Hey, Bear!

Woody is convinced that she saved all of our lives during the second half of our Taggart Lake hike.  I'll let you be the judge.

When we decided to take the hike to Taggart Lake, Woody asked the ranger if we needed bear spray.  Her answer was "No.  It is a fairly popular trail so you really don't have anything to worry about."  So off we went, bearspray-less.  The first half of the trail was just as the ranger described - solitude but enough other hikers on the trail that we didn't feel completely alone.  There is comfort that other people are around while hiking in grizzly country.

There was a definite change on the second half of the hike.

Point #1:  Animals start to get more active in the late afternoon.  As we set off from the lake, we realized that it was getting late in the day.  Not dark by any means but the sun was definitely on the downswing.

Point #2:  There were no other hikers making noise to alert animals to the presence of people.  The hike to Taggart Lake is a loop trail - and we had taken it the opposite way as most hikers, which put us completely alone on the trail.

Point #3:  Taggart Lake trail is one blind corner after another.  Blind corners + wildlife = startling said wildlife which really pisses them off.

Point #4:  Taggart Lake trail is by a stream which masks the noise made by hikers.  See above about startling wildlife.

Point #5:  Taggart Lake trail goes through tons of berry patches.  Wildlife likes to eat berries.

Point #6:  Moose are present in the area of the Taggart Lake trail.  Moose are not nice hiking buddies.  And they are HUGE!  We saw moose scat on the trail and a tree rub that had to be from a moose due to the size.  (This theory was later confirmed by a ranger.)

Point #7:  Elk are present in the area of Taggart Lake trail.  Elk are in rut.  Elk in rut are not nice hiking buddies.  And they are HUGE!  We saw bunches of elk scat on the trail and bunches of tree rubs.  And we heard a bull elk bugle.

Point #8:  Taggart Lake trail is near Moose-Wilson Road, which has been closed due to heavy grizzly activity in the berry patches.  Also, see #5 above about the berry patches.

Point #9:  Grizzly bears are present in the area of Taggart Lake trail.  On the trail, we saw bear scat and a huge, fresh paw print with claw prints that still gives me shivers to think about.

Point #10:  And we did NOT HAVE BEAR SPRAY!!!  Woody says she will never ever again hike in bear country without bear spray.  If for no other reason than her own peace of mind.

Due to all these factors, Woody did what she has learned from all her reading of Backpacker Magazine.  She shouted "Hey Bear!" and shouted "Hey Bear!" and shouted "Hey Bear!".  She also shouted for the bears to not eat her, that she didn't taste good, that they could ask the mosquitos.  She felt pretty silly but nothing will convince her that she did not save all our lives.

At least we had a nice view if we had been eaten....