Many people go camping and hiking to have a true nature experience, and seeing wildlife is a part of that. The highlight of your trip just may be seeing a bear out in its natural habitat….but only if you have taken the proper precautions!
I have completed extensive bear safety training in Glacier Bay, Denali, and Grand Teton National Parks. I have also run into bears along the trail many times. Although it is not always possible to prevent a bear encounter, there are some things that you can do to have a safe and enjoyable experience while you are camping or hiking in bear country.
What To Do Before You Ever See A Bear
1. Make Noise
Avoid startling a bear. Make plenty of noise to let the bear know you are in the area. Some people like to hike with bear bells, but the most effective sound is actually the human voice.
Although you may feel silly at first, walking down a trail (especially when you have low visibility) and shouting “Hey Bear!” is extremely effective.
Most of the time, the bear will move to get out of your way because they are just as scared of you as you are of them.
2. Hike In Groups
There is safety in numbers when you are out on the trail because a group is more intimidating to a bear. It is also easier to make noise if you have someone else to talk to….then you don’t have to yell “hey bear” all the time.
It is recommended that you travel in groups of three when you are on a trail or in a campsite where bear activity is known.
3. Carry Bear Spray
I am a big advocate for using bear spray. It is effective, lightweight, relatively inexpensive, and almost anyone can use it. Knowing that I have bear spray with me gives me peace of mind — I ALWAYS carry it with me when I am hiking through bear country. A friend of mine was charged by a grizzly bear, and his life was saved by his bear spray. The stuff works!
With bear spray, if you are able to spray the bear’s face when it is 10-15 feet away, the bear should be successfully deterred )you should only spray a charging bear…the bear spray is your final defense before being attacked).
Click here to view or purchase the type of bear spray that I carry while out on the trail.
4. Don’t Leave Food Unattended
Coolers, backpacks, and other items with an odor should never be left unattended. Keep food properly stored or within arm’s reach at all times. “Food” to a bear can be anything that it can smell, including makeup, bug spray, soap, toothpaste, garbage, etc., so be sure to keep these items supervised as well.
5. Store Food Correctly
Each national park will have its own guidelines on storing food, but in general, food should never be stored in your tent. Usually, it is okay to store food in a hard-sided vehicle with doors and windows locked.
I always keep my toiletry items out of my tent as well. Bears have an awesome sense of smell and can be attracted to anything that has a scent.
Be sure to pick up the garbage around your campsite or picnic area to avoid attracting a bear to your location.
Continue reading Part Two – What To Do If You See a Bear to be fully prepared for your wilderness adventure.
I’d love to hear your experiences with bears in the comments below!
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means that (at no extra cost to you) I receive a tiny bit of compensation if you make a purchase. I promise to only recommend products that I absolutely love and would use myself while out on the trail! I appreciate your support and welcome any questions you may have about any products featured on my site. Thanks! Ash
Is it okay to carry ham sandwiches and nuts in ziplock bags while hiking near Glacier and Mt Baker, Washington? We will also be hiking in North Cascades NP. I am concerned about attracting bears……thank you! Your Youtube and blog are very much appreciated.
Nancy
Yes, you can carry food while hiking. Just be sure to always keep your pack within arms reach so that you can grab it and go quickly if a bear approaches.
Should I be worried about bear encounters in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park?
Yes! Great Smokies has a lot of bears!
Smoky Mountain National Park only has black bears. Although you should never approach them, and use normal bear encounter practices, black bears are far less dangerous to humans than Grizzly/Brown bears or Polar bears.
It’s true, though I do think that black bears are a little more mischievous!
Dear Ash – I’m retired and a hiker and backpacker. I hope to tent camp in RMNP when I visit at the end of August. I am driving from Michigan to Colorado. That way I’m not tied to an airline’s schedule nor will I have to pay to rent a car. I have a Bear Vault bear proof container and I plan to store everything in that. Would it be overkill to lock it in the trunk of my hatchback car (which has a cover to block the view of anything in the trunk) at my campsite? Thanks very much!
I would keep it in your locked vehicle or one of the bear boxes provided in the campground!
Hey Ash! We have purchased your 4 day Glacier Itinerary and we are SO appreciative. This is our first National Park ever. I had no clue how much planning was needed for Glacier and now we feel prepared from your resources. We are not familiar hiking in bear country so these resources are so helpful!! Dirt in My Shoes is everything we need and I can see all the hard work and passion you put into this. You are amazing!!
Do you have recommendations on bear safety with babies? This may be a silly question but how do you handle diapers on hikes will that attract bears? We are following your hiking guides for the 4 day itinerary and just want to be the safest with our 10 month old. Im a little anxious about bears. 🫣 Will the highline trail be safe with a baby?
Is the highline trail a big bear area? Thank you so much!!!
That’s so exciting! It’s not a dumb question — it’s so smart to be thinking those things through. But no, you shouldn’t worry about the diapers attracting bears. You can hike with food too and it should be fine. Bears typically are scared of you, so they won’t approach unless they’ve been fed/gotten into human food before. Which, luckily, is happening a lot less these days because of people like you that are super careful and aware!
You may see bears along the Highline, but you’re more likely to see bighorn sheep or mountain goats :)
First of all, I just discovered your Youtube and website and love both of them! I have camping in bear country since 1988 and unless I am on a ranger hike I usually hike alone and am extremely vigilant. I have seen many black and grizzly bears but only twice have I come close.
Many years ago I was hiking above treeline (Highline in Glacier before it was as popular as now) when I saw a solo grizzly from about 150-200 yards away. I stopped and put my hands up to make myself look big and noticeable and he certainly did see me as he stood up to take a look but kept walking down the trail toward me. I took my bear spray out and turned a bit sideways so I wasn’t staring at him but could clearly see him in my peripheral vision. I started talking in a calm almost sing-song normal volume voice to him, “hey big guy, sorry to bother you, I know you live here, thanks for letting me visit” and who knows what else but he kept coming down the trail. At about 30 yards he started jogging and ran right by me before stopping about 30-40 feet past me where he stopped and turned back to have a look at me. Then he continued off the trail and wandered away. The people who were behind me about 150 yards asked one question when they caught up to me. “Why didn’t you use your bear spray?” All I could say was intuition. He was not surprised, he had seen me from far away. He was jogging at me, not going full speed. His ears were up and not flattened and his head was still relatively up, not low to the ground. And I was clearly not a threat to him. I told them my guess is that he was a very young male trying to prove his manhood, “This is MY mountain you stupid hiker!”
The second time was two years ago. I stopped the car along the edge of a field in the morning and was just going to hike up to see if I could find any elk or deer. I made it only about 200 feet when I saw a grizzly in the woods. He had already seen me and certainly had heard my car and me closing the doors and trunk, so again, not surprised. He was only about 25 yards away and heading my way. I very slowly took one or two steps back to adjust my angle to him and began speaking softly and quietly to him. “Sorry to interrupt your breakfast, just a stupid human here, etc” He just slowly kept eating, took a couple steps toward me, ate some more until he was literally right in front of me. So close I could hear him pull the vegetation and chew it, and I could even smell him. He crossed in front of me by about 15 feet. I never raised my camera or undid the velcro on my bear spray because I was afraid what the commotion or noise would make him do. Needless to say that was the end of that hike.
Long story short, I always remember that I am a guest in their house, and pay attention to everything I do and use all my senses at all times when out in the wild. How far can I see? Maybe this secluded spot isn’t a good place for a break. Is the wind blowing in my face? That means the animals I am walking toward can’t smell me ahead of time. Those kind of things,
Now as a former park ranger you probably don’t want to hear about me getting licked by mountain goats, having ground squirrels crawl ALL over me, or having a marmot use my leg to scratch their back. I may have to take the fifth on those activities..😀
Haha so cool! Bears are very misunderstood….I’ve had similar experiences where they really couldn’t care less about me. Thanks for sharing!
Hello!
This was some great information. My husband and I are planning a trip in May for a week we’re trying to decide if we should start in Bozeman or Jackson we plan or getting a rental car and make our way. Are there any absolutely must stops we should make? Should we make sure we have all our lodging reserved ahead of time or is it easy to find something while we’re there since it will be May?
Thanks for any additional information/help you can give!!
Shelli
You’ll find a ton of trip planning help for both Grand Teton and Yellowstone on my site, my YouTube channel, or my podcast! I would make your lodging reservations in advance…those parks and surrounding areas fill up fast!
Hi Ash,
I’m so glad to have found your website and YouTube spot. Thank you for everything you share with people.
Keeping your bear safety rules in mind, do you think it’s okay to hike on the “easy hikes” trails solo in May? I’ll be traveling solo and won’t have a choice but to hike alone, and I really want to do these.
Many Thanks,
Vicky
Hey Vicky, contact me here with the park you’re referring to and I’ll provide you with a specific answer!
Do you think we will be ok in a tent in the back of a truck with food stored inside the truck? We are headed to Glacier NP.
The campgrounds have bear boxes spread throughout, and I would put your food in one of those if you can find one available!
Hi Ash, Thanks so much for all the great information. In your opinion, would it be foolish to do a solo backpacking trip in either Grand Teton or Yellowstone, since both are bear country? Or would it be safe enough if I take the usual precautions (carrying bear spray, talking to myself/bears along the trail, etc)? I’m not asking for guarantees, of course. Thanks!
I don’t recommend it based on what I saw as a park ranger, but I know that solo hiking is popular and if you’re prepared and experienced you’ll probably be ok. I would stick to areas that are more well-traveled though…the chances of a bear encounter while backpacking in either of those parks is quite high!
With two of you, you only have to be faster than your buddy. LOL!
While camping in bear country can you store gear in the back of your truck if it has a hard bed cover?
It would be safer to move your food into your cab and lock the doors. Many parks also provide bear boxes to put food in at the campgrounds. Either of those options would be better than leaving it in the back of your truck, even with a cover. Have fun!
In Montana are there guides to bring an individual out to see grizzly bears in their natural habitat?
I’m not aware of any particular tours for that near Glacier NP, but you might want to check with Glacier Guides to see if they offer something. Yellowstone NP does have wildlife tours available. Enjoy!
Ash, I hope you are well. Thanks so much for your excellent blog and book! I got the 4-day itinerary and am hopeful our plans for a mid July visit will work out this year! Your travel style is very similar to my own, so it’s been a fun read. I really appreciate your expertise, which helps me plan more efficiently.
I just wanted to let you know that the link to the bear spray said the item was no longer available. However, I was able to search for it within the REI website and still purchase it from them. Take care!
Thank you! I fixed that link, and I appreciate you letting me know. Safe travels!
Hi Ash! Great articles, thank you for them! My partner & I will be traveling in our trailer this April so close to Yellowstone that we want to dip down into the North entrance and spend a couple of days. We have dogs, which is my concern. They need to be walked, played with, etc. How do we handle them regarding bears? And when we drive along roads to observe wildlife, will their barking, especially my big lab, insite an issue I can’t handle? Should we just not go there? I do plan to buy the bear spray you mention. Thanks so much, Meredith
Yellowstone has specific guidelines for dogs in the park. You can read about them here: https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/pets.htm. If you’re in the campground, you should have no problem giving them the exercise they need but they do need to be on a leash. As far as driving around with them, you know your dogs best! But yes I think you could easily spook any wildlife you see if your dogs are barking….and you may have some very unhappy fellow travelers. You could totally still visit Yellowstone with your dogs but just some things to keep in mind. Oh, and just to clarify that if you get out of your vehicle while driving around, the dogs cannot go on the trails with you :)