What would you do if you come across a bear while hunting other animals?

[Ron.C]

And no, the answer is not "I would hunt the bear!"

Here is the scenario: I was hunting once (solo and not too experienced, but I enjoy the solitude) and was glassing a cut block from a fairly good location an hour or so before the sunset. While there, a black bear showed up and after it noticed me, it ran away in a different direction. Nonetheless, I called the hunt and walked back to my car. My thinking was that if a bear was around and I connected with a deer, I had to be much more careful (i.e., afraid) while processing the animal and carrying it back (and I would have needed a couple of trips, potentially into the dark hours).

Now, my question is to the more experienced hunters. Assuming that shooting the bear was not an option (I do not shoot what I do not want to eat), will it be safe to hunt an area after you come across a bear in that vicinity? Would the bear put a large distance between you and itself or would it just hang around to see what happened? I know the answer to a great extent depends on the bear and how habituated/aggressive it is, but assuming you were in the same situation described in the above, what would you do?

Cheers.

It's smart to be cautious when you see a bear in the area you are hunting, but seeing a bear doesn't mean he is a threat or your hunt will be ruined. In your example, I would have stayed and hunted the area. The good thing about seeing a bear or cat is that you can assess it's mood and make a decision on how you will proceed based on your comfort and experience.

But keep this in mind, we are always concerned about what we see. But you have probably had closer encounters with bears or cougars that you were not even aware of.