See? See! No nite lite for me!!!Originally Posted by Law Dawg (ret)
WWhermit
See? See! No nite lite for me!!!
WWhermit
Most animals keep their distance from a fire or light... Its when the light goes out...
as an avid hunter i will tell you that lights don't attract wildlife for the most part. most of the time wildlife will find you by smell. if your smell gets them curious then they will come in to investigate.
where this gets you in trouble is with bears, and not just any bear! if bears are not fed then they will shy away from human contact (if you don't belive me just try hunting one). if they have been fed by humans or allowed to feed in trashcans and the such (like in most national forrest parks and places like that) then they can become aggressive.
if your in an area with bears, use a bear bag. if your not then don't worry too much, we are pretty high on the food chain and the greatest predator to ever live and most animals know that.
I hear ya WWhermit.
I always camp in bear country and it's always on my mind unless I'm out in the dead of winter and know they're hibernating, otherwise even during the day my eyes and ears are peeled for bears and at night it's even worse! Drives me crazy at times - especially since I've never seen one. My closest encounter was waking up by my own snoring and thought it was a bear growling! How's that for paranoia?!?! :s
www.youtube.com/user/BCkayakcamper
"The human spirit needs places where nature has not been rearranged by the hand of man." ~Author Unknown
My closest encounter was waking up by my own snoring and thought it was a bear growling! How's that for paranoia?!?! :s
now that's funny!!
Debi
It's funny because I did that once camping in the White Mountains of New Mexico. Saw a bear on the way in, and dreamed about bears all night, slept horribly (Still a ground sleeper at the time), snored loud, and woke myself up thinking I was under attack. Glad I'm not the only one.
Fulfillment is living a life that makes the lives of others worth living.
DIY is addicting and fulfilling!
"If guns kill people, then pencils mispell words, cars cause people to drink and drive, and spoons made Rosie O'donnell fat."
It was bloody frightening at the time, but looking back at it now, it is pretty funny!
www.youtube.com/user/BCkayakcamper
"The human spirit needs places where nature has not been rearranged by the hand of man." ~Author Unknown
I was going to agree with lugnut, mostly light seems to be a curiosity for animals. It makes them take notice and wonder what they hell is that bright thing floating around the woods is? Light + human scent will usually make them scatter unless they are habituated. If habituation means people = food, then light + human scent will attract them, but the human scent or the scent of food that is the attractant. The light just lets them see better. So no light on its own won't attract bears, cougars, rabid moose, or vampire zombies (unless a mad scientist combines them genetically with moths).
I sometimes have the same thoughts. I like the safe feeling of a fire but hate that it ruins my night vision. Not being able to see past the glow of the fire can be scarier than no fire.
Speaking of fire....I would be more afraid of smoking your pipe while relaxing in a nylon hammock.
We've only had a problem with raccoons while camping in our trailer at a pretty nice state park campground in Oregon. Those crafty little stinkers didn't care if we were sitting by the fire and would wander right into our campsite. I even took to carrying a broom to the bathrooms with me in case one attempted a run on me. It didn't help that the woman in the party camping in the next spot over was FEEDING them! Her husband and father-in-law didn't even try to stop her. Now THAT was annoying.
I've also had buffalo hanging out in my campsite, but they were there when I arrived--probably enjoying the shade which was why I picked the spot. I just went about my business setting up my tent and they eventually meandered away as buffalo do...
Christina
Don't mess with the Chief's wife!
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