On a recent sunny evening at Kincaid Park, a group of Anchorage residents gathered around a charging bear — printed out and taped to a foam posterboard.
Marian Snively, a wildlife education specialist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, gave instruction.
“Isabel, you’re going around the corner, and there’s a bear,” she said. “What do you do?”
“Grab my deterrent,” responded Isabel Grant with Defenders of Wildlife as she raised her bear spray in front of her. “Stop. Assess.”
In this scenario, the bear then got even closer.
Grant leveled her canister at the foam animal.
“I point and I spray,” she said, deploying the deterrent and releasing a cloud of capsaicin.
One by one, each participant stepped up to take their turn spraying the foam bear. The goal of this free wildlife safety demonstration, organized by Grant and Snively, was to let residents actually practice using bear spray — so that if they run into a bear, it’s not their first time using it. Using bear spray is an important skill to practice, Snively said, especially in a city where it’s not uncommon to run into the animals, whether in the backcountry, or even in your neighborhood.
“I think when you do see a bear, you’re going to be like, ‘Oh my God, that’s a bear,’” Grant said. “But having that information in the back of your head, always reviewing what you should do, and if you see a bear when you go out, you’ll be a lot more prepared.”
Throughout the evening, each person stood in front of the foam bear as Snively coached them through grabbing their canister, removing the safety, aiming and spraying.
“So you just press down, but keep your finger out of the nozzle,” she said, nodding as the participant deployed their bear spray. “There you go. Okay, who's next?”
Every year, Fish and Game responds to bear reports in Anchorage. So far this year, area biologist Cory Stantorf said the number of human-bear interactions has been right around average. Midsummer, these numbers typically drop, when bears can rely on salmon and berries for food. But in late summer and early fall, there may be a small increase again.
“Once the salmon and Devil’s Club berries are done, we see kind of an uptick there,” Stantorf said.
During the summer months, Grant said, it’s important to remember that all of Alaska is bear country. Being prepared with the right gear and knowing how to use it is key.
There are also some common misconceptions when it comes to bear encounters, Snively said. One: Don’t run from a bear. And two: Don’t use bear spray like you use bug spray.
“Some people think that bear spray, they don't realize it's actually also an attractant,” she said. “And so if you want to spray around your tent, thinking that's going to keep a bear away, that could actually attract it, because it's got a strong sense of smell.”
At Kincaid, participants got multiple chances to practice spraying the foam bear before a well-timed gust of wind blew it over.
“Oh, you got it!” one person called out as others laughed. “It’s running away!”
One participant, Ruthann Dodson of Anchorage, said she had never used bear spray before the demonstration.
“It was a very positive and informative demonstration and meeting tonight with our gals,” Dodson said. “I found it was easier to basically unlock the safety cap than what you think, and to step in and spray so that hopefully it'll be a good enough shot to send them on their way.”
She said she walked away from the presentation feeling much more prepared.
