Posted by: Brocklanders
So was just having a chat with someone about the grizzly factor a few days ago in the Chilcotins. Have a friend who was bluff charged near Eldorado cabin a few years back.
This is the first attack on a rider there I have heard of.... Not too far from Spruce lake...
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/man-injured-grizzly-bear-attack-bc-1.5689571
I just got back from a 4-day self-supported tour on Friday. I've done 3-4 day tours almost every year since 2014. This doesn't really surprise me. There are 200+ Grizzlies in the park and even if you make as much noise as you can, there are so many blind areas. It was really just a matter of time. There were also a ton of people in the park this year, or at least way more than I'd seen in the past. It just seems like a bit of a numbers game. More people, mean more encounters. New docks, pit toilets, bear caches, picnic tables, trail work, etc. My money is on more people visiting the park in the near future. It's just my two cents, but these things seem a bit counter to keeping a healthy wildlife population.
My group met a hiker while staying at Lorna that had a run-in on Wednesday with a mother and yearling that were hanging around Lorna/Elbow Pass. She had a surprise encounter and met them at close range while cresting Lorna pass. She ended up letting out a puff of bear spray to send the bears back over the pass, so she could retreat. My buddy and I came in Relay and the group ahead of ours saw a grizzly in a meadow about halfway into the Relay trail. We talked to some people that had seen a grizzly up on Manson Creek trail. Our group ran into a bear that we spotted early about 100m off, close to the Tyax Bear Paw camp. We waited him out until he was done eating. The place is special but it does seem like the park would benefit from fewer visitors. Would definitely be curious to hear what others think.
