Well I can safely say that prior to my one-week vacation in Montana, I had no idea….   All of the talk in Montana – or at least amongst my family – was what to do should you happen upon a bear while hiking.  No actually, as I think about it, the talk definitely went beyond my family.  For example, it was a 20-minute discussion when we were on our Red Bus (see photo of the Red Bus) in Glacier National Park.  And after being instructed by my sister to go buy some Bear Spray (which I had never heard of and, in my naivete, thought was completely ridiculous) and walking into Snappy’s in Kalispell to do so, both of the sales associates talked about the man who had recently been attacked by a grizzly in Glacier.  He apparently had bear spray with him but couldn’t get to it.

So this leads me to Rule #1 about hiking in bear country:

• Rule #1 - Always have bear spray with you, and make sure it is accessible.  Hook it to your belt so you can easily find and use it.  If you put it deep within your backpack, it could be a costly mistake.
• Rule #2 – Make sure to hike with multiple people (“they” highly recommend having at least three people in your party) and make noise, talk, sing while you walk.  You can also wear Bear Bells on your shoes or backpacks to alert the bears to your presence.  If a bear hears you, they will want to steer clear of you too.  As often seems to be the rule in nature, they are as scared of you as you are of them…. (See Rule #6 below for further edification on making noise; this is not to be done when you have come face to face with a bear.)
• Rule #3 – Keep children in the group close and pets on a leash.
• Rule #4 – Store snacks in seal-tight containers as odors attract bears.  Also be careful not to leave a trail of crumbs behind or around you for the bears to sniff and follow.
• Rule #5 – Be on the lookout for any bear tracks and diggings.  And if you see evidence of bears, it is probably wise to go back from whence you came.
• Rule #6 – Stay calm if you encounter a bear on your hike – which we all know is much easier said than done – and the best thing to do is to back away slowly from it (for a black bear) and play dead (for a grizzly).  As our Red Bus Driver Jasmine told us, the bears know that they are at the top of the food chain, and if you turn and run away from them or try to intimidate them by screaming, they will see this as a challenge, and therefore they will run after you (and they can indeed run – even up to 30-35 miles per hour) and maul or attack you.

Here are some facts about black bears vs. grizzly bears that I learned, and I thought these tidbits might help you too if you encounter a bear on your hike:

• Bear Fact #1 – Black bears are much smaller than grizzly bears.  The adults only weigh between 150 and 350 pounds, whereas a grizzly can weigh up to 1,400 pounds.  Also as evidenced in the photo above, black bears have smaller claws – 1 1/2-2 inches vs. 2-4 inches for a grizzly.  Grizzlies can also stand up to 13 feet high, and they tend to stand on two legs much more so than black bears.
• Bear Fact #2 – Black bears have a straight-face profile and taller, pointed ears, and grizzles have a dished-in profile (a depression between their eyes and nose) and shorter, rounded ears.
• Bear Fact #3 – Black bears can climb trees, but grizzlies don’t often do so.  Because the black bears are generally smaller, it is easier for them to scale trees.  But this doesn’t mean that a grizzly can’t try to shake you out of a tree if you use tree climbing as your getaway option.
• Bear Fact #4 – Black bears don’t have a big hump behind their shoulders, and grizzlies do.  This is probably the #1 tell-tale sign and the easiest way to differentiate between a black and a grizzly bear.  Note that grizzly cubs don’t have this hump so keep this in mind if you run into a smaller, cub-size bear.
• Bear Fact #5 – Black bears have sleek hair, and grizzlies have grizzly, mottled hair.  And contrary to what you might think, a black bear doesn’t necessarily have black hair; it can be brown like a grizzly too.
• Bear Fact #6 – Black bears have a reputation for being less aggressive.  I love what this blogger at mentalfloss.com said, “A quick way of telling the difference between the [black and grizzly bear] is: If the bear in question just gored you to death, there’s at least a 70 percent chance it was a grizzly.”  But keep in mind that if a cub is present and the mother is close behind, which is usually the case, all bets are off.  No matter which kind of bear you have stumbled upon, that mother will be aggressive in an effort to protect her cub.

So now, after spending a week in bear country, I can say that I have a better idea about the bear rules and facts that govern this region.  How about you?  Have you ever come upon a bear while hiking?  And do you have any other bear rules and facts to share?  I can’t wait to hear….