New Hampshire

After bear charges hikers, N.H. expert has advice on how to share the outdoors

Published

2 years ago

July 31, 2024

Press Room

After bear charges hikers, N.H. expert has advice on how to share the outdoors

July 31, 2024

Grace McFadden, New Hampshire Public Radio

Several hiking parties reported encounters with a bear in the Lincoln Woods area this week, including a group that was charged at by the bear.

Andrew Timmins, Games Programs Supervisor at New Hampshire Fish and Game, said the group that witnessed the bear charging had a dog with them.

“I give them a lot of credit for having the dog leashed and under control. That’s what responsible hikers do,” Timmins said. “But the bluff charge was clearly due to the dog barking, and kind of intensifying the situation.”

Bears aren’t usually interested in interacting with humans, said Timmins. But hikers may encounter them along the edges of the forest canopy, where there may be more food for bears.

“Not a lot of sunlight comes through the forest canopy. As a result, on the understory of the forest there usually is not a lot of vegetation growing, so not a lot to eat,” said Timmins. “But when you get these breaks in the canopy like a hiking trail, those edges are getting increased sunlight, which creates more diversity in plant species.”

If hikers encounter a bear in the wild a safe distance away, the best thing to do is to wait for it to clear the area, said Timmins.

“You can just stand there kind of quietly and let the bear just move off in time, or you can make it aware of your presence with some normal noise,” said Timmins. “You know, it might be a ‘hey bear’ in a kind of low or moderate voice, or it might just be clanking hiking sticks together — just something to make it aware.”

In most cases, bears will run off on their own, Timmins said. But if a bear does approach a hiker on the trail, the key is to remain dominant but not aggressive. To do this, hikers should make eye contact with the bear, speak at a regular volume, and back away slowly.

“If a bear comes up close to you, or exhibits any bluff charges, not a lot changes,” said Timmins. “You still want to be putting distance between you and the animal. But at that point, you might raise your voice a little bit to try to scare the bear off.”

Timmins said carrying an air horn can be helpful for such occasions. He also recommended clanging hiking sticks, as bears tend not to like the sound of metal on metal.

Timmins also advises against throwing food at bears, as this teaches them to approach humans more often.

“What that does is it just teaches the bear that ‘Hey, there’s something to this, you know, when I make my presence known, a percentage of hikers toss granola bars off in the bushes for me,’” Timmins said. “That can start to build that behavior. It’s really kind of begging or panhandling behavior.”

Officials are taking steps to reach the bear in question to prevent further encounters with humans.

Timmins emphasized that bears are generally peaceful.

“There are bears and people sharing space on a daily basis . . . and the number of conflicts that come out of that are very low.” Timmins said. “The bears aren’t terrible animals. They belong in our forest, and we have just got to learn how to share the same areas for different purposes and coexist.”

This story is a production of the New England News Collaborative. It was originally published by New Hampshire Public Radio.

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New Hampshire

N.H. woman accused of civil rights violation after allegedly shooting at lost man because he was Black

Published

5 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

N.H. woman accused of civil rights violation after allegedly shooting at lost man because he was Black

Local News

Diane Durgin, 67, is accused of shooting at a Black man who inadvertently drove to her property after a prearranged truck part sale, prosecutors said.

A New Hampshire woman is accused of violating the state’s Civil Rights Act four times after she allegedly shot at a man because he was Black, prosecutors said.

Diane Durgin, 67, of Weare, N.H. could face up to a $5,000 fine for each violation she is found to have committed, the office of New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella said in a press release Tuesday.

Durgin is also charged with criminal threatening against a person with a deadly weapon and attempted first degree assault with a deadly weapon, Michael Garrity, a media representative for the New Hampshire Attorney General, said in an emailed statement to Boston.com.

Durgin had a final pre-trial conference last week, Garrity said.

In a civil complaint filed Tuesday, Durgin is accused of threatening physical force against the victim, the AG said. Prosecutors asked the court to issue a preliminary injunction barring Durgin from repeating her alleged behavior and from contacting the victim and his family.

During the morning hours of Oct. 20, 2024, the victim claims, he “mistakenly” drove to Durgin’s home after a prearranged purchase of a truck part with a seller online, prosecutors wrote as part of their request for an injunction.

When the man — whom prosecutors identified in court documents as X.G. — arrived, Durgin allegedly stepped out of her home and approached his car with a gun “holstered by her waist,” prosecutors wrote.

Upon noticing that X.G. was Black, Durgin allegedly “removed her gun and pointed it at X.G.,” prosecutors said in the injunction request.

While X.G. explained that he was lost, Durgin called the victim a “Black mother[expletive],” and threatened to “kill him,” prosecutors allege.

As the victim attempted to drive away, Durgin allegedly took her gun and fired two shots at the fleeing man’s car, missing both times, the AG’s office said.

While on the phone with a dispatcher, Durgin allegedly said she shot the man’s car because the victim is Black, the AG said.

“The guy is Black. And he, he…he says he’s meeting someone here and I think he’s coming here to steal,” Durgin allegedly said.

Police located X.G. and brought him to the Weare Police Department, stopping along the way at the correct seller’s home to complete the truck part purchase, prosecutors wrote in court documents.

To prove a violation of the New Hampshire Civil Rights Act, the AG must show that Durgin “interfered or attempted to interfere with the rights of the victim to engage in lawful activities by threatening to engage in or actually engage in physical force or violence, when such actual or threatening conduct was motivated by race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, sex, gender identity, or disability,” prosecutors said.

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New Hampshire

Up to 4 inches of snow expected in NH tonight. See latest forecast

Published

17 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Up to 4 inches of snow expected in NH tonight. See latest forecast

It may be March, but winter in New Hampshire is far from over. Just one week after a blizzard tore through the state with heavy snow and high winds, the state is getting another round of snowfall.

The state will get three to five inches during the evening and night of Tuesday, March 3, says the National Weather Service (NWS) of Gray, Maine. While the accumulation will not be significant, the snowfall may cause dangerous road conditions and a layer of ice on the ground in certain parts of the state.

Here’s what to know before tonight’s snow in New Hampshire, including snow totals and timing.

When will it snow in NH tonight?

According to the NWS, it will start snowing in New Hampshire during mid-afternoon or early evening and continue through the night. Specifically, snow will arrive to the southern part of the state around 2-3 p.m., spreading northwards through the rest of New Hampshire by 5 p.m.

Rain or freezing rain will mix in later this evening across southern New Hampshire, creating a wintry mix. All precipitation should move out of the state by midnight.

Due to the timing of today’s snowfall, the Tuesday evening commute will be affected, with the NWS warning to slow down and exercise caution while driving.

How much snow will NH get tonight?

New Hampshire will get one to four inches of snow tonight, with one to two inches in northern New Hampshire, two to three inches in southern New Hampshire and three to four inches in the center of the state, with the possibility for five inches in localized areas.

In the Seacoast specifically, Portsmouth, Rye, Hampton and York are expected to get between two to three inches of snow, while Dover, Exeter and Rochester may get up to four.

The wintry mix may also cause a light glaze of ice across southern New Hampshire.

NH weather watches and warnings

The NWS has issued a winter weather advisory for the state of New Hampshire, in effect from 1 p.m. on Tuesday, March 3 through 4 a.m. on Wednesday, March 4.