We went west, and you should, too
As Jeff, Jen, Peter and I prepared for a trek through parts of the American West, my biggest fear was a bear attack. National news reporting about an actual attack in the area we were headed worsened my concern. A long talk and a $112 investment with Tom the Bear Spray Guy at Jackson Hole airport made me feel a lot better. We'll get half the rental fee back as, happily, we were not attacked by bears despite Peter's best effort to find one. You rent bear spray, I discovered, because its so powerful you aren't allowed to transport it via airplane. Also, if a bear comes at you, you spray downward to create a kind of Mace-on-Steroids screen that's supposed to stop it. We did see one black bear, but we didn't have to unholster even one of the four cans of spray we had. The black bear - not the grizzly Peter was hoping for - was headed away from us during a hike aroubd Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park. We were deep into the hike, and Jen and I were nervous. The be...