If I were confronted by a bear, what would be my best course of action?

Take off your clothes so you can be bare as well.

I said no weapons, now behave yourself & sit down :D

Pull its hairs out, so you will instead be confronted by a bare bear.

I’ve read that you can pull your jacket up over your head, like a bat spreading it’s wings. This makes you look bigger. And you yell at the bear, while slowly backing away. A shotgun, with double odd buck, or a .50 pistol might help. A determined grizzly, would probably kill you, no matter what. The playing dead approach seems to usually end up, with the person surviving, but horribly mauled…

My advice is to not go where they are…

Whatever you do, don’t run. They run as fast as a dog from what I have seen in person (black bears)
Most importantly, stop wearing that pork chop necklace.

I heard an interesting story once, from 90-something year old Eskimo woman. She said she witnessed her husband attacked by a polar bear. Ancient Inuit culture has taught them, that a polar bear, will not turn it’s head, to bite. This lady’s husband put his forearms vertically, bigger than the bear could open it’s mouth. She said he to lots of claw strikes, but was ultimately never bitten. He was badly injured, but lived on, after the attack, for 70 years.

An alligator, for instance, has bone crushing bitting power, but not very much ability to open it’s mouth. So. The strategy is supposed to be to lock your arms, around it’s mouth. Therfore, it cannot open it’s mouth.

People who live in regions with Tigers, where masks, on the back of their heads. It is said, a Tiger will only attack from behind. Therfore, if it thinks you can see it, it won’t attack…

There are lots of tricks to animal’s weaknesses. I hope I never have to try one…

I’ve been around plenty of alligators. They’ve never attacked me.

Some people in Africa, survive off of lion kills. They wait for the lion to kill something, then go after it with torches. The lion, afraid of fire, will flee. Leaving the people a fresh kill….

I reckon that it would be no different than being faced with an angry dog or vengeful ex lol
Take away a bear’s sheer size, weight & that funny thing they do with their bottom lip & they’re not so scary after all.
I would probably look at the ground at my feet, slowly back away while quietly singing “the bear necessities” & hope for the best.

Spray myself with bear pheromones.

@ucme -Near my SIL’s house a young girl was out jogging when a black bear attacked her.
She tried to pet it and that did not help.At all. She did survive though.
When my SIL goes for walks her dog will often stop in it’s tracks and not let her continue on.
He smells them before he sees them for he nose what he’s doing.

Try to retreat slowly. Back up slowly and try to put more space between you and the bear.

Talk calmly so that it can identify you as human, and slowly back up. Keep your backpack on as it can provide protection if necessary.

Don’t make direct eye contact, but keep a close look at the bear as you back away.

I live in national Park System and thus the wild animals already are aware of humans in the area.

My encounters usually were about 500 yards away and once the bear goes on its hind legs to smell your presence it will leave quickly.

Only once I had to yell for it to notice and it ran away. I was on a paved road and it was crossing the road with cubs.
People with dogs off leash cause more problems and usually the dogs get injured or die.

@lucillelucillelucille Bugger me sideways, most I see on my runs is a couple of cows & a poodle.

@ucme -Then it’s safe to wear that pork chop necklace.

@lucillelucillelucille You haven’t seen the size of the poodles around here!

@ucme Oh stop bragging!

@lucillelucillelucille I shall quit bragging when you madam cease flirting!

@ucme I have yet to begin to flirt! I use a different font for that.

From the experts.

When speaking to them your accent might piss em off. Try to sound American, or Inuit.

I don’t think so, Rupert the Bear & Paddington had impeccable English accents.

I guess it depends on the pedigree of each.:-)

Do they still make Teddy Ruxpin tapes? Put one of THOSE in that angry bear and see the change in behavior.

Just bang some pots or make noise, they’ll leave.

If it’s a grizzly (brown) bear, play dead. You probably can’t win a fight with one of these guys.

For black bears stay away…more than 50 yards always. If they come toward you, back up slowly. If it becomes agressive….moving toward you quickly with ears laid back start yelling and making a lot of noise. Wave a stick…anything to look strong. Never play dead with a black bear!!

https://mysmokymountainguide.com/gsmnp/what-to-do-if-you-encounter-a-black-bear-four-scenarios/

Just don’t run, bears are like cats in the sense that they’ll toy with you at that point. I think those little bear bell thingys actually may attract them. The one real uncomfortable bear encounter I had I stayed calm and backed away slowly. It followed a bit, bluff charged and beat the ground but as I created distance slowly it went about its business.

If the bear grabs you, face it. If you face away, the bear, who will claw you, will disembowel you.

@kritiper Good practical advice!

Or, just accept the fact that the bear is above you in the food chain, and let yourself get eaten.

If a bear wants to eat you…it will. You don’t get to “let” it.

Carry a really big turkey fryer with you (24 turkey capacity or above) and cook the bear.

Cheers people who answer questions online.
I never knew black & brown bears react so differently, that is fascinating.
So the general rule of thumb is if It’s brown remain calm & back away slowly & if black, make as much noise as you can swinging your arms like a windmill.
I would hope it was a black bear then because I react in that same way when I see a wasp.

@ucme Are you planning a hike? There is bear spray you can buy in a canister, maybe more items to help if you’re serious.

@KNOWITALL I’m doing an Eddie Murphy & Coming to America, remember?
Looking likely to be June of next year most probably California, no idea if they even have bears though lol

The california ones should all be pretty crispy by now.

@ucme Oh, like on your redwood tour, got it. I did hear the coyotes are bold and kill dogs and cats, yikes!

!!!!!!!!!! THINK MIDWEST !!!!!!!!!!
Most of our country’s character is in its middle. Or, are you gonna be in a movie?
Yes, California has bears, including on the flag.
There are lots of videos on YouTube of people in the Tahoe area, lake Tahoe borders Nevada and California, having bear encounters.
Most of those are amusing, but some scary. Bears in that area will pull a Yogi, and dumpster dive, or let themselves right in a front door and raid the kitchen while residents are out.

Here’s one.

This mama looks awfully thin. She probably has had trouble keeping the twins fed. Wait for it…

I was taught to Kick them in the nads

Gasoline— then throw the lighted match.

Well. Black bears can climb trees. Brown bears, Kodiaks, and grizzlies, can’t.

There is a human strategy, for each bear.

Doesn’t ,into country bears coud be. |

I think the lesson that can be learned from the links I posted is, when confronted by a bear in the wild, whip out your camera. They won’t do anything that can be evidence against them later.

Good answer @Patty_Melt

But what I would do, if confronted by an angry bear in the wilderness, is make bear stew.

From my understanding of bear attacks, even with a gun, you stand little chance of surviving a full assault. I read an article once, that said a bear was shot six times, in the torso, by a .38. It still killed the hiker… And still lived. DNR killed the bear. And a necropsy was performed. You don’t want to fuck with a bear. If I recall the details, it was a Kodiak… Lesson? Don’t fuck with a bear.

My father was hunting wild boar, once. He found one, and put 5 shots of double odd buck in it. It charged him anyways. He pulled his Ruger Super RedHawk .44 cal, and panickly unloaded on it. He managed to hit it once, in the face. It died within 5 yards of him. Otherwise, he’d be super fucked, or dead. It was a 300 lb pig. He is ex-special forces, and did three tours in Vietnam. But a boar, almost killed him.

You cannot underestimate, a wild animal.

Thanks for the reminder, @MrGrimm888 that even with our weapons and technology, we are really not equipped to take on something that has been at the top of the food chain for millennia. They do not even know about guns, but know that we are food, and act accordingly, as they have for hundreds of thousands of years.

”... I heard a cracking noise, and realized my head was in the bear’s jaws. The sound was my skull.”
I don’t remember who did the interview.

Well. You can kill them. But it takes a big gun, and good reaction time. They can run 30 mph, and are quite capable of taking you by surprise. I consider myself a BMF, but I don’t take carnovourous, large predators, as a joke. We simply fall short of killing them, before they kill us.
I paddle around large alligators, frequently. I have confidence in myself, but don’t want to fuck with them. I have a 14 foot canoe. They seem to see me as that big. Being 4 inches off of the water, I am not comfortable around them. But, they seem to leave me be. But when they are around, I am vigilant. Sometimes, there are dozens around me. I have my wooden paddle. But really nothing else.

I’ve sneeked up on a couple. They tare the water up, and dissappear. I think they’re as scared of me, as them. I got within a foot or so, of a 7 footer. I thought he was a log. He tore the water up, and I could literally taste him, as the water splashed into my boat. I paddled like a mile, from fear, as fast as I could. I think he did the same thing. We were both scared of each other. I didn’t mean to sneak up on him. He looked like a log. I have had several situations, that were similar. We have 13 ft or so alligators, in Hell Hole Swamp. It’s not fun seeing them by my canoe. Sometimes, they follow my catch , to my boat. I cut the line, and paddle farther away.