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Hiker killed by Grizzly Bear In Denali NP

Discussion

6 replies
Posted by Richard Hahn on August 25, 2012 at 9:36 PM
Unfortunately a hiker who had been photographing a grizzly was killed. Limited details here:

http://www.newsday.com/news/nation/grizzly-bear-kills-hiker-in-denali-national-park-1.3927648

Rich Hahn,
North Patchogue, NY
Posted by Ed Cordes on August 25, 2012 at 11:32 PM
Wow! This is terrible. It doesn't sound like the photographer did anything different than many of us have done. However, something must have been done to spook the bear.
Posted by Dan Roberts on August 26, 2012 at 9:52 AM
People always want some kind of answers when things like this happen. What triggered the bear to attack, etc. Maybe this guy just ran into the wrong bear. Just like people, dogs, or any other mammal, they have personalities and are all different. The fact that the bear drug him off and cached his body suggests that it wasn't a defensive attack. We had record snow fall last winter with a late spring and therefore a shorter season for the critters to put on weight for the coming winter. And it is fall in the park already. Cold, skinny bears tend to be problematic around people.
Posted by Richard Hahn on August 26, 2012 at 8:56 PM
This bring up a question. For those of you who photograph bears or even photograph in bear areas, do you carry bear spray to defend yourself just in case?
Posted by Dan Roberts on August 27, 2012 at 2:35 PM
If I'm alone or just my wife and I, I tend to carry something that is less dependent on wind direction to be effective. Being in close proximity to a brown bear and having the wind blow pepper spray back into my own eyes doesn't sound like much fun. For anyone who is planning on carrying pepper spray, I'd recommend buying two cans and using one to test/practice before going out in the woods and potentially betting your life on using it properly if/when needed.
Posted by Hank Pennington on August 27, 2012 at 4:09 PM
Looks like he photographed the bear for 8 minutes, ultimately getting within 50 yards of the bear, contrary to all Denali regulations and the training he went through before the hike. The bear was grazing peacefully in all the photos up until the end, when the shots showed the bear looking at him.

Bears 1, Photographer 0. No wait, the bear was shot due to this guy. Should that be a 1:1 tie? :mad:
Posted by Jim DeWitt on August 27, 2012 at 5:37 PM
We may never know exactly what happened, but at this point, as Hank notes, the word from the NPS is that hiker had broken Park regulations by approaching the bear and getting far too close - just over 40 yards - to the bear. I just hope the NPS doesn't overreact again and close the area to hikers for a couple of years. Right now, 125 square miles of Park is closed.

My sympathies to Richard White's family.