Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Bears

Hi Bears are very active now !!! watch your pack and food in the Portal area and campgrounds, some car breakins, but enough food is out, Bears are mostly looking into the cars , Open bear boxes are common and the bears are coming into the camp sites and taking the food out.

Rescues are at a high level as always in August and many are of the I am tired and someone needs to do something nature. The people walk out in several hours. Group leaders ?? I am not sure what function they play in the group other than move the camp chairs around in many of the large groups we see.



Cold air moved in yesterday and light rain /snow at the upper level , Third week of August we tend to see snow most years so summer is fast on the exit. Be safe stay together and bring a parking spot with you as last weekend cars were parking from the Portal to the campground along the road.Thanks Doug

Saw a bear at Lone Pine Lake last Friday. He stood about 100 yards from camp watching us. When he saw us looking at him he moved around the lake for a drink and then left. He didn't come back that night so I guess he headed down to the Portal for easy pickings.

Hi Bear hanging out at the trailhead last several nights, not easy to move away . Young man with a dog had the bear come within 5 feet of him and the dog before it moved away but returned several times. It seems to be watching the bear box at the trailhead and hikers leaving packs at the trailhead to load after they walk to the car and return to load. Thanks Doug

Despite the fact that the report below is about two weeks old, it may further confirm the habits and patterns reported in the last few days. Doug, on our way out around noon on 7/29 I chatted briefly with Earlene about this, and she confirmed that there were previous reports of pack-snatches.

At about 9:00 p.m. the night after TeamBruin's successful summit with our friends Scott and Laurel (TeamCaaCaaw), we were relaxing with some campfire beers at #44. Suddenly, everyone in neighboring #43 erupted in loud yelling and frantic chasing, with flashlight beams flying all over the place. Apparently, an average-sized +/- 200 lb. sow appeared from the shadows and boldly went up to their open bear box as they were putting their pre-packed overnight backpacks in the box, grabbed one (a big 40+ lb. red backpacking pack, at that!), and ran away with it across the creek. She dropped it on top of the far bank, and stood about 20' away from it. There was a very small (40-50 lb?) cub also nearby. The #43-ers were strategizing how to cross the creek, grab the pack, and return. Very risky and very dangerous, as this was The Perfect Storm re a possible black bear attack when you have both food and cubs involved. With everyone else on the #43 side of things and shining their lights over, one of their guys did indeed go across, launched the bag back over the creek to his #43 mates (amazing what adrenaline will do), and safely returned. The sow then galloped downstream on the far bank to the lower area of #44, crossed back over to our side of the creek, and bleated/called to her cub for about 3-4 minutes from behind two huge logs down at the lowest point of the campsite. The cub was then seen scampering over to her and was reunited with MommaBear.

But now a pissed-off MommaBear was in #44.

Insert expletive here.

We all immediately did a very fast re-check of our tents to make sure there weren't any scented items at all around (there weren't), and we resecured the premises. We all got ready for bed, and retired -- but I first went back to the bear box to retrieve my whistle from my backpack, just in case, and to also put a stray gum wrapper and empty HoneyStinger wrapper that was still in my pocket into the trash bag in the box. After opening the bear box and putting the wrappers into the bag, I closed it up and did the standard campsite sweep of the flashlight. As I ended the sweep from right to left, the flashlight illuminated the face of the approaching sow mid-stride -- and she was only about 6 to 8 feet away from me (directly on the other side of a table we'd set up). Holy crapoly. Yelled the loudest and angriest "GET OUTTA HERE!!!! HYAAAAAAWWWW!!!!" that I could muster before blowing the whistle as loud as possible -- which I might scale down a bit in the future, as my ears were ringing for about 10 minutes afterwards. Anyway, she turned tail and ran back down the hill towards the far end of the campsite.

We definitely missed Danu's Ursine Security Detail (the one with the +@ti2d) that night.

I can only think she was curious about and intended to get into and check out two half-empty stacked plastic boxes containing some non-food camp gear (paper towels, lanterns, hatchet, etc.). In an abundance of caution, I jammed each and every item from those two gear boxes into the bear box so that I could lay the two now-empty plastic gear boxes on their sides down the hill to prove there wasn't anything in them of interest.

We know she probably did a walk-thru of the camp sometime during the night, but we heard nothing further.

BruinDave

Mumma Bear dang lucky Danu (aka + @ti2d) wudn't thar with his K-Bear knife!

Ursine shish kabobbies are now being served at the Portal Store

Hmmm...Bear Fries!

Anyhooo...

No harm would have come to the bear, although I did have an air horn during my visit with TeamBruin and TeamCaaCaw.

Oh, congratulations belatedly to the two teams on their successful summit!

I was lying on top of my sleeping bag (because it was warm that evening at the Portal). A mama bear ambled past. I looked at her, she looked at me. We chuckled. She headed down to the camp area, I went to sleep.

Another time, I awoke to brother bear smelling the top of my head wondering what kind of conditioner I used. I told him I'm not that kind of guy. He wandered over to somebody else's tent. I went back to sleep.

(Notice a pattern here?)

Yeah, bears like you!

Okay, we are dying to know as to what KIND OF conditioner you use? Eau de Starbucks?

Hi Bear report update three sighted near the trailhead about the last two hours. They will not move far from the trailhead bear box and are circling around when moved and coming back , waiting for hikers coming down and removing food from the box. Three cubs walked into the backpacker campground and came up to a table while hikers were eating . Young man said he had no food just oatmeal the he was going to heat and eat sitting at the trailhead. It's August and good fun is had by all. Thanks Doug

Nope. Clairol Ursa Essence...

Gee...your hair smells terrific!

Have fun...

not sure how this bear got to a full shopping bag of food at 4:30am, but it shows how those things can go at the Portal:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gA5QyS6-CFE&feature=player_embedded

watching the video it looks like she should have laid on the horn a few minutes earlier.

Hi I started to respond the other day and Laura, Miles and Amy came by so we put the feed bag on instead.


The comments are from years of living with the bears, we see the area from a little different color of glasses.

First the bag of food was not secure , this happens all the time "I was just getting my pack ready and....."


The bear started eating the food "I didn't know what to do...."



I was afraid the bear would attack !!!



And the list grows .


The only reason the bear was in the campground was it /they had found food many times before, The guilty parties were months before and the bears continue to return to the same area each night for more food . The responce follows the same pattern THE PEOPLE WATCH THE BEARS EAT THE FOOD!!!! When the food is gone the bears will go to the next feeding area. Repeat. All the signs and warning must only apply to the other people???

So as the bear eats the food the person says I hope it leaves the pack alone ???? Why would it, the bear is not aware of your great plans and how those will change once they destroy the pack and get the food.


OK next you see the bear leave, the food is gone but... notice
when the bear returns it heads to the area where the pack was on the ground? This is the level of skill you are facing, the bear had located the pack by sight/smell recorded the location made a choice to finish the big easy bag then return for the small portion. The car/truck had food in it also and would of been the third target. The bear had located it as a food source and if the bear not moved away it would have entered the truck.

The story I didn't have anything out .........or only a small .......... fails the test when you then say the bear got my food, pack clothing bag ,ice chest.


What bothers you the most? The fear the bear has on your ego of finding out you are really not much in the food chain ? It got your food , destroyed your pack,car and maybe even your trip? Forced you to take charge and protect you property? We don't have a bear problem in the Portal. Do we? Thanks Doug

Does anyone know about any bear activity during this time? Mid March? I plan on climbing the MR and doing some car camping below the portal for the first night. Should we have the bear canisters?

Hi Some bear movement around the Alabama hills the last few weeks and they will stay low until the campgrounds start to open and people leave food out . Now they are feeding on natural food and things they find in yards. Try to store your food in a bear box at Lone Pine Campground. Thanks Doug

Interesting.

Is this normal for this time of year?

No mention anywhere of any encounters below LPC. Any bear activity within Lone Pine city limits?


If not, give it time...

Three thoughts passed thru my head today as I was heading up the Owens Peak Trial:

1. Gee, whoever broke trail sure had small feet.

2. Gee, they sure don't know where they are going (tracks drifted off-route quite a bit).

3. What an idiot (thinking they had put crampons on this low down). Those sure are some strange looking crampon tracks.



I bent over to take a closer look and realize I was following bear tracks.



Bear tracks and my tracks.



It headed up thru the trees.


I'm guessing it's headed for the PCT. It ought to be up at the Portal just about the time the WPS opens.

BTW: FANTASTIC climbing on Owens Peak today. Unbelievable that the wind stopped while I was on top (in just a cotton long sleeve t-shirt).