Bears are reclusive and would just as soon not meet you or any other humans. You just have to let them know you're in the neighborhood and behave like a well-mannered guest using a bit of common sense. There are very few bear attacks and those occur only in territory inhabited by bears, so bear danger for hikers is very low.

Bear Aware Since you are a visitor, you should be aware of how to behave in bear country. Bears are always looking for food and instinctively try to get the most food for the least amount of work. Some common steps to take in bear country:

When You See a Bear If you notice a bear at a distance, stay calm and assess your situation. Give the bear a wide privacy space - make a very wide 300 foot detour or go back the way you came and take a different route.

If the bear is close when you first notice it, the situation requires more immediate evaluation and action:

If the bear continues to follow you, at some point you will come to the conclusion that the bear is considering you as prey. You need to convince the bear that you are not easy prey and will be a tough fight.

When Bears Attack Bear attacks are rare, very rare. Historically, there is about 1 death from wild bear attack every 2 or 3 years in the United States - see list of bear deaths - but that number has grown to 1 per year during the past 15 years.

Here's a few graphs. They show Black bear, Brown bear, and Combined data by decade for the past 65 years through 2014. Canada and Alaska are most dangerous. You are more likely to die from a bee sting. You are more likely to die in a car accident on the way to your hike. You are more likely to get struck by lightning. Most bear encounters happen when the bear's natural behavior of avoidance changes to aggression because:

Training Bears Every time you visit bear country, you are training the bears that live there. You are leaving an impact through your smell, tracks, sound, and sight.
You leave an impact and the bears relate that impact to some experience. If you just pass on through, and leave little impact, humans will remain a mystery to the bear. This is the best kind of training you can do.

Unfortunately, many sloppy, lazy humans train bears in the wrong way. By leaving granola bar crumbs on a picnic table or half a peanut butter sandwich in a trash can, bears learn that these are great places for easy meals.
Every encounter reinforces in the bear that humans are a food source and not a threat. This causes the bears to become more aggressive and approach humans for food. Ultimately, this leads to the death of the bear because someone will get hurt or the bear will get a bad reputation and will be destroyed.

Bear Bags and Canisters To keep your food away from bears (and other critters), there are a few common methods available:
Hike On: Snakes on the Trail Jul 25, 2013 - SallyDec 05, 2013 - abby !
This article is very well put together and it really helped me on my essay for grizzly bears! thanks  HIKING DUDEEE
May 02, 2015 - jeff
I'm not sure how many of you have actually had a encounter with a bear, but my wife and sister and law would possibly not be around to tell their story had they not a .44 mag to take down the bear. We're not Rednecks or anything of the sort; just prepared. I will Never go into the wilderness without a weapon. The smart thing is to keep your camp clean and not leave any trace for the next campers to enjoy. It would be just like the Government to tell someone to play dead, as Sally has asserted, to "defend" themselves. I will always defend my family and self by whatever means available before I play dead.
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