Posted on 08/09/2019 6:46:58 AM PDT by george76
Just one day before he turned 45, Colin Dowler didn't think he'd live to celebrate it...
the avid outdoorsman was scouting backcountry trails outside of Powell River, B.C., on his mountain bike, about seven kilometres away from a nearby logging camp.
After making his way down one of the hills onto the logging road, he caught sight of a large male grizzly bear, walking in his direction.
"I wasn't really sure what to do about the situation," Dowler said from his Vancouver hospital bed. "I largely stood there, and let the grizzly keep walking up towards me."
Concerned of making any sudden movements, Dowler nervously watched as the bear inched closer. He had a hiking pole in one hand and tried to nudge it away.
But the bear kept advancing and swiped at Dowler's mountain bike.
It grabbed me by the stomach and kind of pushed me down and dragged me toward the ditch maybe 50 feet," he said. "I tried eye gouging it away and it didn't really work."
Dowler, a husband and father of two daughters, says the event seemed to unfold in slow motion. He considered playing dead as the bear bit through his arm, foot and thigh.
"It sounded like it was grating my bones up," said Dowler. Knowing that the bear wouldn't stop the onslaught, he remembered he had a small buck knife in his pocket
...
I grabbed the knife out and opened it and put it in [my] hand and stabbed the bear in his neck.
...
four officers went into the area following the attack. Insp. Murray Smith said the bear was put down after it snuck behind one of the officers.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbc.ca ...
“I largely stood there, and let the grizzly keep walking up towards me.”
Stupid should HURT.
This is really stupid and should have been fatal.
One lucky guy.
Ummm, back away slowly at first and then take off on your bike?
(I wouldn't much care about their rules. Its MY life!)
If this was Alaska or even Washington State he would have a weapon strapped on. In B.C. he would have had to sling a long gun on his bicycle.
Have you seen the video of the bear rushing downhill to intercept the biker racing down the trail?
He looks like a snowflake liberal. I’m surprised he carried such a weapon of mass destruction as a knife...gasp! A 357 would be a bit more appropriate.
Meals on wheels.
“Insp. Murray Smith said the bear was put down after it snuck behind one of the officers.”
Nobody likes a sneaky bear
We moved up to the Colorado mountains recently and saw my first black bear out on our deck, just ten days ago, drinking from our hummingbird feeder. Standing at only 5’6”, I still couldn’t believe how absolutely massive his claws were! I’ll have to figure out how to load a pic to the profile page...
Ping!
I know you like reading these stories.
To be fair, that was a nice gesture on the part of the bear.
Ummm, back away slowly at first and then take off on your bike?
- -
Bears can run faster than a human on a bike. I know this from a close encounter with a Black Bear. Luckily we both scared each other, but the bear passed me like I was standing still.
>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-GbLAEd1PY
Sometimes the bear gets you and sometimes you get the bear. In this case the bear got shot for doing what comes naturally. Man 1. Bear 0.
dumb guy
bear being a bear
I hate animal activists, I'm not one
I don't believe the cops' story in 100 years, it was a silly excuse to bear hunt w/badge
I came around a curve on a dirt road in my pickup, and there was a bear on the road.
The bear turned around and went up the hill like he had rockets attached to him.
They are fast.
I’ve seen shows where Alaska Wild Life and State Troopers are talking to people and everyone seems to be packing. If it just weren’t so danged cold....
I’ve met a few Canadians and they just think differently than we do. Must have come from being part of the UK for so long. Just a different way of thinking.
You won.
Bear country like this, 44 magnum strapped to chest holster.
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