I'll never forget when my 75 year old grandmother was out on her ranch in western Colorado and ran into a family of bears.
She was out on her ATV and stopped to enjoy the scenery when she noticed that there were several young cubs to her right.
Being an experienced outdoors person she knew the mother couldn't be far away.
She was right she had gotten herself stuck between a mother and her cubs.
This is probably one of the worse spots to be in.
Fortunately, she was on her ATV and able to quickly get out of her sticky spot.
When most people are out camping and come across a bear they may be on foot or stuck at their campsite.
This is why it is good to take some simple proactive measures to minimize your chance of having a bear encounter.
The number one thing you can do while camping to minimize your chance of a bear encounter is to separate your food from your tent.
Most experts assert that you should have your cooking area 100 yards from your sleeping area.
If possible it is also good to cook close to rivers.
This is because winds are often able to sweep through valleys and disperse the scent of any food you are cooking.
For those who want to be even more cautious it is recommended that you keep the set of clothes you cook with separate from your other clothes.
This way if the clothes smell of food they won't be next to the campsite.
In terms of storing food the obvious suggestion is to keep the food out of the tent.
Two other options are to hang up your food or place your food in a bear resistant container.
Hanging food can be tricky.
You may need to try several different techniques, but the important factor is to have the food at least 12 feet off the ground out of a bear's reach.
By simply separating your food from where you sleep you will greatly reduce the chance of having an unexpected dinner guest.
She was out on her ATV and stopped to enjoy the scenery when she noticed that there were several young cubs to her right.
Being an experienced outdoors person she knew the mother couldn't be far away.
She was right she had gotten herself stuck between a mother and her cubs.
This is probably one of the worse spots to be in.
Fortunately, she was on her ATV and able to quickly get out of her sticky spot.
When most people are out camping and come across a bear they may be on foot or stuck at their campsite.
This is why it is good to take some simple proactive measures to minimize your chance of having a bear encounter.
The number one thing you can do while camping to minimize your chance of a bear encounter is to separate your food from your tent.
Most experts assert that you should have your cooking area 100 yards from your sleeping area.
If possible it is also good to cook close to rivers.
This is because winds are often able to sweep through valleys and disperse the scent of any food you are cooking.
For those who want to be even more cautious it is recommended that you keep the set of clothes you cook with separate from your other clothes.
This way if the clothes smell of food they won't be next to the campsite.
In terms of storing food the obvious suggestion is to keep the food out of the tent.
Two other options are to hang up your food or place your food in a bear resistant container.
Hanging food can be tricky.
You may need to try several different techniques, but the important factor is to have the food at least 12 feet off the ground out of a bear's reach.
By simply separating your food from where you sleep you will greatly reduce the chance of having an unexpected dinner guest.