Humans and bears - Wild encounters

[brotherbear]

The Grizzly Bear - James Capen Adams says: "There are several varieties of the grizzly bear; or, to speak more properly, perhaps, the species has a wide range, extending to the British possessions on the north, to New Mexico on the south, and from the eastern spurs of the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean. His size, general appearance, and character vary with the part of this great region in which he is found; for, although courageous and ferocious in the Rocky Mountains, he is there neither so large nor so terrible as in the Sierra Nevadas, where he attains his greatest size and strength. The grizzly of the Rocky Mountains seldom, if ever, reaches the weight of a thousand pounds; the color of his hair is almost white; he is more disposed to attack men than the same species in other regions, and has often been known to follow upon a human  track for several hours at a time. Among hunters he is known as the Rocky Mountain white bear, to distinguish him from other varieties. The California grizzly sometimes weighs as much as two thousand pounds. He is of a brown color, sprinkled with grayish hairs. When arousedhe is, as has been said before, the most terrible of all animals in the world to encounter, but ordinarily will not attack man except under peculiar circumstances. The grizzly of Washington and OregonTerritories resembles the bear of California, with the exception that he rarely attains so large a size and has a browner coat. His hair is more disposed to curl and is thicker, owing to the greater coldness of the climate. He is not so savage, and can be hunted with greater safety than either the California or Rocky Mountain bear. In New Mexico the grizzly loses much of his strength and power, and upon the whole, is rather a timid and spiritless animal." Reply