Share the backcountry safely: avoid, respect, and handle wildlife encounters.
Most wildlife encounters end with nothing worse than a good story, and the ones that don’t usually start with food or surprise. These guides cover how to avoid trouble and what to do if it finds you: bears, cougars, moose and other large animals, and snakes, spiders and stinging insects. They also cover storing food so animals never learn that your camp means a meal.
How bear spray works and why it outperforms firearms, choosing a can in the US and Canada, carrying it where you can draw it, when and how to spray a charging bear, what to do afterwards, and the practical rules for cold, heat, expiry, flying and the border.
Most dangerous wildlife encounters are invited by the smell of food in camp. How to store food and manage odors with canisters, bear hangs, and clean-camp habits so nothing has a reason to visit.
The small creatures hurt the most people. How to avoid snakes, spiders, scorpions, ticks, and stinging insects — and treat a bite or sting calmly, including the signs of anaphylaxis.
Bears, moose, bison, and mountain lions each need a different response, and some are opposites. How to avoid the encounter, read the animal, and act correctly when it matters.
