How to Choose Bear Spray: What to Look For
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Bear spray has the best track record of anything people carry to stop an aggressive bear. But that only helps if you buy the right product, carry enough of it and can reach it in a second or two. Here's what to look for before your next trip into bear country.
If you're wondering whether bear spray works at all, start with Does Bear Spray Really Work?
1. Make sure it's real bear spray
The pepper spray people carry for self-defense against other people is a different product, and it isn't designed to stop a charging bear.
- Look for the EPA registration number. In the US, bear spray is registered with the Environmental Protection Agency. The registration number is printed on the front label of the can.
- Check the label says it's for bears. If in doubt, ask a salesperson specifically for bear spray, not "pepper spray."
Several well-known brands sell EPA-registered bear spray, for example Counter Assault, Frontiersman and UDAP. Whatever you buy, check for the EPA number on the label yourself.
2. Carry enough
One can might not be enough. Wind can blow the spray off course, there might be more than one bear, and you still have to hike out afterward. The Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee (IGBC), a group of US and Canadian wildlife agencies, suggests considering two cans.
And everyone in your group should carry their own. A can in your friend's pack doesn't help you if you're the one the bear is walking toward.
3. Check the expiration date
Bear spray expires. The date is printed on the can. Check it before every season and replace the can once it's out of date.
4. Get a holster
This is the part most people skip, and it matters. Bear spray only helps if you can grab it in a second or two, not after digging through your pack.
- Wear it on your hip or chest in a bear spray holster, where either hand can reach it.
- Keep it on the outside of everything, not under a jacket you might zip up.
- At camp, keep a can next to your flashlight in the tent, and another in your cooking area.
Some bear spray comes with a holster, some doesn't, so check before you buy.
5. Practice before you need it
Read the instructions on your can at home, not during a charge. Practice pulling the can out of the holster and removing the safety clip until you can do it without looking.
Some brands also sell inert practice cans that spray harmlessly, so you can feel how a real can sprays and how wind affects it. Never test real bear spray near people or animals.
What bear spray is not
- It's not a repellent. Never spray it on yourself, your tent, your pack or the ground around camp. It only works as a cloud sprayed toward an aggressive bear.
- It's not a replacement for good habits. Making noise, hiking in a group and keeping your distance still come first. No deterrent is 100% effective.
Before you travel
- Check the rules for your park. Some parks recommend bear spray, and rules on carrying it can vary.
- Check your airline's rules before you pack bear spray for a flight. Many travelers simply buy it at their destination.
Quick checklist
- EPA registration number on the front label
- Labeled for bears, not people
- Not expired
- One can per person, and consider a second
- A holster on your hip or chest
- Instructions read and practiced at home
For what to do if you actually meet a bear, read What to Do If You See a Bear and Play Dead or Fight Back?
I'm not a fan of the stuff. Which is kind of the point.