Along with Yosemite, Glacier is one of the most popular national parks in the USA. Many visitors come to the park because of the opportunity it presents to experience pristine wilderness. But, pristine wilderness also means wild animals – including black and grizzly bears. It’s crucial that visitors know bear safety guidelines for Glacier so they can stay safe.
Don’t Leave Scentables Out
Bears have an incredible sense of smell and can detect food from 18 to 20 miles away. If you leave anything scented out, such as food, trash, or even your dish soap, it can attract bears. You can still have a picnic, just don’t leave the food unattended and clean up immediately when you are done.
At camp you will need to keep all scentable items in a locker or another approved manner. And don’t think you can leave your food in your car at camp. Bears have been known to break into cars to get food–and cause huge amounts of damage in the process.
Learn to Recognize Signs of a Bear
Bears can be anywhere in Glacier National Park, so you need to be vigilant at all times. However, if you notice signs that a bear has been in the area, consider making your picnic or camp in a different spot.
A bear may be in the area if you see:
- Tracks: Bear tracks have five toes, with the claws sometimes visible in the track. The front print is generally 4-8” long and the back track is 7-10” long.
- Scat: Bears are omnivores so their scat can contain berries, nuts, insects, or animal fur. The droppings are typically large and dark in color.
- Marks on trees: Bears have scent glands in their paws, so they sometimes claw trees to mark their territory. Sometimes they also claw trees to sharpen their claws.
- Stripped bark: If a tree is missing large strips of bark, it may be because a bear removed the bark to forage for insects or get to the nutrient-rich layer of inner bark.
- Fish parts or animal carcasses: These may be the remains of a bear’s meal. Even if it isn’t, the smell can attract bears.
Make Noise While You Hike
In addition to their great sense of smell, bears also have acute hearing. Their hearing is approximately twice as sensitive as humans and they can hear a larger frequency of sounds, too.
Bears generally want to avoid people, so they will move out of the way if they hear you coming. This is why it’s smart to make noise while you hike through Glacier National Park. If you are hiking alone and it feels weird to talk to yourself, sing songs instead.
Be particularly alert for bears around loud areas, such as near rushing streams, because bears might not be able to hear you.
Carry Bear Spray when Hiking
While bear encounters aren’t likely, they do happen in Glacier National Park. You should always be prepared for an encounter by carrying bear spray with you.
As of 2010, Glacier National Park also allows visitors to carry firearms. However, be warned that not all firearms can take out a bear. As Ammo.com warns, only 10mm handguns with hard cast ammo are recommended for stopping a bear. Aside from the impracticality of hiking with a large firearm, it’s difficult to accurately shoot a charging bear. Shooting a burst of bear spray is much easier, which is why this is what national park rangers recommend over firearms.
Keep Your Distance
Like many other wild animals, bears feel threatened if you get too close to them. If you see a bear, you should immediately start backing away from it while talking in a calm voice to indicate you aren’t a threat. Glacier National Park recommends maintaining a 100 yard distance from bears.
Unfortunately, not everyone follows this advice. In Glacier as well as other national parks with bear populations, attacks often happen because people decided to move closer to the bear in order to get a photo. In some cases, people saw bears on the road and got out of their cars to take photos, which triggered the bear to attack.
As much as you want a cool photo of your wildlife encounter to show friends, it isn’t worth risking your life for it.