I'm very sad to hear this news, this kind of press just makes films like "The Night of the Grizzlies" run through my head. I love Grizzly Bears, not up close, but I just love the fact that we have them still around. Encounters with people are VERY RARE, but the headlines are huge!
More worry-some, for me, was to hear that the hiker who was killed was on the Mary Mountain Trail, ALONE AND WITHOUT ANY BEAR SPRAY. Good grief, the Mary Mountain Trail is located in one of the most active areas of Yellowstone Park for Grizzly Bear activity.
I suppose solitude on the trail is a treasured experience for some people, I personally don't get it. Never travel alone, but if you do, take precautions and protect yourself please. When a Grizzly Bear attacks a human, for whatever reason, that Bear is as good as dead as well.
I would like to see Yellowstone Park institute a "group" hike meet up time at trail heads for those people who have the sense to travel together on these wonderful hikes. Be a little friendly out there and you'll find that most people, foreign or otherwise, will enjoy being in a group. You don't have to stay too close together, just be in a group. Who knows, you might meet some like minded people and enjoy the hike even more! You'll definitely feel safer and be safer. Groups are so much less likely to have Grizzly Bear problems.
I have been hunting huckleberries in Grizzly Bear country for 40 years and even though Grizzlies love huckleberries, I've NEVER HAD AN ENCOUNTER. Even with this great record (so far), I still carry bear spray, holler "hey Griz, I'm here" and frequently make some type of noise so I don't surprise a bear. Lately we've been packing a little heat on the hip as well, at least since the bear population has increased over the years. I don't plan to ever shot a bear unless it's absolutely necessary, but I'll pull the trigger on my bear spray in a split second.
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