just a question

[ChuckC]

OK,  you are tent camping, bear country, you awake to sounds,  sniffing,  nose against the tent.

Do you :

1) Lay still, hold your breath, and wait till it goes away ?

2)Sit up , yell, maybe exit tent to scare it away ?

What do you do and why ?

[Bud B.]

Cock your 44 Mag Super Blackhawk and wait.

option-#3.......sceam like a little girl and wet yourself..........    

grizzly country or black bear country?....

[ChuckC]

Either (griz / black / chupacabra)

Yup

Should I have added :

3) blast away thru the tent ? (on one hunt, my buddy calmly told me he brought a patch kit for the tent.  Asking why, he stated " if I have to touch off a couple rounds I don't want it to leak."
         

ChuckC

[T-Bowhunter]

That is funny, thanks for the laugh this morning!

[Orion]

I punched a black bear in the nose once, through the tent, of course.  This was in the summer at a state campground.  It was making the rounds of campsites looking for food.  Didn't hit it very hard and the critter just shook it off.  Didn't scare him away, but when he didn't find food in our camp he ambled off.

I've had bear, racoon and other critters near my tent other times. Most times, I just lie there and listen, and they move off.  If they do some pressing on the tent, I usually yell at it then.  Well, rather quietly try to shoo off whatever it is.  If it doesn't leave, I raise my voice.  If it keeps pushing, only once, as described above, I punch it.  Come to think of it, I believe I've rolled over a coon and skunk or two from inside the tent as well.

In Grizzly country, I do pack heat so I would have a piece inside the tent with me. I would never shoot through the tent.  What if it's your buddy/hunting partner playing a trick on you?  Mine wouldn't, but there are some oddballs out there.

From what I've read on the effectiveness of bear spray, in the future, I'll carry some of that.  I think it would be a much more effective deterrent on a pesky bear in camp.  Shooting would be a last resort.

[Orion]

Speaking of bears in camp.  At another campground campsite several years ago, we had a bear come by looking for groceries.  It brushed up against the tent a few times so I got up and zipped open the flap a little bit to see if I could make out what it was.  To that point, I had only heard one or two heavy breaths, so I did suspect it was a bear.

Anyway, I'm on my knees in this little Alpine 4-person tent and zipped the inside fly down to about eye level.  At first I don't see anything, but the bear is right there facing me with its head down smelling something at the base of the tent.  When it raised it's head, it was about a foot from mine, with just mosquito netting between us. Worst breath I ever smelled.  At that point, I announced to my campmate that "There's a bear outside!"

He got the picture real quickly and started scrambling around asking me where my knife was.  We were on a fishing trip and I carried a small Rapala knife on my belt.  "You're not going to try to stick him, are you," I asked.  "No.  I want to cut a hole in the tent and sneak to the truck." (which was parked about 10 yards away.) At that, I started laughing.  Bear was still just a few feet away, but he didn't appear interested in joining us inside.

He finally ambled over to the picnic table, on which we foolishly left one of our coolers.  Luckily, we had wrapped it with a nylon strap to help keep it shut.  He rolled it around the campsite for a while, biting into it several places, but when he couldn't get it open, he ambled off to the next campsite.  Later, he gave a real scare to a couple that had come in late, left food on the picnic table and camped right next to it in a tiny two person tent.

I think bear spray would have been a useful deterrent in both those situations.  We didn't really need it, but I think the young couple would have found it handy.  

[eflanders]

I have a cousin who works for Idaho Fish & Game doing fish counts in and around Clark Fork.  Naturally he encounters bears all of the time as they are attracted to the fish contained in his live traps.  He is required to carry a side arm and pepper spray for obvious reasons but he claims that he has never had to use either with a bear yet.  (By the way, cougars are a whole 'nother story.) I was fortunate to spend  an afternoon with him once as he made his rounds and we encountered several different bears (black & grizzly) that day. He gave me the following advice before we headed out:
1). Don't ever run away from a bear!
2). Make your presence known before you enter an area likely to be inhabited by bears. Bells, talking and whistling work great for this.
3). If a bear approaches you, it is likely more curious than anything else so don't panic.
4). Truly wild bears would much rather avoid a person than confront them.
5).  If a bear does approach you, slowly make yourself as big as possible by raising your arms and do not stare directly into their eyes.  Speak calmly but loud enough that they can easily hear you. (staring directly into their eyes is considered a sign of aggression towards them.)

When we were approached the first time by a grizzly from behind us, he very calmly "coached" me through step 5 above (as I nerviously wet myself) and the bear kindly walked away to avoid us.  It was an educational experience I have never forgotten and using these techniques I have never had a bad bear experience (or wet pants) since!    

[kadbow]

Pray that it isn't the Blair Witch!  I would start talking/yelling and have my pistol ready.

[Sixby]

My wife and I woke up to extremely loud snuffing just outside our tent about two in the am when we camped on the headwaters of Varmit Creek.
 We knew there were lots of really big bears in the area from the huge huckleberry patches and having seen several in the past so bear was on our minds.
 I grabbed a gun and a flashlight and opened the tent door very quietly after working my nerve up and  about ten minutes of this. Outside walking around out tent were three gorgeous bear hounds . Took them to the closest town next morning . I knew all the dog men there and soon one came down to the cafe and picked up his dogs. Thanked me for feeding them breakfast that morning. LOL
Funny thing is after I discovered the dogs and talked to them a bit had the best nights sleep with them there guarding my tent I ever had.


God bless you all,
Steve

[ChuckC]

dogs will do that.  I tend to sleep better with a dog,  Of course,  the two I have are now so old that they sleep thru everything,  

Almost puppy time. .  but not quite yet.

ChuckC

[xtrema312]

Is it bear season?

I am thinking make a little noise to let it know you are there and you know it is there.  More like talking and not like some small animal scurrying around in a brush pile or hollow log.

I would also be grabbing the most lethal thing I can get my hands on.  I would not be leaving the tent so the bear would have to come get me.  Pepper spraying a grizzly’s claw when it comes through a hole in the tent doesn’t sound effective.  Being covered in pepper spray in your tent may take your mind of being slashed to ribbons a little, and maybe make you taste better.  However, I would rather send something the bear ways that will get out of the tent.

[Knawbone]

I light my pack of fire crackers and toss it out the tent door toward the Bear as I bark like a Dog with pepper spray at ready.  

[ISP 5353]

Originally posted by Bud B.:
Cock your 44 Mag Super Blackhawk and wait.

+1 on this!

[Bowwild]

In my group I'll first find out where fun-loving "buddy" Jim is!

[The Whittler]

I wonder how a tazer would work lol.

[Hummer3T]

Some food for thought.  If you stay quite with a boar, he will likely investigate, making a noise would likely scare him off.  I mother with cub, be sure what side of the tent she is on and the cubs are on, likely in this case finding nothing they will leave. If you disturb her she will likely attack if you are in the middle.  Had both happen many times in and out of a tent and you just have to call it for each situation. remember every bear has a personality just like humans, and situations you encounter will differ, mother and cubs (mother defending cubs), preditory bears, curious bears, bears defending food, etc. etc. etc.