# The bear spray thread **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 4, 2025, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193 "2025-06-04T12:40:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/1 "2025-06-04T12:40:27Z")
There is a bear encounter [thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-charged-at-by-a-black-bear/1019176) that raised some questions in my mind about my upcoming trip to Glacier National Park. So as not to hijack @FloatyGimpy’s tale, I started my own bear thread (not to be confused with my own bare thread). The aforementioned thread got me thinking about bear encounters and bear spray. I know I need it, and I ~~know~~ assume I cannot carry it on the plane and will need to obtain it on site. I also assume it will probably go unused at the end of the trip, which makes me wonder what I do with my can of unused spray? Give it to another random hiker? And that thought leads me to this thought: Can I just purchase a can of BS from someone whose trip is done and their spray remains unused? Is there a system for buying “used” (but not really used) bear spray? If not, there oughta be. Also, what about an air horn? Should I carry that along with bear spray during my hikes? Thanks, mmm ---
**Author:** ![Dandan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a87d85/32.png) [@Dandan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dandan)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/2 "2025-06-04T12:52:07Z")
Came here to suggest an air horn. If yelling loudly (sometimes) works, a blast from an air horn should impress the hell out of the bear. Carry the spray as back-up, of course. Is the spray really so expensive that reselling it is attractive? Or so you just hate the idea of wasting it? How about leaving it at a Ranger station, for the Ranger to pass on, as a public service? Dan ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/3 "2025-06-04T13:06:43Z")
Yeah, not allowed on the plane. Buy it there, then when you’re done wirh your trip, you can donate it at a ranger station. They appreciate it! ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/4 "2025-06-04T13:09:55Z")
Is it still advisable to wear bells when hiking? ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/5 "2025-06-04T13:21:34Z")
You bring up some great questions! FWIW, I started a thread last year about bear spray being a superior alternative to firearms against aggressive bears. > [@Carrying firearms for defense against an aggressive bear?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carrying-firearms-for-defense-against-an-aggressive-bear/1000420): > > In this [post](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-3/986588/4874) over in this [thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-3/986588), @Broomstick said the following: I have guns, too, but would not use them in self-defense against a bear. The vast majority of firearms are simply not that effective against an attacking or charging bear. The way to safely take on a bear with a firearm is at a distance with a high-powered rifle. A bear attack, on the other hand, is by definition at a much closer range such that a rifle is difficult or impossible to use. And the vast majority of handguns are fa… In my case, I borrowed bear spray from the person I was visiting in Alaska to carry on my hikes. Obviously this isn’t an option if you don’t know anyone there, though. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/6 "2025-06-04T13:24:48Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > Is it still advisable to wear bells when hiking? Yes, you can tell if bears are particularly aggressive by the presence of bells in bear scat along the trail. 😉 Seriously though, I’ve heard it’s advisable to make some noise so as not to surprise a bear, but haven’t heard that bells are particularly useful. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/7 "2025-06-04T13:28:13Z")
Our last time hiking in Glacier we simply kept up steady conversation and always had one person in the group designated to bang their hiking poles together every few steps; no bells. That was sufficient, we felt, to avoid surprising any bears along the way. Our niece who lives nearby had bear spray so we didn’t have to deal with buying or disposing of it. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/8 "2025-06-04T13:29:23Z")
I keep a can of bear spray beside my bed. Likely works well against burglars, & a missed shot won’t kill the neighbors. ---
**Author:** ![andrewm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c57346/32.png) [@andrewm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andrewm)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/9 "2025-06-04T13:43:33Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Is there a system for buying “used” (but not really used) bear spray? If not, there oughta be. Yes, there is, effectively. There are plenty of places near Glacier where you can rent cans of spray for about half the price of buying one. There are airport pickup locations and off-site, and the in-airport place we used last summer had an in-park or park-adjacent drop box for returning after rental if we hadn’t been flying back out through that airport. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/10 "2025-06-04T13:45:13Z")
> [@Dandan](#): > > Is the spray really so expensive that reselling it is attractive? A quick Google tells me a can is $50-$60 and non-returnable. > [@andrewm](#): > > There are plenty of places near Glacier where you can rent cans of spray for about half the price of buying one. Eh, there goes my potential appearance on “Shark Tank”. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/11 "2025-06-04T13:46:42Z")
Does bear spray actually work, or does it just totally piss them off? ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/12 "2025-06-04T13:56:33Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > Does bear spray actually work, or does it just totally piss them off? Yes. From my [linked thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carrying-firearms-for-defense-against-an-aggressive-bear/1000420): > [@Carrying firearms for defense against an aggressive bear?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carrying-firearms-for-defense-against-an-aggressive-bear/1000420/1): > > There was a [study from BYU](https://lifesciences.byu.edu/byu-study-using-a-gun-in-bear-encounters-doesnt-make-you-safer) that compared three options in fending off an aggressive bear: doing nothing, using a firearm, and utilizing bear spray, and they concluded that bear spray was by far the most effective. More specifically, the people who used a firearm against an aggressive bear suffered the same injury/fatality rate as those who did not. (Note that most of the bears involved in the study were brown bears, aka grizzly bears, which are typically much more aggressive than the smaller black bears.) > > A related study by the same researcher found that bear spray effectively halted aggressive bear encounters in **92 percent** of cases. > > The National Park Service [agrees](https://www.nps.gov/articles/bearsprayfirearms.htm) with this advice. What is likely to piss off a bear is hitting them with a round from a firearm that doesn’t immediately kill them (which is more than likely). ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/13 "2025-06-04T14:26:07Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Also, what about an air horn? Should I carry that along with bear spray during my hikes? I highly recommend having a small air horn. It’s so freaking loud, everything runs away from it. I test mine now and again and it shocks me every time how loud it is. It’s also good to have to just announce your presence if you get the heebie jeebies out in the forest. ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/14 "2025-06-04T14:37:45Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > Is it still advisable to wear bells when hiking? Bears cannot differentiate between the ambient noise of birds chirping and the sound of bells tinkling. It also inhibits your own hearing. Best thing is to holler out once in a while, clap your hands or blow a whistle. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/15 "2025-06-04T15:23:34Z")
> [@robby](#): > > What is likely to piss off a bear is hitting them with a round from a firearm that doesn’t immediately kill them (which is more than likely). First of all, it would take a high caliber round in a vital spot to even have a chance. Throw in the “I’msoterrifiedIcan’tevenaim” factor, and its adios. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/16 "2025-06-04T15:27:15Z")
> [@robby](#): > > Yes, you can tell if bears are particularly aggressive by the presence of bells in bear scat along the trail. 😉 I was coming to post this same joke! 🤣 When we were in Japan, we did some hut to hut hiking in the “Japanese Alps” which was amazing! To get to the trailhead that went straight up, we had to do a few miles of hiking on a very popular trail. I think we were the ONLY ones that didn’t have bells. It was crazy how much noise there was from all those bells. Bears would’ve heard that from the top of the mountains! I’ve had the same can of bear spray for a long time, and it’s dented, so it’s time to replace before the upcoming backpacking season. We hit paydirt in the backcountry permit lottery and will be spending a few nights in Glacier Grizzly country (assuming the NP is open and functional - questionable at this point). ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/17 "2025-06-04T16:35:44Z")
> [@robby](#): > > Seriously though, I’ve heard it’s advisable to make some noise so as not to surprise a bear, but haven’t heard that bells are particularly useful. I believe bells tied to your waist, or on your hiking stick, help warn bears you are close by before they can see or smell you. Whistling, or singing, or talking loudly would also tip them off. The constant jingling of bells is just another way to avoid startling a bear, especially when you are hiking alone. Yes, bear spray works, but you have to aim it directly at their facial area before they can charge. If they are charging you you won’t have time to line up a good shot and will likely miss them completely. When I am in woods, whether with my dog or not, I will have bear spray handy just in case. Fortunately, for the past 15 years of living here I have never had to use it, as all of my bear encounters have ended peacefully. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/18 "2025-06-04T19:23:11Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > I keep a can of bear spray beside my bed. > Likely works well against burglars, & a missed shot won’t kill the neighbors. I’m not sure I’d choose bear spray for defending yourself in an enclosed space against a human opponent. It’s really better for outdoor use; a burst will go everywhere in a bedroom. Pepper spray would be better, IMO, but I don’t have experience with using that. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Duality](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.duality/32/4098_2.png) [@Mr.Duality](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Duality)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/19 "2025-06-04T23:35:51Z")
> [@susan](#): > > Yeah, not allowed on the plane. I believe it’s allowed in checked luggage. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2025, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193/20 "2025-06-04T23:50:09Z")
TSA says not. > **[Bear spray | Transportation Security Administration](https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/whatcanibring/items/bear-spray)** I see other sources that say 4 oz or under and below a particular concentration, but TSA just lists “no” as the answer. > Bear spray > > **Carry On Bags:** No > > **Checked Bags:** No [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bear-spray-thread/1019193.md?page=2)