Brown bears

Cliff notes version:

1. Run with other runners if possible.

2. Carry communication device that is accessible while running. I carry cell phone where it works, Spot device where it doesn't, or park radio if I am out in the park where only local staff would be able to respond.

3. If alone, carry pepper spray, or air horn, or both (also consider handheld marine flare), whichever device(s) must be accessible while running.

4. Make noise before going around blind corners.

5. Minimize the blind corners if possible in choosing the route.

6. Identify in your mind your options while you run.

7. Run with a dog (this one would probably be contentious among biologists).

Longer version:

Brown bears are the coastal form of the same species as grizzly bears. Biologists consider them pretty different even though they are the same species because brown bears are so well fed that it substantially changes their behavior as well as their population demography. Brown bears can become readily habituated to human presence and activity. However, like all bears, they can become food conditioned which makes me, at least, almost more nervous around bears in populated areas than in more remote locations. Bears in populated areas tend to have learned that people are the source of food (garbage) as well as the source of hazing/irritation/pain, so they may be more afraid as well as more attracted. 

A quick perusal of bear attacks in Alaska suggests that grizzlies or brown bears in the area near Anchorage are the most dangerous bears in the whole state for runners, as that is where the attacks on runners seem to be concentrated. Whether my opinion of city bears is justified in this case is pretty questionable because: 1. They have a lot less salmon available to them there than our bears have here; and, 2. They have a lot more runners to run into. It is pretty universal that the problems are surprise encounters, though. 

Brown and grizzly bears are generally not tree climbers. They CAN climb trees...but they generally don't after graduating from cub status. As a result, they tend to defend a personal space around themselves, and a surprise can really be likely to end in a defensive attack. The bear's goal is to neutralize a potential threat, or to discipline a misbehaving animal, so it attacks, slap, slap, and then withdraws. This is why many brown or grizzly bear attacks are very survivable, the animal only wants to address a security issue, it is not trying to eat the person. This is also why people have been taught to play dead...that is obviously not a threat so it is likely the attack will end sooner and be completely over.

HOWEVER, a problem with this message is that most bear charges are not attacks. They are charges. The bear may walk toward you, it may run toward you, it may hop and slap at the ground, but until it actually makes physical contact you should remain upright and back away slowly or hold still. ONLY PLAY DEAD IF THE BEAR HAS ALREADY PHYSICALLY TOUCHED YOU. There are a couple cases where it appears that a curious bear has been induced to investigate and in at least one case apparently kill somebody that played dead at a time when it was just walking toward them to investigate.

Black bears are animals of the forest. They generally run away to the safety of the woods, or climb a tree, or both when surprised. As with all things, the exceptions are small comfort, and surprising a black bear sow with cubs is likely not better than surprising any other sow with cubs. Perhaps some of you have experience you can share about black bears, as well as grizzlies, I mostly read scientific papers about them.

So, that brings us to the Cliff Notes rules.

1. Running with other people results in larger party sizes. Bear attacks are very infrequent on groups larger than two people, and are more common on one person alone than on two. Most larger groups where a bear HAS attacked appear to have not been together, meaning that the bear likely wouldn't have initially seen them as part of a group, but just as one or two people. The more people you run with, the better. Preferably as a group. Otherwise the lead runner is like the lure at the end of the fishing line...luckily I'm slow so that isn't me...

2. I don't always carry communication devices if I am with other runners, though I usually do unless I verify that somebody else has one. But if I am alone this is a non-negotiable item. I pulled a hamstring at mile 7 of an 11 mile run when it was -20F and realized that if I couldn't keep running I wasn't going to make it home...that changed my attitude about communication devices even though it had nothing to do with bears... But the fundamental point is that most bear attacks are completely survivable, but you will need help and a way to get it. And in some circumstances you might play footsie with a critter for a while, and calling somebody in could end the encounter quicker.

3. Pepper spray appears, based on real data, to be the most effective and safe bear attack deterrent. Air horns are more likely to be effective at dissuading a curious or aggressive bear, I don't know that an actual bear attack has been terminated with an air horn. I would have to look to see. Usually air horns are in use for management purposes, so I don't recall of a case where it has been employed during an attack, hence can't comment on the efficacy. Handheld flares also appear to be very effective at dissuading curious or aggressive bears, as they don't like a rushing fire sound. But the best thing out there for an actual attack, as far as we can tell, is pepper spray. 

4. I can't tolerate bear bells myself, and I am bolstered in this opinion by folks that have tried to see if bears even notice them. So far, we have no evidence that they even register on the bear auditory radar. Perhaps one of you has seen one respond to a bear bell. In multiple trials here no bear even turned its head at the sound of a bear bell, so I regard them as a worthless item with a great marketing plan. What I do is clap before going around a corner, and yell. That way it isn't a steady sound that can fade into the consciousness, but a sound that only happens occasionally, at it is free. I have hands and a voice already at my disposal. It is my opinion that they work better. If I want to make enough noise to be really noticed, I will break a stick (that is a sound that bears recognize as having great importance...they always notice it...it could be another bear crashing through the woods...). I don't run around doing that unless I am really somewhere I shouldn't be, and I don't run in places like that...which brings us to:

5. Choose a route where you won't be in a situation to surprise a bear. The wilderness trail runners always have to balance their desire and interest in solitude with the party size and the nature of the trail in relation to wildlife encounters. I like wilderness runs too. But I don't do them alone. Everybody has to balance the psychological renewal of the run with the risk factors and for me it is not worth putting myself on single-track through 6 foot tall grass or alders or willows, knowing that I would be greatly increasing the likelihood that any bear encounter would be a surprise encounter. I prefer all surprises to occur at as great a distance as possible. 

6. Options. I like noticing things like power poles or tall trees with bare lower trunks. Not for climbing...for running around. I can't outrun a bear, but it can't really go around a tree any quicker than I can. Houses. Cars. Whatever, it is just good to notice and think about options so if you ever do have an encounter you can be prepared to make use of whatever options present themselves. 

7. If feasible, consider whether a dog might help. Dogs can go find a bear, get it mad, and bring it back to you. This is not a positive feature. So consider your actual dog before choosing to act on this one. I have a dog that has encountered bears in my yard. When I call him, he immediately will stop harassing them and come to me. That makes me comfortable with him as a running partner, because I want the canine alert capability so long as it isn't going to be accompanied by the ursine infuriation instigation program. If you are not sure, consider carefully...

I'm sure I've either written things above that people think doesn't make any sense, or that doesn't match up with your personal experiences...so chime in please...

Not considering dogs, most animals of any size that I see simply flee when they feel threatened.  Most often they flee before I notice them but occasionaly I surprise them.  I'm talking deer, turkey, racoons, fox etc...

The only notable exception for me is bucks in late fall.  I had one standing in the middle of a trail 200 yards ahead of me.  He wasn't moving.  As I got closer I was kind of flapping my arms up and when I got 40 feet away he finally moved on.  I told a guy who hunts.  His repsonse... "that was kind of dumb of you".  I laughed.  I guess bucks have charged people before during rutting season.  So I'll remember that one.  I'm not really interested in tangling with a 150-200 pound animal with horns. 

Dogs - the chance of being bitten is sometimes inversely correlated with its size.  Just my experience.

Thanks for the information, Troy.  I live in an area where black bears abound.  Unfortunately, a favorite running area of mine is being reactivated for logging, and I think this has the bears stirred up.  Two weeks ago, I say what I think is a yearling (if that's the word), and this past weekend, we saw a full grown further out on the trail and then what I believe is the yearling close to where I saw it the previous weekend.  Much of this running is done on single track with vegetation close in around on all sides.

As with probably a lot of trail runners, I have a tendency to get into my own head and not pay close attention to what's going on around me.  I was in the lead last weekend, head down, concentrating on a hill, and that caused us to get what for me was uncomfortably close before I saw the large black stump that transformed into a bear's rear end.  I immediately stopped running and started backing up slowly, and Karen and I both raised our arms and started clapping and yelling.  The very startled bear took off like a shot and disappeared into the trees.  We continued to make a lot of noise until we felt we were at a safe distance.  Thereon, we would clap and sing intermittently in the hopes of scaring away anymore.

I often run alone and in areas with irregular cell service, although I do carry my phone.  After your post, I intend to at least get pepper spray to carry with me and will make more of an effort to "announce" myself well in advance of arriving.

Question for You: Are there times of the day when bears are more active?  I have some late afternoon/early evening runs followed by very early morning runs on my schedule for the next couple of weeks.

you know, when I was in MN one year, I would get up at 5:30 a.m. to avoid running in the hot humidity and I was chased down each morning by deer and horse flies. Those suckers are on a mission and no one, absolutely no one, can out run those nasty flies!

got any tips Mike?

I'm more scared of skunks. Leslie, I'd not worry too very much about the black bear unless it's a hungry male. Even mamma bear with cubs is timid. If I were to carry something, it would be an air horn. You don't have to aim it. 

Before running with Avenger Dogie, I did get hit in the back of the head by a hawk. When I turned around and didn't see anyone or anything, the first thing that crossed my mind was the love scene in "Deliverance". When I I realized I was bleeding and saw a pissed hawk, I avoided the area until nesting season was over.

you know, when I was in MN one year, I would get up at 5:30 a.m. to avoid running in the hot humidity and I was chased down each morning by deer and horse flies. Those suckers are on a mission and no one, absolutely no one, can out run those nasty flies!

 

got any tips Mike?

I actually have a tip on this.

dryer sheets.  yup.  those.

Safety pin a dryer sheet to a running hat right aorund your ears.  They will still hover around you but probably will not bite you.  Which is about all you can ask.  I don't know if it's the charge or the smell.  But they stay away from my skin with this method.