As spring comes around, more Americans will be heading outdoors to enjoy time in nature.
It’s good to know what not to do if you encounter a wild bear in nature.
And the internet lost its mind over this insane advice from the National Park Service on encountering wild bears.
Spring is in the air
For most of the nation, the winter hibernation is about over and the frigid air is finally giving way to more pleasant temperatures.
This means many Americans will be heading out into nature to enjoy this pleasant weather over the next couple of months before the summer’s scorching heat arrives.
Some will take the time to go out on the water and enjoy fishing.
Others may go out to enjoy some spring turkey hunting.
But there will be a large number of people who will be taking hikes and wandering in the woods to enjoy nature.
But these folks need to realize it isn’t just people coming out of their holes to go back into the wild.
Animals like bears are reappearing from hibernation and are hungry and confused.
Many of these bears will soon have cubs.
And the last thing anyone wants to see in the woods is an angry mother bear with her cubs.
But the National Parks Service has some advice on what Americans should do if they run across an angry bear.
When people generally go hiking in the woods, they bring a buddy along with them.
Grab a friend just in case you see a bear
And it’s been the common belief for a while now that if you start to get chased by a bear, you locate your buddy, throw them to the ground, and run like hell.
Of course, the National Park Service advises against that survival tactic.
The federal agency insists that “if you come across a bear, never push a slower friend down…even if you feel the friendship has run its course.”
The Park Service added to their bad advice by tweeting out, “If not friend, why friend shaped? What about your other friend? Seeing a bear in the wild is a special treat for any visitor to a national park. While it is an exciting moment, it is important to remember that bears in national parks are wild and can be dangerous.”
If not friend, why friend shaped?
What about your other friend? Seeing a bear in the wild is a special treat for any visitor to a national park. While it is an exciting moment, it is important to remember that bears in national parks are wild and can be dangerous.
— National Park Service (@NatlParkService) February 28, 2023
The reality is that if you are facing a charging bear head on, you need to do anything you can to survive.
And if you have a friend to throw to the ground, do it.
If they were a real friend they wouldn’t mind.
After all, what’s a friendship if you can’t get eaten alive for your buddy.
And if your friend is on the larger side, you are doing both them and nature a service.
Odds are the larger friend will be caught anyways by the raging beast, so don’t let him suffer as he struggles to catch his breath trying to run away.
Instead, just knock them to the ground and save them the trouble of running away.
Sometimes you’ve got to do whatever you’ve got to do to survive.
