Mark Landerman
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Never made it. Will tomorrow though for sure!
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=angi1vwUkQc[/media]
Ya, we don’t have a shortage of grizz here. I would rather forget my waders than my bear spray. Bear spray works. Unless you are shooting into a stiff wind, it will stop a bear in its tracks. I have never had to use it on a bear, but I work with a several people that have used it effectively. Thanks to a blow dart gun accident (I’d like to thank my son’s friend publicly) I can tell you that it is nasty stuff…………
Did you happen to look at the map while you were at the fly shop that shows all of the human/bear interaction throughout the region? There are a lot of dots littering that map.
I found a lousy photo I took of the newspaper article about that old bear that was captured out in the desert. This guy was out on the Powell Highway…………..many miles from traditional bear habitat.
And just for fun (but still a bit on topic) this is a photo of the cat that was caught one street over from my house in town.
One thing that hasn’t been mentioned yet is the effects of the drought and how it has devastated the whitebark pine. In the fall, just before hibernation, grizzlies raid caches of whitebark pine cones stored by other animals. It’s an efficient way to get large, nutritious, whitebark pine seeds at a critical time of year. However, the pine beetle is destroying forests causing grizz to find food elsewhere.
Still, I blame the wolves for the pine beetle.
And Al Gore.
Did you see Bill today? He sent me some very nice photos………..I may have to come visit early this year.
http://www.nps.gov/yell/naturescience/wolves.htm
Wolf populations are down 60% since 2007. I know that Mange had taken a large toll on populations in years past, especially the druid pack that was so often in Soda butte
The numbers are down in that Park because they all left and moved to Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming.
It’s ironic that elk hunters find wolves and bears such a hindrance to their hunting experience.
Give me an outdoor experience, but please, don’t involve the wilderness…
I think that you may be reading way more into what I was trying to get across. I was simply trying to provide some firsthand examples to back up my answer to Zach’s question. Since the reintroduction of wolves to YNP, the behavior of bears has changed dramatically which, in my opinion, has resulted in more bear maulings.
Haha…..I figured as much , but I couldn’t pass that up. I do know that during the big game hunting season, encounters increase dramatically. More people in their living rooms, gut piles everywhere, and the bears are trying to put on the weight. Also, I know that there are plenty of bears around here that have learned what a gun shot means and come running towards the sound like it was a dinner bell. They are becoming more aggressive, aren’t afraid of hunters anymore, and are straying into parts they don’t normally visit. Two years ago, a huge grizz was trapped out near the desert. This past fall, I think three or four hunters were mauled, and I would see stuff like this every hunt.
Here are some shots from 2010……… a buddy had to chase one off an elk that was shot by a client the night before…….the grizz fournd it first and had buried it……..and he wasn’t leaving. My buddy fired shots at it to scare it off, but the bear only retreated a little bit. His dog would growl when the bear would come too close while we was cutting off the head for his client. He would fire another shot, the bear would back off for a bit, then try to come back to the elk. Finally he got the rack and split.
Based on all of that, I would guess the fall is the time when more attacks happen. Oh, and this type of bear behavior wasn’t apparent pre-wolves.
I don’t have the data in front of me, but I’d bet the farm that there were zero in December-February.
Great discussion !!
Two years ago.
I still can’t believe they still don’t have a effing beer holder anywhere in the boat.
I am just glad the wind has finally died down.
I typed too soon.
Enjoy having that stretch to yourselves………….that doesn’t happen too often.
I would love to. March through late May is my favorite time to fish for big Rainbows. I’m available any day of the week.
That is a pretty good time around here as well, but I am heading up that way April 26-29th. I have some buddies in town that will be staying at Cottonwood.
