mntmutt

[bnsafe]

in another thread you said something about bears attacking people in there tent. you talking about grizzlies or blacks, just curious

[mtnmutt]

Black Bears. Officially in CO, there are no brown bears(grizzlies), however, ranchers have reported seeing one or 2 in NW CO.

2011 was a weird year. We had way above normal snows that took all summer to melt; some never melted. I walked through snow mounds while scouting on July 3rd at 10.500 ft.

2011, the acorn crop was late to come out for the bears. People got sloppy at campsites.

This is what I remember.
During CO Bowhunters Association Annual Gathering south of Leadville, a camper was careless and left coolers out. That night a bear came by. Next night, a kid was dragged out of his tent by a bear. Apparently the kid had no food in his tent.

Later that summer, a lady and her dog were attacked in her tent. She had no food in tent, but other campers had already had food in their tents at that campground.

Any wild animal that attacks people is tracked and put down.

If you want to avoid all this, do NOT camp in established campgrounds.

Just be smart by not having any smelly stuff in your tent: food, toiletries, blood items.

Once bear season starts the 2nd weekend of elk archery, the bears should be less an issue and they have enough natural food.

I have never had a problem with a bear and I have been here 22 years. I lived in the mountains for 9 years. I did know some bears that broke into homes in Summit and Park County while I lived in Summit. One sow and then her cubs really like coffee creamer. They had to put down them down because they had a coffee creamer addiction. CPW has a 2 strikes rule. Relocate problem bear once, 2nd time it gets put down.

[bnsafe]

well i wont tell you what we did last year our first year out, but i can tell you it was stupid. i never believed a bear would ever be around me. wrong

[mtnmutt]

I have accidentally left food in my tent and lucky have not had a problem when I made a mistake.

No one is perfect. I certainly no better and sometimes make the same mistake repeatedly.

Although I love fish and tuna, I no longer take those items with me camping. Those higher concentrated smelly items can help Mr bear find your stash much easier at greater distance.

Stay safe and enjoy!

[bnsafe]

we had a bear get into our coolers and pretty much clean us out of food. no big deal except the coolers were setting against the tent. and we had open chips inside the tent. why he didnt tear the tent down is beyond me. we were bivy camping at the time. found it when we got back. our first nite back i heard a growl outside the tent. when we got back i was looking at my pictures on the tv and came across one taken at nite with nothing but the tree behind our tent and 2 eyes shining in the flash. i didnt take that pic and my hunting buddy swears he didnt. one of us musta been out there with the bear and dont remember.

[Indian Summer]

Yep just use some common sense and you'll be ok unless fate sends one past your camp. In bear country we don't cook in our sleeping tent.

I know guys that leave the tent door open when they're gone to avoid having a second one installed. But... for some reason they never seem to use the door! Blackies don't worry me so much (stupid statement though really) but I always keep bear spray and a handgun at arm's length to help me sleep better. If there's alot of them around we'll hang our food at night and when we're gone for the day. If I was in griz country I'd run a portable electric fence around the camp perimeter.

Unless bears have been conditioned to see humans as a food source they're pretty skittish of people. Everyone I know that has had bear problems had a visitor in camp when they weren't there.

[bnsafe]

im not worried about blackies and no grizzlies reported around me. however i am gonna try to buy a 45 just in case. if i cant find one i want and can afford i may have to just shoot myself with my 9mm, lol.

[dotman]

45 isn't the best I would get a 10mm min and then go up.

[aron]

I'm sure this is very subjective but aren't there studies that show bear spray being more effective than a handgun? With a handgun you are needing to be accurate and hope for a quick kill or else you have a pissed off charging bear. I know for me the handgun would still give me a little more piece of mind regardless of the study.

[bnsafe]

yes, there are studies that show bear spray works better. im just not sure how you study that. either way i would feel better with a gun, even a pistol. and ive thought bout the 10mm but 45 seems to be alot easier to find ammo for. nothins gonna stop em unless you get lucky enough to hit the brain. im more worried bout snakes and mt lions

[dotman]

Haha, I forgot about your snake fear . Yes but the ammo readily available will only piss a black bear off . For a bear you want penetration which is a hard cast lead bullet not hollow point copper jacket meant to expand quickly. Plus you just walk around snakes so no need for them except maybe when the slither up next to your sleepin bag oh and make sure you watch out for snake pits, they are all over CO

[Huntography]

I never go into the woods without my bear spray:

ImageUploadedByTapatalk 21367633825.334784.jpg (123.59 KiB) Viewed 6672 times

Glock 20 SF 10 MM double stack with McNett's Hardcast bullets.

Hope to never have to need it in the back country.

Rudy

[bnsafe]

thanks dotman, now i dont wanna go hiking today.

[Indian Summer]

If it's about feeling better I guess the gun might help but there's no doubt the spray is a better choice. Simply put you don't have to aim. I think everyone pictures having a small window of opportunity to dig out their gun and get off a pretty good shot. But anyone who's been there usually starts with "he came out of nowhere in a flash"

That said I do carry a handgun. What I picture is using it while my leg is getting chewed on because for one reason or another my bear spray didn't work. I keep birdshot for grouse too so I'm not packing it for nothing.

[easeup]

...........................................
That said I do carry a handgun. What I picture is using it while my leg is getting chewed on because for one reason or another my bear spray didn't work. I keep birdshot for grouse too so I'm not packing it for nothing.

that is my story too. I carry it for that really rare event that aiming is not required.

[bnsafe]

im guessin it is NEVER needed, and im more worried about mnt lions than bear so a 45 would be fine, but a lion would be on you before you know it so another pointless endeavor. still would make me feel better.

[elkmtngear]

CPW has a 2 strikes rule. Relocate problem bear once, 2nd time it gets put down.

I filmed a bear walking under my tree stand in Colorado (Wilderness Area) that had a tag in each ear. I was told that was an indication that he was given a "pardon" on the two strikes rule, and was relocated twice

[mtnmutt]

I am beginning to think I smell bad or something. I have been hiking around CO for 22 years and no bear has ever bothered me. I must really smell bad to a bear.

This year, I am going to get bear spray. It will make my family feel better if nothing else. My luck will likely run out if I put an elk on the ground.

elkmtngear, interesting on your pardoned bear. Sometimes when CPW resources are low, they don't take them far enough away from their "problem" area. The bear likely made a quick return to its problem area and the CPW noticed their mistake of not relocating it further away.

I know bears adjusted to people are dangerous, but people are mostly the cause.

In my neighborhood, I knew right away there was a bear around. I had just moved down to the Front Range from the mountains. When the bear bared its teeth and puffed out its chest at a police officer, they did a reverse 911 call about the bear. One neighbor had the nerve to say: well I put my trash behind a 6 foot fence to keep it away from the bear. This is why the CPW asks for volunteers each year to get people bear aware. Bears are smarter than some of my neighbors.

In Vail at a McDonald's, a tourist passing through, went inside and bought a burger for a bear hanging out at the dumpster. The tourist gave the burger to the bear. If I saw that, I would report the person and promptly tell them they are breaking the law and killing that bear. They never found that person. In CO, it is illegal to feed wildlife. Birds are not covered under the law.

However, shooting an elk with a valid elk license and then sitting over the elk gut pile to shoot a bear to fill your bear tag is not considered feeding the wildlife. It is considered smart bear hunting tactics.

[Indian Summer]

Don't feel bad Mntmutt I think I smell bad too.

One time a guide and hunter came into camp and said there was a bear denned up below a small rock outcropping to the over the hill behind camp. The guide saw the little cave. The hunter stood on top of the rock while the guide borrowed his gun and looked into the hole. Sure enough the bear looked out and he got the heck out of there.

The next day I walked back there, gun in hand, and peered into the crevice from about 6 feet away. At first there was nothing but then a face moved from the left to right and the bear looked me right in the eye from about 8 feet away. I love those days when you come face to face with animals like that. He was a chocolate and just sat there peeking out. I walked away and didn't go back that season. That may have been the last hunt of the year. The following year I crawled down into the hole to check it out and.... there has never been another bear in there since!