Bears are part of the package if you travel to the High Sierra parks -- Sequoia, Kings Canyon, or Yosemite -- and you should know what to expect and how to react if you encounter one this summer.
Even though the bears in these three parks are black bears, not grizzlies, that doesn't diminish the damage they can do to you or your vehicle if they want to. Cars and trucks have literally been ripped apart by bears that sense there might be food within.
The following guidelines were prepared by the folks at Wuksachi Lodge in Sequoia National Park, but they can be applied to the other two parks as well.
During warmer months, the American black bear may be spotted at a variety of elevations throughout Sequoia National Park. The best places are those locations that serve as food sources, such as meadows and insect-laden logs in the spring and near berry bushes in the summer. At a breathtaking 7,000 feet, the Wuksachi Lodge not only provides unique mountain accommodations for guests, its panoramic setting affords bear-sighting opportunities right outside its windows. But whether at the lodge or on the trails, it’s important to remember a few ‘bear essentials.’
Highly intelligent and adaptable, black bears thrive in Sequoia National Park. Despite their name, black bears can be brown, cinnamon or blonde. Black bears are not usually aggressive, and often escape danger by climbing a tree. But some bears learn to associate people with food, and as a result lose their instinctive fear of humans. This begins a cycle of unnatural behavior that is dangerous to both bears and humans. The familiar wilderness axiom applies: please don’t feed the animals!
Always be sure any food, scented items and/or food storage containers are stored properly and removed from vehicles. Actively feeding a bear is one of the worst things a human can do, but improper storage of food can be just as bad and leads to ‘problem’ bears that end up getting put down because they become aggressive.
Spotting a bear in Sequoia National Park can certainly be thrilling. Binoculars and cameras are great tools for observing bears from a safe distance. In the event of an encounter that feels a little too close for comfort, here are some general rules for visitors to follow:
* Do not run. Running may elicit a chase response by the bear.
* Group together to appear large and be sure to pick up small children and restrain pets.
* Don’t linger too long.
* Don’t get between a female and her cubs (they may be up in a nearby tree).
* Don’t crowd or block a bear’s escape route. Slowly retreat or make a wide detour.
* If a bear huffs and shows its profile it may be ready to bluff charge. Stand ground or back away slowly. Again, do not run.
* If alone, raise arms and yell loudly at the bear to “Back off!”
In addition, it is essential to the black bear population that drivers slow down in the park. Bears are injured every year as a result of getting hit by cars. Drivers who obey all posted speed limits and keep an eye out for bears crossing the road can greatly help reduce these kinds of incidents.
Another way for visitors to learn more about black bears and other Sequoia National Park wildlife is at the Lodgepole Visitor Center just a few miles from Wuksachi Lodge. Along with exhibits on the area’s geologic history, wildlife and longtime American Indian inhabitants, the center screens a 22-minute film about bears. More bear safety tips can be found at this park web page.
Comments
I chuckled at the last suggestion to yell at the bear to "Back Off!" I think you could yell "Come and get me, bear" as long as you yell. Or do the bears speak English now?
How about:" here bear bear.. nice boy!' (smile)
All these tips make sense, until you come face to face with a bear coming out of a bush on a wilderness trail right in front of you, like it happened to me and my wife in Kings Canyon. Then the only thing your body and mind are able to do is run as fast as possible in the other direction...
Oh my gosh! My husband and I went 3 yrs ago. I wanted to get out of the park because it started to get close to dusk and it just so happened we had spoke to somebody that had mentioned that the Bears start to come out my husband bugged his eyes out at the people because I was already worried about that, not that they caught on to him bugging his eyes out, but really though LOL I want him to watch when bears attack so he hears and sees what I've been watching it's not worth it to me I think that's why I've never liked going on trails I mean we're in their territory. Thanks for sharing your story glad to hear it
Lol. Please back off! I am not comfortable right now and you're scaring me!
Es la primera vez que voy a ir y tengo muchas espectativas . los comentarios que lei me causaron mucha risa
My boyfriend and I were just there on June 5th, 2021, and ran into one on the Tokopah Falls hike. The bear was crossing the trail down to the river and there were no hikers in front of us. My boyfriend saw him, turned around and said, "start climbing NOW." I asked him if there was a snake, and he goes, NO, A BEAR. I think this was the fastest I have ever climed huge boulders in my entire life. Scary. We climbed the rocks and the bear passed by us, looked up and shimmied down to the river. About 30 seconds later, more hikers caught up with us. We took some pictures. It was scary, but special - probably and hopefully once in a lifetime kind of experience.
Not really. I've seen bears before in our national parks. In fact several times. My first time was actually at Sequoia NP although it's a long story having to do with improper food storage and an NPS that back then wasn't quite as strict about punishing people who didn't store food properly.
I've seen bears come into campgrounds and while some of us tried to get bears to leave (mostly unsuccessfully) there didn't really seem to be any fear per se. One time we gave it our best effort (yelling, throwing objects, making noise), it wouldn't leave, and most of us just sat around and took photos until a ranger came by. Bears seem to recognize the rangers and likely that they have all these toys to haze them with like rubber slugs, clear paintballs, and beanbag rounds. And on second thought, if I were to do it again, I'd just grab my case of bottled water and start hitting a bear with it. I've seen a documentary on how bear crews haze bears in Anchorage, and they throw things (including garbage cans) at bears trying to get into garbage.
And yes I've seen bears in the wilderness. My NPT profile photo was taken in the Redwood Canyon section of Kings Canyon NP. First sign of a bear was hearing the claws of a cub as it climbed up the tree right in front of us and just off the trail. Then the rustling of the mama bear a reasonable distance away with two more cubs with it. We saw it. It saw us. No running. No panic. I then calmly took photos even though my hiking companion didn't think it was a good idea. Mama bear actually just casually walked away, even with one cub still up a tree. That trip was Yosemite, SEKI, and back to Yosemite. I saw one bear near the John Muir Trail in Yosemite going through several dispersed campsites. Everyone said it didn't try going for any food or bear canisters. A few days later at the Yosemite Valley Backpackers Campground I met up with one Boy Scout who had his backpack dragged away by a bear. He said he just left it there for a few seconds and then saw the bear run away with it. Lousy way to start a trip. Next morning we saw one juvenile bear there. I got out of my tent after hearing people yelling that there was a bear. So it was about 20 pairs of human eyes staring at that one bear, and it thought better of trying to do anything. Then in Kings Canyon NP I saw those 3 cubs and mama I mentioned before. And finally back in Yosemite I saw another bear just off the side of Valley Drive. Nothing terribly scary as long as we knew they were American black bears and knew a little bit about their behavior.
Here's the photo if anyone is interested:
https://www.nationalparkstraveler.org/sites/default/files/legacy_files/u...