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  From WildSmart on the Trail (click here to go to their website) Carry Bear Spray and Know How To Use It When recreating in bear country, your best strategy to avoid an encounter with a bear is to make lots of noise, stay in groupsand be alert for signs of bears in the area. Diggings, scat, visible tracks and overturned logs and rocks, are all early warning signs that bears are around. In most cases, bears will do their best to avoid people. Most encounters happen because bears are surprised by people, or they are defending their cubs or a kill. In...

What do I do if I encounter a Bear? First, there’s different types of Bear Encounters. Here’s some advice we put together from various bear experts we work with:   Defensive Encounter May occur when a bear is defending something such as cubs, its food source or if the bear is surprised by your presence.            Do not run Ready your bear spray Try to appear non-threatening, avoiding eye contact Talk in a calm voice Slowly move away without turning your back to the bear Use your bear spray if the bear comes within usable range of your bear spray (typically...

For self defense against grizzly bears, the answer isn't as obvious.  Many are surprised when they find that, despite using their firearm against a charging bear, they were attacked and badly hurt. Evidence suggests that shooting a bear can escalate the attack, while encounters where firearms are not used are less likely to result in injury or death of the human or the bear.   Firearms can kill a bear but can it quickly enough?  Can a shooter be accurate in a high pressure situation where you have seconds to respond?   Law enforcement agents for the Fish and Wildlife Service have investigated human-bear...

Efficacy of Bear Spray A study on the efficacy of bear deterrent spray was conducted in Alaska. 83 cases involving the use of bear spray in Alaska between 1985 and 2006 were analyzed. Results showed that in over 90% of close-range encounters with black and brown bears, spray stopped the bear’s undesirable behavior. To read the PDF, you can also visit Wild Smart at Bear Spray Truths Revealed     

Here's an entertaining video on how to use Bear Spray:  WildSmart