Anglers learn not to string grizzlies along

ON THE RUSSIAN RIVER, Alaska – Washington angler Justin Steinhoff was enjoying his first Alaska fishing trip in June when he spotted a group of dark objects moving downstream out of the brush toward the riverbank.

Although Steinhoff was among dozens of anglers flogging the cold water for red salmon, a family of hungry grizzly bears on the prowl for food appeared anyway.

Spotting bears might have tempted some visitors to move closer, perhaps to snap a photo. But Steinhoff, 30, knew better.

He wasn’t about to risk a possible encounter with several hundred pounds of sow and two nearly grown cubs. So the angler from Dayton, Wash., and his father-in-law reeled in their lines and headed back to camp.

“The bears scared us off,” Steinhoff said.

Since the upper Kenai and Russian rivers opened to anglers June 11, bear and angler encounters have been steadily on the rise, said Bobbie Jo Skibo, a Russian River interagency coordinator for the U.S. Forest Service.

Skibo doesn’t know exactly how many bears are along the banks of the Russian and Kenai rivers, about 100 miles south of Anchorage, but numerous encounters have been reported. And, she said, many anglers aren’t getting the point that their actions are contributing to the rise.

Bears drawn to the river by salmon carcasses left by anglers hang around the confluence of the two rivers and begin to develop a tolerance for humans, said Jeff Selinger, the area wildlife biologist for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Once that happens, he added, it isn’t a big step for them to get close to an angler who gets scared, runs off and leaves a stringer of whole fish.

Once the bears discover they can in this manner get whole fish, they’re every bit as hooked as drug addicts. Officials with the Chugach National Forest and the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, the managers of separate banks of the river, have this year been trying to cure anglers of leaving those stringers of fish, or their backpacks, where they are easy pickings for a bear

Federal enforcement officials have issued 100 warnings to anglers in a recent nine-day period, Skibo said.

“It could have been 1,000 if we had the staff,” she added. “Anglers who bring bear attractants like fish, food, beer, soda, and even sunscreen must keep their possessions within 3 feet.”

Leaving gear unattended is against the law. Those who don’t follow the law could find themselves going home with a $125 to $175 ticket.

More anglers likely means more fish are being caught, which is likely to mean more carcasses in the river, which is what holds bears that would normally pass through the area.

“Then it just escalates,” Selinger said.

If a bear approaches an angler holding fish on a stringer, Skibo advises them to move slowly in the opposite direction or, as a last resort, toss the fish into the fastest current to prevent the bears from getting it. Selinger noted that if anglers grab their fish and gang up at the approach of the bears, the bears will back down. There are no records of grizzlies attacking groups of people numbering six or more.

Under the rules now in effect on the river, Skibo said anglers must keep stringers readily accessible. No more tying them to a bank and wandering off.

“We hope that folks will comply,” she said.

It’s a difficult situation, Selinger said. Normally, if wildlife managers get 90 percent compliance with these sorts of regulations they think they’re doing great. But that won’t work in this situation. If even 10 percent of anglers fail to comply, there is more than enough of a big, fat, salmon incentive to cause bear problems.

The Russian has been the site of numerous close encounters and one near deadly attack. In July 2003, Dan Bigley nearly died when a bear grabbed him by the face and crushed most of the bones in the front of his skull. The young angler lived thanks to rescue efforts, but he is blind.

Though regulations aimed at reducing human-bear encounters on the Russian River don’t guarantee safe fishing, officials believe that following the rules lessen the odds of an encounter. Anglers are being constantly reminded to “stop, chop and throw,” carcasses into a fast-moving current if they fillet their fish so as to prevent bears from feeding on carcasses.

Nearly 20 cleaning stations dot the Kenai and Russian rivers, Skibo said. Some were moved this season to reduce the chance of carcasses getting caught in eddies.

Anglers are also urged not to use the boardwalks as fillet tables as the scent of blood attracts bears.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game is working to develop carcass choppers that will be set beside cleaning stations, Skibo said.

“They’re working on a design that’s going to work,” she said, “so stay tuned.”

And keep your eyes peeled for bears.