Guide 2

HOW MUCH SAFER IS GUIDED VIEWING?

So far as I know, no professionally guided viewer has ever been injured by a bear. Why? Is this because all guides are experts on bear behavior and safety? No, far from it. Although some guides are extremely capable, others aren’t. The “spotless safety record” of guided viewing is largely due to five other factors:

* Most of the bears viewed on guided trips are coastal brown or black bears that have become highly tolerant of people.

* Much viewing takes place from a secure observatory.

* Observatories, and routes to them, are used by so many viewers that few bears are dangerously stressed by meeting people there. Most planned viewing away from observatories takes place where people and bears can see one another at long range, also minimizing likelihood of surprise close encounters.

* Group size. Most guided groups contain at least 4 - 6 people, and very few groups of that size have ever had anyone seriously mauled, no matter what the people were doing (hiking, fishing, viewing, etc.).

In other words, most professional guides follow at least half of BVA’s 10 Golden Rules of Bear Adventuring.
o Group Size: Stay close to at least 5 other people.

o Ursine Tolerance: View only bears that are highly
tolerant of people, even at close range.

o Predictability: Don’t surprise bears. View bears only in
areas and at times where bears expect encounters.

o Site Security: View from a site where surprise encounters
are unlikely and perhaps where you are inaccessible.

o Be Prepared: Master and practice bear safety techniques.
Prepare well both for planned viewing and spur-of-the-
moment opportunities -- for instance if you spot a bear
along a roadside. Make sure you have appropriate
equipment and supplies (e.g., bear deterrent and a cell
phone to call for help in an emergency).
(For further information on the Golden Rules, click ,
then look in the 3rd line of the menu at the top of the new page)

Although the Golden Rules normally suffice to keep you safe from bears, there are exceptions. Even under the best of conditions, any time you are in bear habitat, expect the unexpected.

High-risk situations where expertise in bear safety is essential:

* Encountering unacclimated or even disacclimated bears, particularly grizzlies.

* Roaming freely through the wilds searching for viewable bears.

* Avoiding or defusing bear aggression: Most viewing areas prohibit weapons. So protection depends mainly on avoiding conflicts, and secondarily on coping with them non-violently – additional skills at which a professional guide is likely to be much more adept than you are. For instruction in these skills, click .

* Killing a bear: In some viewing areas, carrying a weapon is permissible. But unless you are an expert at shooting bears under emergency conditions, that challenge is also best left to someone who is an expert.

* * *

Viewing with the assistance of a guide puts minimum responsibility on your shoulders. It’s highly recommended for anyone just getting the hang of bear watching in Alaska.

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Cooper and Landy scavenging coho salmon carcasses

(c) 2005 S. Stringham