Fears while paddling or on canoe trips

[jdeerfoot]

So far in almost 20 years of travel in the Canadian bush the bear seem to be timid and quickly vacate the area when we are around. We have attributed this to the fact that most of our trips have been in lightly traveled areas so they are not habituated to humans.

When I first met Clem Quenville of Armstrong ON in September 2007 I noted we had not seen any bear. He started pointing out the bear scat on the logging road he was shuttling us out on. And last year we made a fairly long portage on a long abandoned road east of Savant Lake and on the way in saw no scat but a week later the same road had numerous piles on the way out. They are definitely out there.

 

[Steve in Idaho]

Getting severely polluted water in my mouth or eyes. I’d love to get back to worriying about big windy wild lakes.

Oh yeah, that's one of mine. And it's a real concern in my area. The lower Boise river runs right through the Capitol City and then the rest of the valley on its way to the Snake River. Between the runoff from streets and yards after a rainstorm and the runoff from nearby farms with gravity irrigation, I am careful not to ingest any of that water - not even a drop.

And then there's the Snake. The farming and dairy industry have taken their toll on that river. Not safe for consumption anywhere west of Island Park, as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

I have nowhere near the kind of deep bush experience as some of you....I am in awe, frankly.

Extremely well-written and entertaining-to-read post, Rob. Contribute more often.

 

[ppine]

Hi Rob,
Working in the bush in SE Alaska we encountered bears every day. None of them had likely ever seen a human. All were somewhat curious. They did not run away. They showed no fear. A couple of male black bears followed us around for several hours. We were doing scientific work with our heads down. I would look up and he would be there again and always behind me on my 6. Very unnerving. Much worse than coming around a corner and seeing several coastal brown bears fishing.

 

[yknpdlr]

As I have heard AF fighter pilots often say.... "a MIG at your 6 is better than no MIG at all"

 

[Rob]

Hi Rob,
Working in the bush in SE Alaska we encountered bears every day. None of them had likely ever seen a human. All were somewhat curious. They did not run away. They showed no fear. A couple of male black bears followed us around for several hours. We were doing scientific work with our heads down. I would look up and he would be there again and always behind me on my 6. Very unnerving. Much worse than coming around a corner and seeing several coastal brown bears fishing.

It is a very peculiar feeling when, as an apex predator yourself, another predator sizes you up.

 

[Jim Dodd]

I confess I haven't followed this thread.
But Fear is a necessary evil. It keeps our senses sharp.
So embrace fear as it keeps us alive.

Sorry, if it sounded a little like a Chinese proverb !

Jim

 

[Pseudonym]

A stripper’s proverb!

 

[Alan Gage]

A stripper’s proverb!

Was that a Freudian slip or did I miss something?

Alan

 

[Pseudonym]

Ha, well, @Jim Dodd builds strippers, so… it struck me as funny in the moment!

 

[Alan Gage]

Ha, well, @Jim Dodd builds strippers, so… it struck me as funny in the moment!

I should have caught that. Nice one.

I'd assumed you meant to type "Tripper's"

Alan

 

[Pseudonym]

@Alan Gage, another good one! I guess us Royalex guys skew a little more sophomoric.

 

[Erica]

I cannot find the quote, but it was from an intrepid explorer who, when asked if he was ever afraid when wilderness tripping, answered, “Every minute.” Sometime I’ll run into that quote again and give it credit.

 

[wjmc]

I cannot find the quote, but it was from an intrepid explorer who, when asked if he was ever afraid when wilderness tripping, answered, “Every minute.” Sometime I’ll run into that quote again and give it credit.

In Sigurd Olson's classic, "The Lonely Land," he quotes the Canadian geologist and explorer, Charles Camsell:

"Of course I've known fear," he said, "but always fear laced with exhilaration."

Could that be the quote you're looking for?

 

[Erica]

In Sigurd Olson's classic, "The Lonely Land," he quotes the Canadian geologist and explorer, Charles Camsell:

"Of course I've known fear," he said, "but always fear laced with exhilaration."

Could that be the quote you're looking for?

I don’t think so, but it still a good one.

 

[dramey]

I have camped for over 60 years. I have camped in most of the States in the USA, Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, British Columbia, and Yukon, Canada. I have camped in the winter when the temperatures dropped to -55F. I am as comfortable camping as I am in my own house. At my house I have had moose, caribou, black bears, brown bears, and wolves in my yard. We have had baby moose born in our back yard. We even had a duck fall down our chimney and ended up in our woodstove one summer. Our dog got into a fight with a Bald Eagle over a moose leg bone in our back yard. I have shared a trail with a brown bear that was as tall as my shoulder when he was on all four feet and only 20-50 feet in front of me. I have moved rattlesnakes from a trail so that I could continue my hike. I have been in a swamp when the person in front of me was bitten by a cottonmouth. We have had a skunk come into our camp, sniff around, weave in and out around my wife’s legs just like a house cat would do. I have had bats less than 6” from my face as I was exploring a cave in West Virginia. I have even seen a wolf take a dump in the woods. As i sit here, I can’t think of anything I am afraid of when I go canoeing and camping. Animals can sense fear and their behavior changes when they sense fear from you. I am cautious around animals and they have my respect, but I am not afraid of them. I am also confident in my skills and judgement when I am canoeing, camping, hiking, hunting, fishing, etc.

 

[PaddlingPitt]

I feel the same way, dramey. Perhaps posters are responding differently based on interpretation of the word “fears.” Kathleen and I have never been “afraid,” but certainly are cautious and concerned about potential threats and dangers. We always eagerly pursued wilderness canoeing, unafraid, always with those concerns in mind and planned for.

 

[scoutergriz]

Yup, having grown up in nature for over 6 decades, while I have a healthy respect for the bush and it's inhabitants, my only real fear is the 2 legged type doing 75-80 miles an hour in 2 tons of steel and plastic 2' away from my door

 

[tketcham]

...my only real fear is the 2 legged type doing 75-80 miles an hour in 2 tons of steel and plastic 2' away from my door

That's why I gave up riding on roads with my bicycle, drivers have become so distracted and even outright negligent, that I don't trust them to see me, let alone acknowledge I'm there. Haven't ridden roads for almost fifteen years. A friend of mine was killed by a distracted driver a few years ago. Animals, weather, waves, all can be respected, it's people that can be scary.