All the stupid things people do out there and you never hear of a black bear killing and mauling, which by the way shows a huge amount of discipline on their behalf
over the years, it has happened though......
it's rare, but it does happen....
there was the guy up at spence field that had an incident with the bear coming into his tent and
chewing on him in 2016....
the kid down on hazel that was in the hammock that got some injuries.....that was 2015......
there's been one fatal attack in the Park in 2000........that was along little river trail.....
and there was the little girl that was killed in 2006 but that was in cherokee national forest, which is just nearby the Park.......
so it does happen in that area but in a way, with the visitation in the Park alone, it doesn't happen often.....
there are however, bear incidents, where a person might get injured from a bear in some sort of other way (and the Park keeps track of
these to monitor specific areas and specific bears in their habits)......
most of these are stuff like a person might have approached the bear for a better picture and the
bear might have done something that spooked said person........and they trip and fall from running away
and might break their leg or get scratched up by fall......
So it does happen, ( a couple i didn't know about thank you)but it happens mostly in the smokies or close proximity of correct? As opposed to the rest of the east coast black bear attacks , or anywhere else black bear attacks. And I hate to ask ya but as a journalist or whatever for however many years what is your gut feeling on this one! PS, if we could only convince the crowds that the bears are more dangerous than the virus, maybe that will keep them out.
Last edited by JNI64; 09-19-2020 at 01:49.
retired journalist.......
those are the ones i remember over the years, and most i have covered in some sorta fashion.....
and for the fatal in 2000------that happened on a sunday, and i was hiking the same trail, in the same vicinity and saw
the two bears on the previous friday........
i was warned by other hikers that the bears were following people and being aggressive (they didnt define that to me nor did i see it
from the 5 to ten minutes i saw the two bears).....
but, if you google and/or search this forum, other black bear attacks from other parts of the country and canada have been documented.....
the fatals generally are the easiest to find as those are pretty much always covered by media of various sorts......
and if you're asking me for my gut feeling on this------i'd rather not speculate nor play arm chair quarterback.....
i'd rather wait til the facts, as they are known, to come out in the investigation....
and first fact is cause of death.....
that will answer a bunch of questions of what people have......
Agreeing with TNHiker on this one.
Fatal bear attacks are so rare, we can't jump to the conclusion that the bear was responsible. While random deaths of what appears to be a responsible backpacker prepared for the conditions they are facing lends credence to the notion it was the bear, there are a host of medical conditions that can happen without warning. I had a friend who lost a sister to an anurisim at age 21. It was caused by an unknown defect in the girl's brain that never affected her life until this defect killed her.
And then there is the possibility of an accident. The guy was found by the creek. He might have gone down to the creek to get water, slipped on a rock, fell hitting his head knocking him unconscious and allowing him to drown. And then there is suicide... People have gone off into the Smokies to commit suicide (though I don't know if any previously known suicide was carried out by someone who has a tent and valid hiking permit... hence the reason I was pissed for the family when I saw someone say on Facebook "I think it was suicide" when the ONLY evidence they even admitted they were going by was the guy was age 43).
In other words, there are so many possibilities that until we have more evidence to point in a particular direction, any speculation at this point is really nothing more than a guess.
(though I don't know if any previously known suicide was carried out by someone who has a tent and valid hiking permit... hence the reason I was pissed for the family when I saw someone say on Facebook "I think it was suicide" when the ONLY evidence they even admitted they were going by was the guy was age 43).
and most suicides in the Park, seem to be in a parking lot or a pull off on the side of the road....
the exception to this one, that i can recall off the top of my head, was Jenny Bennett.....
she took her life on one of her favorite off trail routes in the Park......
(that one was eerie as i have been on a hike with her and then i went to cover---at first, just a missing woman in the park, later it was ruled suicide----
and then seeing her car at the trailhead)...
there's also Derek Lueking, who left behind a note that said don't bother looking for him and then set off somewhere from
newfound gap parking lot.............and his body has not been found..............while most will draw a conclusion that he did commit suicide,
i think since cause of death has not been determined since the body hasnt been found----that case will stay open (i could be wrong about this though)....
so very rarely do people get out in the backcountry and kill themselves as opposed to areas i described above....
i think for the most part, people want to be found after this happens....
ive heard some stories from some rangers about various suicides in the Park------one guy called the Park and described what parking lot
and what kinda vehicle they would find his body in.....
and during the Derek search, the rangers came across a suicide that either in or close by to newfound gap.....
Certainly are alot worse places to take your last nap...... I'd probably head into the back country myself......
HooKooDooKu-
Not that I need more craziness, but what's the name of the Facebook group?
Thanks
Rusty
Hiking the Smokies
Based on what I've seen today, it looks like posts about the incident have started to peter off... For the last week, everyone that seemed to have just learned about it had to post to the group as if it were the first announcement on the subject. But usually the comments quickly would turn nasty (like comments on the euthanized bear or some other aspect of the situation) the admins would soon have to lock or delete the thread
Based on what I've seen today, it looks like posts about the incident have started to peter off... For the last week, everyone that seemed to have just learned about it had to post to the group as if it were the first announcement on the subject. But usually the comments quickly would turn nasty (like comments on the euthanized bear or some other aspect of the situation) the admins would soon have to lock or delete the thread
yeah......thats how it is with any controversial subject or close to it....
people need to listen to people like Daryl R who provides education in things related to wildlife instead of going
on their uneducated opinion.....
he knows what he is talking about (ya know, science and all that) but yet people try to contradict him.....
it's worse when people say they saw a panther in the Park...
Absolutely correct. If I'm not mistaken there have been a couple of members here that have become despondent enough to end their lives in the wilderness. These are very tough times for quite a few folks. The autopsy and accompanying lab work will provide a clearer picture of what happened.
Anymore news on this anyone?