Watt, A. R. 1992. Waterton Lakes National Park. Most visitors never see a bear, but all of the park is bear country. Whether visitors plan to hike for days or simply sightsee for a few hours, it is important to take the time to learn about special precautions in bear country. While a negative encounter with a bear in the park is a possibility, statistically, waterfalls are more dangerous than bears.
Bears live in a world of scent.
Even though their eyes are good, they mainly perceive the world through their nose. On the other hand, we perceive the world mainly through our eyes. Meanwhile, because we would be downwind from the bear, it would not receive the message of a human moving along the trail. Bears will usually move out of the way if they hear people approaching. Making noise is an effective strategy.