Man vs. Grizzly Bear in Roger's Pass

Chris Rice wrote:do you always carry a machete while climbing?

Nope. But I do carry a kukri (aka, machete) when 'Bear Warning' signs are posted on the trails in the rockies. The purpose of the knife is for self-defense against wildlife attacks, not trailblazing!

clay meier wrote:U saw a bear while hiking and that prompted all this? Why couldn't you just walk around the bear?

No way to 'walk around the bear' on this trail! Plus, there was a forest ranger there who COMMANDED us to stay up. I assume if we attempted to circumnavigate the bear we would have received a citation

Beean wrote:What'd you need the machete for? I've never needed one for trail blazing except back home in the jungles of Straya. It could probably be argued that having it showed intent to harm flora/fauna. Anyway, machetes are good at cutting, not so much stabbing. Swing one at a bear and it probably will make it angrier. I assume the ban on filming is because people with GoPros usually possess selfie sticks, (which in itself should be illegal) which means that they get stupidly close to wildlife in an attempt to get that sweet shot bro. This makes wildlife anxious or angry which usually results in a trampled tourist calling for the animal to be put down.

Nah, if I swung this thing at a bear's head, it would split the beast in two. It's friggin SHARP and weighty .. no good for close-in defense (I carry ANOTHER knife for that), but very good for stopping the charge ... if you connect, obviously

JesseJames wrote: Nah, if I swung this thing at a bear's head, it would split the beast in two. It's friggin SHARP and weighty .. no good for close-in defense (I carry ANOTHER knife for that), but very good for stopping the charge ... if you connect, obviously

How many blades do you climb with? You're doing something very very wrong. Or very very right. 'Murica.