilderness, where grizzly bears abound. There were multiple instances where I saw grizzly bears in the heart of the wilderness. I was usually on horseback, and the bears kept moving away from us. One time, we tied our horses up to a tree and were hunting. A grizzly was moving down the drainage towards our horses. That made me nervous so we went back and got the horses and left the area, but we never had an issue with the bear. 

Why Store Food When Camping in Bear Country?

When camping in bear country, it’s imperative to store your food correctly because a fed bear is a dead bear and a dangerous bear. Once a bear has accessed human food or other smelly items like deodorant or soap, it will return for more. This poses an extreme danger to the humans feeding it and all subsequent visitors. Therefore, a bear that has gotten into human food often has to be euthanized for public safety. Consequently, it is hazardous to bears and people to allow bears to get into food.

Not only should food be stored, but anything else that smells should also be. This includes things like toothpaste, deodorant, soap, etc. Bears don’t know the difference between these items and food. All they know is that it smells, and they should eat it. So again, if bears get a taste of these items, they’re as good as dead, and it’s dangerous for people. 

Food Storage Options in Bear Country

First, let’s quickly cover the different options for storing food in bear country. There are several ways to keep food away from bears:

• Bear Keg or other bear-proof containers
• Hanging in a tree
• Bear-proof coolers or panniers
• Storage lockers
• Hotwire fence

Whichever method you choose, it all should be done 200 yards downwind from where you sleep. You should cook, prepare food, and eat away from your sleeping areas. That way, if bears are attracted to the scent of your food, they’re not coming right into the middle of camp.

Bear Keg

A bear keg or container is a container designed to keep bears out. In my experience, this also makes it difficult for humans to get in and out of them. However, some are better than others. The downside to these is they don’t have a lot of room. For one person for a few days of backpacking, they might suffice. But for multiple people for multiple days, they won’t be big enough (unless each person carries one).

There are a variety of bear kegs and bear containers on the market designed to store food that bears cannot break into. Backpackers will sometimes use this option, although it can add significant weight. They are also suitable for horse packing and river rafting. 

Check out my review of the Counter Assault Bear Keg here.

Hanging in a Tree

As it sounds, this requires hanging your food in a tree, high enough and out far enough on a branch that bears cannot easily reach it. You can use a specially designed bear bag, pack, panniers, or backpack. It’s a lightweight, practical option for backpackers. 

Hanging food in a tree is not a practical option if there are no trees or the trees are short. In that case, consider one of the other options. However, if you are in an area with large trees, there are some rules of thumb to follow. 

Methods

There are a few different ways you can hang food in a tree. 

The first is hanging it on a single branch. Find a tree branch where you can hang your bags at least four feet away from the tree’s trunk and at least ten feet high, although ideally more. A 50-foot rope should suffice. Tie the rope around a rock and throw it over the branch. Once the rope is over the branch, tie your bear bag to the end. Then, hoist the bag into the air as high as you can (over 10 feet), and tie it off to the tree trunk as high as you can reach.  

The second method is to hang your food between two trees. This entails throwing two separate 50-foot ropes over two tree branches with plenty of space between them. It’s a good option if you can’t find a single branch large enough to hold your bag or that sticks out far enough from the trunk. Once you’ve thrown both ropes over, tie both ropes to your bag. It will require two people to hoist the bag in the air between the trees; then, each person ties off their rope to the trunk. Again, ensure you tie it up as high as possible to keep it out of reach of bears.

Of course, there have been instances where bears have been able to sever the rope and get to the food. However, it’s a widely accepted method as long as it’s done right and generally deters bears. 

Bear Proof Coolers or Panniers

There are lots of coolers on the market today that are certified bear-proof. If closed and locked correctly, they are designed so bears will likely be unable to get into them. These are good for car camping, horse packing, or river trips but not practical for backpacking.

There are also horse panniers that are certified bear-resistant. Some of these are more frustrating to close than they’re worth (I know from personal experience). But they can be a good option if you’re limited in what you can carry. 

If you’re car camping, coolers or paniers should always be locked inside your car at night or when you’re away from your campsite. In the backcountry, keep them 200 yards downwind from where you’re sleeping. 

Storage Lockers

Storage lockers are often found at front-country and backcountry campsites in national or state parks and campgrounds. You put your food and other scented items in them to keep bears from getting it. However, these are only options if they are already at your destination.

Call the respective land management agency ahead of time, or do some internet research to determine if there are storage lockers where you’re going. 

Electric Fence

A certified electric bear fence is an option for keeping bears away from food. It’s a non-lethal bear deterrent method. However, it has to meet certain specifications to be legal and is prohibitively heavy and unwieldy for backpackers. Horseback or river outfitters may find them to be a good option. 

Electric fences can only be used where approved by land management agencies and must meet specific standards, including the number of wires, voltage, and height. These are different from a camping electric fence. Because they are designed to keep bears away from food, they have far more power than one you can buy to put around your tent. 

Do plenty of research when opting for this method. There are plenty of bear fence kits you can buy. You can also make one of your own, but be sure you’re clear on the specifications first.

Bear Attacks

I don’t intend for this article to go into detail about what to do during a bear attack. However, the National Park Service has a great page on bear attacks you should check out if you’re going to be in bear country.

Final Thoughts

As you can see, there are plenty of considerations for recreating in bear country. While being around these large predators can be terrifying for many people, don’t let it stop you from getting out into some beautiful areas. A healthy fear of bears will serve you well. It will make you think about what you should do to protect yourself and others. You’ll be prepared to react accordingly if you see a bear. And you’ll proactively do the required things to keep your food away from bears and yourself safe. So happy camping, and stay safe!