San Gorgonio via Vivian Creek Trail

[RichardK]

From reading, to be "bear safe" they say some pretty crazy stuff like store, prepare and eat all of my food 200 yards from wear I am sleeping, do not have any equipment that I have ever had food in (like if I ate a power bar in my tent) and change my clothes after I cook and eat and don't sleep in those clothes, and store them 200 yards away from my camp.

These precautions are appropriate for travel in grizzly bear habitat which is a whole different ballgame from our brown bears.

[backpackpack]

Ok, sorry for asking so many questions, I just get nervous about bears because they are strong, fast, and have a good nose.

Should I cook away from my camp?
Should I eat away from camp?
Should I wash my dishes away from camp?
Should I keep the bear canister away from camp?

If a bear smells food but it also smells me, will it generally leave the area? What if I hear a something at night time should I shine my light out and look around?

I like to sit and read outside at night when I am backpacking, what if a bear approaches during this time? How should I react? I know the chance is small but I just want to know what I am supposed to do.

Thank you

[Norris]

You do not have to worry about bears. You would be lucky to even see one. I have never seen a bear on San Gorgonio in many trips in many seasons, including overnight trips. Most importantly, black bears are not anywhere near as dangerous as grizzly bears. If we were talking about Montana or Alaska or anywhere grizzly bears were present I could understand your concern, but the likelihood of a black bear harming you in these mountains is near zero. Read the wikipedia page about black bears. Yes, there have been some examples of black bears harming humans but this is pretty rare. Wikipedia has recommendations about how to behave in an encounter with black bears.

[backpackpack]

You do not have to worry about bears. You would be lucky to even see one. I have never seen a bear on San Gorgonio in many trips in many seasons, including overnight trips. Most importantly, black bears are not anywhere near as dangerous as grizzly bears. If we were talking about Montana or Alaska or anywhere grizzly bears were present I could understand your concern, but the likelihood of a black bear harming you in these mountains is near zero. Read the wikipedia page about black bears. Yes, there have been some examples of black bears harming humans but this is pretty rare. Wikipedia has recommendations about how to behave in an encounter with black bears.

Ok, thank you, I guess I will try not to worry, and I will use a bear can. Do I need to put my beer cans in my bear can?