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Northern NJ Bear Sightings 2007


Team Rampant Lion

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Where do you live, Natureboy, I think you may qualify for a fine for feeding the bears.

 

High Bridge. He (she?) came right up onto my front porch in the middle of night and helped himself to a meal of sun flower hearts. I guess since i didn't actual see him I don't qualify for first to see a bear.

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I think I need to draw a bear tag for Jersey....It may be because there's less woods and more people there,but it seems like you guys see a TON more bears than we do up in Vermont.

 

They're more like ghosts up here.I know old timers that have gone a LONG time without seeing them...Then I turn on the news and see bears in broad daylight knocking over trash cans in NJ! .....with people watching/filming it :cool:

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Want to see a bear? Check out this Treequest hide! Read back through the logs.....he definitely calls this area home. More recently, while placing my latest cache I ran into another one. I was more that 2 miles from the car and getting a little nervous as I was seeing some sign and was alone. I had also not told anyone of my whereabouts that day. I was watching the trail carefully on the way out for tracks but didn't see any. There was however fresh markings on a few trees, so fresh that tree bark was on top of the snow on the trail. I was busy for maybe 40 minutes at GZ looking for that perfect spot. After I had found it and made the placement I heard a loud "crack" just above me. I thought (hoped real bad) that it was another hiker. As I approached the top of the knoll I heard it again. Only this time it was like "rip - crack!".....and it was coming from the direction I had to travel. An expletive came to mind....and was used. After a few more cautious steps along the trail I saw him and he saw me. He was ripping apart a stump, going for insects I imagine. I talked softly, then loudly....I began banging my hiking stick on a tree. He was not moving.....and he was just off the trail. He was looking at me, nose in the air sniffing me out and I realized we were having a stare-off....which isn’t good. So I backed away slowly and bushwhacked to a switchback on the trail, keeping an eye on my new friend along the way. He stayed put. Must have been a good meal. Heart pounding, I'm heading back to the car when I notice a print...funny....I didn't see that on the way in.....then I see another and it dawns on me the tracks were heading the opposite direction. He was FOLLOWING ME?? Another expletive emerges. I try to call my caching buddy Deddog just so someone knows where I am. Of course there is no reception and I get cut off a few times. Just then another hiker comes around the corner and scares the living crap out of me. I explain to him what lies ahead and he doesn't seem all that concerned. He uses this trail as training grounds for his AT hikes. Says he's already done Georgia to West Virginia and has had plenty of bear encounters. I finally make it back to the car and I see he has all kinds of State Trooper stickers etc. on his. Figure he was a LEO and was more than likely packing heat, so he was safe. Anyhow....I speculated filling out an incident report. Actually the form is still on my desk. I ran into two rangers at the deli and asked if they patrolled that area. They said yes, and I went on to tell the same story above. Well, I guess that other hiker had a similar experience with the bear because HE filed an incident report that same day. Now, I've run into a few bears before in my career.....but I'm always making alot of noise cutting survey lines, so all I ever really got to see was "bear-butt" because they were always running away. I didn't like the fact that this one stood his ground. Seems to me that bears are getting more and more used to human exposure in New Jersey.

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Want to see a bear? Check out this Treequest hide! Read back through the logs.....he definitely calls this area home. More recently, while placing my latest cache I ran into another one. I was more that 2 miles from the car and getting a little nervous as I was seeing some sign and was alone. I had also not told anyone of my whereabouts that day. I was watching the trail carefully on the way out for tracks but didn't see any. There was however fresh markings on a few trees, so fresh that tree bark was on top of the snow on the trail. I was busy for maybe 40 minutes at GZ looking for that perfect spot. After I had found it and made the placement I heard a loud "crack" just above me. I thought (hoped real bad) that it was another hiker. As I approached the top of the knoll I heard it again. Only this time it was like "rip - crack!".....and it was coming from the direction I had to travel. An expletive came to mind....and was used. After a few more cautious steps along the trail I saw him and he saw me. He was ripping apart a stump, going for insects I imagine. I talked softly, then loudly....I began banging my hiking stick on a tree. He was not moving.....and he was just off the trail. He was looking at me, nose in the air sniffing me out and I realized we were having a stare-off....which isn’t good. So I backed away slowly and bushwhacked to a switchback on the trail, keeping an eye on my new friend along the way. He stayed put. Must have been a good meal. Heart pounding, I'm heading back to the car when I notice a print...funny....I didn't see that on the way in.....then I see another and it dawns on me the tracks were heading the opposite direction. He was FOLLOWING ME?? Another expletive emerges. I try to call my caching buddy Deddog just so someone knows where I am. Of course there is no reception and I get cut off a few times. Just then another hiker comes around the corner and scares the living crap out of me. I explain to him what lies ahead and he doesn't seem all that concerned. He uses this trail as training grounds for his AT hikes. Says he's already done Georgia to West Virginia and has had plenty of bear encounters. I finally make it back to the car and I see he has all kinds of State Trooper stickers etc. on his. Figure he was a LEO and was more than likely packing heat, so he was safe. Anyhow....I speculated filling out an incident report. Actually the form is still on my desk. I ran into two rangers at the deli and asked if they patrolled that area. They said yes, and I went on to tell the same story above. Well, I guess that other hiker had a similar experience with the bear because HE filed an incident report that same day. Now, I've run into a few bears before in my career.....but I'm always making alot of noise cutting survey lines, so all I ever really got to see was "bear-butt" because they were always running away. I didn't like the fact that this one stood his ground. Seems to me that bears are getting more and more used to human exposure in New Jersey.

 

And some still question me(And others) as to why we/I pack while caching... :cool:

 

Wow...The bear just looked at you....Where's that NJ fish and wildlife page at....

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NJ Out of State License page.

Article on the hunt.

 

The topic of a bear hunt always sparks contoversy in New Jersey. I gave up hunting years ago but thanks to this sport I still get to spend quality time in the woods. I have to admit, I was wishing I had the trusy old remington out there with me that day.

 

I apollogize,I'm straying this off topic too much,but one last thing to add-

 

I checked out the laws in Mass one year for hunting.... :(:):cool::(:( I can only imagine what Jersey will be like. :(

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Today while looking for Ramapo Mountains Micro Challenge Stage 2 (needless to say I never found the cache):

 

Today was the day. After finding Stage 1 two years ago I came back for Stage 2 (I hope it it's still where it was back then??). But it was not meant to be.

I had parked at Shepherd Lake and found 5 caches on the way here. This was to be my halfway point at approx. 9 miles into the hike and maybe 6 miles from the car the shortest possible distance... (I know - a long hike - but the weather was great for it). While looking for the cache and circling GZ several times (already starting to thing - hmmm - I wonder if it's still there) I noticed a dog about 40 feet away laying between some branches. It looked almost dead. I had seen a lost dog poster before by the old sheep farm about 1 1/2 miles north of hear (another cache there) but of course did not write the number down. The dog (Blue was the name) fit the description and was lost 3 days ago... I carefully lifted her out of her spot - not getting more reaction than some desperately looking eyes and a very shaky body. I carried her to the nearby intersection of pipelines and started calling for help as I was not able to carry her (about 30 pounds) all the way to my car and this is one of the few spots in the area with cellphone reception. I reached a friend who got the order to call NJ Park Rangers, Ringwood State Park and Ramapo County as I wasn’t sure who was responsible. I got a call back from a friendly NJ Park Ranger about 10 minutes later and proceeded to give my coordinates and describe my location using the NYNJTC trail map (I frankly don’t think the coordinates did them any good). They said the would send someone to pick me up but it would take at least 30 minutes as they have to come over from Wawayanda… So I settled in – managed to get Blue to drink a little water and eat some of my Granola bar… She was really in bad shape but I was very happy to see live returning slowly with every sip of water and bite of granola… So here we sit – waiting for rescue – and I hear leaves moving and small branches breaking – to big for a squirrel… Shortly thereafter I see the bear on the other side of the service road on top of a rock very interested in us. He came from the same direction we came from so I think he was already waiting for Blue to expire and become his next meal… My first thought was ‘this is really getting ridiculous – like in a bad B-Movie’ – I didn’t become fearful. I tried my air-horn that I carry to keep bears at distance – well – I don’t need to carry that anymore as the only thing that happened was that Blue got scared – I didn’t hear well for the next 10 minutes – and the bear didn’t even care. He slowly came closer in the woods – now maybe 150 feet away. I packed my things (and lost a couple – including a TB I had picked up at an earlier cache – my apologies) as I figured I better get moving. So here I am, 30 pounds of blue in my arms, my pack on my back walking down the service road to the Halifax trail. I was able in all that to get my cellphone and call the Rangers again to tell them I am on the move because a bear is trailing me…. The promised to speed things up and get there as soon as they can… So there I slowly walked, the bear about 200-300 feet behind me – now on the same service road. I stopped looking back and just kept slowly walking to the intersection with the Halifax trail. I turned around and no more bear. I found a rock to sit down again and hoped to not see any movement in the brush or on the path that I just came from… About 5 minutes later I hear a faint engine noise, branches breaking, some honking (they started honking when they heard about the bear). I was never happier to hear a vehicle in the woods…. About 30 minutes later we where back at the Shepherd Lake parking area – and I had meanwhile found the owners number and was able to return Blue to her. What an experience. I will return for Stage 2 of the cache – maybe I can get a little hint for next time – in case the bear is pissed at me for taking his meal…. Thanks for the fun.

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What a great outcome, congratulations-- I read it in your log. Way to go.

 

We were in Wawayanda today and saw two bears, they are on the move all over the place. They shot 3 of them up there this week trying to break into garages for food.

Edited by Packanack
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Great story. Seems like almost every time I hit one of the popular hiking areas like the Reservation, I see signs posted about a missing dog. Always heart wrenching thinking about the frantic owner and bewildered dog searching for each other. I'm sure many of these situations don't turn out with as happy an ending as this one. As much as dogs love to be off leash, there is always the danger that it will bolt after a deer or other animal, no matter how well trained it is.

 

It must've been a fantastic feeling to reunite the dog and owner. Congratulations on saving the dog and avoiding the bear. It is certainly disconcerting to have a bear trailing you.

 

Stage 2 of the cache was pretty easy to find once you get to it. I can't imagine that it has moved since I was there last September. Stage 1 was the bear (oops, no pun intended).

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Wow - that's awesome. You can never be too careful in that area. Our property backs up to the state park in Ringwood and we see the bears all the time in our yard. They're good to look at from a distance when you're inside of the house, but I agree with you that it's a bit unnerving when you are out in the woods and run into them.

 

I was hiking with the dog in November and we were about 1 1/2 miles up into the park and two bears ran across the trail about 50 feet in front of us - one kept running but the other stopped and stared us down. Of course I just lost all sense of what I was even supposed to do, so we backed away slowly and then ran back down the trail to the house once we were out of the bear's sight. The dog didn't even want to bother with the bear.

 

I'm sure you made someone's day by finding Blue! Nice going Geobernd! :)

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I saw one of those dog posters today and it was so sad it almost made me cry. Then I realized it was the dog that geobernd found and all was OK.

 

I'm so glad the dog made it back to its owner. Geez, she seemed heartbroken in her poster.

She looked much more heartbroken and miserable when I picked her up. The highlight of the day was when she started drinking some water and eat a bit of my granola bar.... The whole experience was very rewarding in itself (including keeping her safe from the bear....).... I'll go and look for more lost dogs when I go caching this weekend :D
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I saw the follow-up poster that woman posted at the Reservation about her dog! That too was very heart-wrenching, stating how happy she was that "a man who was bushwacking on the mountain" found her beloved Blue. It seemed she could not say "thank you" enough.

 

When I read it, I KNEW it had to be a geocacher who found the dog!

 

That's incredible, geobernd! Thank goodness you were there to help poor Blue. You may be happy to know that, according to her follow-up poster, after a trip to the vet's for a bit of treatment, Blue is thriving, happy and back to his/her old self. :o

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Well I have only seen one bear so far this season and it was a drive by in my car. Of course, I haven't got out much this summer due to kids lacrosse, soccer, band, swimming...

 

I did just post my first video to YouTube featuring a bear I saw last Fall in Kitattinny SP (Andover, NJ). Here's the

 

Soon it will be my geocaching season (cold) and hopefully I will see a few more.

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In Wawayanda there are many bears. on a single hike we saw 3 one day, another day 6--early falll when the leaves go off is best time for sightings.

 

Now this week in Denville a sheep killing bear was killed by authorities, and a possible Mtn Lion sighting was reported at Reservoir Road , West Milford---authorities say Mt. Lion sightings are frequently coyotes that confuse people--they are wiley that way.

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I had an close encounter with a bear last month after grabbing Pack 194 2005 CITO Cache.

 

See my log here.

 

Earlier this week my neighbors photographed a bear that had been actually sitting on my front steps! They told me about it 20 minutes later when I came out to walk the dog. That would have been interesting if I opened the door and saw it sitting there!

 

Not counting that one, I've had 4 bear sightings this year.

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I saw a pair this morning on the Hewitt-Butler trail on West Brook Mt in Norvin Green. They were good size but I don't think fully grown. They scampered across the trail, not too far ahead of me. One stopped to give me the eye, then went chasing after the other one. No pictures, I was too busy staying out of their way, and then they were gone. I made sure to make plenty of noise during the rest of my hike.

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Bear Attacks in Hickory Run State Park , Pennsylvania--ok, ok so it is not NJ, and normally no one would care about bears in Pa, but this bear has taken to attacking tents for food, and who knows he might move to NJ. Not that anyone should be tenting with food, but we all know people do. So anyhow a Boy Scout got bitten on Friday last past. Another camper got batted around, both treated and released.

 

Lesson to be learned, DO NOT HAVE FOOD IN YOUR TENT I believe that comes from Chap 1 of Bear Baiting for Dummies :D

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This summer fastpacking on the AT Through Stokes and High Point I saw a 2 bears cross about 50 feet in front of me. Neither even knew I was there as I am usually very quiet and stealthy when I hike. Besides the fact they were more interseted in chasing each other or maybe some food. I never have had any animal problems but you never know. I think they say if the bear does scent you or sees you and locks on to your presence and a stand down begins, that you should make yourself appear larger (i.e raise walking sticks and arms over head, widen stance) and yell with your best "war cry" so the bear fears that you are "bigger and more powerful" and will not challenge you and want to fight. Don't turn around and run because they are very fast and you will lose. Most animals love the chase or the "hunt" if you will. Some more than eating itself. Can't say if this method described above works for sure but have seen it on videos and the bear or other animal just turns around in all cases and walks away fearing losing to the "bigger animal". Just like humans fear bigger humans. This is only natural and part of survival. This is nature and you can't change that. I have seen many bears and other animals in my years of hiking and in most cases if you don't bother them they won't bother you. Know your surrounding's and listen to nature it will tell you most everything you need to know. Awareness is the key to survival in any situation. :D

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Hats off to all those who came across bears! :huh::D:laughing::mad: I wouldn't have a clue what to do. Guess I should start reading about that! :) And Geobernd, I'm so glad you took Blue with you!!! I'm sure Blue's family was thrilled.

 

Shepherd Lake...Sheesh! I know I was there as a kid, but I can't picture where it is. I grew up in Pompton Plains.

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Shepard Lake is in Ringwood State Park, Skylands Manor section.

 

A bear walked through downtown Newton yesterday, reportedly the screams and shreiking of elementary school children nearby scared him back into the woods. Same effect on the teacher. Bears move a lot at this time of year as the instinctively seek out fattening. Deer are in mating mode so many of them get killed by cars this time of year. Rt 23 is loaded with carcasses.

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Deer are in mating mode so many of them get killed by cars this time of year. Rt 23 is loaded with carcasses.

:mad:

 

I saw a bear in Wawayanda a few weeks ago, but I dont think we got any pictures. It was after we got back into the car, we stopped and watched it for a few minutes. I wanted to get out and hug it but PolskiKrol wouldn't let me :laughing:

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December 30, 2007 in Ringwood State Park - shouldn't they be asleep by now? They don't really hibernate , they more like nap and if the temperature is up they will be too, temps have not been too low. They will den in this snap, but with temps near 50 over the weekend, there should be a few out and about.

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December 30, 2007 in Ringwood State Park - shouldn't they be asleep by now? They don't really hibernate , they more like nap and if the temperature is up they will be too, temps have not been too low. They will den in this snap, but with temps near 50 over the weekend, there should be a few out and about.

 

They attacked my birdfeeders again on Christmas. It seems the last two years have been worse than others with them. Maybe we'll see some this weekend at Apshawa.

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