Bear Spray for Camping: What I Tell Every Camper Before They Head Out
Every spring I get the same call. Someone booked a camping trip, they are heading into bear country for the first time, and they want to know what to carry. I have been in the self defense business since the early 90s, so I have had this talk a over a hundred times. Let me save you the phone call. Bear Country Does Not Care How Prepared You Feel You can pack the perfect cooler, set up the nicest tent, and still cross paths with a bear that wandered into your site looking for food. That is the reality of camping where bears live. A bear is not out to get you. It is following its nose. Your job is to have a tool ready in case that nose leads it too close. That tool is bear spray. Not the little keychain pepper spray in your car door. A real can built for wildlife, with the range and the fog cloud to stop a charge before it reaches you. Why Camping Changes the Math Camping is different from a quick day hike. You are out there overnight. You are cooking, sleeping, and moving ...
