‘It’s coming right at us’: Terrifying moment a couple comes face to face with a pair of massive brown bears while hiking in Alaska
- Two hikers had a close encounter with a pair of grizzly bears on an Alaskan trail
- They followed safety advice, making their presence known and remaining calm.
Hikers in Alaska have shared the tense moment they got up close to a pair of huge brown bears in Katmai National Park.
Alex McGregor shared the footage of his “interesting encounter” with his hiking partner, Laura, on TikTok on March 10.
“It’s coming right at us,” he tells his partner at the start of the video as the first grizzly appears.
Alex then sees another bear coming down the hiking trail and crosses the path for safety.
He wrote on TikTok that the pair had been trained to get out of the way and give the bears the right of way, making their presence known to avoid scaring them off.
He said: “We are very grateful to the bear school training that helped us stay calm and stay out of their way.”
Alex notices the bear coming (L) and makes the right decision to set distance (R)
“Hey bear,” Alex says at the beginning of the video before quickly realizing that he’s “coming… right at us.”
Alex takes several steps back as the bear approaches.
He gives Laura calm instructions on when to move and when to stop when he notices the second bear.
‘Nope, two bears.’
Laura can also be heard greeting the bears.
Alex constantly crosses the trail to put distance between themselves and the animals.
The nearest bear sniffs for a few seconds, more interested in the grass.
Alex calls Laura in warning: ‘No! Out of the way!
He advises her to back off as the bear still in view creeps closer to the trail.
The pair then moved further back into the woods, which they said in the comments they were trained for, rather than moving further down the trail.
Soon enough, the bear loses interest and heads back up the trail.
Paws to think about: the huge bear approaches the trail but stops, more interested in the foliage
The pair back off the trail into the woods, and the bear soon decides to move on.
The US National Park Service advise keep your distance from bears, avoid sudden movements that could scare an animal or hide and scare it.
“Pay attention to your surroundings and make a special effort to be noticed if you are in an area with known bear activity or a good food source, such as berry bushes.”
Bear attacks are rare. Most will only attack if they feel threatened, to defend their pups, or to protect their food.
If you are attacked by a brown or grizzly bear, the advice is to play dead, lie on your stomach and spread your legs wide to make it more difficult for the bear to turn you around. Fighting back often makes things worse.
If you are attacked by a black bear, the advice is to run away. If this is not possible, try to counter with ‘any available item’.