Bear Issues On Rae Lakes Loop

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maverick
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Bear Issues On Rae Lakes Loop

Post by maverick »

SEKI NP:
Bad news, folks - we're hearing from our friends in the wilderness that backpackers need to work on their food management!

Within the past week, we've received five different reports of bears approaching people in popular camping areas along the Rae Lakes Loop, hoping to get food. This behavior shows that they have been successful in getting human food before. In some cases, hikers stood by and watched as bears investigated their tents, which had food inside - the photo shows the aftermath of such an event.

Allowing bears to get at your food is not just dangerous for you and future campers, it is dangerous for the bear! Bears that become aggressively interested in human food sometimes end up being put down, as it can be nearly impossible to return them to "natural" behavior. Feeding wild animals also disrespects their wildness.

Pointers for food management in the wilderness:
🐻Use a food storage canister, or bear can. At night, place it away from where you are sleeping.
🐻Close your bear can when it's not in use.
🐻If a bear approaches you with your open canister, stand your ground! Stomp your feet and yell. If you cannot scare the bear away, CLOSE THE CANISTER! Do not let them get another food reward.
🐻Do not store food or any scented items in your tent.
🐻Do not bring more food or scented items than will fit inside your canister.
🐻Do not assume a tree will be available to hang food.
🐻Do not assume a bear locker will be available. In popular wilderness locations, they are often full to capacity.
🐻Do not leave a backpack unattended (further than arm's reach) if food or scented items are inside.
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unreal_ishan
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Re: Bear Issues On Rae Lakes Loop

Post by unreal_ishan »

Finished the loop CW with my wife on 07/06 and met at least 5-7 backpackers (JMTers and Loop-ers) who had either been harassed by bears or had bad encounters like the one above; issues are severe at Charlotte Lake and Vidette Meadow especially! Sad to see this happen :(

People also need to adhere to LNT principles; saw so much TP bloom.

Thankfully, no issues for us at Upper Paradise, Arrowhead Lake and Middle Rae Lake!
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Re: Bear Issues On Rae Lakes Loop

Post by SSSdave »

Vidette Meadow has a long history of notorious bears. In 1993 before canisters were mandatory, 2 of us hanging food barely kept a well known bear with its cub from getting our food. We had tented in an obscure place well away from the trail. But one can never know where bears might visit and they found us asleep. I woke to find the frustrated cub above the food bag on a thin end of our branch. We tossed stones that had the cub climb down screaming apparently aware of what if feel to be hit by small rocks. The large undeterred mother bear climbed up the trunk and began to bite the sizeable branch where it came off the trunk. At first we were surprised it was actually trying to gnaw through such a large branch, however we were soon concerned as its sharp teeth in strong jaws extracted chunks of wood showing us it would eventually drop the whole branch. We began yelling and tossing more stones that drove the bear down that disappeared into the woods. Expecting another visit, we brought down the food then hiked the quarter mile to the main camp area near the bear boxes where we tossed our food inside.
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Re: Bear Issues On Rae Lakes Loop

Post by druid »

On 6/17 near the intersection of the JMT and the Bullfrog Lake trail I noticed a carefully lettered note at a campsite warning that a bear and two cubs had stolen all of their food there two days ago. There was no mention in the note of what sort of food storage precautions had been taken (if any).
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Re: Bear Issues On Rae Lakes Loop

Post by bobby49 »

I didn't think that camping was allowed at Bullfrog Lake, at least not several years ago.
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Jimr
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Re: Bear Issues On Rae Lakes Loop

Post by Jimr »

druid wrote: Thu Jul 08, 2021 2:47 pm On 6/17 near the intersection of the JMT and the Bullfrog Lake trail I noticed a carefully lettered note at a campsite warning that a bear and two cubs had stolen all of their food there two days ago. There was no mention in the note of what sort of food storage precautions had been taken (if any).
A couple of years ago I was hiking out of Vidette Meadow on my way out Kearsarge pass. Approaching the Bullfrog lake trail, I noticed a bear following me in a very stealth fashion. A young couple came up the rear and saw it as well. They started yelling at it, but that didn't phase it at all. I wanted to ask them to stop yelling because it was pointless. I was sure that bear was stealthing out hikers waiting for the packs to come off for a rest, then sneak up behind and snatch a pack.

As I got a short distance up the Bullfrog Lake trail, I notice 5 or so hikers with their packs lying around while they stood and sat beneath a stand of trees. I warned them of the bear and it's likely intentions.
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druid
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Re: Bear Issues On Rae Lakes Loop

Post by druid »

bobby49 wrote: Thu Jul 08, 2021 4:44 pm I didn't think that camping was allowed at Bullfrog Lake, at least not several years ago.
It still isn't allowed. The campsite with the note I saw is only a few dozen yards from the JMT. It's on the Bullfrog Lake trail but it isn't particularly close to Bullfrog Lake. I assume some PCTer had just pulled over for the night (the note was signed with what looked like a PCT trail name).
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dirt_mo
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Re: Bear Issues On Rae Lakes Loop

Post by dirt_mo »

I was there on the Seki loop around 4th of July. There is yet another problematic bear at the woods Creek crossing (suspension bridge). I actually saw the bear trying to get into the bear locker near the bridge and heard later from the rangers that it almost got a pack left by a hiker later that afternoon.

From what I saw, I would not try to stay at the sites at Woods Creek if possible.
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erutan
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Re: Bear Issues On Rae Lakes Loop

Post by erutan »

Yeah, a PCT hiker left a note saying that a mama bear and two cubs "stole food" on the 15th, and when we came over the pass on the 17th someone left their pack laying around and ran away when mama bear came out and she got into it... someone else eventually helped them scare the bear away. Yet another person reported seeing her just offtrail on the 18th and that she was very nonchalant about being yelled at (so very acclimitized), but wasn't being aggressive.

The camp wasn't at bullfrog lake - it was just after the junction of the JMPCT and Kearsarge Lakes - the first of three iirc thru-hiker slums before hitting fire line on the way into Bubbs.

206019133_3114729835475236_7831855997385259650_n.jpg

PCT hikers being PCT hikers.

We gave a retiree PCT hiker a ride up to the TH when collecting our vehicle there after exiting shepherd's pass - he couldn't fit more than 5 days of food in his "big bear can" (a BV500) (!!) and was going to sleep with bags of chips etc in his tent. I strongly encouraged him to use bear lockers, but who knows. He was shocked we could go 10 days on our bearikades, so I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of PCT hikers that bother with bear cans are still sleeping with food outside of them. Makes me wonder what the "stole food" entailed.
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Re: Bear Issues On Rae Lakes Loop

Post by c9h13no3 »

Yeah, the Rae loop is a zoo. I'm kinda shocked they haven't put a vault toilet up there, that place is outdoor Disney. Crowds like that have to be managed.
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