Yeah not sure why you would do this. At least for me when I go hiking it’s to experience nature while getting exercise. If I wanted to hear annoying music on a speaker I’d go to a gym.
I’m not a hiker, but I remeber as a kid being told to sing loudly while hiking or carry a cowbell to scare away bears and coyotes. Maybe having a radio going is meant to replicate that?
Old bear joke:
The National Park Rangers are advising hikers in Glacier National Park and other Rocky Mountain parks to be alert for bears and take extra precautions to avoid an encounter. They advise park visitors to wear little bells on their clothes so they make noise when hiking. The bell noise allows bears to hear them coming from a distance and not be startled by a hiker accidentally sneaking up on them. This might cause a bear to charge. Visitors should also carry a pepper spray can just in case a bear is encountered. Spraying the pepper into the air will irritate the bear’s sensitive nose and it will run away. It is also a good idea to keep an eye out for fresh bear scat so you have an idea if bears are in the area. People should be able to recognize the difference between black bear and grizzly bear scat. Black bear droppings are smaller and often contain berries, leaves, and possibly bits of fur. Grizzly bear droppings tend to contain small bells and smell of pepper.
I’ve always heard that if you encounter an aggressive grizzly you need to curl up in a ball and pray. There’s not much else you can do…
Wear running shoes. You don’t have to outrun the bear, you just have to be faster than your companions.
Another bear joke. I’ve got a million of them.
I just make sure to hike with friends with small children so we can toss one of the kids to the bear while we escape. Sorry Timmy, you gotta take one for the team big guy!
You would have to let go of the twins, or the bear will just have more appetite after one small snack.
Bears and coyotes will likely detect you long before you notice them. Unless you’re walking with the wind to your face and particularly quietly you should be fine.
Honestly not sure what justification there is for downvotes n this comment. You’re 100% correct.
I totally agree. Sometimes I’ll listen to music or a podcast, but I almost always end up stopping so I can listen to the birds and trees.
So, in Utah at least, it’s highly recommend you bring bells or a speaker or talk loudly with other people so that the wildlife stays away from you, especially bears.
I just go with people and talk to them, but if you’re alone you need something to make sure the animals avoid you.
I’ve hiked for decades, often solo, in wilder country with way more bears and cougars than exist in the the lower 48. This is utter BS. The animals know you’re there even if you tried to sneak up on them as quiet as you can manage.
Fucking people that need to make as much noise as possible should just stay in the damn city.
We only have black bears in Georgia and they will usually keep far away from people even with minimal noise. The only time I’ve had one get close is when it was looking for food in our camp because someone spilled food earlier.
Wow that’s a load of bs, and any official member of the forest service will tell you not to noise pollute. Please do not bring bells or speakers. If you are alone, that is at your own risk.
Well I’m not an official member, and I’ve never played music nor have I brought bells so I was going off what I had been told one time or read somewhere.
Here’s NPS.gov’s official take on it:
Make noise while hiking. Making noise on the trail can alert a bear to your presence before you have the chance to surprise it. Talk to your partners and occasionally sing loudly, yell “hello” or “whoop! whoop!” and clap your hands loudly to let any bears know you’re coming. Make extra noise when you’re close to loud natural features such as rivers, streams, and on windy days. Also make lots of noise when approaching features that make it hard for a bear to see you (such as a crest in the trail or a blind corner).
Bear bells may be a popular item to put on your backpack, but they don’t effectively warn a bear you’re in the area. Bears won’t hear the bells until you’re too close. Yelling, clapping, and talking are more effective ways of alerting a bear to your presence.
And here’s Park City, Utah’s guidance:
The more noise you make, the less likely you are to startle any wildlife in the area. You don’t need to be shouting or clapping the entire time, but it’s a good idea to keep talking, laughing, or even singing while you’re on the trail. If you’re worried about being too quiet on the trail, buy a bear bell and attach it to your backpack.
Though NPS also says this but I think it’s in reference to when you’re camping, not specially hiking (it’s from their leave no trace section):
Let the natural sounds of Zion prevail. Avoid using loud voices and making unnecessary noise, especially in narrow canyons. Use headphones when listening to music.
This is what I could find in 30 seconds and won’t spend any more time on it. I don’t care enough as I don’t play music or wear bells when hiking, even when alone. I just relayed something I had heard and there are plenty of people out there who had heard the same things so that’s what I got.
Understandable when it comes to bells for wildlife. But I know for sure items like speakers really are frowned upon. Though I’ve never had any encounters with loud music during the hikes I’ve been on at Zion so that’s good
I’m more annoyed with people leaving dog shit bags on the side of the trails.
All litter is bad, but the stupidity of picking up dog shit, putting it into a bag then just leaving it there is insane to me. Get a stick and fling it off the trail. If you are in the woods, chances are coyotes are already shitting just the same as your dog, not to mention every other animal.
You’re supposed to pick them up on the way out so you’re not swinging around bags of shit all day or leaving a pile on the trail for someone to step in.
I do this if I’m walking somewhere where I know theres nowhere to throw it away. Dog poops at the start of a longer walk, pick it up, place it off to the side somewhere I’m gonna know where it is with minimal impact on other, and I’m gonna know where it is. Then pick it back up when returning. Walking around with a swinging, maybe smelling bag of poo is the opposite of fun.
Its way better to pick it up so no one else walks into it or have another dog eat it. Just place the bag behind or next to a bush so its not in plain sight of others, make a note of its location so you can throw it away afterwards.
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Agree. I saw this all the time. We are not in your car. We are not at a backyard barbecue. Leave that shit at home.
I don’t understand this. When I go hiking the only other people I see are anyone I take with me.
I think it’s largely dependent on how popular the place you’re hiking is. For example, Mount Yonah is super popular and I’ve run into bluetooth speaker people every time I’ve been there.
Yeah, I think that’s right. I’ve noticed that the closer a trail is to a highway or main road, the more likely occurrence of casual hikers.
Maybe the issue is hiking versus “going on a maintained trail designated for light walkers”. When I think of hiking, the word popular doesn’t come up, more like, go where no one goes.
We have a ton of hikes that are popular in Georgia. Anywhere with a waterfall and sub 8 miles round trip is usually full of people.
I’m not sure why, but in my head that isn’t hiking, that’s just walking trails. For me hiking involves going off the beaten path.
Some places don’t have an “off the beaten path”. We live in a world where population density varies massively, and in the US most of the east Coast has very little uninhabited area, and more people share what little area there is.
I’m mostly with you, I love getting as far from civilization as possible and dry camping, just know that not everyone has easy access to the things you and I like to do
Despite thinking they kind of sound like garbage, this is the best use case for bone conduction headphones.
Granted, mine are probably higher-end ones (Openrun Pro) but the sound isn’t that bad. Certainly not audiophile-worthy, but I like to compare it to early-90s Sound Blaster computer speakers. They get the job done.
I love mine because they don’t totally disconnect me from the rest of the world, and when I am doing some kind of physical activity my ears are open to let heat escape (supposedly that’s a major place for body heat to be released)
I have the same, and yeah maybe I was too harsh. But compared to my over ears they’re definitely not spectacular.
I’ve hiked with people who wear bells on their boots and people who bring Bluetooth speakers, both people did it because of bears. And bells are way worse.
The NPS says bells don’t do much. They recommend a lot of noise, but human sounds, not bells.
Not a valid reason. Bears mostly leave people alone if they are left alone. If you have a confrontation with a bear, I don’t know what a bell is going to do for you. Or Katy Perry
The noise is so you don’t startle them. Better to let them know you’re coming so they can either vocalize so you know to avoid them or they can avoid you themselves. The noise is about avoiding the confrontation entirely.
I’m not a bear so take it with a grain of salt, but I think the bells make bears think it’s Christmas time and they’re late to hybernatation. Idk if Katy Perry has the same affect but we were blasting Jingle Bells going up the trail head and we didn’t see any bears.
I’ve been to many national parks where the rangers tell you to make noise frequently in areas that have recent bear sightings. The idea is to not have a confrontation with a bear, by not accidentally sneakingo up on them. Generally they’ll hear you coming and move along. You don’t want to come around a corner and come face to face with some cubs or mama.
And it’s disruptive to wildlife. They don’t want to hear that shit either
i have a decent bluetooth speaker, does that make it better?
I used to worry about people walking buy me while fishing in the park because my music is playing outloud but most people walking buy have ear buds in.
Honestly if you’re fishing around a lake in a single spot I don’t find that too bad. It’s more frustrating when it’s someone keeping the same pace as you while hiking and blasting music.
I have not experienced this, sounds annoying in two ways…
I only bring high quality BT speakers camping and hiking.
And listen to something classy, like WAP
Just Old Town Road on loop.
Interesting People actually bring bluetooth speakrs for hiking? lol
Proper proportions!
