May 2021 Favourite Uploads

[Betty LaRue]

On 29/05/2021 at 22:35, Sally R said:

 

While I dream of travelling in Canada, including through wilderness areas, this is the one thing that terrifies me! The grizzlies are so big! I'm glad you were not followed. Sounds like you stayed calm and did all the right things. The main concern here are snakes, but I have seen them so often and used to them now, and they don't bother you if you don't bother them. Whereas a grizzly seems positively terrifying to me.

 

Having said that, I have visited a wildlife reserve where there is a population of about 60 kangaroos. It is surrounded by a fence that prevents introduced species such as foxes and rabbits getting in, to protect the wildlife and habitat inside. But because the kangaroo numbers build up from time to time the population gets culled. Not surprisingly they are a bit scared of humans. One day in there with my big telephoto lens I was walking around photographing birds. A few times I had accidentally disturbed a group of kangaroos who were camouflaged in the bush. The last time it happened and they were hopping away, the big male turned around, reared up, puffed out his chest and flexed his arm muscle at me. I quickly walked fast in the opposite direction. While kangaroo attacks are a rare thing, they can happen and the human can end up a lot worse for it. I realised that my black telephoto lens probably didn't look much different to the shotguns that are occasionally used to cull the kangaroos in there, so totally understand why they would be wary of me.

My husband and I were traveling through Montana and Wyoming on our way to the west coast. North, then west. I don’t remember which state of those two we were in, but we stopped at a store/restaurant type place that had a stuffed grizzly in the foyer. You have a right to be terrified. It was standing erect with arms out like it would hug you, with jaws open. It was absolutely humongeously scary. I think it made 10 of me.

We stopped at Yellowstone park. I had a point and shoot then, before I got into big girl photography. I had to get close to a waterfall to get a good shot with my wide angle camera. I traveled up the bank, and it was only about 6 feet to one side before the deep woods began. I got my shots. When I turned to go back, I looked where I was stepping because it was a bit muddy. I had my eyes on the waterfall going.

I saw bear prints in the mud, and they were fresh. I guess it came for a drink.  When I saw how huge the prints were, and then saw the claw prints inches away from the pads, my hair stood on end. I looked at the woods, and realized a bear could be within grabbing distance but hidden.

I’ve never ran so fast in my life. It was like one of those nightmares you have where the monster is about to reach your back or neck any second. But in the dreams I have, I’m barely moving, like I’m running in 2 feet of water.

Movie...grizzly in woods. Girl walks near. Camera to bear, camera to girl, camera to bear, camera to girl... scary music playing and begins to crescendo. You are screaming, “Stupid, turn around! Are you nuts! Don’t go there!”
Girl gets GOT! Blood flies. You turn your head because you can’t watch anymore.

I’m terrified of bears and alligators. Now we’ve had a few cougars moving through our city, caught on security cameras. Yikes.

Edited May 31, 2021 by Betty LaRue

[Autumn Sky]

1 hour ago, Betty LaRue said:

I’ve never ran so fast in my life. It was like one of those nightmares you have where the monster is about to reach your back or neck any second. But in the dreams I have, I’m barely moving, like I’m running in 2 feet of water.

 

Betty:  If you ever see bear in wilderness, DO NOT RUN.   He will run after you and these things are awful fast.  Best thing is to stay calm, talk to him calmly and slowly move back. Give him space, show him you are not threat.

 

If they charge lots of time it will be bluff charge;  come halfway, then stop.  But in extremely rare case they do attack:  1) Use your bear spray if you have it  2) If it is black bear, fight back.  With whatever you have, fight for your life   3) If it is grizzly bear, don't fight. Roll on your stomach and cover your neck with your arms. Sometimes they will just take a swipe and go away.

 

Also, contrary to widespread opinion, bears climb trees.  I could give you stories but I am already abusing this thread.  There you have it, crash course in bear wilderness safety.

Edited May 31, 2021 by Autumn Sky

[Autumn Sky]

7 hours ago, Sally R said:

 

Yikes! I'm glad it ended well. I liked the way the guy kept speaking to the bear in a calm and steady voice. I feel like that might have kept the bear calm. It is interesting how the bear went off the trail and around them, as if he was just checking them out but keeping a distance. I think most times animals don't want a confrontation and want to be able to go about their daily business just like us.

 

 

 

You are absolutely right.  This is why one of key bear-safety tips is to make noise while hiking.   Not the bear bells which are absolutely useless, but human voice. Many time hikers will pass by the bear without even knowing, because beast moved away out of sight alerted in advance to human presence.

 

Speaking of tracks, here are some I found while hiking last yr:

 

[Wolf]

 

[Bear]

 

[Cougar]

 

 

And finally, site of grizzly murder.   They tell me it was probably grizzly bear killing and eating black bear

 

 

(Nice tiger snake story btw!)

[NYCat]

14 hours ago, Betty LaRue said:

My husband and I were traveling through Montana and Wyoming on our way to the west coast. North, then west. I don’t remember which state of those two we were in, but we stopped at a store/restaurant type place that had a stuffed grizzly in the foyer. You have a right to be terrified. It was standing erect with arms out like it would hug you, with jaws open. It was absolutely humongeously scary. I think it made 10 of me.

We stopped at Yellowstone park. I had a point and shoot then, before I got into big girl photography. I had to get close to a waterfall to get a good shot with my wide angle camera. I traveled up the bank, and it was only about 6 feet to one side before the deep woods began. I got my shots. When I turned to go back, I looked where I was stepping because it was a bit muddy. I had my eyes on the waterfall going.

I saw bear prints in the mud, and they were fresh. I guess it came for a drink.  When I saw how huge the prints were, and then saw the claw prints inches away from the pads, my hair stood on end. I looked at the woods, and realized a bear could be within grabbing distance but hidden.

I’ve never ran so fast in my life. It was like one of those nightmares you have where the monster is about to reach your back or neck any second. But in the dreams I have, I’m barely moving, like I’m running in 2 feet of water.

Movie...grizzly in woods. Girl walks near. Camera to bear, camera to girl, camera to bear, camera to girl... scary music playing and begins to crescendo. You are screaming, “Stupid, turn around! Are you nuts! Don’t go there!”
Girl gets GOT! Blood flies. You turn your head because you can’t watch anymore.

I’m terrified of bears and alligators. Now we’ve had a few cougars moving through our city, caught on security cameras. Yikes.

 

Ohhhhh, Betty. When you said you ran I thought NO NO NO NO. You turned yourself into prey. Only prey runs. Think of playing with a cat and it won't pay any attention until you make the toy move like a mouse. Then instinct kicks in and the kitty is hunting. When we were working close to a grizzly... this one...

 

 

Our guide thought we'd better give her more room and we moved together to look like something big and we gently drifted to the side and back.

 

Paulette

[Betty LaRue]

I needed a bear whisperer, obviously. This happened during a few consecutive years when Yellowstone was having a few bears invading tents. I think someone was hurt once. So I was already afraid when we went there, but just tried to ignore my fear. I remember telling my husband people would have to be out of their minds to camp.

One thing I learned on a boundary water fishing trip is that a roll of mints or package of gum was enough to attract bears. It didn’t have to be something substantial. 
We put everything in a pack at night and suspended it from a rope on a sturdy limb that a bear couldn’t reach. I wonder if any of the Yellowstone attacks were caused by people with some sort of food item in their tents. I do know that bears have torn up autos to get to food locked in the cars. The people just gave a bear an interesting puzzle to solve. 😄

[MizBrown]

Black bears in the Smokies have learned that backpackers will drop their packs and run if a bear stands in the trail and woofs at them.   If you drop your pack, the bear eats your food.   If you stand your ground, the bear walks wide around you because some people still poach bear.  

[Betty LaRue]

 

Lake Placid ski jump, Olympic complex, New York State, USA 2009 (The thrill of Victory, the agony of Defeat.) 😁

[Matt Ashmore]

Some pictures from my garden where Iw as playing with my extension tubes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Betty LaRue]

Speaking of grizzlies, the news last evening said there was another attack at Yellowstone.

[MizBrown]

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/yellowstone-bear-cubs-viral-video-b1856832.html

 

A man encountered two grizzlies earlier and was bitten.  The woman who approached a sow with cubs wasn't hurt, but is wanted for breaking park rules about approaching wild animals. 

 

When I photographed a black bear in Virginia, I had a road and my car between us, and way too short a lens to get good photos (105mm macro lens that was good for distance shots, too, but not able to reach that far).   The problem is a lot of tourists see photos taken by pros with 400-600 mm lenses and try to get the same framing on a cell phone.   Friend of mine who took photos in the US western national parks wrote about "bear jams" where traffic slows down to take photos of bears, and people who stopped in "no stopping" eagle preservation areas to get photos of those.   I've seen people drive cars between a mama bear and her cubs in Virginia's Shenandoah National Park.   Where black bears are hunted, they do avoid people. 

 

My favorite bear story was one in California who learned how to open Volkswagons by jumping on the roof and popping the doors open. 

[Betty LaRue]

My lasted baking. Coconut cream pie with meringue.