Hi all,

My partner is a lighter sleeper than me, and on a few camping trips in backcountry Ontario, she's woken up to noises from a seemingly large creature outside a our tent. We disagreed on the best course of action. This got me thinking - what would you do in the following scenarios? Would it matter if you were on your own? I haven't been able to find an answer to this on the web.

1) can't identify a creature that sounds like it's in or near the campside

2) can't identify a creature that's close to the tent

3) creature visibly interfacing with tent, i.e., touching the nylon

On the one hand, I know that bears (and many other creatures) are easily scared off by clapping and shouting. On the other hand, bears and moose and other creatures can become aggressive when startled, and why disturb them if they're not bothering you as in 1 and 2?

There's also the question of whether to exit the tent to see what's going on. Maybe it's the fact that I don't want to screw up the courage, but something tells me that remaining hidden inside is a good idea so that you don't initiate an "encounter" from the animal's perspective. Presumably, while you're in the tent, you're just a novel object. I'm also fond of the "ignorance is bliss" approach whereby I just roll over and get a good night's sleep, knowing there is bear spray next to us and a knife for quickly exiting the tent if it is attacked.

Anyway, I would sleep more soundly knowing the best way to respond to these situations when they come up. Appreciate the input!