This is the story of Bob Eder and his scary incident as told to Tyler Freel from Outdoor Life. It will definitely serve a warning to you to be careful and always be aware while hiking, bugging out, and enjoying the great outdoors.
Bob was going for a routine hike with his dog on a trail up the mountain above his house in Eagle River, Alaska, when he walked into a perfect storm. He told me he had gotten a ways up the trail and realized he had forgotten his bear spray. Since the likelihood of encountering a bear was low, he decided to continue without it. Just as he crested a rise in the brushy trail, he saw the heads of four brown bears (a sow and three sub-adult cubs) pop up “less than 15 feet” in front of him. He had been making noise, talking to his dog, and even the dog (who usually goes ballistic anytime a bear is near) failed to smell the bears as they approached.
Bob instantly turned around, but before he could take a step, the sow caught him on the back of his head with her claws, ripped open his scalp, and flipped him over.
After the bear left, Bob slid down the hill to the trail. He didn’t have cell service and he could put weight on his leg, so he knew he would have to walk out. He took off his shirt and tied it around the wound on his leg, “not as a tourniquet,” he said, but just to hold the wound together as he walked out. He eventually made it down to a private driveway and phone service and was able to direct police officers to his location.
If you’ve seen the movie “The Revenant,” you’ve seen the bear-attack scene. Especially for Hollywood, I think it is pretty dang realistic. When you see the bear’s head pop up, then it charges, well, that speed is no exaggeration. Bears will sometimes charge extremely fast. In a piece I did last year talking about a sow grizzly that charged my buddy Nick and me, we calculated that she covered 13 yards in less than a second.
Now that the bears are out, it’s time to carry not only some form of bear protection, whether its bear spray or a firearm, but also to keep yourself in a cautious mindset and pay attention to your surroundings. The best thing you can do is try to prevent a situation like that in the first place.
Before you head outdoors this season, make sure you bring something to protect yourself and loved ones. You may think you can outrun a bear, but usually, that just isn't the case. Always be on guard and be in tune with your surroundings. And of course, don't forget your pepper spray. It just may save your life! For more on this story and why it's not a good idea to try to outrun a bear, visit Outdoor Life.
You have no chance against a charging bear, i have firsthand knowledge of this. Luckily the noise of me banging my knife against my bow scared the cubs away from me and the bear stopped about 6 feet from me. I backed up, she turned her attention to her cubs and i exit stage left in a hurry
Why I hike with alow people
Kinda like a 10mm. Alot more powerful than people give them credit.
But even a bear cannot outrun the truth! Ha ha
Better 4 get that out running his$#%&!@*n shot him, if your stupid enough to be out in the woods known to be frequented by bears and you don’t have a serious firearm, your a dumbass anyway or think your bear gyllis
Bears back legs are longer than their front legs making running downhill difficult. It may be possible to outrun a bear over a short distance going downhill.
And that’s why they made a .50 cal revolver. . .f@ck running let’s get messy!
I can
00 buck to the eyes will slow it down
Serpentine…serpentine!
Ruger super Blackhawk .44 and bear spray.
Only Usain Bolt can outrun a bear!
According to Zenas Leonard (1809-1858) who spent time in the wilderness from 1830-1835:
“The Grizzly Bear is the most ferocious animal that inhabits these prairies, and are very numerous. They no sooner see you than they will make at you with open mouth. If you stand still, they will come within two or three yards of you, and stand upon their hind feet, and look you in the face, if you have fortitude enough to face them, they will turn and run off; but if you turn they will most assuredly tear you to pieces; furnishing strong proof of the fact, that no wild beast, however daring and ferocious, unless wounded, will attack the face of man.”
I never did underestimate them. I’ve been around grizzlies and they are true monsters that nightmares are made of. They even smell like death.
Ask the pros…nothing works better than .12 GA. Slugs.
Matt Jacobs fuckin bears
I don’t have to outrun the bear. All I have to do is outrun the people next to me
Bend over real quick and kiss your as goodby.
One hundred yards with a rocket launcher.
Who thinks they could out run a best they are fast ,and if your faced with a brown or grizzly bear you better have a fire arm that can put it down quick and know how to use it but at thirteen yards on a big grizzly or brown bear and for sure a polar bear ,put your head between your legs and kiss your$#%&!@*good bye .and some people think climbing a tree will save them bears can climb ,black bears climb trees all the time and even tho they don’t climb trees most of the time grizzly a and browns can climb also ,seen a true story of a guy climb a tree he was 30 feet up a big male grizzly imbed up that tree fast and snatched him he survived but his skull had holes in it and other places on his body,some one was watching over him ,that was in Montana ,Alaska bears are bigger and meaner from what I have read and shows about them ,and polar bears are something else the have been seen close to hinders miles in the ocean swimming to a new location on the ice and bears are not dumb .
That is why the .454 Casull was invented.
That’s why I carry a 44 Magnum.
Denise St. John
My favorite!
No worries. A bear can’t outrun a SIG 220 chambered in 10mm either.
Is that a threat or a dare lol? Come on over!!!
Lol this is a crippled bear
Exactly mike, I never go into bear country without my 30:06 pushing 180grs. Backed up by a good sidearm.