Photographers Stand Their Ground as Bear Charges Them
A group of photographers shooting photos in Alaska bravely stood their ground as they were charged by a brown bear.
The terrifying moment was captured on a camera and posted by Scenic Bear Viewing, a company that organizes bear tours from Homer in Alaska.
In the video, the photographers can be seen on a beach area with large brown bears nearby. They are whispering quietly and can be heard judging how far away one of the animals is. “About 25, 30 meters,” a man can be heard saying.
The scene is already tense when another bear from further away begins running at speed directly at the group. Very smartly, the group screams and roars at the charging beast who quickly has a change of heart and reels away from them.
“Never run from a charging bear, even though your instinct is to run. This is a bluff charge. They are just trying to get you to run. They have a natural chase instinct,” Scenic Bear Viewing writes on its Instagram post.
“Don’t get close to bears in the wild. Make sure you have an experienced guide with you! We do not get closer than 50 yards. These bears came to us.”
The post goes on to say that the company has been bear-guiding for over a decade and it is not the first time they have dealt with a charging bear.
“We are trained exactly for this situation. We are a professional bear guide operation. Although we will try to avoid this at all costs,” it writes.
“In this area, the bears have been visited by humans for over 30 years. It’s a part of their daily lives in the summer to see us every day of their 20-25 year life.
“These bears are not fed or hunted by humans. No harm is being done to these bears and we want to keep it that way.
“We take photos of the bears and leave no trace. We want the bears to stay protected. There has never been an attack in this area in the 30 years people have visited. We follow a strict set of rules while guiding and bring protection.”
Image credits: Scenic Bear Viewing.
