Bears in Yosemite
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Does anyone have experience with bears in Yosemite? I am going there in May and will be shuttling gear to the base of El Cap. Lets just say I don't want the bears to steal my stuff. I have heard alot of stories about the bears in the park. In particular I had a friend who had to chase off a bear that was trying to steal his haul bag. I had another friend on the Zodiac who had a bear hanging on the haul bag when they hauled the 1st pitch. Anyone have any pointers? Or cool stories |
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Haul loads and fix pitches the same day |
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They can be very aggressive with haul bags, which they associate with goodies. I've seen a bear rummage gear and packs as soon as climbers left the ground and were committed on the rock, and it was hardly dissuaded by rocks being thrown down onto it. That summer, I heard a story that a bear went after a haul bag while a climber was wearing it. That story might be exaggerated, but it is believable that some of these bears might go after a haul bags even while people are around. Take it seriously. |
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Definitely don't leave haulbags at the base of El Cap--even if there's no food in them. I watched a mama bear teaching her cub how to "access" the items in a haulbag with her claws. We were on the wall so we were unable to try to scare them off. After they shredded the pig and apparently found no food, they continued east along the base of the wall looking in areas that climbers often store their haulbags. |
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Watch out so they don't swipe your pic-a-nic basket. |
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PTZ wrote:Watch out so they don't swipe your pic-a-nic basket.Eh, Boo Boo? But yeah, bears eat your stuff. Once while backpacking through Tuolumne Meadows some bears wandered into our camp while I was taking a leak. I had to zip up real quick and grab some pots and pans to bang together. They ran off when we started making a racket, but it was a little unnerving. |
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I have my car detailed before I go to Yosemite and when I leave the Valley for a wall I take EVERYTHING that has ANY odor whatsoever out of the car! (I've had my car broken into and it cost $2500 to fix) |
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I have encountered Grizzly bears in Glacier National Park and bears in Yosemite. They will break into any car which has anything looking like a cooler and any scent of food. Do not eat In N Out on the way up and stash the wrappers in the side door. |
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Yeah, they are really crafty. You'd be amazed at what they can get to. Once had a bear climb the first three pitches of the Free Blast to get to my belayer, who had gotten nice and chubby over the offseason and had stupidly bought cocobutter sunblock. Really ruined an otherwise great trip. |
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I've seen a bear every time I've been to the base of El Cap. He/she is always there! They don't seem to be mean, just sneaky, like a mischievous stray dog. I'd leave your stuff a pitch or two off the ground. |
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So what do all you soloist do in Yosemite? I assume you have to make a few trips to the base and or at least leave your bags on the ground while you lead the first pitch. Your bags will be unattended at some point unless there is another person around, right? |
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I worked in Yosemite a few years back on wildlife management so my primary job was to educate people in the back country on bears, relocate animals as necessary, and get them out of campsites at night. They are opportunistic, take what they can and are seek out human food because of the high caloric content to energy use to obtain it ratio. When I was in the valley I remember one guy reporting a black bear getting his haul bag over a pitch up mid-5th class climbing. The sad thing is they become more accustom to humans the more food they get, and this habituation makes them more willing to get even closer to humans in the future. Ultimately this has led to bad encounters, even as far as some bears pulling food/backpacks off tourists back. This gets them labeled as an aggressive bear, and if relocation does not work, which it often doesn't because of how quick they find their way hundreds of miles back, then the bear eventually gets put down. |
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Yosemite bears are SMART and TRICKY and can climb 5.7! |
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While tying in for Short but thin I had that bear fuck up one of my packs just 20 feet down around the corner. |
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While car camping in Tuolome in a small backpacking tent, my wife woke me and asked what that noise was. It was a bear going through our stuff. My wife was awakened by something nudging her head. She thought it was me until she saw me on the other side. It was a bear nudging her head throught the tent fabric interested in the herbal shampoo she used that day. |