Submitted by Screamin Steven
I did not witness the events at Springer Shelter on the morning of
the bear incident (April 20, 2004). Nevertheless, I have gained
information from three different eye-witnesses, on three different
occasions.
I heard the story first from the Bear Magnet himself at Neil's Gap,
about a week after the event. This is from his journal
http://www.guanotronic.com/~gshim/at2004/
04.20.04
Ending Location: Springer Mountain Shelter.
As I got off the train today in Gainesville, GA, I saw three oddly dressed fellows with big backpacks. They were wearing nice shirts and slacks with suspenders, all looking the same and apparently Amish. They're names are Amos, Rufus and Liam, or Leon. They have the heaviest Pennsylvanian accents I've ever heard, though each of them speaks differently. ... When I reached the summit, the caretaker was waiting to greet me and give some advice for the area. He had heard rumors of a pack being destroyed by a bear at the first shelter the night before. I set up camp at this shelter, Springer Mountain Shelter, with the three Pennsylvanians, Gary, who I met on the approach trail and some one just back from Iraq...
04.21.04
Starting Location: Springer Mountain Shelter
Well, let me begin with last night. I was awakened by the sound of sniffing and snorting by my feet. Then CHOMP! And I heard my pack disappearing quickly into the woods. About one minute later he (the bear) returned to steal my Tyvek sheet. Why would a bear ever want Tyvek? So I was a little concerned at this point. All of my money and ID are kept in that pack, plus I need it to carry all my stuff. Anyway, I ended up quite lucky. I found only two bite holes in the pack, three in my AT data book, and four in my rain pants. He destroyed the stuff sac for my rain gear though.
Then, about a week after Neil's, I met the Flying Dutchmen, Amos, Rufus, and Leon. They did not have a whole lot to add to the story. Only one of them got a glimpse of the bear. It was cold that morning, and they did not want to get out of their bags inside the shelter.
I met the third witness to the incident, five whole MONTHS later,
in Maine. His trail name was One Thang, and he claims to have
been in the Springer shelter with the Dutchmen on the night of the 20th.
He said he woke up to a bear messing with the food bag lines. One Thang
confronted the bear, yelling, with his hiking poles high in the air.
He said the bear turned at him, 10 feet away, and made the full height
display right back. At this point, he dropped his poles, lowered his
arms, and just stood, gap-jawed. He was not expecting that. Bear went
back to messing with the lines for a minute, then went out to explore
the rest of the camp.
One Thang says it nudged someone in a hammock, making it swing,
then dragged gear away from underneath. This must have been Magnet,
eh?
I do not KNOW that One Thang is Gary, but I think it is possible.
He said he trains police in self-defense for a living. He did not
mention Iraq to me though.
Fortunately, a bear never approached my camp on this hike. Well,
I did not SEE any. At night though, I often heard large animals
walking through camp. They were usually deer, sometimes pigs, and,
well, a few of them must have been bears. When mystery beast
came too close to my tent, I would slap the ground, and hiss.
Side-note:
By Virginia, thru-hikers had generally become lazy about stringing
the bear bags. Shelter rats generally hung their food from mouse-lines
directly in front of the opening. Tenters would sleep right next to
their food. Of course, most hikers will use the bear boxes and critter
lines if provided, but by the end of the trip few thru-hikers would
ever go to the trouble of rigging their own line. We became more
focused on defending our food against small to medium-sided animals.
Mice, Raccoons, Opossums. Mice are fearless at night, when people are
lying down. Slick lines rigged with an inverted tuna-can
above a slick food bag does a good job against them. Most medium
sized mammals are loathe to approach the immediate vicinity of people.
Magnet has a counter-example... His sleeping space was invaded
by a skunk in Blood Mountain Shelter less than a week after the bear
incident. It occurs to me that my pounding the ground and hissing
defense does not work well here.
Well, anyway, I think if enough people hang food pinatas over their heads
for enough nights, one of those nights that bear is going to come right
into the shelter to play. (shudder) My tent is my fortress.