Glaciers, Grizzlies & Knowing Yourself

A few friends have encouraged me to share a recent adventure I had in the Chilcotin and Bella Coola Valley (Discovery Coast Circle Tour). In a combo truck-camp and bike-hike get away I covered over 2,000KM and 33,000M of elevation; starting in the Comox Valley, Sunshine Coast, Fraser Canyon, up to the Chilcotin, over the notorious Highway 20 to Bella Coola, then back to the Island ~ Port Hardy, San Josef Bay, Telegraph Cove and home!

With my Garmin GPS, FATMAP and AllTrails (Apps) and my SPOT Messenger I explored some awesome mountains and terrain (think the cover pic above over and over again). Much of this was co-powered by my amazing Kranked Bike (e-MTB) which I call my HOG (Hand of God) ~ I’m reasonably fit, but this kit can make average mountain bikers into superhuman climbing machines!

While I always enjoy exploring new trails and discovering hidden gems, there are sometimes situations that catch you by surprise. On this particular outing, a surprise came in the form of a charging Grizzly bear! I was riding on a gentle river trail [Snootli Creek, Bella Coola] and came across a fallen tree blocking the path. After taking a minute to see if there was an easy way around it I lugged my bike over the tree and started to climb over it. Out-of-nowhere, a large Grizzly appeared! Immediately JOLTED, for lack of a better word, I stepped back from trying to cross the fallen tree. WHOA Bear!

I quickly realized that this was a mother bear with two little cubs who hurriedly climbed a tree beside her, they were 12-15 metres away from me. The mother bear was at the base of the tree with her cubs, with me behind the fallen tree.

In what felt like a surreal situation, with no time for emotions, I tried to assess what was happening. The bear looked completely startled and confused. She made loud huffing and snorting noises, pounced her front paws several times, swayed, swiped debris back and forth, stood on her hind legs, and spun in circles. She also circled the tree with the cubs a couple of times. This behaviour took about a minute, which was enough time for me to get my air horn out of my bike pack (reaching over the tree) and to ready my bear spray which I had on my hip pack.

Seconds later she charged, covering about half the distance between us. While I did have my bear spray at the ready, I didn't think that would be my best first response. I knew that she needed to be closer for the spray to be effective and the bike and tree "seemed" to provide a bit of a barrier. With two blasts of the horn she retreated. This exchange happened twice more in what felt like a very short period of time.

On the third charge I did not use the horn because I didn't want to agitate her further. She was defending her cubs and I did not want to pose a threat, despite my presence. I had a sense that things were either going to calm down or get much worse… After this third charge she appeared to be more settled. I then decided to retrieve my bike since it felt like the bike was also aggravating her. I mounted my bike, waited a second or two, and then pedalled out the way I came. She did not give chase.

The story is not quite over! On heading back to the trailhead, I then heard what sounded like a bunch of kids. Out for a forest walk were three Mom’s and 7 preschoolers! I quickly told them what just happened and walked with them back to their vehicles. I then left the area and rode 60KM up and down the highway to burn off the Adrenaline! [I reported the encounter to the BC Conservation Officer Service.]

So, with respect to the “knowing yourself” part of this post, I share a few thoughts that I hope others might benefit from.

Firstly, as I think many people might agree, it’s one thing to prepare for the unexpected [in this case having some deterrents at the ready] but what really counts is gaining knowledge. I knew there were bears in the area, so I wasn’t entirely shocked to see one. I've had several "less intense" encounters before, albeit with Black Bears not Grizzlies. Because I’m typically solo on trips like this I take a lot of time to prepare. I've read several books about bears and as funny as it may seem, I feel that my love of nature documentaries helped with some visual association. The combination of these things allowed me to be more relaxed with the situation than I expected.

Secondly, and this is simply a personal reflection, I'm typically cool under pressure and tend to like adrenaline filled experiences. Also, I work with tech-based Startups who often find themselves in high-demand and high-stress situations! My point here is that the line between the expected and the unexpected is often thinner than you might think. Getting comfortable with being uncomfortable gets easier over time.

Lastly, I wonder if we can all deal with much more than we might think? Bears just wanna be bears. Us humans tend to make things really complicated, lol. At times, we are simply NOT in control of our environment, or whatever may get thrown at us! The forest may catch on fire, you’ll get a flat tire, the power will go out, and for sure the printer will stop working for some unknown reason. You get the picture! In short, don’t hit the panic button. Hold fast, keep calm, assess the situation. You can deal with more than you think!

PS. I’ve been told I was lucky the fallen tree stopped me before I got within petting distance of the bear. She was right on the trail and I simply did not see her! I’m hugely grateful to tell this story unscathed. For those interested in learning more about bears please watch this video, Staying Safe in Bear Country. Thanks to John-Paul Obbagy and Grant MacHutchon for your advice on this encounter.