3 Responses

1. Caroline says:

   January 19, 2011 at 2:01 pm

   I love Jim Gaffigan! Also, I always wondered why they still give the “play dead” advice. I’ve heard (and know it worked for my dad when I was a kid out camping) to just make loud noises and make yourself look as big as you can (arms up, stand on something, etc).

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   • Ruth says:

     January 19, 2011 at 2:55 pm

     My understanding is that this advice may be the only thing that will save you if suddenly attacked by a grizzly bear. For smaller bears such as the black bears of northern MN the advice to look big and make lots of noise probably works but I don’t think looking “big” will work with huge grizzly like they have in Yellowstone and Glacier.

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     • Chris Meirose says:

       January 20, 2011 at 7:44 am

       I’ve worked as a backpacking guide in pretty dense bear territory and Ruth is right. The grizzlies want their meat fresh. The other bears are opportunists and don’t care if you smell rotten. Playing dead with a Griz isn’t a guarantee that you’ll survive the encounter, but it might give you a chance in the worst case scenario. And never get between a mama & her cubs, no matter what type of bear. If you see cubs but not the mama – go back the direction you came from for a while since she’s not there. Bears are fun to watch, but cubs & no mom is very dangerous for you.

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