Alaska Bear Showdown {Sitka Alaska Photographer}

What started out as a pleasant hike through the woods (Herring Cove Trail, to be exact),

ended as a terrorizing experience Katelyn and I

will never forget.

Even looking at these photos gives me goosebumps because had we known

what was ahead of us . . .

We would've put these pups back on the leash way before, and turned around.

This picture just makes my freeze in fright . . . literally 45 seconds after I took this pic . . .

our friend, Grizz, decided to stalk us for almost a half an hour.

Can you see Grizz, back there?

( I just hate that Katelyn looks so vulnerable and that we were both completely unaware . . .it's just so unsettling.)

Can you see him now???!!

Yikes!

Now, Grizz was probably just a curious bear, but he got WAY too close.

You see, Grizz doesn't know what personal space is.

He just kept walking towards us.

(Well, RAN after us after we instinctively started screaming and running

before remembering you DO NOT RUN . . . the brain's frontal lobe takes a little bit of time to stop your instincts!)

Grizz probably sensed our panic despite our trying to appear big and tall. I had Bear Spray hooked to my backpack, ready to "shoot", but then Grizz would stop walking towards us and stare at us. Then he would stand on his hind legs to show us back how big HE was.

We must've yelled "GO AWAY BEAR!!!" hundreds of times.

We would slowly walk, slowly, slowly and then Grizz decided to play a game, called "Circle the prey". Where we would go, he would go around and block us.

Finally,

We thought God answered our prayers. But after we had cautiously walked about oh, I don't know 50 yards or so?? No sign of Grizz.

Then . . . THERE HE IS AGAIN!!!!! I caught him spying on us through the loop of a big tree root. Eyes right on me.

Seriously!!!!

With great trepidation and desperation we resorted to pleading loudly "God, PLEASE make this bear go away!! PLEASE!!!"

I do not know exactly how long this game went on for.

But I do know that when we were finally, ever so tentatively, certain that Grizz had gone away for good, we had an extremely loud conversation, made as MUCH noise as possible, scurried towards the trail head as rapidly as possible . . . and got to my Pathfinder and cried.

So thankful that Grizz decided we were not good food.

PLEASE always take precautions hiking, fishing, berry picking, whatever . . . in the wild.

Needless to say, I've been reading up on bear safety. We did some "correct" things and some "wrong" things . . . but one thing is true: No one's bear story is the same. These creatures are WILD and unpredictable and deserve our appreciation.

Here are some links:

http://dnr.alaska.gov/parks/safety/bears.htm

http://www.mountainnature.com/wildlife/bears/

http://www.fs.fed.us/r10/tongass/forest_facts/safety/bearfacts.htm (this is the National Forest that we live it)

Happy Hiking.

Bring a rifle and LOTS of Bear spray. Please.

For serious.

I'm not kidding.

at all.

Really.