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I think the best circumstantial evidence was obtained by the Olympic Project.

One of our own forum members!👏🏻

I don't think that's automatically a strange question. It is something we should be thinking about .. society-wise, not just bigfooters. I think the best answer is "it depends." There are some really bad assumptions built into the question, assumptions that should be examined. First thing .. what we consider "normal" is not historical normal. (1) Transpiration creates a downwind moisture plume which allows forest to grow in places it naturally could not. Fire destroys not just what it burns, but the downwind moisture plume which "artificially" supports forest in places that would naturally be desert if there were no forest upwind to provide the atmospheric moisture. (2) We have 100 years and more of fire fighting / fire prevention which has altered the natural landscape. Though it is familiar to us, it is not the long term norm and it is not "natural." Complicating things further, the Native Americans / First Nations people deliberately altered the environment / landscape with large scale fire. Because they seem to have arrived before deglaciation, there probably has not been a "natural" environment, one not altered by human activity, since before the last glacial maximum. Data suggest we are in a period of rapid climate change. Second thing .. forest regrowth is though a progression of stages. Once forest is lost, we get grasslands / brush, smaller trees, etc before big trees return. This can take centuries, not decades, not years, and given changing climate conditions, I'm not sure we will have periods between fires long enough for the cycle to complete, we seem to be looking at forest -> burn -> brush -> burn -> brush -> burn -> brush .. etc. We .. in my area .. are getting much more frequent dry lighting and large fires than we have ever had in recorded history. The opportunities for mature forest to re-form under these conditions seem nil. In fact it seems the only chance of restoration is via human intervention, not via natural processes. This situation seems likely to last for centuries, maybe tens of centuries, and the new equilibrium, if there is one, won't be the one we're used to. I suspect much of North America, if humans just vanished, would turn into a land of brush and grasses with very little "reclamation" by forest as we know it because of the increased rate of lightning fires driven by global warming. Once turned to brush and grasses, it is very difficult to return to forest because conditions don't last enough years in a row for that to happen. IMHO of course! MIB

Talked to the last land owner we worked for in Nespelem. He is of the Moses clan. I had rodeo’d in Nespelem in 89, and was asking about a kid that beat me chute dogging. He was first and I was second. The conversation somehow got to him asking me if I believed in Bigfoot. I told him the snow track story at our ranch. He told me that they were afraid after dark. And that one time they had found a Colt that had been ripped in half. Something had grabbed the hind legs and had just wishbone it in half. He always got ansy hunting and shot something and while tracking it, it got dark. The Bigfoot cutout on top of Disautel pass survived the fire. Amazing to me how people there have Bigfoot at the fore front of their minds much more so than a cross section of the white population. Other than the tracks I observed? I was raised with both Colville and Spokane Indians and I am sure they have rubbed off on me.

That hits the nail on the head. (And, thank-you for summarizing the affects that your encounters have had for you. Much appreciated.) Something funny is going on! Of that, I am 99.9% sure. There is just no way that an otherwise 'normal' biological creature of the reported sizes can exist and, remain unclassified after all these years, without something(s) 'funny' going on. This is a good thread, in my opinion. We can be civil here and honestly explore what may be the cause(s) for the lack of Scientific acceptance/classification. When I joined the BFF, it was stated that the official stance of the BBF was basically that Bigfoot are a biological animal, similar to Gorillas, Humans, etc. except in perhaps their size and elusiveness. And, as time went by, I never really understood why so many people categorically reject the idea that there may be (and most likely are) characteristics of Bigfoot that are beyond the current Scientific paradigms. In fact, if you accept that many witnesses are seeing something(s) matching the criteria, it seems undeniable that they must defy our current understandings. As a side note: I live in the middle of a big city, on a busy road. Yet, my backyard is interesting because it becomes almost rural when you step out the back door. And (not to imply too much into how this may affect this current discussion), I have seen unusual wildlife out there. One night about 15 years ago when it was just about to get fully dark, I saw the silhouette of some kind of gigantic bird fly by. We have barred owls and some hawks and a few eagles, but this thing had like a 6-7 foot wing-span and it flew right by me! I imagine that any Ornithologist would probably say 'No, you must be mistaken, there are no birds of that size anywhere around there' but, I know what I saw. Point being: no one really knows anything, until they know.

We can't honestly, with any integrity, call it proof until mainstream science accepts existence of bigfoot. That is what PROOF means. There is no real proof but scientific proof, any lesser proof is not proof, "proof" is the wrong word for that whether it is used from ignorance, illiteracy, or just stubborn malice. There is no way around this. You seem to not understand what "proof" means. You're trying to change the definition / refusing to use the existing definition. Best of luck convincing anyone but yourself with that.

Just wondering if its still the seething hotbed of opinions and contention it was always rumored to be.....also I'm still curious about the purple glow.........lol

I think you have to ask some followup questions. 1) WHEN did the encounter occur, because I think media attention has changed the answer over time, at least in terms of averages. 2) WHO are you? Because I think different demographics have different propensities to report. I take a LOT of local reports via word of mouth that are never formally submitted .. truly, I've heard many accounts even from BFRO and Olympic Project members around the campfire that I do not think are part of any public database. I think we have to be very careful, in the context of your question, about assuming any uniformity of answer. Then there's the question of what constitutes a report? Formal submission? Sharing with other bigfooters informally? Sharing with family .. who may not be proponents? Those will vary for each of us depending on something which may vary from trust of those we're sharing with to deliberately, abrasively jamming it down their throats and daring them to voice doubt.

I was visiting my cousin (who grew up and currently lives on the northern coast of Oregon) 2 years ago and she revealed to me that she had a sighting in her backyard in the 80's. She has known of my interest in squatching for the last 15 years, but never said a thing. She finally opened up and told everyone after 40 years.

^^^ Absolutely. That's one reason why old reports may be less reliable. Numerous (probably most) encounter reports give only the year, then at best the month and date. However, the inability to remember a date doesn't necessarily taint a witness's report. I can recount in painful detail a jump I made somewhere between '85 and '86 (maybe '87) where the 'chute wrapped around my leg. The fact that I don't remember the date without pulling out my (very short) jump log book doesn't make my recollection of the events any less credible.

Fauna bone pile as a result of Glacial Lake Outburst Flood washing animals downstream until the wall of water dissipates and the dead animals 'pile up'. Muck piles have yielded bones of ancient animals to miners for many years. Many bones were washed out to sea in the Arctic and Bering Sea. Glacial Lake Outburst Floods were massive and repetitive.

The distinction I am trying to make? Is that a Bear is not self aware. It doesn’t recognize itself in a mirror, it attacks the mirror. It doesn’t understand that it’s leaving tracks that others can follow either. It itself tracks like a bloodhound, on scent. It has poor eyesight, but most importantly it’s not self aware. Knuckle walking great apes are self aware. They may react like a Bear at first. But they quickly figure out they are seeing their own reflection. Jeff Meldrum talks about making Chimp casts and observing the chimps be self aware of their own footprints in the sand. So if knuckle walking great apes are self aware? Surely a bipedal Sasquatch is more self aware than they are. This is the cognition part that most animals lack. So back to tracks. If you live in the woods and are hunting and foraging in the woods? You’re gonna leave sign. It’s inescapable. The key difference is having the cognitive ability to understand this. And if you don’t want to be found? Then you’re going to mitigate the risk as much as feesably possible. But you cannot erase it entirely. But if you understand this concept you can also use it as a WEAPON against the trackers. You could leave a short track way in the opposite direction of your families intended travel. You could stage a track in an area where you can easily observe your trackers from concealment. A false trail buys you time while the tracker has to sort it out. There are lots of counter tactics in the game of tracker and being tracked. This leaves the territory of a hunter tracking a deer through the woods. This is military and law enforcement territory. Where a tracked human could be leading you into an ambush. Now you’re asking yourself things like? Why is this track left in such an obvious way? Is it a misdirection? Are we being observed? Is it a stall for time? You may be a city slicker but if you’re honestly interested in this subject? There are lots of good books to read and you can practice some of it in your own backyard or a park. I observed a trackway in snow with my father. I have zero doubt that a Sasquatch knows it’s leaving tracks. IT KNOWS. So the question then becomes did it care? Or could it not be helped? If it doesn’t care then it probably has an ulterior motive. Which should send a cold shiver up your spine. But in our case hunting for a Xmas tree in an area we normally would not be in that time of year? And in deep snow? It probably just couldn’t be helped. In that case it’s probably betting on the fact that a human on snowshoes just cannot keep up in deep snow in mountainous terrain. And it is impossible to erase a snow trackway anyhow. So make haste. I have mulled this concept over in my head many times. Even when I am out in the woods looking for tracks. A quarry that understands that you could be tracking it? Is a paradigm shift for most hunters, hikers and lay people. Tracks will never be the smoking gun. Dental resin casts are great conversation pieces but nothing more. But tracks will lead you to the creature…. That’s a certainty. IF we are good enough to follow them and the weather holds.🤷‍♂️ The ultimate game of hide and seek.

For those who doubt the usefulness of DNA in identifying Bigfoot as a new species or a Homo sapiens hybrid, please read this paper on the Likweli monkey, which has extensive DNA results to demonstrate its place in monkey phylogeny as a distinct species. A similar paper on the Lesula monkey, another recent discovery, can be found in PLOS ONE.

Bigfoot like creatures have been reported from places around the world, and if we go back into world history, we will probably find reports of bigfoot like creatures being captured or killed. Evidence of these events was never presented to a group of primate biologist so proof of a bigfoot-like creature was never established and the topic became a myth and not a proven monster. Some of these reports describe human like monkeys while other ones describe bigfoot like creatures that became myths. Are these reports of bigfoot/human like apes just imagination or are they based on old reports from intelligent villagers? Research some of these reports and give your take on one or two. Go to Bigfoot - Wikipedia to find these reports. Click one of the reports below. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Bigfoot Bigfoot - Wikipedia Similar alleged bigfoot-like creatures Almas – Central Asia Am Fear Liath Mòr – United Kingdom Amomongo – Philippines Barmanou – Afghanistan/Pakistan Bukit Timah Monkey Man – Singapore Ebu Gogo – Indonesia Fouke Monster – United States Hibagon – Japan Mande Barung – India Mistapew – Algonquinian cultures Momo the Monster – United States Nittaewo – Sri Lanka Orang Mawas – Malaysia Orang Pendek – Indonesia Sisimito - Central America Skunk ape – United States Urayuli – United States, Canada Wild Man of the Navidad Yeren – China Yeti – Asia Yowie – Australia

I think any hominid that is still eeking out an existence while sharing the planet with Homo Sapien cousins are gonna be dang good at avoidance. And part of that avoidance survival strategy will be being super sneaky. But it also ensures that they will be low in numbers. Too high of a population leads them into direct conflict with us. And when I mean “us”…. I mean Pleistocene Humans. A couple of hundred men armed with spears or bows and fire. Only humans organize in such high numbers for combat. I think long ago they learned to stay hidden. 21 species in the genus Homo. Officially we are all that’s left. I don’t think that’s by chance.

I want to throw out a random thought, a question I ponder now and then. Are there a) lots of bigfoots but they are super sneaky or b) only a few bigfoots but they are fairly clumsy, inept at hiding, so those few are seen fairly frequently? I mean, pretty simple logic .. either option produces a similar number of reports. Since many reports occur in clusters / flurries, then there's nothing in that area again for years, maybe bigfoot is not so uncatchable after all, they're just even more rare than we give them credit for? If they are traveling pretty fast that might account for the "report chasers" always being late, never finding a bigfoot when they arrive. Dunno, just one of those mental tin cans I kick around when I have nothing useful to think about.

The following account of the event came mainly from two visits I had with Peter: first in early May of 2003 when I stayed with him for three days, and in September of that year when he put me up again for two days. We also talked about the shooting incident several times by phone, before and since my visits. The word-for-word questions and Peter’s answers presented here were mostly from the May visit; we sat together in his home where he lives alone now. I taped our conversation. The reader will note a leading tendency in my questions. The prior discussions, I bel ............................read on BFRO Report 9552- Moose hunter shoots -bigfoot- to death.url This BFRO account describes a young 17 year old Canadian moose hunter who shot and killed a bigfoot. This report is plausible enough to be published in the BFRO reports so there is a chance it could be true. Is this a myth or monster event that came about in a small Canadian village? Why is Bigfoot so hard to track, stalk, and capture? Some on the forum now throw the creature into the myth category. If bigfoot is a thousand times more intelligent and wary than a jungle monkey, it becomes a thousand times as difficult to stalk and capture live or deceased. Some animals are just too smart or wary and have incredible hearing and sense of smell. Some seem to fit into the myth category much like Michael Jordan , Joe Namath or a Roswell alien to name a few super individuals. Every now and then bigfoot will slip up and will be captured like Patty was captured on film. The lucky Canadian hunter will repeat itself and a body will be produced to cause bigfoot to be identified as a monster. BFRO Report 9552- Moose hunter shoots -bigfoot- to death.url

Could be. I’d say the older I get the longer I go without seeing a debunking of the PGF. Could be a hoax. But the longer I go without seeing a strong hoax case being made the more it suggests Roger and Bob may have really “got the sucker” One can be real but the Government involvement is not required.

That is an insightful question. I saw what I saw, I know what I know. Though convincing to me, because I was there observing, not merely hearing the account afterwards, I would be disappointed if anyone looked at my sighting accounts as anything other than "just another anecdote" so far as "proof" goes. I don't even have a picture to back them up with. That makes them, frankly, pretty weak sauce so far as proving anything at all. I hope that for someone already convinced by some other body of evidence, they are interesting and maybe educational, maybe fill in some gaps. At least for a couple of the tracks I do have pictures. They are open to interpretation. For interested individuals, they might well be interesting / educational, but I have no delusions that those constitute proof either. They'd barely make the grade as serious evidence. Same for the audio. All are most useful as interesting data points for those who are interested. They should never be thought of as proof or even as strong evidence. Does this make sense? I hope so, hope it gives some context for how I see my own meager "offerings."

Hello there, I’m a long time believer since my uncle told me stories of the forest people and extra terrestrial life when I was growing up. Recently, I moved from San Francisco to Salem, Oregon and now have locations close enough to visit. Oh, my name is Brianne and I have an awesome K9-American that I bring on all my adventures with me. Can’t wait to chat!

Daniel's recollection of dates and events regarding Bigfoot is amazing. I was getting his newsletter for awhile and enjoyed it. He's one of those researchers who has a great ability to speak truth, direct and to the point. Nice interview, thanks for posting, Norse.

Excellent interview, Daniel!

Hi everyone. I reside in Ontario, Canada. Been interested in Bigfoot and cryptozoology and have been reading up on them on and off for over 20 years.

As a bigfoot investigator, I've taken a number of Bigfoot sighting reports in and around the KC area in the past few years. Most have been near the Missouri River near Sugar Creek, Independence, and east at the Burr Oak woods conservation area. There was also a mothman sighting at Burr Oak Woods. The most recent Bigfoot sighting occured in the city in Independence when a large grey bigfoot was seen near 23rd and Pearl street at dusk. If you have had a sighting in this region, please let me know, as I would like to include it in an upcoming book on the subject.

Hello! I'm a new person. I'm an avid lover and a believer in Bigfoot.

Agreed this is a great interview. Very timely considering the upcoming supposed release of the Capturing Bigfoot piece. Mr Perez’ book, Bigfoot at Bluff Creek, is excellent. I consider it a must read for those of us who want a complete breakdown of the Patterson Gimlin Film and all its history. Mr Perez was able to tie all the loosely connected dangling threads (people, places, things) into a cohesive explanation of the timeline of events and evidence surrounding the film.

Excellent interview with Daniel. I'll be sending off payment for his newsletter forthwith. The comments are gold, the folks buying the caca that the PGF has been "debunked," and disproven are (to me) hilarious.

Take care / stay safe!!

We are on the Kaiser Canyon Fire. Doing reclaim. We came across the Keller Ferry. Staging at Keller Wa.

I’ve often heard about the legend of the The Grey Man in Britain. It’s seems to be seen in the foggy,rocky and rugged mountains. There a number of sightings in England. Ive seen them three times on the West Coast of California and Oregon

Hello everyone. My name is Hope. I live in the middle of Michigan's thumb. I've been intrigued by Bigfoot since I was very young.

Hello, my interest in bigfoot started years ago as a kid. It went away until I decided to embrace it for real a couple of years ago! I went on a BFRO expedition in New Mexico, and might possibly have had an experience... not exactly sure, but have some great pics. Now I'm in Florida and would love to get in with folks and learn all that I can.

It's no secret that the BFF is struggling. It's no one's fault, and some good folks have worked hard to keep the lights on. I'm very grateful to them. The Tar Pit has dwindled, in conjunction with the forum's struggles. I would certainly welcome anyone seeking to dip a toe into its murky depths. Long live BFF!

https://youtu.be/b2rKogbd7mI?is=hN0WusbckkQOPozR

In. Terms of objective cognition, the mirror test presents a basic dividing line, finding the spot on your forehead, fine. But realizing you're the one leaving those prints, not to mention even noticing them is a different (higher) level of cognitive awareness. Then there's the awareness you're being tracked/hunted, which is something all sorts of animals display. They know when something's after them if not simply taken by surprise in a direct assault. I would doubt, however, that most realize their tracks contribute to their trail. But those that do make that connection are acting on a higher level. And to actively hide their tracks higher still. However, its akin to a quantum leap of intelligence/cognition to use ones tracks to manipulate your persuer's perception by means of strategic misdirection. That's some crafty forest ninja level of avoidance behavior. That's a being capable of envisioning its hunters mindset and setting "traps" based on what it perceives as your expectational/interpretational set. And THAT is pretty dang clever! Almost frighteningly so.....

Koko clearly had a chance to reach her potential because he IQ max (70-90) came into an environment where she got the attention, training, and so on at her zoo. If Koko was left the the wild Koko doesn't learn sign language and so on or at least at the impressive level we see on this videos. Its still spooky and impressive at the same time. I do think in our guts people naturally need to emotionally dismiss the things Apes do because it is hard to accept how close they are to us as 'normal people' I am guessing Bigfoot has at least a Koko level IQ. I consider that more potential of Bigfoot. I have to think Bigfoot uses whatever brains achieve its day to day working needs. If its day to day needs are a struggle it almost doesn't have the time for higher thought. If Bigfoot lived in Koko's zoo my guess is Bigfoot would be smarter on many levels vs. Koko. I would also guess Bigfoot would be able to achieve levels of learning Koko couldn't. None of this would happen though if Bigfoot didn't end up in an environment like Koko's zoo where this potential can become realized. Bigfoot is probably pretty smart and obviously good at hiding. I still say it doesn't mean Bigfoot has some really high level of smarts and understanding some suggest. I hope we never find out because to do so would be some rate animal was caged to do so.

There have been several sightings of Bigfoot in the past few years near the Missouri River at La Benite Park in Sugar Creek, at the conservation area in Sugar Creek, and in Independence, in that same general area. The Missouri River is 3.66 miles from the recent sighting, and .48 miles from the railroad line, which passes right by the Missouri River. Several people (including me) have heard things that could have been Bigfoot (heavy footsteps on the gravel late at night, loud grunts, and on two occasions, rails being banged against each other, which I doubt a human could do) along the railroad cut that goes directly behind my house, which is 2 miles from the most recent location. The cuts are heavily overgrown with bushes and trees. I need to write an article about these reports.

The "Public" involved in the world "Public opinion" would include a large groups of millions of people containing many sub groups. These groups would be expected to have various complicated thoughts on Bigfoot. Bigfoot is the concern here. I would have thought the Bigfoot issue as it relates to anyone in the public is a binary choice. You either believe in Bigfoot or you don't. Yet it is more complicated than that. My first thought might be the 3 "Public" camps. 1) Bigfoot doesn't exist 2) Bigfoot might/could exist 3) Bigfoot exists! If we consider group #3 Bigfoot Exists your post shows me there are further groups in just that group. That is, some might believe: -Bigfoot is an Alien riding on space ships. -Bigfoot is an animal known by the government and actively kept hidden from the public for scary reasons. - Bigfoot is real and the government is keeping it quiet until it captures one and can understand it. Until then they don't want hunters shooting at each other. -Bigfoot is a form of undiscovered ape man out there in the wilderness more human than ape and more or less human. -Bigfoot is some human like man Ape running around in the wilderness. -And so on and so on. If someone thinks the government knows and is actively involved in a secret Bigfoot conspiracy I would contend that is probably a very small number of people. I say this because it requires not just the belief in bigfoot but a government who can actively cooperate with Bigfoot and work to keep it quiet. When I say the Jury of Public opinion to me it means group 1 and group 2 can be moved to be more open-minded. Put another way its moving group 1 to group 2 or 3 to the extent you can. Does the government know or care? That is a sub discussion for those in Group 3. My guess would be only a minority of those in group 3 think that. Still, such an opinion could very well be true. I just don't happen to be one of them. I am open to the idea our government would want to keep important things from the public. Does Bigfoot reach that level? Not for me but I am in Group 2 at this time. Until I moved to group 3, I cannot seriously consider this at the same level as those already in group 3, with all due respect to those who do.

Hello, I am Kyle from Western, WA. I love being outdoors and learning everything about nature as possible. I have had a couple of strange encounters while living and hunting in Washington State. I am looking to meet people who share similar interests, and learn more about the topic of Sasquatch. Thank you for allowing me to be a member on this forum.

Sure seems to doesnt it?

It’s amazing to think that 80s - 90s era camcorders took much worse footage than a 16mm camera in the late 60s.

Xspider1 its going to have to be a pretty extreme and extensive mutation for an individual to be deemed a unique species. The mutations would have have to be extensive enough to disguise the markers used to differentiate the original species, and I have hard time envisioning that occurring in anything but like bacteria, or fruit flies at best with their four chromasomes...maybe.... I'd think most mutations that would cause drastic morphological changes will prove lethal from the get go or shortly there after, unless, of course its the result of direct genetic manipulation recombining the genes of disparate species in a plotted out effort, but even then the original species involved could be identified. Were it by just a single inheritable trait that sasquatch is set apart from modern humans then it might well be attributed to an aberrant mutation, but there's clearly more involved in the differentiation between us.

Well, that's interesting and does open up some potentials. If the track ways are indicating a larger size, do they also imply the degree of "upright-ness"? And how would this impact their capacity for longer distance mobility. Is it possible they or some member of Paranthropus were able to take part in the ongoing exodus from Africa along with other hominids of the time, such as erectus? If this occurred when sea levels had dropped we would have little chance of finding evidence of such range expansions, but if H.erectus was on the move, whats to say Paranthropus wouldn't as well, perhaps even following or joining H.e for increased safety and foraging.its a stretch to be sure, but it does illustrate potential pathways for the simultaneous expansion of multiple species outside of Africa, which could then result in multiple derived forms further out rather than just our own hominid line.

I have consolidated the three Capturing Bigfoot threads under Skinwalker13 original posting. It has been moved to the PGF section. Thank you for your patience!

What does this nature discovery mean? Here are my completely uninformed thoughts: First, I applaud the logic. I will admit when we see something unusual, I am more prone to think it is in fact not unusual. It is just not as well understood. Well, maybe just not well understood by me. Once we understand it the real reason turns out to be pretty boring. I would like to offer 2 examples: 1- Plaster cast "fingerprints". I heard on TV shows how these plaster footprints of Bigfoot had dermal ridges. There was even claimed evidence of healed skin in the footprint's dermal ridge lines which "couldn't be faked". Jimmy Chilcutte became a household name in the Bigfoot world as the FBI fingerprint expert who pointed these things out. He concluded this could only be explained by an undiscovered primate making the prints. This may be the case, but his analysis was flawed it seems. The effect he noticed was able to be explained and reproduced by others giving the same ridges as an experimental result. This meant there could be other explanations for the same lines he based his conclusions on. 2- The Skookum casts were thought to be a bigfoot siting in the mud. It seems its more likely this was just a deer/elk type animal. Of the two which is more likely. We attribute things to unusual findings which can be significant. Sometimes it is and sometimes it's not. In the end we need to go wherever the facts take us. Are the findings explained by some other natural process or typical process?

Hello. Name is mark. I'm from Indiana. Haven't had any experiences but became interested in this subject after watching this old timer from my hometown talk about his involvement and interest in Bigfoot. His name is Don Worley. Anyways.. happy to be here. Look forward to chatting with everyone.

Hello from Ohio. I have had a few personal encounters and am interested in hearing about other people’s experiences.

Two copies of Delorme Gazetteer for Oregon. One is 'coffee table' mode for planning and it stays clean. The 2nd Gazetteer is the working copy for field use = dog eared, tattered, and stained from beverages. They used to be about $20 but I noticed that they are about $26 or more now. Garmin bought Delorme in 2015--2016. A small audio recorder operating in your vehicle day and night could be revealing. Campsites translate to human(s) with food and animals will be curious. Check your local regulations for bear proof food storage containers even if your food is in your vehicle. Bear spray has vegetable oil as the carrier for the irritant. No practice shots. You will get a bear due to the small residue on the nozzle. A small amount of vegetable oil goes a long way. No need for camo clothes because the birds will give your location away. Small steps.