Have you ever encountered something (a lot) larger than you in the woods? I’m not talking about a cow in a pasture, I mean something that weighs three of four times what you do, and has claws, teeth, and a reputation for a certain amount of ferocity.
That happy incident occurred to me on the very first day of my John Muir Trail thru-hike.
The climb out of Yosemite Valley (which begins at Happy Isles) has a reputation for being tough. It certainly was for me. I climbed 4,500 feet on the first day, but the trail was wide, even and well maintained—more like walking on a sidewalk. I also had lots of day-hiker friends heading for Vernal Fall, Nevada Fall, or Half Dome, to buoy me along. It was never crowded enough to be unpleasant, but I was always aware of people being around me.
All that changed once I passed the Half Dome trail intersection; the woods got quiet. I was alone and walking on dirt so, even though I wasn’t trying to move stealthily, I was hardly making a sound.
As I turned the corner I actually spotted the two cubs, first, just to the right of the trail. They were scrounging around under a fallen log. I stopped in my tracks and immediately looked for mama bear.
She was on the left of the trail, completely oblivious to me, also looking for a late lunch.
Despite being more excited than scared (I’m sure I had a huge grin on my face), I realized that there was a potentially bad situation here. One thing’s for sure: I wasn’t going try to sneak between mama and the kids. I considered retreating, but for how long? I had only managed about seven of the 211 miles that I had ahead of me; it was a little early in the game to start backtracking.
I got out my camera and snapped a couple of photos. Then I alerted all the four-pawed animals in the area that I was there with a quick yell. Three sets of bear eyes were on me in a split second.
The two cubs immediately started running over to mom, although they stopped a couple of times to get a better look at the strange guy with a big red hump on his back. Eventually mom got them behind her and she turned her attention to me.
She rose up on her back legs just a bit, shouted a half-hearted growl in my direction, and then spun around and headed away with the kids. My bear encounter (one of two on the trail) was over.
Almost the entire JMT is within prime bear habitat, but (somewhat counter-intuitively) encounters are more common the closer you are to civilization. Although you might see one anywhere, the most likely places are: Little Yosemite Valley, Lyell Canyon, anywhere else within Yosemite, Thousand Island Lake and Garnet Lake. Each of these locales has something in common: lots of people with food, often carelessly stored.
A bear encounter can be thrilling! Just make sure you don’t encounter one eating your dinner. Keep everything with a scent in your canister.
Good hiking, Ray
Interesting blog – book. I hiked the JMT a couple of 4 or five times so I thought I should chime in. (I’ll respond in the appropriate posts.)
Bears: you are guaranteed to see bears around Vidette Meadow. I think I’ve been through there a dozen times and saw a bear every time. If you leave your food unattended in Vidette you will lose it, in about a minute. Can’t remember which Ranger told me (Dave or Rick) that a sow taught her cubs how to raid the bear boxes there.
Round about Island Pass as well as the adjoining areas you noted. Lyell, Thousand Island, Garnett are all prime spots for fishing, which brings fishermen, and some are not as careful as your average hiker.
Now I am going to depart from the gospel according to the NPS/USFS… Anything with a scent will attract a bear, but the bear isn’t going to eat everything. I have left toothpaste, bug spray, and sunscreen out of my bearikade and never had a bear bother with them. Bears remember the stomach ache they had eating those items, and rarely will ingest them. (You may run into the bear that has not eaten them before.)
What is not often discussed is the danger marmots pose to your food, pack, boots, or hiking staff. They like salt, and they like it quite a bit. If you leave your pack on a rock to walk off to take pictures, you are asking for it. Marmots will gnaw and chew on the belt and back, and if they get into the pocket with your day time food, well kiss it good bye. While on the HST at Bearpaw, I left my hiking staff, complete with foam grip, by a rock and wandered off to “water the vegetation.” I came back and the marmot just about stripped the foam off. I met a guy who had his boots damaged in a similar manner, took them off, put them behind him, a didn’t realize that the bugger was chewing on them until it was too late.They are bold and brazen and will come right up to you. And watch out for the chipmunks, they are as voracious and undaunted.
Good points, all, especially about the marmots and chipmunks. I might also include the pikas. I’ve had good luck hanging my backpack from a tree, although I don’t know exactly why. Thanks for the comment!
[…] Although you certainly expect to have encounters with wildlife, they often come as a surprise, when you least expect it, like the time I turned a corner to find three bears straddling the trail. […]
[…] Every day of a JMT thru-hike brings surprises, mostly in regards to fauna. You’ll turn a corner and discover a gang of deer (often right on the trail), a coyote (prowling for lunch) or a friendly marmot (hoping to trade the perfect pose on a rock for a hunk of human food). Sometimes the animals are quite a bit bigger. […]
[…] Three bears. This occurred on the first day of my first thru-hike of the JMT. What a way to start! Although we all carry bear canisters to secure our food, bear sightings are […]