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.

[ZULU]

I wonder what kind of handgun he was using. Maybe that new Smith and Wesson (?) .50 caliber job.

I would prefer an automatic shotgun with 00 buckshot myslef, or better yet, a .30-06 with the right slug and load. Or, one of those double barrelled Holland and Holland express rfiels the Brits made before the anti-gun/bloodsport nuts took over.

[U S Army EOD]

At least the bear showed some class by not stealing the other guys tennis shoes.

[in the Arena]

I just pray if you ever read of me being mauled by a renegade chipmunk, that you will not make lite of my misfortune.

I don't think you have much to worry about...but you might want to keep an eye on your nuts...

[ZULU]

I think they can move about 30 mph. That's at least 10 miles per hour faster than me.

[ZULU]

A lot of people have been killed by adrenalin pumped up technically "dead" bears.

[U S Army EOD]

YOU SHOULD HAVE WARNED ME SOONER!!!!! (said in very high voice)

[dagoofyfoot]

A self-taught bear expert


I guess this will be the last chapter in his book...I think I'll give it a read...


;^)

[The KG9 Kid]

"... Some will use a .30-06 but that is usually considered to be on the light side."

.30-06 will cleanly take any game animal in North America.

... That said, yeah, I'll take the .700 Nitro Express double-barreled rifle venturing out in grizzley country, please.

[U S Army EOD]

Which is why you want to break their spines with a deep penetrating large caliber bullet. At least some type of 34 cal mag or higher. 00 buckshot would propably actually bounce off of a bear at over 40 yards.

[headsonpikes]

You'd think folks would have learned by now that when a grizzly eats you, you stay et!

[PleaseNoMore]

I agree with you on that expectation. After seeing the episode in which Steve Irwin crawled into and laid in a bed full of diamondback rattlers, I concluded that he was insane, not brave. The first clues to his insanity should have been when he was pulling them out of their beds by their tails and his calling them "byoots" and "goygeous". I am really surpirsed that he is not dead yet.

[ZULU]

I think if you waited until the bear got close enough and then opened up with the automatic and shot at his head, you might do him in.

Don't they recommend a shoulder shot when the critter is standing sideways? Don't know what to aim for at a head on shot.

Amazing they were able to do them in with .54 caliber hawkin rifles. I read they used double charges and two balls. I have a .54 caliber Hawkin I built and it shoots dead on. Proofed the barrel with about 140 grains of FF (its a flintlock). The breech is 1 1/8 " acroos the flats and tapers to 1" at the muzzle. Wanted to put as much steel around the breech as possible for heavy charges.

[U S Army EOD]

OK you get to go first. I will go for help. Almost all of your survival stories of the old west and the mountain men were written by someone who had been mauled by a bear. The ones who did survive were the ones who could run fast. Actually for real, if you are on the side of a hill, the best way to run is around the hill instead of up or down. For some reason a bear has a hard time running like that.

Also the main trick in shooting a bear is just don't let them get close. The base of the skull from behind is probably the best place to shoot one. Also it is good to shoot him before he is mad at you. You know, like in the back when he doesn't see you.

[ZULU]

"The base of the skull from behind is probably the best place to shoot one."

How do I get him to turn around??

[U S Army EOD]

On second thought try this little experiment. Get out in a field with a weapon. Set up a bear size target about 20 yards away. Off to the side have someone in a car or truck start driving at 40 mph toward a marker. When the vehicle gets 20 yards from the marker, fire your first round and see how many more you can get off before the vehicle gets to the marker.

Note: Don't shoot at the vehicle!!!

[U S Army EOD]

You may be in deep trouble at this point. A large caliber mag using the heavist round nose bullet would penetrate the neck to the back of the head. Aim right under his jaw bone if he is standing. If he is on all fours and about eye level with you. Shoot right down the mouth.

[WorkingClassFilth]

You are not far from the truth...

A former teacher of mine taught a landform geography class north of the arctic circle for graduate students. One morning, he woke up and saw a group of ravens circling over a rise some distance away. He took his 12 ga. w/slugs to investigate and found a grizzly burying a caribou in an alder thicket.

He goes back and tells his students to follow and see something they'll likely never see again. When they get to the rise, most of them want to go down and see the bear. One idiot actually has to be restrained. Unbelievably, the guy says the he is a vegetarian and the bear will sense that he means it no harm.

ALL of these students are graduates in earth sciences. They WILL be Doctorate level educators and policy makers in government. This is but one facet of education and society today. But then, what can you expect when drug-addled wood hippies sing to grizzlies and gay entertainers sleep with tigers?

Perhaps the kindest thing would be to let all who are inclined to go lay down with the lions and fufill their destiny...

[U S Army EOD]

What we need are more bears and tigers.

[Cvengr]

LOL

[Cvengr]

Thanks for the link,..after seeing the bear's paw, I can understand why any mantoted weapon might be difficult to stop such a beast,....even a TOW II might need a backup.

To think the bear was stopped 12 feet away,....if it stood the same 11'+ height, it might have stopped the bear, but I wonder how long it took for anybody to breath or move after it stopped.

And when they did move, how long it took before they stopped and turned around to realize it was dead?