By Jacqueline Louie

Tim Mearns teaches bear awareness and wildlife safety as part of the Horseback Riding Backcountry Boot Camp. He imparts essential knowledge for anyone venturing into the backcountry. Basics are key, including proper handling of food, using bear-resistant pack boxes, knowing how to use bear spray and having it ready to go at an instant’s notice. Equally important is understanding bears and what is important to them, such as the changing of the seasons and the types of environments they prefer. In the spring, for example, females will be out and about with cubs, and in the autumn bears are intensely focused on food and fattening up for winter. 

“Here comes a big berry patch, and we can be loud,” Mearns explains — to let bears know that people are nearby. It’s all about learning to coexist peacefully.

“The more we are aware of how they operate and how they think, the better off we are. We owe that to the wildlife, to get educated about wildlife,” Mearns says.

Klettl shares teachings passed down to her sister, Brenda Holder of Mahikan Trails (https://mahikan.ca/) from their grandmother, about why the bear is a sacred animal to the Cree people. The bears and people were killing each other; finally, everyone agreed to live in harmony. “The bears saved our lives, because everything a bear can eat, we can eat,” Klettl explains. “We followed what they would eat. They taught us medicine, they taught us foods, and they taught us how to get through the winter by slowing things down. By following what the bears did, we learned to survive… It’s so important to respect them for the animal they truly are, especially the more we go into bear country.” 

Related: Riding Horses in Bear and Cougar Country

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Photo: Shutterstock/Henryk Sadura