Central California
Starting: Section H21 - Thousand Islands Lake
Ending:  Section I2 - Tuolumne Meadows

Awoke at 5 am to the unmistakable sound of a backpack being dragged away. Looked out from my bivy to see my backpack in the jaws of an ENORMOUS brown bear!! I jumped out of the bivy and chased after the bear in my underwear, armed with 1 trekking pole, a large rock, & adrenaline. The commotion awoke Pete who yelled 'holy cow' in disbelief & joined me in the pursuit.

The pack snagged on a tree limb after a 75-yard chase. The bear stopped, ripped open the pack & proceeded to eat the entire contents. Pete & I approached within 5 feet- yelling, stomping our feet, & banging our trekking poles. The bear was completely oblivious to our presence.

I contemplated braining him with the softball sized rock I was carrying, but getting a good look at his 500+ pound girth Pete stopped me by saying 'You probably shouldn't throw that rock, you might make him mad, ay'.

It looked like the bear especially enjoyed the 10 hot chocolate packets & Honeybuns (I swear I saw him smile after each one). At one point he stuck his entire head into the pack & came out with 1 pound of uncooked spaghetti, the strands sticking out of both sides of his mouth like whiskers.

Finished with the last of the food, leaving not even a single cornnut uneaten, he paused for a moment, let out a long yawn & what sounded like a healthy burp, then slowly got up & waddled off.

I quickly attempted to recover the remains of my pack & dignity and was surprised to realize the pack was salvageable despite the 14-inch gash (early 90's handmade Dana Design packs are TOUGH).

We quickly broke camp & headed out in stunned silence. Facing a 20-mile day with no food Pete took pity on me & provided me with rations for the long march.

Hoping to remind my fellow thru-hikers of what can happen when you foolishly refuse to carry a bear can, I have officially adopted a trail name: "Bearcan't"…