[Jeff Higgins]

Lots of great advice here already, with the best being to simply give them a wide berth and no reason to investigate you or your stuff. They are clearly not afraid of you, which I too find worrisome.

I have found, in a lifetime of woods bumming, backpacking, and hunting (mainly in my native Pacific Northwest) that the most often expressed generalities about any given animal need to be accompanied by a big huge caveat of "it depends...". They are, individually, as unpredictable as we are. Even the exact same animal may react completely differently to identical situations on different days, just like we do. They have personalities and emotions too.

Is getting between mama and her cubs a certain recipe for disaster? I've done it three times, and all three times mama ran away, leaving her cubs at my mercy. Is surprising or cornering one going to make it attack? I dunno, I had one knock me flat on my back one time in its zeal to escape my back packing partner, myself, and our two dogs. Pure "flight" with no thoughts of "fight".

Then again, one of my old hunting partners made local news (and earned about a month's stay in intensive care) when he was attacked from behind by a mama. He remembers a cub watching as mama actually removed a couple of ribs from his back, before he blacked out. His twelve year old boy managed to run to their truck and drive it a mile into town for help. He still has no idea why this time was different. Difficult day with the kid, and she was going to take it out on the next thing she saw? Who knows.

Anyway, point is, they are unpredictable. Even a 50 pound youngster can tear you a new one - they don't have to be big. As a matter of fact, bigger is probably better - older, wiser, calmer - again, just like us. Nothing left to prove...

Oh, and forget the bells on the backpack b.s. In most bear country with heavy people traffic and a high likelihood of encounter, these bells are apparently becoming "dinner bells". Bears ain't stupid. They are rather quick studies, as a matter of fact. The brighter ones have now figured out that if they step out and say "boo", that backpackers will follow that other oft quoted axiom of bear country - just drop the pack and let them have it so you can walk away. Not too many have to do that before even your average bear has an "aha" moment.