Man punches grizzly in face during bear attack in northern B.C.

A B.C. cyclist is recovering after a run-in with a grizzly and two cubs that ended with the bear getting punched in the face.

According to conservation officer Matthew Corbett, a man was riding his bike along a forested trail next to Anderson Flats Provincial Park in northwest B.C. when he surprised a female grizzly and her two cubs in a clearing.

“The bear just immediately charged him, knocked him down,” Corbett said.

But the man put his bike between himself and the bear, which prevented him from being hurt as the bear continued to make contact with the bike.

And then, he did something unexpected: he punched the bear in the face.

“He told me that he remembered hearing a story on CBC at some point where a man punched a bear in the nose to get it off of him,” Corbett said.

That story, which was published online in 2017, centred around a Vancouver Island man who, similarly, punched a grizzly in the face while he was being attacked.

Corbett said the man in this most recent situation “swung as hard as he could,” which prompted the bear to run off into the bush. The man was able to ride his bike out of the park and catch a ride home from other park users, Corbett said.

Corbett, who has been a conservation officer for 13 years, said this is the first time he’s heard of someone punching a grizzly in the face.

“This situation is really unique, I’d say,” he said.

And while punching a bear worked for this particularly lucky cyclist, the advice for grizzly encounters does not include winding up and slugging the animals, which can grow to as large as 500 kilograms, according to the province.

Parks Canada said the best way to handle a bear attack is to avoid an encounter altogether by making noise near streams, berry patches and other areas bears may frequent. It also says people should travel in groups and use officially marked paths.

‘Be prepared to encounter a bear at anytime’ in Banff townsite, Parks Canada warns residents
The federal agency also suggests carrying bear spray.

This article by Courtney Dickson was first published by CBC on 25 July 2024. Lead Image: A man was attacked by a female grizzly in northern B.C., but he remembered a story he’d heard about another person in a similar situation and fought back. (Alan Rogers/Casper Star-Tribune/The Associated Press).

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