Alaska runner hospitalized after fending off brown bear with bear spray
A woman running alone on the Wolverine Bowl trail in Prospect Heights, Anchorage, was hospitalized after using bear spray to fend off a brown bear, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game said.
The department said the runner was able to get away and was taken to a local hospital for treatment. Biologists visited the scene, collected samples and did not see any bears, the department said.
The department advised that when hiking in bear country people should carry a deterrent such as bear spray or a firearm, stay in groups, make noise to avoid surprising a bear, stay alert for signs of bears, not approach bears and keep pets on a leash. “If you surprise a bear, especially one with cubs or on a food cache, it may react in a threatened or defensive manner,” the department said. “The bear may be agitated and may huff, stomp, make a popping sound with its teeth, salivate or lay its ears back against its head and charge.”
The incident comes less than a month after another woman was mauled by a bear in Anchorage, the department said. In that case, the woman was walking with a friend and three dogs near Chugach State Park on an unofficial, overgrown trail when a bear made brief contact and left; she suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was expected to recover, the department said.
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