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> A black bear charged at one of them in Washington state. I'm a 43 yo French guy. In all my life, I only know one man that had problems with wildlife in Franc

> A black bear charged at one of them in Washington state. I'm a 43 yo French guy. In all my life, I only know one man that had problems with wildlife in France: he was charged by an angry wild boar and had to jump in a river to evade it. So I'm not worried at all about my safety when hiking in France. However if I was hiking in the US I'd probably carry a 44 Magnum at all times (the ultra lightweight one from S&W). I don't know how you guys decide to go in the woods with just some pepper spray and think it's enough! I'd worry that it makes the bear angrier! :D

tastyfreeze 5y ago
Unless you mess with them or their cubs black bears are like big tree climbing pigs.
alphakappa 5y ago
If a bear charges you, chances are the gun won’t be much help.
- jmnicolas 5y ago
  At least I would have a chance. I have a hard time believing pepper spray is anything more than a fell good amulet!
  - hodgesrm 5y ago
    Shooting a charging bear is harder than it sounds. If you don't kill it, chances are you'll just really piss it off.
    - jmnicolas 5y ago
      It seems destiny is reading us: this morning in the news a 70 yo French hunter was charged by a bear and shot it 2 times. The man is gravely wounded (femoral artery) and the bear is dead (she had 2 cubs). I completely forgot that they reintroduced bears in the mountains south of France (Pyrenees) a few years ago.
authed 5y ago
The only time I've seen a black bear in the US was in my backyard and it got scared of me. It ran away and jumped over a 4.5ft fence. I have seen hundreds of deers on my hikes though...
mmmBacon 5y ago
I spent 5 days alone in the wilderness in Denali National Park with only bear spray and another week with a partner in Wrangell-St. Elias. Being in the wilderness in Denali was really unlike anything I had ever done before; hard to explain but I had never been that alone before. Despite having spent lots of time in wild lands in the lower 48, the only time I felt like I wanted a firearm was during my first 24 hours in Denali. At the time firearms were not allowed in the national parks but I wouldn’t have brought one anyway. It was good to experience that vulnerability and learn how to just get on with it.
- jmnicolas 5y ago
  > It was good to experience that vulnerability and learn how to just get on with it. Nothing bad happened to you; you might think different if you were missing a couple limbs due to a bear attack (yes I know it's probably not survivable).
- rtkaratekid 5y ago
  I spent two weeks out there and had the same experience with vulnerability. I was a very experienced backpacker by then, but that was a a different experience in terms of wilderness. Where did you go in the park?

tastyfreeze 5y ago

Unless you mess with them or their cubs black bears are like big tree climbing pigs.

alphakappa 5y ago

If a bear charges you, chances are the gun won’t be much help.

jmnicolas 5y ago
At least I would have a chance. I have a hard time believing pepper spray is anything more than a fell good amulet!
- hodgesrm 5y ago
  Shooting a charging bear is harder than it sounds. If you don't kill it, chances are you'll just really piss it off.
  - jmnicolas 5y ago
    It seems destiny is reading us: this morning in the news a 70 yo French hunter was charged by a bear and shot it 2 times. The man is gravely wounded (femoral artery) and the bear is dead (she had 2 cubs). I completely forgot that they reintroduced bears in the mountains south of France (Pyrenees) a few years ago.

authed 5y ago

The only time I've seen a black bear in the US was in my backyard and it got scared of me. It ran away and jumped over a 4.5ft fence. I have seen hundreds of deers on my hikes though...

mmmBacon 5y ago

I spent 5 days alone in the wilderness in Denali National Park with only bear spray and another week with a partner in Wrangell-St. Elias. Being in the wilderness in Denali was really unlike anything I had ever done before; hard to explain but I had never been that alone before. Despite having spent lots of time in wild lands in the lower 48, the only time I felt like I wanted a firearm was during my first 24 hours in Denali. At the time firearms were not allowed in the national parks but I wouldn’t have brought one anyway. It was good to experience that vulnerability and learn how to just get on with it.

jmnicolas 5y ago
> It was good to experience that vulnerability and learn how to just get on with it. Nothing bad happened to you; you might think different if you were missing a couple limbs due to a bear attack (yes I know it's probably not survivable).
rtkaratekid 5y ago
I spent two weeks out there and had the same experience with vulnerability. I was a very experienced backpacker by then, but that was a a different experience in terms of wilderness. Where did you go in the park?