I am afraid of being eaten by a wild animal. Bears. Sharks. Mountain lions. Alligators. Crocodiles.
This is how the summary of the first hike on a trip I'm about to take to Alaska reads: "View nesting bald eagles, beavers, moose and bears in their natural habitat. The guide, a naturalist, (carries a shotgun) takes you...."
I really think I'll be fine. I don't really think I'll be eaten alive by a bear. I think I'm more likely to keel over with fright if there's an encounter with a bear. And then be eaten. But at least then I won't know I'm being eaten.
I went through a period of dreaming about bears a couple years ago. If you're so inclined, you can read about that HERE, HERE, AND HERE.
When I first moved my mother in with me, she frequently woke me up with her growling/moaning sounds. Until I got used to it, I was convinced there was a wild animal stalking my house.
I took a hike in the back country of Wyoming once. Across a ravine there was a grizzly bear ravaging some berry bushes. We moved on. Rather quickly, singing the Hey bear, ho bear, go away bear song. Just a short way into our long hike back to our cabin, I noticed that the trail was lined with berry bushes. Then we saw bear prints. We'd already studied our wildlife guide and knew how to identify grizzly prints. Yep. There were those long claws. I doubt that I ran the 12 miles down that mountain screaming, but the adrenaline my body generated made me feel like I had. We had dinner that night at Jenny Lake Lodge. Mid-way through dinner, I began running a fever, which somehow contributed to the surreal deliciousness of the meal. I guess if you're going to see a bear on the trail, that's a great way for the story to end.
6 comments:
Grizzly Man is one of the scarier movies I've ever seen.
I'm with A --
And we saw a baby bear run across the road once in Yosemite. It was quite a sight. I remember reading that when you see a bear, you stand up tall with your arms up and out. Be like a bear.
Maybe watch this short clip: http://www.telegraaf.nl/tv/opmerkelijk/24051986/__Man_jaagt_grizzlybeer_weg__.html
or maybe not...?
Bears are freaking primal. Like hurricanes and tornadoes. Grizzly bears are like tornadoes inside of hurricanes.
But you'll be fine. (Said Pollyanna.)
I camped in a tent one night in Minnesota's lakes region and the next morning it was clear a bear had shared our camp. I was glad I was exhausted from the day of rowing and was fast asleep.
If you meet a bear stand your ground and don't run from it. Hold your arms over your head and make a circle with them to make your head look bigger. You've come too far to be eaten by a bear. Don't go down without a fight.
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