think I would mess my drawers

Yeah, they all look like a picture out of Disney (well Black bears and Moose, not so much) until they start ripping apart your stuff or coming at ya'. A neighbor in a Whitetail hunting party next to us had a bull moose come into their campsite and charged. The chargee was armed with a 9mm handgun and was in active service at the time. He was able to drop the moose with some well aimed shots. He also had a bit of grief from the DNR when they arrived. I think the Rangers let him off easy because of his service. Anyone one else would have been in deep doo-doo for shooting a moose without valid permit and out of season.

Long ago in another time,mid 50's, my family was camped at Old Faithful campground, yes there was a cg there at one time and the folks next to us had several tents in the same site with a couple of tarps around them, no blue tarps but real canvass tarps. They thought they were safe and left food out on a table after dinner and a rather large grizzly decided that she wanted their food, but the campers didn't want to let her have it,so they pulled out their trusty weapons and let go with several rounds in the air. She then proceeded to run thru the canvass fence they had made and took it with her right thru our camp and got our tent on the way thru. She then crawled under a small travel trailer that had people in it and then stood up when someone poked her with a very long stick. Too show you how strong those bears are, she turned that sucker over when that happened.
Final score was bear won everything and got away. Two guys in the next camp were arrested for having firearms and discharging them in a Nat Park. The folks in the trailer got out before it burned up as they had their propane lites burning when it went over.
Funny thing happened the next day was watching a mother bear showing her two cubs how to get food by putting one paw on the pedal of the in ground garbage can and when the lid popped up, reached in with the other paw and scooped it out of the hole. They also had those concrete boxes for you to put your coolers in with the metal doors and they all were dented beyond closing. Good old days.

When I saw it happen the bear didn't even seem to be exerting himself, although he obviously meant business. The owner was off fishing at the time so it was empty. One guy fired a shotgun in the air but he just glanced over and kept ripping, by that time he was already through to the range. Took him far less than a minute start to finish to rip out the range hood and trot off into the woods with it. Otherwise someone might have shot him as a couple of people had retrieved their firearms. When you shoot a bear in Alaska in defense of life or property you bite off a big chunk of work for yourself. F&G requires that you skin it and supply them with the hide and head. You don't even get to keep a claw. Eerily a man was mauled to death just a couple hundred yards from there a few years later. Russian River Campground.

Certainly a bear can get through a hard sided camper. But if a Bear did that to my camper he might have a bit of a surprise if the first few rounds didn't scare him off. I would like having that little bit of extra time.

westend wrote:

For the average tourist, the National Parks, especially out West are almost a petting zoo for large mammals. The critters have become used to the presence of man and vehicles.

The CG in Zion National Park is practically overrun with mule deer who have very little fear of humans. I was taking one of my dogs for a walk through the CG loop and heard some steps behind me to find a doe trailing us (with 2 little ones and a small buck further back). I suspect she was worried that I had lassoed someone other doe's little one (my dog is a similar enough color). You can see how bold she was by my shadow.

westend wrote:

Naio wrote:

westend wrote:
A thinking man might have come to the conclusion that inquisitive bears are rarely a problem. That is the conclusion I found to be true. Of the few bear encounters I've had with Black bears, they have turned and fled when they encountered my smell or sighted me.

I awoke one morning in Yosemite, sleeping on the ground, with a cold nose on my cheek. Startled, yes, but not in abject terror as I know most of these Park bears are after an easy meal and man isn't one. The bear and his partner continued to search around the picnic table for scraps and, as soon as I snapped a branch for the morning fire, they high-tailed it back up the mountain.

I'm respectful of the power and behavior of wild animals but I don't fear their presence. About the only critters that get my feet moving fast are Grizzly, Mountain lion, and venomous snakes.

Daaaannng.

Will I get in trouble on this forum if I use the phrase 'balls of steel'?

Nah, you won't and I'm not THAT courageous. I'm just like an old animal, lazy and fixed in my ways, spending a lot of time tromping through the woods.

I've been within a few feet of bears, bull moose, deer, timber wolves, etc. If you spend a lot of time in the far back places and get in sync with the environment, don't get stressed and disturbed by an animal's presence,and are quiet and still, it is amazing what you encounter.

For the average tourist, the National Parks, especially out West are almost a petting zoo for large mammals. The critters have become used to the presence of man and vehicles. They don't get afraid and neither should we. You have to respect their behavior, though. A bear sow and cubs is one to remain away from, the behavior of protection can come on at any time and you don't want to be around for it. Same thing for rutting season and male mammals, stay far away. You can't compete with a 1000 lb, animal with large horns. Unless you have those metallic appendages, of course. :B

I grew up around bears, but never had one put its nose on me!

I know what you mean about the tame animals in tourist places. I had a bobcat walk about 15 feet from me in Yosemite. It had clearly been watching me: it walked right through the spot where I had just eaten my lunch. I guess that was its regular route and it was just waiting for me to get a few feet off its trail.

When I was 6 or 7 years old, I was tent camping with my parents in Smoky Mountain NP. My Mom was frying chicken and my Dad and I were walking around nearby. A bear walked through the CG. My Mom grabbed her skillet full of chicken, jumped into the car and locked the doors. She wouldn't unlock the doors even for us. The bear just walked on thru the CG, ignoring everyone. That was over sixty years ago, but I still have vivid memories of that event.

Said one bear to another, oh look campers in sleeping bags. Soft on the outside and crunchy in the middle.

http://www.theobserver.ca/2014/07/11/bear-rips-siding-from-ontario-home

In case you think an RV is bear proof. This was a black bear.

We camp in griz and brown bear country as well as blackies. We never do more than boil water in the camper. I keep the truck key fob handy at night. That alarm will deter anything to move away from it.

Naio wrote:

westend wrote:
A thinking man might have come to the conclusion that inquisitive bears are rarely a problem. That is the conclusion I found to be true. Of the few bear encounters I've had with Black bears, they have turned and fled when they encountered my smell or sighted me.

I awoke one morning in Yosemite, sleeping on the ground, with a cold nose on my cheek. Startled, yes, but not in abject terror as I know most of these Park bears are after an easy meal and man isn't one. The bear and his partner continued to search around the picnic table for scraps and, as soon as I snapped a branch for the morning fire, they high-tailed it back up the mountain.

I'm respectful of the power and behavior of wild animals but I don't fear their presence. About the only critters that get my feet moving fast are Grizzly, Mountain lion, and venomous snakes.

Daaaannng.

Will I get in trouble on this forum if I use the phrase 'balls of steel'?

Nah, you won't and I'm not THAT courageous. I'm just like an old animal, lazy and fixed in my ways, spending a lot of time tromping through the woods.

I've been within a few feet of bears, bull moose, deer, timber wolves, etc. If you spend a lot of time in the far back places and get in sync with the environment, don't get stressed and disturbed by an animal's presence,and are quiet and still, it is amazing what you encounter.

For the average tourist, the National Parks, especially out West are almost a petting zoo for large mammals. The critters have become used to the presence of man and vehicles. They don't get afraid and neither should we. You have to respect their behavior, though. A bear sow and cubs is one to remain away from, the behavior of protection can come on at any time and you don't want to be around for it. Same thing for rutting season and male mammals, stay far away. You can't compete with a 1000 lb, animal with large horns. Unless you have those metallic appendages, of course. :B