Backpacking For Recreation and Enjoyment

Backpacking is something that millions of people all over the world enjoy. Some go backpacking for the enjoyment of nature and the ability to get out and hike on a beautiful trail. Others go backpacking for the sport of it and the ability to get in great shape. Whatever the reason, backpacking is a popular and healthy recreational activity that promotes health and encourages a respect for nature. Enjoying a hike can be done in various types of terrains and areas. It is important to have the proper backpacking equipment as well as the knowledge to navigate the area.

Things Needed For Safe Backpacking
In order to backpack safely, it's important to have the right equipment and even the right people surrounding you. If you are new to backpacking, it is recommended to have a partner to go along with you. Sometimes, there are group hiking trips so that it can be safer for everyone involved. Having a partner that is trusted or a group of hikers to go with can ensure a safer backpacking adventure. People going backpacking for the first time often find there are some things they weren't expecting and having someone with knowledge along for the trip can be a huge help.

Once a partner or group is picked, the next step is to pick a destination. Choosing a destination can be based on factors that are important to everyone hiking. For those that are interested in certain types of terrains, there are guidebooks and magazines that can suggest various trails and give a description of the terrain. For those that are more experienced, it may be possible to choose a more challenging terrain to hike. For beginners, it is important to choose a terrain that is forgiving enough yet still carries the ability to give a challenging and fun experience. Guidebooks and magazines often have detailed reviews of hiking trails and even have maps of the entire trail. It is recommended to have a map of the hiking trail to take on a backpacking trip just in case.

When choosing a destination, it is imperative to choose one that can be hiked safely in a certain amount of time. Inexperienced backpackers may want to go on a shorter trip, typically less than ten miles. More experienced backpackers may choose to hike for several days and there should be a plan to stop and relax along the way. It's important to have all of the necessary supplies regardless of how long you plan on staying. Planning ahead is the key to having a successful backpacking trip.

Supplies needed for the trip should be chosen carefully. It is important to pack enough water for the trip and calculate how much water will be needed for the planned amount of time. A map should be brought along of the hiking trail and kept in a protective cover in case of bad weather. A compass is always a handy tool to have as well. Other supplies to bring are: sun protection, flashlights, matches, first aid kits, lighters, a tent, and food. It is recommended to pack all the supplies into the backpack and practice hiking around with the weight of the full pack. This will ensure that you will have enough strength to hike with the backpack and have a successful trip.

Summer Has Finally Arrived

Summer has finally arrived! Woohoo! Let the camping and hiking begin. If you are heading to bear country, don’t forget to bring along your UDAP Bear Spray!  Being prepared in bear country can be the difference between life and death. And now, you can stay safer than ever before!

UDAP now carries the Back Attack Pack™, which allows you to protect yourself from unexpected charges from behind, AND even when you’re pinned on the ground. Yes, you still have a line of defense!

Produced by a grizzly bear attack survivor, this product is a must-have. To be used in addition with UDAP bear sprays as a backup only.

So go out and enjoy the summer, enjoy bear country, and be SAFE!

The Difference between a Black Bear and a Grizzly Bear

Have you ever wondered what the differences between a black bear and a grizzly bear are? One major difference is the size. Size can vary depending on the age and gender of the bear. An adult black bear can be larger than a sub-adult (juvenile) grizzly bear. Size can also vary among geographic areas, as well.

Please note that there are many physical indicators between a black bear and a grizzly bear: and they vary with sex and age, so size is also not a reliable indicator. Identifying the type of bear that you see is important for your safety and to protect bears. When you know if it’s a grizzly or a black bear, you can then decide on the best actions to take.

Don’t forget to always carry your UDAPBear Deterrent!

Bears Coming Out of Hibernation Early

Bears came out of hibernation early this winter on the west coast due to abnormal dry winter and drought. Because of these same weather conditions, black bears may come down closer and closer to where people are looking for food. Do you have your bear spray handy and/or a plan ready for a black bear encounter? To learn more about the black bears coming out of hibernation early, you can read this article published by CBS news!

Read more here...

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Camping in the Back Country of Montana

One of the biggest chores in the backcountry is hanging your food in the trees so bears won't get to it. It is very time consuming. Not any longer, thanks to the Bear Shock® Food Storage ElectricFence for the backcountry. 

Nothing says Montana like a backcountry camping experience! But while you are out enjoying the Big Sky Country, please be BEAR AWARE! Being bear-friendly in Montana is something that we pride ourselves on. And it does come with sacrifice—the welfare of the bear always come first even if it means that we won’t be able to see a bear or get that perfect picture. It means taking steps to prevent bears from finding sources of food on your property or when you are out camping like using our Bear Shock® Food Storage Electric Fence.

Did you know that once a bear is food-trained, it is often impossible to un-train them. That is why biologists so often say a fed bear is a dead bear. So let’s don’t feed the bears!

Your attentiveness in keeping your outdoor camp space "Bear Friendly" is doing your part to keep Montana's grizzly and black bears wild and free.

"Bear Friendly" means allowing every bear to retain its wild and free nature.

Fly Cast Fishing in Montana

Fishing season is just around the corner and one of my favorite places in Montana to fish is the scenic Gallatin Valley near Bozeman, Montana.  They are truly blessed with hundreds of miles of blue ribbon trout water.  Those waters include, but are not limited to, the Yellowstone, Gallatin, Bighorn, Jefferson, Stillwater, Boulder and Missouri rivers.  Let’s don’t forget the world renowned spring creeks in Paradise Valley, as well as some lesser known but equally amazing spring creeks and lakes in that area. Fly Cast Fishing at its best.

UDAP chest holster is a great product and works well for Fly Cast Fishermen or anyone fishing and enjoying the great outdoors.  UDAP Pepper Power holsters are designed for an individual to have instant and silent access to the canister. Every UDAP holster is designer for bear spray to shoot right from the holster if time does not allow you to draw it.

Before you head out the door, make sure that you are doing more than just carrying your Bear Spray! Make sure that you know how to use it. Practice using it. It took practice to learn how to catch those blue ribbon trout and the same is true for using Bear Spray properly. Practice, practice, practice! Now go enjoy that great Montana Flyfishing!

Polar Bear, The Official Mascot of Winter Olympic Games 2014 in Sochi

The polar bear is one of the official mascots for the Winter Olympics that starts February 7^th and runs through the 23^rd. The polar bear is one of three mascots-a snow leopard and the doe hare are the other two. They are the first mascots ever that won their spot in history by popular vote. They will be seen throughout Sochi!

Sochi is located in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. Sochi is a popular tourist destination because of its breathtaking location by the Black Sea. The city is also located directly by the border of Georgia and Abkhazia, the first of which has experienced constant violence such the fall of the Soviet Union in the 1990's. Sochi is a prime travel destination because of its warm summer temperatures and mild winter temperatures, making it a fun destination no matter the season. Russia is one of the nations where polar bears can still be found.

Polar bears live in the Arctic in areas where they can hunt seals at openings in the sea ice called leads. There are five nations with polar bears: U.S. (Alaska), Canada, Russia, Greenland, and Norway. Polar bears do not live in Antarctica. Penguins do.

We’d like to say, “Good luck!” To all of the participants in the 2014 Winter Olympic Games!

Black Bears

The Americanblack bear is the smallest of the three bears types that can be located in North America, and are it should be noted that they are only found in North America. Black bears have the ability to climb trees because of their short non-retractable claws. Black bears are very easy going and have a variety of habitat types, they are mostly found in forested areas with thick ground vegetation and an abundance of fruits, nuts, and vegetation. In the northern areas, they can be found in the tundra, and they will sometimes forage in fields or meadows.

Black bears are inclined to be solitary animals, with the exclusion of mamma black bears and her cubs. Typically, these bears will forage alone, but will endure each other and forage in groups if there is a wealth of food in one location.

Most black bears hibernate subject to local weather trends and the availability of food throughout the winter months. In areas where there is a reliable food supply and warmer weather all winter long, bears may not hibernate at all or do so for short period of time. Female black bears will give birth and stay denned throughout the winter, but you should know that both males and females who do not have young may leave their dens from time to time during winter months.

What Does the Brown Bear Say?

 I remember a Mother Goose Nursery Rhyme, “Brown bear, brown bear what do you?” And with the video sensation “What Does the Fox Say?” Wanted to pursue this blog post.. So what does the brown bear say? And in my quest for answers to the elusive question, I discovered that bears communicate among themselves via vision, touch, smell, sound. They utilize these senses when they are seeking a mate, releasing tension during a stressful encounter with human or otherwise; it is also how a mother bear finds her cubs when they wander off.

The various sounds can indicate satisfaction, irritability, fear, or pain. Just like us, every sound has its own tonality. When two strange bears meet in the woods, they quickly announce their disposition and intentions. Growling and roaring tremendously, they express threats to one another, as well as to humans.

If you encounter a brown bear, do not feed them, get between a brown bear and its cubs or food. Typically brown bears will avoid humans, but please note that brown bears canseriously injure and even kill humans.

Behaviors - What does the Bear Say? from Brownbearbg.info on Vimeo.

Where Do Brown Bears Live?

Brown bears can be found in forests and woodlands, sub alpine mountain areas, scrub, shrub and brushlands, lakes, ponds, rivers & streams to name a few. and across the tundra region. They can be found in Rocky Mountains, Southwest, Northwest, Western Canada, Alaska. In some areas their appearance and color depends on their habitat, diet and season.

And did you know that the Grizzly Bear that lives in the contiguous U.S. is on the U.S. Endangered Species List. It is classified as threatened in the lower 48 states, although its current range extends only into Idaho, Montana, Washington (rarely), and Wyoming. (It has not been recorded in Colorado in many years.) It is said that 50,000 Grizzlies roamed the western U.S. in 1800 from the Canadian border to Mexico, as far east as the middle of the Great Plains. However, the settlement and development of the West meant changes to and destruction of the Grizzly's habitat, competition with humans for game such as White-tailed Deer, and clashes between bears and humans.

For many, grizzlies have always been seen as a threat to humans and livestock, and were hunted, trapped, and poisoned extensively, both for food and fur and to eliminate them from areas where humans lived. In 1975, when the Grizzly Bear came under the protection of the U.S. Endangered Species Act, only about 1,000 remained in the lower 48 states.

Warning All North American bears can be dangerous in the following situations:

·      When accompanied by cubs

·      When surprised by the sudden appearance of humans

·      When approached while feeding, guarding a kill, fishing, hungry, injured, or breeding

·      When conditioned to human foods, as has occurred in some Canadian and U.S. parks

If you are camping, you must firmly seal up food and place it out of reach. Bears will break into unattended vehicles if they smell food. The Grizzly is the most dangerous of all bears. Do not feed, approach, surprise at close range, or get between a Grizzly Bear and its food or cubs. While Grizzlies normally avoid humans, they will attack and have been known to seriously injure and even kill humans. Grizzlies can outrun humans, and can climb trees. If charged by a Grizzly, stand your ground; if attacked, lie flat on your stomach and play dead.

To get your UDAP Bear Spray, please visit us online today!

Real Estate Agents Placed in Danger

How many real estate agents have been placed in danger, because of the nature of their job? While I am not a realtor, there have been a few times in my life, and I suspect in yours as well, that something has happened where your life was placed in danger but you managed to avoid a catastrophe by sheer luck.  Either you realized what was about to happen and changed course or someone came to your rescue. These are the “near-misses” in our lives that we all experience from time-to-time, situations that we seldom hear about but situations that we could learn a lot from if we were made aware of the details.  Sometimes someone else causes the incident that leads to a “near miss” and there’s probably little that we can do about that except to be as observant as we can and then react quickly enough to avoid a problem.

For example, a real estate agent showing a prospective client a house after dark and he/she is robbed. Wouldn’t a stun gun or pepper spray come in handy? UDAP Stun Guns can double as a flashlight, so you have it ready in your handy and you can use it to show clients those dark crawl spaces or under sinks. Make that would be robber think twice. Don’t depend on luck to keep you safe, be prepared whether it’s carrying UDAP Pepper Spray or a UDAP Stun Gun, detect the precursors of life endangering situations and avoid them! Always be prepared for those dangerous situations.

Recreationists gather at Helena Outdoor Fest

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By MARGA LINCOLN, Independent Record

Adventure | Event gives attendees a chance to get hands-on experience with various outdoor activities

 

Stopping a charging bear with a blast of pepper spray, driving a four-wheeler and trap shooting were just some of the fun simulation activities kids got to try at this year’s Outdoors Fest on Saturday.
Now in its fifth year, the event at Montana Wild Education Center and Spring Meadow Lake State Park,  gives kids and families an array of fun outdoor activities to try out, said Laurie Evarts, Montana Wild education program manager.

Activities ranged from kayaking, rafting and archery to trap shooting with a laser gun, mountain biking and fishing. Altogether 70 volunteers and some 200 to 300 kids and their parents got to play in the outdoors and try out some new adventures.

The Off Highway Vehicle simulator is a fun way to get kids to think about safety, said Tom Reilly, a Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks assistant administrator. “Always wear a helmet,” he said, as he helped yet another excited child into the driver’s seat of the OHV. Soon it would be bucking down a back road as the child’s eyes grew larger and larger and their hands tightened on the steering wheel. “Always wear boots,” Reilly advised, “and always wear protective gloves.”

Across the parking lot, another popular simulator was going full bore. Mark Matheny, a grizzly bear attack survivor and the president of UDAP, which makes bear spray, was demonstrating a new piece of protective equipment and also his charging-bear simulator.

“We’re celebrating 20 years of being in business,” he said. “I was mauled Sept. 25, 1992, just outside of Big Sky when I was bow hunting.”  His hunting partner happened to be a physician and EMT, who got him to an emergency room and closed his wounds with more than 200 stitches.

Matheny was mauled by a female grizzly with three cubs, he said. “When my head was in her mouth, I had an out-of-body experience. I was going down a white bright tunnel.”

But it turned out to not be his time to die. “I got a message to go back and serve others,” he said, and he began to make products to make people safer.

The latest product he showed off Saturday is a bear spray pack that attaches to the back of a backpack and can be deployed if a person is attacked from behind and has a bear on their back. A push of a button on the backpack shoulder strap releases a burst of pepper spray into the bear’s face.
His new charging-bear simulator machine gives people an opportunity to practice using bear spray on a “bear” racing at them at 25 miles per hour.

“It gives you an idea of the actual speed bears can move,” said Matheny. “They are faster than a race horse. People can be stunned because of their quickness.”

For the younger set, like 4-year-old Savannah Crumley, there were some calmer activities to try out such as fish tattoos, the Wildlife Olympics, making leaf sun catchers and the oh-so-fascinating tornado in a bottle.

Meanwhile, indoors at the Montana Wild Center, the laser-shooting simulator was a hit, drawing a line of enthusiasts.

 Kids and some moms tried out laser trap shooting under the watchful eye of volunteers who showed them the correct way to hold the rifle.

The simulator is also used for hunter education classes across the state, where students learn about safe shots to take in the field and which ones to pass up.

“It’s a way to teach shooting skills and technique and it’s a confidence builder,” said Wayde Cooperider, FWP outdoor skills and safety supervisor. “This is a safe environment to work on shooting skills.”

Six-year-old Cheyenne Prater had just scored six hits. “It’s a perfect score for a 6-year-old,” she said, smiling at her mom, Kristy Brown.

“They’ve liked it all,” said Brown of the activities the family had tried. “But bear spray practice was the favorite.”

Original Article here

Outdoor Safety

It's summer time and most of us are enjoying the great outdoors! Camping, fishing, hiking, biking and many other outdoor activities. But I want to encourage you, while you are having fun outside, don’t forget to remember outdoor safety!

There are lots of bugs, so don’t forget the bug spray. Don’t forget your UDAP Bear Spray-it works on more than just bears! If you run into a moose who charges, a mountain lion that wants to attack, a charging buffalo or any animal who is going to attack-you can use UDAP Bear Spray to protect yourself and your family!


Enjoy the great outdoors this summer with your family! And don’t forget to bathe/shower and check yourself and family members for ticks when you get home.

Bear Attacks

In the past decade, there have been 27 fatal incidences of bear attacks in North America, resulting in 29 deaths. 15 were in Canada, three were in Alaska, two were in Tennessee, and single fatal bear attacks happened in New York, New Mexico, California, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Utah and Montana. 17 of those fatal bear attacks were inflicted by black bears, and 10 by grizzlies.

Bear attacks happen as fast as lightning!!! Most situations where you will need to use bear pepper spray will be in a close surprise encounter. When people are injured by bears in most cases it is due to the fact that the person and the bear were unaware of each others close proximity. In a surprise encounter as this, a person usually has less than 2 seconds to react. UDAP Pepper Power's® belief is to get as much bear pepper spray as possible between you and the bear in that 2 seconds.

Bear Deterrent Spray Volume

 UDAP Pepper Power has a different philosophy than the competition when it comes to how our bear spray is made. Our bear spray has the highest amount of spray volume possible to stop an attacking bear. Mark Matheny the president and grizzly bear attack survivor knows firsthand how fast a bear can charge and how quickly a bear can reach you.  In fact, most cases when a bear attacks it is because its personal space has been invaded. Usually within 30 yards, the average time for the bear to reach you in an attack situation is about 2 seconds.  We feel you want to get as much bear pepper spray out in front of you as quickly as possible hitting the bear hard in those 2 seconds.  This is why we designed our holsters in a way that the bear spray can be shot without drawing the canister. You can actually shoot from the holster. This is great if you are on the river fly fishing, you can shoot the bear spray directly from your holster!

Think of a bear attack as a fire starting. All bear sprays use a fire extinguisher style trigger mechanism. In fact that is what the bear spray firing mechanism is designed for. When a fire starts or a bear attacks, wouldn’t you rather put the fire our right away before it has a chance to reach further? UDAP’s belief to put the bear's fire out instantly stopping the bear's aggressive behavior in the quickest time possible not allowing the aggressive behavior to progress.

Why higher spray volume helps

Wind: A more forceful spray can reach further in windy conditions. This is an observation in a study done by Tom S. Smith, Stephen Herrero, Terry D. Debruyn and James M. Wilder.  This is what they found. “High exit velocities of spray from cans likely compensate for cross-wind effects and may account for the low incidence of wind-related effects reported in Alaska.”

Rain: Like a strong wind, hard rain requires a forceful spray to compensate for the elements. the higher volume helps the concentration of pepper remain in the air longer. UDAP bear spray can reach further in the rain.

Sight and Sound: It was reported in the study mentioned above that in 14% of bear spray instances the sight and sound associated with spray release were reported as key factors in changing bear behavior. A more forceful spray has a much louder sound and a larger visible cloud as observed in the video below.

Should you wasp spray instead of bear spray?

I recently heard a self-defense teacher tell her students that they should keep a can of wasp spray by their bed if they couldn’t afford bear spray and they could also carry a can of wasp spray with them to help with self-defense.

But we’d like to discourage you from doing this for 2 very important reasons.

The active ingredient in most sprays are derived from plants and intended to penetrate the nervous systems of insects and kill them. Wasp sprays have not been formulated to work as self-defense on humans has not been tested and it could make a human sick, but may not stop a person who is trying to attack you. The main ingredient in wasp spray is pyrethrin and its toxic, it may make your assailant sick, but it won’t stop them from attacking you.

And using wasp spray on a bear is going to have the same reaction. It might make the bear more angry, but it isn’t going to stop him.
The other reason is that if you read on the can of wasp spray, you will see that it is illegal in most states to use wasp spray for self-defense. It is also a federal crime as well, “It is a violation of federal law to use this product in a manner inconsistent with its labeling.”

The biggest train of thought was that wasp spray could spray and go shoot farther than bear spray, but that isn’t true either. Read the package insert on your bear spray or visit our website and you will see that UDAP Bear Spray is very effective and can spray up to 35 feet. So no more wasp spray!

Many new testimonials for 2010!

Click the following links to read them.

Bear Spray
http://www.udap.com/testify.htm

Bear Shock Fence
http://www.udap.com/testifybearshock.htm

Pepper Spray
http://www.udap.com/testifypepperspray.htm


Thank you!

The PepperPower.com Team

About Mark Matheny

Mr. Matheny, an outdoorsman and resident of Bozeman , Montana , has become something of a Western legend as a result of a near-fatal 1992 attack he suffered while hunting and inadvertently encountering a female grizzly protecting her cubs. His survival is attributed to the fact that his friend was carrying pepper spray.

In the years following the attack, Mr. Matheny became a tireless advocate of safety in the wild, lecturing, presenting seminars and distributing literature about the realities, causes, and prevention of bear attacks. He was a sponsor and presenter of Wyoming Game and Fish Department’s “Living in Bear/Lion Country” workshop and he regularly speaks to children in schools around Southwest Montana on preventing animal attacks.

Mr. Matheny also has made safety in bear country a vocation as well as his avocation. The company he founded in 1994, UDAP Industries, manufactures a variety of safety products that include pepper spray for bear deterrent and personal defense under the trademarked name PepperPower®, bear resistant canisters, and bear electric fences , all of which are widely used by state and federal wildlife agencies and avid outdoorsmen.

For Mark's full story visit: http://www.udap.com/markfullstory.htm