Alright. We don’t have any lions and tigers in the Canadian woods. But we Do have bears! Lot’s of them.
I’m writing this blog because of a news item in today’s Toronto Star:
“Muskoka man too traumatized to talk after bear attack.”
It seems a hiker has been attacked and severly mauled by a Black Bear on a hiking trail near Orillia, Ontario. This is an area just over an hour’s drive north from Toronto. The Muskoka cottage region is a popular summer destination.
Another reason I am writing this stems from a recent conversation I had with a friend from the U.K. I have always regarded her a a bright, articulate and well-read individual.
She informed me categorically that Black Bears DO NOT attack people. (Tell that to the guy in the Intensive Care Unit after his meeting with Mr.Bruin in Muskoka.)
In this instance, my friend is sadly misinformed. Bear attacks are extremely rare. But they DO occur.
Earlier this year, we also had a young girl hiker mauled-to-death by coyotes on a hike in Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. Before this incident, no one had even heard of coyotes attacking an adult human.
Keep in mind that wild animal attacks on humans are extremely rare in Canada.
You may legally carry a “Bear Spray” that can be purchased in most outdoor stores such as “Mountain Equipment Co-op” located just two blocks from the hostel.
Does the spray work? I personally have never used it but I imagine it is considerably more effective than throwing rocks!
Here is a link to a Parks Canada website that tells you what to do should you have a threatening encounter with a bear:
http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/nt/nahanni/visit/visit8.aspx#spray
But don’t agonize over the possibility of a bear encounter. A lot of my friends who were born and raised here in Ontario have never seen a bear outside of a zoo!
But DO enjoy our fabulous north country!
