Thanks @jayna -brave or maybe not so smart, lol! We never hike alone; always 2 or more and carry bear spray and other things should the nightmare ever happen. We were able to avoid the bear this past spring only because I for some reason took a little detour and happened to see it while I was looking around. Had I not taken that detour, we would have run into each other. I'm thinking Devine intervention, myself! Thanks for commenting!