I saw this last night. Very sad. Rare as attacks like this are, we're still taking a risk every time we venture into the backcountry in grizzly bear territory.
Besides, there are other forms of protection - non-lethal bear mace for example - but from what I've read, they didn't have that on them; and they ran from the bear, which, while understandable, is another mistake. The wife reportedly stopped running and played dead, and though the bear came after her, eventually let her go. Short of it is that there are risks in the wilderness. And while there's no way to eliminate those risks, the best way to mitigate them is to be knowledgeable about the risks and properly prepare. I suppose a firearm could be part of that strategy, but given the potential consequences, it should be a last resort and not a surrogate for proper preparation.
One death from a bear attack in 25 years; I'm not sure the number would be that low with armed tourists...
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Besides, there are other forms of protection - non-lethal bear mace for example - but from what I've read, they didn't have that on them; and they ran from the bear, which, while understandable, is another mistake. The wife reportedly stopped running and played dead, and though the bear came after her, eventually let her go. Short of it is that there are risks in the wilderness. And while there's no way to eliminate those risks, the best way to mitigate them is to be knowledgeable about the risks and properly prepare. I suppose a firearm could be part of that strategy, but given the potential consequences, it should be a last resort and not a surrogate for proper preparation.
One death from a bear attack in 25 years; I'm not sure the number would be that low with armed tourists...