What to Do if You Encounter a Bear

If you happen to encounter a bear this summer or anytime in the future, here’s what to do to make sure you stay safe.

In the summer and fall, we tend to spend more time outdoors, whether that means hiking, camping, or fishing. Spending more time outdoors also means spending more time with the flora and fauna that call nature home. But you must remember that not all of nature is harmless flowers and woodland squirrels; sometimes, depending on your activity and your location, you may encounter a larger, more dangerous animal, such as a bear.

How to Prevent a Bear Attack

Before you ever have to come face-to-face with a bear, there are several steps you can take ahead of time to prevent having an encounter with one in the first place. The easiest thing to do is to avoid places where bears live. Check to see where brown bears, black bears, and other species of bears live, and try your best to stay out of their way. Of course, this isn’t always possible.

Some people live in the same areas as bears, like in California or Tennessee, and others enjoy exploring more remote areas of nature. If you do venture into an area occupied by bears, it is recommended that you hike and adventure with others, and always make sure someone else knows where you are going. Hiking with a group is safer than hiking by yourself, and larger groups make more noise, showing any nearby bears where there are people and where the bears should avoid.

Be constantly vigilant; make sure you are always keeping an eye on your surroundings and looking out for any potential sources of danger. If there are bear tracks around, claw marks on trees, or recently reported sights of bears, turn around or find another path. If you are camping, make sure you are keeping food high above the ground, and away from trees. Bears, like many animals, are highly attracted to food.

If you put the food out of their reach, and camp away from the food, your chances of encountering a bear while camping will be much lower. Carrying bear spray is also a good way to prepare for a bear attack, and can be used to protect yourself in the case of an encounter.

If You Come Across a Bear

If the preventive measures don’t work, and you do come across a bear in nature, your reaction will be different depending on the bear species and the distance you are from the bear. If you see the bear from a distance, back away and find somewhere else to hike or camp. You can head back down the trail a little while later and can make noise if you choose to head back the way you came, so the bears will know you’re coming and will leave.

Be especially cautious if you spot a baby cub- where there are babies, there will be mother bears, who are especially protective of their cubs and will not hesitate to defend them from hikers and campers. However, there are instances where you may be very close to bears, in what is called a close-up encounter. As mentioned, your response to an attack will be different depending on whether you are attacked by a brown bear or a black bear.

If a brown bear attacks you, do not run, or the bear will chase you and outrun you. Instead, drop to the ground, curl up, and protect your neck. Play dead, and stay very still, so the grizzly bear believes you are no longer a threat. When it comes to black bears, however, hikers and campers are advised to be much more aggressive and intense.

Use whatever weapons you have, such as rocks, sticks, or other objects you may have brought with you on your trip, to hit the bear. Make yourself big and threatening, the exact opposite of your response to a brown bear. An easy saying to remember the difference between the reactions to the bears is: “If it’s brown, lay down. If it’s black, fight back.”

There are some beautiful areas of the United States and Canada for hiking, camping, and exploring nature, but, on rare occasions, humans may encounter a bear. It is best to take as many preventive measures as possible, but if you do happen to come across a bear, make sure you identify the type of bear and know what to do to stay safe.