California is, well, California. Besides being America’s utopian ideal for the civilian disarmament industry, the left coast’s great minds work damned hard to ensure that even defensive measures are difficult to acquire or downright illegal. This is a place, for instance that tried (though thankfully failed) to ban civilians from owning body armor. Self-defense ammo is banned in San Francisco. We could go on, but the list is virtually endless.
But we can’t blame the ban on carrying bear spray in California’s national parks on Golden Staters. The parks are under the aegis of the National Park Service. The feds.
That’s right, if you’re going to be hiking, camping, or carrying a pick-a-nick basket into Yosemite or one of the other four national parks in Cali, don’t bring bear spray with you. It’s against the law. As ActiveNorCal notes, that usually comes as a surprise to visitors from normal states where carrying a (somewhat) effective defense against being mauled by a bear is just common sense.
What’s the rationale for outlawing bear spray?
The reason it is banned comes down to the bears themselves. California’s national parks are home exclusively to black bears, which are far less aggressive than grizzlies. The National Park Service says bear spray is unnecessary for black bear encounters and that no one has been killed or seriously injured by a black bear in Yosemite’s recorded history.
Oh. They claim you really don’t have to worry about California’s black bears. They’re just more docile there.
Are black bears in Arkansas just more ornery? How about Canadian black bears? What’s pissing them off in Minnesota? Have the park rangers heard about the black bear that harassed and then killed a northern California woman in her own home?
But don’t worry, hikers and campers. The National Park Service assures us you won’t need bear spray in the parks they manage. Just make sure you don’t inadvertently surprise a momma bear and her cub.
What do they suggest you you carry instead of spray (or, God forbid, a Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan)?
Air horns are one of the best options. The sudden, loud blast can startle and deter a bear that has gotten too close, giving you time to back away. They are small, lightweight and easy to clip to a pack or belt loop.
Bear bells are another common choice. Attached to your pack or clothing, they produce a consistent jingling noise as you hike that alerts bears to your presence before you get close. The idea is simple: most bears want to avoid people, and giving them advance warning lets them move away on their own.
We guess it’s going to take someone getting mauled or killed by a black bear some day to finally convince the USFWS to allow visitors to tote a can of bear spray in California’s national parks. Hell, even the California Department of Parks allows it in the state’s parks. Until then, proceed with caution.
I had a close encounter with a female black bear and her cubs above Mammoth Lakes on a well traveled trail where kids had been walking. Unfortunately for me there was nobody else in sight when she spotted me fishing from about 70 yards away as they sauntered along that trail. I remained still and continued fishing while not fishing at all, just watching the bear. She hid her cubs behind a tree and we starred at each other for many minutes. No dangerous moves just starring.
The spell was broken when two men hiked up to the lake and I called to them to come see a bear. As soon as the mom saw the others the family high tailed up the mountain behind the lake.
It’s been scientifically proven that California Black Bears don’t like spicy food. They’re an important oppressed and persecuted minority whose values the Party respects. Not to mention beinn a voting bloc whose historical disenfranchisement the Party is working hard to remedy.
Mr A.H. in 1930s Germany was a vegetarian and animal lover. He too also didn’t believe in lethal force against bears. Just like the white Leftists do.
“you’ll know brown bear poop because it smells like pepper and has lots of little bells in it.”
I once had a bear chase me up to my front porch and decided to start hunting bears. I bought a bow and trained, got a license, got a bear tag and went into my local mountains during bear season. I hunted Bear with my Bow locally and with a rifle when in the mountains (while I was also deer hunting). When I was getting the bow, I purchased some pepper spray and I asked the shop keep if pepper spray worked and he replied, ” I like to get on the side of the hill so I can defend myself “. I asked again and rephrased, well the pepper spray says Bear repellant so it must work right ? and he said..” I like to get on the side of the hill so I can defend myself “.
Someone is confused here. First the NPS and the USFWS are different bureaucracies with different jurisdictions. The NPS has indeed banned bear spray in CecA parks but this has to be a local decision since other parks in other places recommended the stuff. As such it could be overriden by HQ. If you are one of the lucky few to have a CA CCW you can carry a gun per the national park carry bill of a decade ago. Beware though since both CA and the NPS erects numerous fences around this right. Best to consult a CA lawyer with a firearms practice or do what I do and never set foot in the state. BTW if you are carrying bear spray in a place where it is legal in CA and use for defense against a human attacker that is illegal. You must use a smaller container for that action.