Re: Bear sighting in Yosemite

Hi Everyone.

I'm from the Uk and have been lucky enough to visit Yosemite twice. I have seen and filmed a bear on one occassion and thought that I would share with others. Anyone else had a bear encounter wish to share?









Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/13/2012 05:13AM by hoodie07.

Very cool, thanks for a sharing.

It's a black bear though.

http://www.nps.gov/yose/naturescience/bears.htm

Thanks.

any idea how often bears are spotted? I thought I was really lucky to spot it - amazing!

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hoodie07
Thanks.

any idea how often bears are spotted? I thought I was really lucky to spot it - amazing!

Bears are spotted in Yosemite every day. On my last trip I saw two. Bear sightings are not a rare thing in Yosemite.

It's still fascinating if you've never seen one before.

While bear sightings are not rare, depending at what time of day one is visiting Yosemite and where one is, the chances of spotting a bear can be somewhat high, or somewhat low. Bears can be spotted at all times of the day, but they tend to be more active in the mornings and evening and at night, and tend to lay low during midday (though some are still active during midday too).

Yosemite's black bears tend to hang around their favorite parts of the park. So if you see a bear in one location one day, you'll likely to see the same bear around the same location the next day, especially around the same time of your earlier sighting.

.

Here is the full clip of the bear encounter. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6unYAFhl8hQ

Note this bear was spotted by the road side - dont give up looking!

Sorry - just found a better way to share the video!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/13/2012 05:15AM by hoodie07.

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hoodie07
Here is the full clip of the bear encounter. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6unYAFhl8hQ

Note this bear was spotted by the road side - dont give up looking!

I suspect that is where he hangs out. We saw one that looked just like him, tearing apart a log, ignoring people. We got tired of looking and left.

I want all bears to stay as far away from roads as possible. They get killed there. I also tend to be the party poop yelling at the bear to leave because it's in their best interests not to be used to people so much that they don't.

Since I spend 70% of June-August in Yosemite (I'm a teacher and am lucky to have those months off), I have seen at least 100 bears over the years in Yosemite. Last year I only saw 5, but some years I've seen a dozen or more. In 2006 on a hike to Ten Lakes, I saw three different bears on different parts of the trail. While doing Clouds Rest a few years ago, I saw three different bears.

Incidentally, I've never seen an aggressive bear in the wild in Yosemite. Not once. Every single bear I've seen there has been shy and timid. They almost always run when they see you or move away, even the mama's with cubs I've seen. It always makes me upset when inexperienced hikers say, "I'm gonna take a gun with me out there..." as if black bears are lying in wait to maul you or harm you in any way. If you respect the bear and don't attempt to feed it, handle it or encroach on its area, it will respect you (as long as food isn't involved).

I don't count in my lifetime tally the bears I've seen in parking lots around Curry Village or crossing the road. I only count the bears I've encountered hiking in the back country.

There may be fewer sightings due to wildlife management policies. I learned from an interpretive ranger recently that many bears in the valley (estimated to be a total of 25 in the valley proper) wear collars that are picked up by sensors near the campgrounds. When there is an intrusion noted by the sensors, bear management personnel get active to harass or capture the bear.

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The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan

You may be interested in this thread w/r to bears:

http://yosemitenews.info/forum/read.php?9,42290

I think YosemiteHiker44 got hit by lightning never to be seen again though.

Bears aren't the problem. Bares People are (peas don't skinny dip).


(Seriously, seen a zillion bears... I don't keep count)


Have fun

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