Backcountry Bear Basics: The Definitive Guide to Avoiding Unpleasant Encounters (Mountaineers Outdoor Basics)

Very well written. This book is exactly what I was looking for. A friend of mine saw a grizzly come near camp in Glacier a couple years ago while the rest of his group was away. I bought this book because I want to visit Glacier and some other parks further north in grizzly territory (I spend about a week in the backcountry every year but up to this point mainly in places like southern Rockies with only black bears).This book has plenty of colorful stories that make interesting reading. He doesn't downplay the real risks and doesn't overdramatize them either. He reminds us that statistically there's greater danger of getting injured or killed by a car while on park roads than getting injured or killed by a bear in park backcountry, but we accept the first risk and sensationalize the second. His conclusions are clearly supported both by research on bear attacks and plenty of personal experiences of people who regularly deal with bear issues in many different parts of the country. He's lived and worked in Yellowstone, Glacier NP, Denali, and Glacier Bay National Parks and worked as a fire lookout several summers in Montana, so his wide-ranging personal experience covers most of the major U.S. grizzly/brown bear hot spots where there have been the most attacks. He doesn't try to generalize to all bears based on the bears in just one place (though his examples with both species are mostly from grizzly territory in the western U.S. and Canada). Bears which are habituated to camper food (Yellowstone, Yosemite) may act a lot differently and be a lot more persistent than bears that don't have nearly as much contact with people and their food. And brown bears in Katmai Alaska who are used to fishing for plentiful salmon alongside four or five bears in the same stream, for instance, will generally be less touchy and have a smaller personal space requirement than bears that usually stay far away from other bears when they're looking for food and fiercely defend a carcass.This is a thin book, probably so it's easy to carry. But it's not a large type, quick read. It took me longer to read than I expected. I enjoyed reading it and didn't mind. I'm glad the author refuted a lot of the other books out there. If he didn't, how would I know how to respond when I hear someone repeat these commonplace myths?Despite the long book and the reminders that each bear has a different personality and different experiences with humans and human food, I come away with clear, simple conclusions that will (hopefully) be easy to remember if I ever encounter a grizzly or black bear in the backcountry:Stand your ground, don't back away once a bear has noticed you. Don't climb a tree or run because you're acting like prey or a retreating defeated submissive bear (unless of course you can clearly make it to a vehicle or building). Eye contact is fine, it won't provoke a bear. Identify yourself as a human - talk to the bear if it's coming closer, stand out and get out of brush so the bear can see you're a human (and so you look bigger). Don't make sudden motions or yell or do things that will startle a bear - give the bear time to think calmly instead of doing anything to agitate it more. Stick together, the more people in your (tight) group the safer you are. When a dominant bear meets a submissive bear, the submissive bear usually doesn't retreat or approach, but stands its ground and waits for the dominant bear to move off and you should generally do the same. Only in exceptional cases do you ever want to play dead with either a black bear or a grizzly (read the book for when and why and how). If you do gradually move away, leave calmly and deliberately and if possible at a 45° angle so you don't act like you're fleeing the bear - the bear can also see you a lot more clearly when you move away at an angle. There isn't much evidence bear bells work, evidence shows bears pay attention to "natural" sounds, so it's far better to clap your hands or call out "Hey Joe" before you round a blind corner around bear foods (berries, fishing streams, etc). Also far less annoying to other hikers! Bears don't growl at you. Huffing, popping jaws, stamping, ears laid back, and "yawning" are all signs a bear is stressed about you - a predatory bear won't do these things. Predators are silent, have their ears pointed forward, are more likely to maneuver and try to get behind you. There's lots more. Very useful, exactly what I wanted to know. Now I feel a lot more confident heading into places with grizzlies and know how to treat them with respect.There's plenty here about your food/"smellables" and other topics too, but I don't mention those because I was doing all those things already before I bought the book. The parts on pepper spray vs firearms vs carrying nothing are very commonsense. Anyone not trained in rapid combat shooting probably has better chances hitting a bear with bear spray that covers several squarefeet than placing a bullet with the cross-section of a pencil under stress, but then anyone like a hunter who already has a firearm in their hands might not have time to put that down and then dig out out a can of bear spray if a bear charges. I don't plan to get any bear spray for just one or two trips a year, since he explained a bear spray can has an expiration date and may be unreliable after just 2-3 years of storage. Good to know.The author's priorities are clear. #2 he would like to keep grizzlies from being entirely driven out of the lower 48 by constant noise such as bear bells (grizzlies have been decimated from at least 50,000 before white settlement to less than 1,000 today and many of those that remain could be driven to Canada by constant stress and disturbances in their habitat here). But his #1 priority is always, always your safety over the bear.Buy the book. Just hearing these things won't stick in your mind very well in a pinch, unless you hear the stories and examples at length that explain the "why."

You had better read this book carefully, and give yourself plenty of time before you go on your merry way in bear country. Mr. Smith says two important things at the beginning of his book:1) he's not liable for any damages you incur because he can't guarantee that any of what follows is accurate or useful;2) do not go into bear country if you are not prepared to accept everything that happens, including damages to you or your loved ones, including deathIt's hard to argue with either statement but that is precisely why you need to read everything you can about bears and bear/human interaction carefully and well in advance of your trip. What are you willing to lose by making your trip?You are assuming that Mr. Smith's book will inform you of your risks, guide you through typical interactions with bears, guide you through some of the extreme interactions with bears, and not mislead you with tabloid sensationalism. Many other reviewers give high marks to this book because they share the same disdain for any and all other books that don't conform to Smith's attitude.Warning: Mr. Smith is as guilty, if not more so since he makes a point of ridiculing others, of giving you advice that has the following problems:1) Using examples from authors he disapproves of and yet ends up giving you the same advice2) Blaming other people for not providing proof in the form of research papers and the like, while Smith often provides no "proof" himself, provides misleading statistics, and provides you with multiple and inherently contradictory advice. For example, Smith provides a table on bear attacks and makes conclusions about all bears based on it -- the topic is the frequency of bear attacks, Smith claims that the tabloid sensationalism of other authors books is wrong and harmful, but you MUST read that data carefully because it only provides the number of attacks that occur AT NIGHT, and both you and the bears are more likely to be active during the day.3) presenting a person as a negative resource in one section and then relying on the same author as a positive resource in other places -- you MUST read every footnote and remember the names of researchers in this book (or any other book on such an important topic). Yes, Smith does rely on surprising sources that you think he's already dismissed as false, misinformed, and sensationalist.I don't have the time to warn you of all the shades of truthfulness or accuracy -- even lapses in common sense -- in Mr. Smith's book. All I can say is that YOU must read this book very carefully.You should not ignore any suggestions from others based upon aesthetic concerns about their prose style (e. g., tabloid sensationalism -- which is a charge fraught with subjectivity and outright ignorance). Book titles and even some authors intentions may be "sensationalism" and therefore distasteful to you and Mr Smith but it does not mean that these books are false, inaccurate, and dangerous to you and to bears. Bears DO attack people, they do kill people, they do act in a predatory manner towards people. These simple facts do not warrant programs that kill or harm bears. But denying these facts or downplaying them puts you and your family in jeopardy.Smith doesn't warn you enough to carefully study and understand the implications of the specific park you are visiting. Smith's book should be a long study and not a quick/easy read (or primer) on bear/human interaction. The park's rules also should not be read only once or quickly. Smith's book is not an adequate replacement for park rules. For example, Smith might advise you to burn as much of your trash as possible, and even warns that you have to collect the ashes and carry those out of the park. But some parks (I used Denali as the author mentions it frequently) do not allow open fires so you can't burn your trash -- and Denali has a rule as of this writing, June in 2014, that says you MUST carry out all USED TOILET PAPER along with your other trash.You might decide you are willing to break park rules, pay the fines if necessary if you are caught, just to bypass the toilet paper rule. You would be starting down a path that leads to harm and possibly even death to both bears and humans. How it is that just burying your used toilet paper may have such repercussions is not obvious. You will have to study the issues that are raised by rules, guidebooks, so called sensationalism or tabloid style books, and other sources.Smith's book begins your education. It's not adequate to stop there.You might even decide to change your vacation plans once you do more research on your trip and the burdens you never knew existed...even after reading Mr Smith's book.

Purchased this book for some trips in bear country. In July a routine hike put me sharing the trail with an adult black bear. I saw him ahead, he stopped foraging and began approaching me. Recognizing behavioral traits described in this book and how to react to them probably helped some in both of us walking away.

As a wilderness guide I have read other books, brochures, and articles about traveling and camping in bear country, but none focuses in on the most relevant, practical, current information like Backcountry Bear Basics. Dave Smith backs up his sometimes unconventional assertions with cogent arguments and scientific references for those who want to know more, and he debunks the myths that have plagued bear literature for decades.I found the book engaging and entertaining as well as informative. I don't know what the reviewers who called it "dry" were expecting -- juicy blood and guts anecdotes a la Alaskan Bear Tales? Those are fine for scaring each other around the campfire but the purpose of Backcountry Bear Basics is to bring the reader's fears into line with reality and avoid problems for people and bears.My advice to anyone who will be hiking or camping in bear country without a guide: Read this book and carry it with you -- and follow its advice about securing your food!

This is by far the worst book on bear encounters and behaviour I have ever come across. Exactly opposite of what it claims to be, it is full of fallacies , misconceptions, unproven claims and speculations. Dangerous read for inexperienced hikers or campers . Complete waste of money !!! A much better choice would be any one of the James Gary Shelton books where the attack sites are examined and analyzed by a qualified bear expert and biologist , park wardens , wild life ministry and the RCMP as well as first hand accounts by survivors or witnesses. Having studied Ontario black bears in their natural habitat for over thirty years (including a number of charges and close encounters)I have consistently witnessed bears displaying behaviour that contradicts most studies. Please research the author and their credentials before purchasing any books. Your life could depend on it !

Ich habe das Buch bestellt, weil ich einen Campingurlaub in der Kanadischen Wildnis plane, wo es ja den ein oder anderen Bären gibt. Das Buch ist gut gegliedert und hilft vermutlich Bären besser zu verstehen und einzuschätzen. Da ich noch nicht im Urlaub war, weiss ich nicht, wie hilfreich die Tipps im Einzelnen sind, ich glaube aber, dass ich jetzt anders reagieren werde als vor der Lektüre.

A must read for anyone heading into bear country. Found it to be very well researched and written. Eased my wife's mind about many misconceptions of bear behavior. Most of the information I already knew from a lifetime of bear hunting and backcountry packing in bear country, but did learn a few new things. Have read it several times and now reading it through with my 9 year old son who is fascinated by bear, but scared of them.

Soooo much info I have never come across before. Moving to bear country so glad I read it. Going to make any visitors read it before we go hiking together too!

A must to read if you travel or live in bear country