Lions and Tigers and Bears! Oh my!

Dorothy, from the Wizard of Oz, made this phrase into a very popular saying after first uttering it back in 1939 as she began walking into the dark forest with her companions, the Tin Man and The Scarecrow. I recently remembered this quote and Dorothy's apprehension when a friend forwarded a picture of a big black bear that was spotted on the very trail we had been hiking just a few days prior....Lions and Tigers and BEARS! Oh my!

At least Dorothy was smart about her hike into the woods, hiking in numbers and making a bit of noise along the way. Bear Spray might have been a really good idea too!

Fall time is Bear time. And time to brush up on how to stay safe in the great outdoors. Everyone keeps saying, "Bears are more afraid of you then you are of them." Yeah, ok...sure, but try to remember that when you come face to face with a big burly bear of four hundred pounds looking at you, while he licks his hungry jaws. They are foraging for food, stocking up for the winter and I am thinking, I probably look pretty darn tasty this time of year. Look em in the eye, don't look em in the eye, wear a bear bell, don't wear a bear bell (Dinner's ready!), back up slowly or run like hell. These things I rehearse in my head many times as I venture out.

The best thing to do is be prepared, brush up on bear facts online at Washington State's Department of Fish and Wildlife and peruse the Living with Wildlife section.

Here are a few Do's and Don'ts from WSDFW: 

To avoid encounters with black bears while hiking or camping:

1. Keep a clean camp. Put garbage in wildlife-resistant trash containers.
2. Store food in double plastic bags and, when possible, place the bags in your vehicle's trunk or in wildlife-resistant food lockers. Double-wrapped food may also be placed in a backpack or other container and hang it from a tree branch at least 10 feet above the ground and 4 feet out from the tree trunk. Never store food in your tent.
3. When camping, sleep at least 100 yards from your cooking area and food storage site.
4. Hike in small groups and make your presence known by singing or talking.
5. Keep small children close and on trails.

If you come in close contact with a bear:

1. Stay calm and avoid direct eye contact, which could elicit a charge. Try to stay upwind and identify yourself as a human by standing up, talking and waving your hands above your head.
2. Do not approach the bear, particularly if cubs are present. Give the bear plenty of room.
3. If you cannot safely move away from the bear, and the animal does not flee, try to scare it away by clapping your hands or yelling.
4. If the bear attacks, fight back aggressively. As a last resort, should the attack continue, protect yourself by curling into a ball or lying on the ground on your stomach and playing dead.

Stay safe, hike smart!

Genia Seghetti
Mountain Girls Adventures 
"An amazing life doesn't just happen, 
you create it one adventure at a time!"

About MGA:
At Mountain Girls Adventures the spirit of adventure runs deep. An adventurer's experience can move us, enrich our knowledge and awaken the wanderer within. As an adventurer my purpose is to live consciously and courageously, to resonate with love and compassion, to awaken the great adventure of life within others, and to leave this world a better place because I have lived.

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