In any event the clumsy way the situation was handled and the citations make them all look petty and distract from the worthwhile message of conservation and semblance of wilderness experience. That is why they are getting the flak. The notion that they would change the end of the trail to somewhere else is kind of silly. If someone has managed to hike all the way from Georgia to finish the trby chicagocwright - General Discussion
Very big news in Alaska. Many people I know already called "Mt. McKinley" by its former name "Denali" but it is now official.by chicagocwright - General Discussion
They should have just done a REALLY expensive trip and went to Brooks Falls. And the grizzlies at Brooks Falls are trained not to eat people...by chicagocwright - General Discussion
By the way, last year-2014, more people were killed by bears in New Jersey than in Alaska.by chicagocwright - General Discussion
Grizzly bears love pool parties also!by chicagocwright - General Discussion
Quotemrcondron Quoteplawrence Quotechicagocwright Oh boy. As much discussion as there is about bears wait until the first wolf kills some sheep or cow... Wolves just seem to be much more problematic than bears. For ranchers (and their livestock) they are. . Not very much livestock in that area of the state where the wolves are. Lots of deer though. Poor Bambi!by chicagocwright - General Discussion
Quoteplawrence Quotechicagocwright And bells are not generally recommended because they have been found to be ineffective. Yes, I've heard they've been found in the stool of the bears. . Yep. The bear scat usually has bells and bear spray. ;-)by chicagocwright - General Discussion
Did you see my note that there has been one fatal attack in Denali in its 90 year history? I don't have statistics for you but they are probably available for the rest of Alaska and even urban Anchorage area. There have been several grizzly attacks just since I've lived here and the only fatal one was in Denali. The most recent was a very remote spot in the Kenai Peninsula that was across aby chicagocwright - General Discussion
Oh boy. As much discussion as there is about bears wait until the first wolf kills some sheep or cow... Wolves just seem to be much more problematic than bears.by chicagocwright - General Discussion
Quotepines If no one is totally sure about what is 'normal' or 'safe' in Yellowstone, how do we judge what is safe and/or normal in Yosemite. how many hikers don't- but now will-carry spray- on or off trail, in Yosemite? and how many will continue NOT to carry it. Spray may be a bona fide defence against an attacking bear- but only if the wind is in the right direction. and there's only,by chicagocwright - General Discussion
I'm not disputing anything you said about black bears. I am just suggesting that Grizzly bears act pretty much the same way. I've come across 3-4 grizzly bears and 3-4 black bears and in my experience there was no difference. I won't argue that there is zero difference but my argument is mostly against the idea that people should be scared of grizzly bears because they might come eat you. Yesby chicagocwright - General Discussion
Quoteplawrence QuoteparkloverHowever, no matter how people want to spin the facts, eating a human is NOT normal grizzly bear behavior otherwise there would be more incidences of it happening. It's is normal, just like it's normal for cougars to occasionally attack and devour humans. It's doesn't happen very often because as meals go, humans aren't as meaty and nourishing as deer or elk (or domby chicagocwright - General Discussion
Maybe dnc will continue to sponsor it because they love Yosemite so much?by chicagocwright - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
QuoteCurious Hiker Better to fail and come out walking. Just because you can go up does not mean you can go down. Down climbing sucks....we do it but nicer if we don't have to. I would love to know what percentage of people hit the Snake Dike Route and have to give up at that point. Happened to me too. I've asked this question before but don't remember the answer. Is the route from Snakeby chicagocwright - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
The simple answer is absolutely not--Because most grizzly bears do not view people as prey and thankfully polar bears live in extremely sparsely populated areas. Besides the "viewfinder" crowd there is also a chance the bear will decide to eat a man whose only carelessness is not properly having his bear spray ready to discharge or perhaps a guy with no carelessness at all. No reasoby chicagocwright - General Discussion
In the Anchorage area alone there are probably 2-3 bear maulings a year. There was just a grizzly mauling last week in the Kenai Peninsula in a very remote area. Over multiple grizzly bear attacks over the 3 1/2 years I have lived in Alaska there has been one case of a bear feeding on the person and that was the first time in the 90 years of recorded history of Denali. Why does the bear go tby chicagocwright - General Discussion
I'm not sure where you are getting your information regarding humans as grizzly bear prey---even if you were correct it is very unusual for it to actually happen. That is why I tell tourists there is no need to be scared of bears. You should be more scared driving to the trailhead on dangerous roads. I've been around at least 4 or 5 grizzlies in remote locations that had plenty of opportunityby chicagocwright - General Discussion
I did the hike from Tenaya Lake to Yosemite Valley when my family dropped me off early in the morning and I met them late afternoon in Yosemite Valley (not "Little". I think my hike was 21 miles but I included Half Dome. I had it as 7 miles to Clouds Rest, 7 miles to Half Dome, and 7 miles to Yosemite Valley. Here is a silly video I took along the trip.by chicagocwright - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Quoteplawrence Otherwise, if an occasional hiker in the Yellowstone wilderness gets killed by a grizzly bear, they just ought to leave the bear alone. I completely disagree. We don't need man-eating bears wandering around National Parks. On the other hand, most of the time when bears attack humans and it is defensive there is no need to kill those bears. If you had said, "If an occasionby chicagocwright - General Discussion
Most of the video is pre-injuryby chicagocwright - General Discussion
If I would have had a radio or a Spot, it is very unlikely I would have been able to get to it in my pack. I was luckily able to access my water bottle with my left arm because it stuck out of the side pocket enough and happened to be on the opposite side. A radio, even if I happened to keep it in outside pocket, likely would have been snuggled down in pocket. I keep running these scenariby chicagocwright - General Discussion
Quoteplawrence If you're going to be more susceptible to dislocated shoulders, I would limit climbs (for now) to Class 2 and never hike alone. Try to hike with someone who can always maintain visual contact with you. Consider purchasing two-way radios to communicate with those who are farther away and consider a purchasing a satellite messenger like the DeLorme inReach SE 2-Way Satellite Communby chicagocwright - General Discussion
Quoteplawrence Wow! I'm so glad that you made it back to civilization and to the hospital safely and didn't become a statistic. Take good care of yourself. Your family needs you in one piece and in good health. . Agreed! But what is the answer? The particular hike/climb and the move that hurt my shoulder wasn't anything particularly difficult or out of the norm. I am wrestling withby chicagocwright - General Discussion
On Saturday morning two friends and I embarked on what was intended as a roughly 25 mile two day hike that included a hike up Gold Mint Mine Trail to the Mint Hut and Mint Glacier, a traverse through the Back Door Gap to the Bomber Glacier and 1950’s era Bomber crash remains, and back down to Archangel Road to complete the loop. A mile or two into the hike the beauty was already stunning witby chicagocwright - General Discussion
QuoteJustKeepWalking Quotechicagocwright Well I have a new dislocated shoulder story that probably deserves its own thread. Short version is I couldn't get it back in (reduced) and had to hike 10-12 miles with it out. Often I carried a large rock with my arm pointing down and somewhat double over---seemed to help manage pain. Most painful hike ever. Back at work today. OMG, got home durinby chicagocwright - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Well I have a new dislocated shoulder story that probably deserves its own thread. Short version is I couldn't get it back in (reduced) and had to hike 10-12 miles with it out. Often I carried a large rock with my arm pointing down and somewhat double over---seemed to help manage pain. Most painful hike ever. Back at work today.by chicagocwright - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Did you ask him to pose for the classic Half Dome portrait?by chicagocwright - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Leupold Yosemite, aptly named, are the hunting binoculars I bought. Available at Cabelas for $129by chicagocwright - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
The National Geographic picture of Alex Honnold and the ledge he is standing on is apparently now gone.by chicagocwright - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Had to read this post carefully after reading the Subject Line and then scanning the pictures. Seemed like a great daddy-daughter trip! Sorry you didn't get to do your full plan yet but hope you make it back soon.by chicagocwright - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra