2 Glacier Hikers Repel Charging Grizzlies With Bear Spray After Close Trail Encounter
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jun 1
2 Glacier Hikers Repel Charging Grizzlies With Bear Spray After Close Trail Encounter
4 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 1
Two hikers in Glacier National Park used bear spray over Memorial Day weekend after two grizzlies charged them on a trail, with video showing one bear veer away and run into the woods.
The pair had been warned bears were on the trail and initially tried to wait out the encounter, but changed course when one grizzly stopped nearby, growled and then focused on them.
Both hikers and both bears were unharmed. The hikers later said the animals may have been siblings.
Glacier National Park, home to about 300 grizzlies, tells visitors to stay 100 yards away when possible, carry bear spray, avoid running and back away slowly.
The encounter came less than a month after a hiker was found dead on May 7 in what authorities called Glacier's first fatal bear attack since 1998.
With park visitation soaring, are close calls with grizzlies becoming the new normal for hikers in the American West?
Bear spray saved one hiker yet was found near a fatal victim. What truly separates survival from tragedy in a grizzly attack?