Bear Expert and Companion Killed in Bear Attack at Alaska Park ( New View on Old Story )

AP, via TBO.com ^ | Oct 7, 2003 | By Rachel D'oro

[greydog]

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A self-taught bear expert who once called Alaska's brown bears harmless was one of two people fatally mauled in a bear attack in the Katmai National Park and Preserve.

The bodies of Timothy Treadwell, 46, and Amie Huguenard, 37, both of Malibu, Calif., were found Monday at their campsite when a pilot arrived who was supposed to take them to Kodiak, state troopers said Tuesday.

Treadwell, co-author of "Among Grizzlies: Living With Wild Bears in Alaska," spent more than a dozen summers living alone with and videotaping Katmai bears. Information on Huguenard was not immediately available.

The Andrew Airways pilot contacted troopers in Kodiak and the National Park Service after he saw a brown bear, possibly on top of a body, at the camp near Kaflia Bay.

Park rangers encountered a large, aggressive male brown bear within minutes of arriving. Ranger Joel Ellis said two officers stood by with shotguns as he fired 11 times with a semi-automatic handgun before the animal fell, 12 feet away.

"That was cutting it thin," said Ellis, the lead investigator. "I didn't take the time to count how many times it was hit."

The victims' remains and camping equipment were flown Monday to Kodiak. Ellis said investigators hope to glean some information from video and still cameras.

As the plane was being loaded, another aggressive bear approached and was killed by rangers and troopers. The bear was younger, possibly a 3-year-old, according to Bruce Bartley of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

The victims' bodies were flown to the state medical examiner's office for autopsy.

Dean Andrew, owner of Andrew Airways, said the pilot was too upset to comment. The company had been flying Treadwell to Katmai for 13 years and Huguenard for the last couple of years. Andrew said Treadwell was an experienced outdoorsman.

Treadwell was known for his confidence around bears. He often touched them, and gave them names. Once he was filmed crawling along the ground singing as he approached a sow and two cubs.

Over the years, Park Service officials, biologists and others expressed concern about his safety and the message he was sending.

"At best he's misguided," Deb Liggett, superintendent at Katmai, told the Anchorage Daily News in 2001. "At worst he's dangerous. If Timothy models unsafe behavior, that ultimately puts bears and other visitors at risk."

That same year Treadwell was a guest on the "Late Show with David Letterman," describing Alaska brown bears as mostly harmless "party animals."

In his book, Treadwell said he decided to devote himself to saving grizzlies after a drug overdose, followed by several close calls with brown bears in early trips to Alaska. He said those experiences inspired him to give up drugs, study bears and establish a nonprofit bear-appreciation group, called Grizzly People.

Grizzly and brown bears are the same species, but "brown" is used to describe bears in coastal areas and "grizzly" for bears in the interior.

The deaths were the first known bear killings in the 4.7-million-acre park on the Alaska Peninsula.

[bvw]

There's a proof Rush didn't abuse drugs. He's not been seen getting naked and partying down with grizzlies in the North Woods.

[Lurker]

I like the way you think.

L

[Ditto]

A scatter-gun and pea-shooter against a bear?

12 gauge ball and .44 mag, most likely.

[Romulus]

If I were in your boots I wouldn't count on being able to fish my piece out of hiding in time for it to do any good. Still, it's your hide -- in more ways than one.

[djf]

I caught a couple feral cats in a havaheart. One was this big, albino male, started spinning like a maniac when I got near the trap and making the most hideous noises. I let it loose about 15 miles away, still makes the hairs on my neck stand up.

[djf]

Thats the other reason for the garbage bag. Throw it to the ground in front of them and back away. Odds are very high they will sniff it out and give you time. Never, ever, ever turn your back to a confrontational animal in the wild.

[FreedomPoster]

BTW, here's a typical Malibu hippie shortly after voting "No on Recall".

[AxelPaulsenJr]

Oh Alvin.................

[FreedomPoster]

WTH is that thing at the top of the page in the pdf you linked-to? An early 20mm anti-tank rifle!?

Holy cow!

[LTCJ]

Hey, cut that out! What the heck did you do that for?

Now I gotta boil my eyeballs.

[U S Army EOD]

Have you ever seen a Rhodesian Ridgeback? That is got to be the most impressive dog I have ever seen. They were bred to hunt lions in Africa. I was given a cat by some friends that had one of these dogs. To give you an idea how big the dog was, the cat use to sleep on its head with no part of the body hanging off. The reason the people gave me the cat was because it used to get up on the counter and tables and throw food off to the dogs. The cat kept the dogs in trouble all the time.

The cat was a story in itself. She lived on a sailboat with me for several years and was the only cat in the marina. Everybody else had dogs, but she could walk up to almost any dog and be buddy, buddy with them. I guess it is something they learn in their body language. She did not care much for other cats.

[U S Army EOD]

You got to remember that this guy's vote counts just as much as yours does. What this photo does not show is there is a bear behind him rolling around in histerics that wanted to eat him but couldn't stop laughing long enough.

[U S Army EOD]

You kind of have to wonder if the bear was singing when it was rolling this guy around on the ground.

[PLMerite]

"Tell me this outdoor professional didn't use a 9mm or 45 cal."

Something tells me this was his "anti-personnel" weapon. Maybe he just wanted to see how many rounds it would take to down a bear - a safe game when you've got backup.

The biggest mag I can get for my .44 Desert Eagle is 10 rds. I would think as a LEO he could get something with a higher-capacity. It wouldn't fit flush, but that would be a small sacrifice.

[MrLeRoy]

A self-taught bear expert who once called Alaska's brown bears harmless was one of two people fatally mauled in a bear attack

I laughed out loud when I read this in the paper.

[null and void]

We're got a mostly feral cat in our neighborhood. Very large tough looking guy. Several neighbors and I are convinced it's part bobcat. My roomate pets the dammable thing! Me it just claws...

[Servant of the 9]

Just out of curiosity, what did they find out about handguns?

I'm not sure they even collected the data on that. Any pistol adequate for big bear is more than the average ranger, or average anything for that mater, can use effectively.

So9

[null and void]

The biggest mag I can get for my .44 Desert Eagle is 10 rds. I would think as a LEO he could get something with a higher-capacity. It wouldn't fit flush, but that would be a small sacrifice.

10 in the mag, one in the spout. That accounts for all 11 shots, doesn't it?

[Gamecock]

Reminds me of the joke:

Two campers saw a bear charging them. One took off running and the other stopped to tighten his shoe laces. The runner hollered: "You aren't going to outrun that bear." The fellow tightening his shoe laces screamed back: "I only need to outrun you...."

[U S Army EOD]

There was a young lady from Niger
Who smiled as she rode on a tiger
They returned from the ride
With the lady inside
And the smile on the face of the tiger.

Timmy the hippie had long hair
And he tried to make friends with a bear
The results of this courtship
Was the end of the friendship
Because Timmy is now in the bear.