Alert: Large Bear Seen on College of the Redwoods Campus

A bear captured on game camera

A bear captured on game camera by a resident of Tompkins Hill. She thinks it might be the same bear.

At 11:27 Thursday evening, College of the Redwoods sent out an alert. It read,

A large bear was sighted tonight by north ponds on Eureka campus by Public Safety. Please stay away from the area.

Below is information from the National Park System on what to do if you encounter a bear.

Bear Encounters
Once a bear has noticed you and is paying attention to you, additional strategies can help prevent the situation from escalating.

  • Identify yourself by talking calmly so the bear knows you are a human and not a prey animal. Remain still; stand your ground but slowly wave your arms. Help the bear recognize you as a human. It may come closer or stand on its hind legs to get a better look or smell. A standing bear is usually curious, not threatening.
  • Stay calm and remember that most bears do not want to attack you; they usually just want to be left alone. Bears may bluff their way out of an encounter by charging and then turning away at the last second. Bears may also react defensively by woofing, yawning, salivating, growling, snapping their jaws, and laying their ears back. Continue to talk to the bear in low tones; this will help you stay calmer, and it won’t be threatening to the bear. A scream or sudden movement may trigger an attack. Never imitate bear sounds or make a high-pitched squeal.
  • Pick up small children immediately.
    Hike and travel in groups. Groups of people are usually noisier and smellier than a single person. Therefore, bears often become aware of groups of people at greater distances, and because of their cumulative size, groups are also intimidating to bears.
  • Make yourselves look as large as possible (for example, move to higher ground).
  • Do NOT allow the bear access to your food. Getting your food will only encourage the bear and make the problem worse for others.
  • Do NOT drop your pack as it can provide protection for your back and prevent a bear from accessing your food.
  • If the bear is stationary, move away slowly and sideways; this allows you to keep an eye on the bear and avoid tripping. Moving sideways is also non-threatening to bears. Do NOT run, but if the bear follows, stop and hold your ground. Bears can run as fast as a racehorse both uphill and down. Like dogs, they will chase fleeing animals. Do NOT climb a tree. Both grizzlies and black bears can climb trees.
  • Leave the area or take a detour. If this is impossible, wait until the bear moves away. Always leave the bear an escape route.
  • Be especially cautious if you see a female with cubs; never place yourself between a mother and her cub, and never attempt to approach them. The chances of an attack escalate greatly if she perceives you as a danger to her cubs.
Facebooktwitterpinterestmail

Join the discussion! For rules visit: https://kymkemp.com/commenting-rules

Comments system how-to: https://wpdiscuz.com/community/postid/10599/

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

30 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
John
Guest
John
5 years ago

I think they left out one. Arm yourself with a high powered rifle.

neverlayup
Guest
neverlayup
5 years ago
Reply to  John

yea, to take out any human loser bothering it!

neverlayup
Guest
neverlayup
5 years ago

I guess kym only cares about the loser humans bothering it.and not animal friendly, as my rational post was once again deleted

neverlayup
Guest
neverlayup
5 years ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

sorry Kym, my bad! I owe you a drink at the bar in Pville!

Concerned
Guest
Concerned
5 years ago

Where is the “north ponds” area? I cannot find any information about where that is!

itisIsntit
Guest
itisIsntit
5 years ago
Reply to  Concerned

Crazy. Its almost as if there is a forest and mountains nearby!

Ullr rover
Guest
Ullr rover
5 years ago

Perspective:
“Twenty-five fatal black bear attacks have occurred in North America during the last 20 years…”
https://www.wideopenspaces.com/list-fatal-black-bear-attacks-north-america-last-20-years/

“In 2010, there were an estimated 5,419,000 crashes, 30,296 of with fatalities, killing 32,999, and injuring 2,239,000.[2] About 2,000 children under 16 die every year in traffic collisions.[3] Records indicate that there have been a total of 3,613,732 motor vehicle fatalities in the United States from 1899 to 2013.”
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_vehicle_fatality_rate_in_U.S._by_year

Perhaps the CR alert should warn of cars spotted in the parking lot.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Ullr rover

Maybe the alert was less to protect the people and more to ensure that a bunch of people don’t mob the bear.

Ullr rover
Guest
Ullr rover
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

Bears on the Northcoast are still wild. They usually don’t hang around to find out what the intentions of the 2-legged might be.

To elaborate on my perspective, it is directed to the numerous folks who come from out of the area urban and suburban settings and ask or express fear of lions and bears. My rote response is to worry about the roads you drive for you are much more likely to find your demise in a vehicle crash.

Bushytails
Guest
Bushytails
5 years ago
Reply to  Ullr rover

Yeah, there’s been a whole lot of “OMG! There’s WILDLIFE in the woods!” news stories lately… It’s part of living here in Humboldt. If you don’t want wildlife, go live in LA or something. I see bears, bobcats, and mountain lions fairly regularly (saw a bear cub yesterday, in fact – little cute-sized one, maybe a foot tall), and other than the occasional “D’awwwww”-worthy photo if I had a camera handy (I should start keeping one handy!), it’s nothing to be surprised about.

Hubertus
Guest
Hubertus
5 years ago
Reply to  Bushytails

Seeing wildlife here is perfectly normal. Bears or mountain lions approaching people is very much not and might be an indication that they could be more dangerous than you’d normally expect.

LostCoastEMP
Guest
LostCoastEMP
5 years ago
Reply to  Ullr rover

Black bears are scary cats. Have ran into them twice in the woods. They always run!

Stormy
Guest
Stormy
5 years ago

LOL There is plenty of dangerous wildlife in L.A. They are called gangs. Up here, we call the dangerous ones “street people,” or “street apes,” the ones you do not make eye contact with, like the crazy lady down by the Eureka library. The druggies are the worst. They dig in your trash and if you say anything they go berzerk.

local observer
Guest
local observer
5 years ago
Reply to  Stormy

but are they actually dangerous? you can calculate the rate increase of our local homeless population by plotting the eviction rate (mainly Eureka/MCK) and it looks like its going to double this coming year no matter you gets elected into city council. I have found that the dangerous ones in Eureka/MCK are still housed and their FB page usually says something like in the business of “Hustlin” or “boss at pimpin it”. they actually get prison after being arrested unlike the local homeless drug addicts that just get released. I agree its a problem, I see it everyday, but spreading falsehoods is a bigger more lasting problem for all of us.

LostCoastEMP
Guest
LostCoastEMP
5 years ago
Reply to  local observer

I pack CCW for people, not bears. So yes, humans are the most violent,unpredictable,dangerous, predatory animal on the planet. PS. They too also pack firearms.

Cowabunga
Guest
Cowabunga
5 years ago

The Bear probably just wants to get an education.

big balls in the sky magee
Guest
big balls in the sky magee
5 years ago

hey hey boo boo, this is some serious shit we gots here. better than a stupid fucking picnic basket.

LostCoastEMP
Guest
LostCoastEMP
5 years ago

Hes gonna need some food after dat doobie!

Gypsy Rose
Guest
Gypsy Rose
5 years ago

What always worked for me, and I’ve lived and camped in woods my whole life is, always have two pans tied to your belt loop if your walking or hiking. If you see a bear just start banging them together and no more bear. As for a mother and cubs I’ve never came up against them so I don’t know if the two pans would work.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Gypsy Rose

It depends on your location. If you find yourself between a bear and her cubs, it will only make things worse to scare her.

Ullr rover
Guest
Ullr rover
5 years ago
Reply to  Gypsy Rose

There are only 2 animals that make me nervous in the woods… and I am in the deep woods very frequently: the hairless ape (sometimes called humans) and bear cubs.

I have dealt with many bears, cougars, bobcats, skunks, martins, fishers, etc… when I come across bear cubs I always turn 180° and leave the way I came immediately. If I need to get through I make a wide circle giving the cubs a lot of space.

Vern
Guest
Vern
5 years ago

From above:

“Do NOT drop your pack as it can provide protection for your back and prevent a bear from accessing your food.”

should read . . . “Do NOT drop your pack as it can provide protection for your back and prevent a bear from accessing you as food.”

gunther
Guest
gunther
5 years ago

Always travel in pairs and rub bacon grease on the other person.

LostCoastEMP
Guest
LostCoastEMP
5 years ago
Reply to  gunther

Yep walk in pairs. You don’t have to outrun the bear…… just your partner!

D
Guest
D
5 years ago

Wow Gunther that comment made my day 👍🏻 Honey works great too

Hick
Guest
Hick
5 years ago

CHAIN GANG!

Gypsy Rose
Guest
Gypsy Rose
5 years ago

Does that bear spray work?

Orange Sunshine
Guest
Orange Sunshine
5 years ago
Reply to  Gypsy Rose

Yes it does. Spray it on yourself. Bears don’t like spicy food.