VANCOUVER ISLAND WINDTALK

Lost Sunday morning at Nitinat

We miss you

Well there was a very hairy guy with cheese breath draining the last drops of beer out of the cans in my recycle bin 2 feet from where I was sleeping ......

Yep the bears always start to congregate this time of year waiting for the spawning salmon to go up the rivers. Always secure your food and never leave any food in your tent that's just asking for bad bear people interactions. Once they get a taste it's all down hill from there usually ending up with a dead bear. Play safe, enjoy autumn at nat and secure your food.

Yep, hear ya, John!
Problem was the dairy bear had already been scratching at the van (where the family was sleeping). So, we didn't know where to secure the food...definately NOT inside the van (with faulty latches) with us. It was a BAD scenario. You're right...lack of salmon doesn't help the situation up there.
The lady at the store said the bear problem is worse than ever right now at Nitinat. They're hungry and there's lots of them roaming the streets and campground.
We'll secure the food up the tree next time (away from our camp) and hope the crows don't go crazy, I guess.

Hmm i guess this is a better place for my two bits, posted from Forum, and I had another thought or two:

Cummon people, whats the saying about leaving food in your tent? Bad practice as it makes the bears associate tents with food, even 'clean' ones! I admit to leaving the coolers out at night at Nitinat, but not when there has been bear sightings. And remember, with 150 years of recorded bear-human encounters (and lots of oral history before that), to my knowledge there has NEVER been a bear attack on humans on Vancouver Island (or on Haida Gwaii, maybe these island bears are more laid back), so be cautious but don't become bearanoid!

Yeh, locking the food in the van with you if you have 'pickable' locks is not very attractive either; and what can you do about garbage? Obviously not in the van/pickup with you. I stuff mine under the truck in this case but thats probably no good either. Swinging it up a tree (out of reach from above and below) is a hassle but maybe necessary for September sessions?

I usually have lots of 'exprired' bear sprays around the office. I usually end up blasting it off at my house. If there is any lake sailing left there when I get back I'll try out a can or two on them if the bears come too close for comfort! Maybe that will discourage repeat visits!

Never an attack on the island- really? Thats amazing. Friendly island bears.

I would say wrap your food and cooler in a bag to seal the smell and hoist it up a tree at night. In the day put it in the car and wrap it up to seal the smell too - the birds will get it up in the trees. If you have kids you might think twice before going this time of year, since the kids are too in the car for naps.

Thanks Sister, Rob, Olivia and Sam for bringing up this discussion.

Maybe we need to lobby for a metal bear proof storage container for everyone?
http://www.bearicuda.com/enclosures/bear_proof_box.php

This bear was working it's way through the campsite .... it had hit the
camp on the village side of the bulletin board the night before. The people there said it rummaged through their rubbermaids under their picnic table and broke into coolers. After demolishing the Sandy Beach/W247 camp it attacked the one rubbermaid I had left outside with things I was going to recycle ......all washed and clean other than some beer bottles. It didn't try and open the hatch on the motorhome that held a large bag of garbage thankfully.
I still opt for sealing the garbage that can't be washed free of food in plastic bags and locking it in a vehicle at night. I haven't heard of a black bear breaking into vehicles with people inside but maybe this will prompt more stories!! This also seems to be a good time to remind people not to burn plastic in the camp ...... the wind always blows it onto some one else's site. Along with being carcinogenic the smell permeates everything around.

thankgodiatepastafobreaky wrote:I would say wrap your food and cooler in a bag to seal the smell and hoist it up a tree at night. In the day put it in the car and wrap it up to seal the smell too - the birds will get it up in the trees. If you have kids you might think twice before going this time of year, since the kids are too in the car for naps.

Thanks Sister, Rob, Olivia and Sam for bringing up this discussion.

Maybe we need to lobby for a metal bear proof storage container for everyone?
http://www.bearicuda.com/enclosures/bear_proof_box.php

Hoist it up a tree you say.........not if this bear is around.

more force 4 wrote:Hmm i guess this is a better place for my two bits, posted from Forum, and I had another thought or two:

Cummon people, whats the saying about leaving food in your tent? Bad practice as it makes the bears associate tents with food, even 'clean' ones! I admit to leaving the coolers out at night at Nitinat, but not when there has been bear sightings. And remember, with 150 years of recorded bear-human encounters (and lots of oral history before that), to my knowledge there has NEVER been a bear attack on humans on Vancouver Island (or on Haida Gwaii, maybe these island bears are more laid back), so be cautious but don't become bearanoid!

Yeh, locking the food in the van with you if you have 'pickable' locks is not very attractive either; and what can you do about garbage? Obviously not in the van/pickup with you. I stuff mine under the truck in this case but thats probably no good either. Swinging it up a tree (out of reach from above and below) is a hassle but maybe necessary for September sessions?

I usually have lots of 'exprired' bear sprays around the office. I usually end up blasting it off at my house. If there is any lake sailing left there when I get back I'll try out a can or two on them if the bears come too close for comfort! Maybe that will discourage repeat visits!

According to the Globe and Mail, the last Vancouver Island attack was in 2005.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ ... ional/home

I commented on the home page yesterday that the Times-Colonist reported this as the first ever 'serious aggressive' attack on Vancouver Island. And that the first aggresive behaviours were first recorded five years ago.

Seems like bear behaviour on our island is definitely changing! This PR bear was skinny and presumably very hungry - similar to the bear responsible for the horrific attacks on the boardwalk at Liard Hot Springs about 10 years ago. That one too, even near death from hunger and disease, was so strong that multiple people couldn't pull it off its victims; and at least one of the good Samaritans also died and another was very badly mauled, as well as a death and a serious injury to the initial victims.

This was about the fifth bear (as well as a couple of cougars) I've heard about that were finally killed by a knife. Seems like a belt knife might be a good thing to alway pack; though if memory serves, even a Swiss Army knife may work.

how about a crucifix and my favorite blankey i could not imagine fighting off a cougar or nasty bear on my own, even with a Rambo knife...that thing wouldn't be in your hand long enough in most instances. There have been so many woodsmen, hikers etc in general who are all of a sudden just missing with no trace...those are the other "unrecorded cases", the guys that took a swiss army knife

That guy in Port Alice got soooo lucky but he lost most of his scalp and he had help