Sourcing suggestions for bear spray

[Foy]

As our planned "social distancing" trip to Montana draws near, last night we learned about a grizzly attacking a US F&WS field biologist yesterday afternoon about 1 mile from our first stop, in Montana's Centennial Valley. The location is apparently within the Red Rock Lakes NWR. The biologist survived and was released from the hospital after treatment for "severe puncture wounds". News reports say the individual first saw two grizzlies, apparently juvenile 2-3 year old siblings, from 80-100 yards away and he/she deployed bear spray as one of the bears charged and attacked.

We were already planning to acquire bear spray X 2 but due to a number of factors will want to go ahead and get some now rather than have to enter retail establishments in WY, ID, or MT prior to our arrival. If anybody has purchased online and has a recommendation for brands, retailers, etc., we'd enjoy hearing about it.

Foy

 

[JaSAn]

Buy online. Your chances of getting 'fresh' stuff is greater.

Bear spray looses potency after a couple of years, so the later the manufacture date the better.

 

[Wallowa]

Having ridden my dirt bike all over MT,ID and WY. [live NE OR]..my best advice to you is stop being afraid; have situational awareness but don't succumb to fear.

No buggie men in outdoor stores or Cyrus the Virus laying in wait for you nor is there a bear around every bush... bear spray is touted to stop attacks; wonder what went wrong in the incident you described...not wishing to start a bunch of arguments with my comments just my experience over several decades in the outback...on dirt bikes, on foot and in our Hawk.

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

I’d buy on line. You may never need it, but it’s good insurance. Can help with two legged bears as well.

 

[Taku]

Bear spray does not lose potentecy, what happens is that the propellant can slowly leak from the container and the spray does not get dispersed as well as it should. Check with the manufacturer about how to test - I believe weighing the can and marking the date and weight and re-weighing is recommended by at least one of the makers. You can also recycle old bear spray containers in most towns around the GYA. As for the incident up in the Centennial Valley, the biologist was working on a sage grouse survey, saw two bears, once charged. Bear spray deployed, some injuries. No official report yet, but likely defensive response. Sounded like the bio was in a brushy area and surprised the bears. Outside of the willow riparian areas, most spots in the Red Rocks area are sage/grass, most likely way to surprise a bear there is terrain features, unless you surprise a bear sleeping in the sage! Here is a link: http://igbconline.org/bear-spray/

Lot's of online sources for buying online.

 

[Foy]

Thanks, Taku, for the good link to the bear spray info. A friend who resides in Dillon notified me of the biologist attack last night and I understand the jury is still out on the cause. I also understand the location is very much in the same neighborhood of a sharp increase in Griz activity just in the fall of last year, Sept-Oct 2019. After hiking in to a lake also in the Elk Lake area in September 2018, along a narrow path in a ravine for about a half-mile, I decided "no mas" on the hiking in my favorite parts of Montana without bear spray. We'll also be in the Big Hole within a handful of miles of the location at which the first confirmed Griz sighting in decades occurred in 2016. Seems pretty clear the Gravellies, Beaverheads, Snowcrest, and maybe soon the Pioneers may see some new neighbors moving in.

If we were prone to succumbing to fear we sure as heck wouldn't be driving +2,500 miles, camper in tow, to do so
Interesting that Mr. Sagebrush's tips included bear spray's effectiveness on human's, too--in the process of lining up campsites for the road trip getting out to Montana, I was advised of some situations in Nebraska where campground owners had recently been overrun by squatters during the overnight hours with groups of individuals arriving between long after dark and 1-2 am. According to local law enforcement, the groups were believed to be "protesters" traveling between cities and their MO was to overwhelm small facilities, refuse to pay, and vandalize the bathhouses. So, part of our situational awareness is to be prepared for unwanted and unsolicited interactions with those who may take exception to our North Carolina license plates or well-groomed senior citizen appearance. I'm 6'2" and 225 lbs, fit, and I can take care of myself and my wife, especially with a couple of dispensers of chemical backup at hand.

Thanks again, all.

Foy

 

[craig333]

My bear spray is pretty ancient so I looked at some on Amazon. Interestingly most of the brands can't be shipped to my location. Doesn't say why. Not sure if I can just go over to the sporting goods store and get some.

 

[Taku]

Foy, I know that trail too, can't say as I blame you. sometimes better to go somewhere else. Craig, likely the potential for a can leaking is why most carriers won't ship it. Had a can go off in the tail boom of a 212 in Alaska. It was in a foam lined ammo can and it got into the cabin readily while in flight. Luckily, we were fairly low level and put down. Had to have another ship come pick us up. Took the mechanic and pilot a couple of days to decontaminate the ship so the pilot felt it was safe to fly. That was a bunch of years ago!

 

[PaulT]

Before using bear spray on 2 legged varments, search for "bear spray vs human pepper spray".

Bear spray is much lower in the pepper concentration for several reasons. Primarily, bear spray contains a larger volume of the sauce intended to put up a wall of fog to ensure not missing and because the bear's nose is more sensitive and has larger olfactory surfaces. The people spray is for closer application and targets the eyes, mouth in addition to the nose.

I'd include a marine aerosol emergency horn along with the bear spray and kept equally handy to the bear spray.

Make sure if entering Canada that you carry only the certified bear spray.

My $.02
Paul

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Having ridden my dirt bike all over MT,ID and WY. [live NE OR]..my best advice to you is stop being afraid; have situational awareness but don't succumb to fear.

No buggie men in outdoor stores or Cyrus the Virus laying in wait for you nor is there a bear around every bush... bear spray is touted to stop attacks; wonder what went wrong in the incident you described...not wishing to start a bunch of arguments with my comments just my experience over several decades in the outback...on dirt bikes, on foot and in our Hawk.

Thanks,I think you are right on.
We have walked a lot of the trails at Yellowstone and always try to be
aware of things around us.

In our many years of camping we have come into contact with our share of bears.
Not close but within sight of them.

We have had some interesting experiences.
The one most scary was sitting at the camp table at Mendenhall Glacier CG.
having our breakfast. We were both sitting on the same side of the table looking
out into the forest at the lake. Up strolls a black bear coming toward us .
We quietly stood up moved ourselves and the food to the car. The bear luckily
moved back into the woods.We now sit across from each other at the table.
Watching our backs.
Camping is always an adventure.Stay safe out there.


Frank

 

[JaSAn]

I’d buy on line. You may never need it, but it’s good insurance. Can help with two legged bears as well.

Not that it would stop me if Bear Spray was the only thing handy in a 'two legged bear' attack, but my bear spray says on the can:
"Not for use on humans"
- and -
"it is a violation of federal law to use this product in a manner that is inconsistent with its labeling."

Bear spray does not lose potentecy . . .

My bad. I just remembered that you should replace it every few years.

Since I spend a lot of time in places where bears like to spend time I replace mine before its expiration date.
I keep the recently replaced spray in the camper and use the old one for practice (you do practice with it, don't you?).

Since two of my three bear encounters have been with wind in my face (bear upwind) I have practiced in a head wind - not fun!
I have never had a bear charge me; they seem more afraid of me than I of them.

I also take a beagle 'early warning alarm' on my hikes.

jim

 

[Foy]

Yes, Taku, you know the trail. The attraction is of course the rainbow-filled lake at the end of the trail! But I did it without anything for protection in September 2018 and felt bad about it during and after. Not doing it again without some protection.

One additional attraction for a geologist geek like like me is the realization that that discontinuous canyon from the Centennial Valley northeast to the Madison River was the drainage of the Centennial Valley as recently as 20,000 to 30,000 years ago. A landslide plugged it up, creating glacial Lake Centennial, and tilting from the listric normal fault on the south side of the valley led to the drainage outlet shifting to today's path out the Red Rock River. I didn't know that in 2018 and I really need to see it in the field.

I would never venture forth with the intent of having negative interactions with anybody, but if the bear spray can be reasonably employed on other personal protection missions, so be it.

Thanks again for all of your suggestions.

Foy

 

[AWG_Pics]

Having ridden my dirt bike all over MT,ID and WY. [live NE OR]..my best advice to you is stop being afraid; have situational awareness but don't succumb to fear.

No buggie men in outdoor stores or Cyrus the Virus laying in wait for you nor is there a bear around every bush... bear spray is touted to stop attacks; wonder what went wrong in the incident you described...not wishing to start a bunch of arguments with my comments just my experience over several decades in the outback...on dirt bikes, on foot and in our Hawk.

I agree with Wallowa on this point. I know there are bear, moose, snakes and other hazards in the rockies. In a lifetime of wandering the mountains and deserts I have never been attacked or even threatened by either a human or a wild animal. Once I had someone's dog make a charge at me and another time I avoided a worked up bull. And there was that time a billy goat came up and leaned into me head first while I was trying to get a level line shot. He was stubborn. However, if it makes a person feel safer, then they should carry pepper spray.

 

[Foy]

And the hits keep on coming. This just in from the Beaverhead-Deerlodge NF: Hidden Lake campground closed. Grizzly at campsite.

We'll still get our bear spray, but steering clear of Hidden Lake. Maybe just a short drive to the landslide between Hidden and Elk.

C'es la vie.

Foy

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Seems like the wildlife aren't doing the shelter in place very well either.
Maybe with less human activity during the late winter/spring time they took advantage of their area being theirs again.

One just has to be careful and check out local info.
Stay safe.
Carry the needed safety items.
Frank

 

[smlobx]

Foy getting back to your original question this is what we ordered just prior to our trip to Alaska..

https://www.cabelas.com/product/UDAP-CP-Super-Magnum-Bear-Spray-with-Chest-Holster/742070.uts?slotId=9

We had an older, perhaps 4 years old, can of this but didn’t want to take a chance on it not working so we got the latest can.

We did, however, decide to use the older can for training and I can tell you that even a little of it will bring you to your knees! It is very potent and if a 2 legged person became a serious problem I feel this would incapacitate him in no time flat giving you and yours time to get out of the area...

Speaking of bears...while we were in Homer we took a short bush plane flight to “The Bear Garden” in Katmai NP. This, I found out, was the place where Timothy Tredwell spent his summers before his untimely demise in another area of the park. The Alaskan Brown bears were gathering in the ~1000 acre field for the salmon run to begin and were going through their spring courtship rituals....they were completely uninterested in us as long as we (5plus the pilot) stood together and talked quietly..

However there were a pair of what the pilot thought were 3 to 4 year old siblings that seemed to be interested in us and got to within about 10 feet before the guide shooed him away with a loud, abrupt noise...Interesting to note that we were forbidden from bringing any bear spray with us and the pilot only had a flare gun with him...

Here’s a picture of one of the “kids”..

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

I have seen that brand of spray in the Yellowstone area.

Remember "...you don't have to out run the bear just out run the person in front of you".
Stay BEAR AWARE out there.
Frank

 

[pvstoy]

As with fire extinguishers, Good idea to shake up the powder that settles to the bottom.

 

[Foy]

Lots of great info here, ladies and gentlemen, and it's all much appreciated!

Counting down the days........

Foy

 

[Taku]

Foy, thanks for the geology note. I think I may have read that in some distant past, but would not have remembered it. That is interesting country. Had a friend who taught geology field camp out of Dillon for years - lot's of cool rocks and stratigraphy around there. Have fun!