Even Bears Love An iPhone

Vermont woman fends off approaching bear with her iPhone

The list of tasks you can accomplish with your iPhone (taxes, blogging, babysitting) keeps getting bigger with each passing day. Still, we didn't see this one coming: A woman hiking in Vermont stopped a curious bear by tossing her iPhone at it.

I'm going to say that again, because I barely believe it myself: She stopped a bear with her iPhone.

Rowley went through her mental list of how to prevent bear attacks. Play dead? A good last resort. Pepper spray? Didn't have it. Drop a backpack to distract the bear? She wasn't wearing one. All Rowley had was her iPhone.

The bear closed within 30 feet. "In a semi-panic, I threw the phone at the bear," Rowley says.

Sure enough, the approaching bruin stopped to sniff, paw, and gnaw on the must-have Apple product. While the bear explored the limits of Apple's touch-screen technology, she escaped. But, like most Apple fans, the woman remained addicted to her crackPhone, so she returned to the scene of the crime to attempt to retrieve it. When she arrived, she found the phone bitten and clawed, but left behind. Apparently, dissatisfaction with AT&T's crappy 3G service extends to the animal kingdom.

But here's the best/worst part: She went to the Apple Store hoping to get a sympathy replacement iPhone free of charge, but sales reps denied her. (I can just imagine their sneering faces as they told her, "A bear attack, eh? Well, in that case you should've bought AppleCare.")

How strong was her addiction? She bought a new iPhone at full price. Ouch: She might've gotten to keep her precious phone, if only she'd watched our "Survive A Bear Attack video."

—Ted Alvarez

'A Bear Ate My iPhone' (CIO.com)

Image Credit: Matt and Bess

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READERS COMMENTS

black gears are like puppy dogs you can kiss and hug them and give them war cuddlies and then take them on Oprah and vote Democrat with them by your side in a stroller!
Posted: Oct 18, 2009 Martin

As a Wilderness Ranger in black bear country I have been confronted by bears a few times. In every case the bear has immediately turned and ran or his curiousity took over and he would check me out. In this case rapping my trekking pole on a rock or bole of a tree always sends him off in a hurry. Bears are extremely curious mammals especially if you are down wind of them. acb is correct in saying that the key is not to suprise them, especially a female with cubs. If you find yourself in good bear habitat, singing as you hike is an excellent way to avoid a confrontation (especially if you sing as badly as I). JJ50 is also correct, never give a food reward to a bear.
Posted: Oct 15, 2009 FFF56

You should never play dead with a black bear charging you (hiking in Vermont).
Attacks are either curiousity on the bears part, or predatory. Either way you will be hurt if you are lying there helpless.Fight like your life depends on it.
Grizzlies on the other hand, charge when they feel threatened. If you remove the threat (ie play dead) you might get away relatively unscathed.
Regardless, the true trick is to not surprise a bear, by making plenty of noise, and hiking in groups.
Posted: Oct 15, 2009 acb

Never drop your pack if a bear approaches. You're giving it a food reward. A fed bear is a dead bear.
Posted: Oct 12, 2009 JJ50