ADF&G suspends search for grizzlies that attacked young hikers in Eagle River

UPDATE:

Anchorage police and ADF&G staff members have cancelled the search for a sow grizzly and two cubs that attacked four young hikers near Eagle River Campground Wednesday morning.

The hikers are believed to have startled the bears by suddenly encountering them on an unmarked trail. Officials theorized the sow bear attacked in purely defensive mode and was not predatory or defending a kill or food source.

When Anchorage police officers arrived first on the scene and were searching for the injured hikers, two officers carrying shotguns encountered the bear and it charged them.  Each of the officers shot a couple of times at the bear and it turned and fled, ADF&G information officer Ken Marsh said Thursday.

“When our guys got there, they looked and found traces of blood, just a couple of drops,” Marsh said. “So they followed the bear for three hours, even talked to a homeowner who saw the bear passing his yard, and all indications are the bear was not seriously hurt and had left the area.

“It seems to be a classic case of a sudden close encounter, where both hikers and bear were started, and the bear lashed out in typical protection mother fashion to neutralize the perceived threat. That is, knock it down, and then gather the kids and leave the area.”

For the next week, the area around that camp site has been posted with warning signs and staff members will be patrolling to look for any sign of a wounded bear returning or possibly a dead bear.

Two other brown bears were shot in Eagle River this week because they were acting aggressively.

Here’s the original alert from APD on Wednesday:

“At 12:10 p.m., Anchorage Police and Fire responded to the Eagle River Campground reference several people who had been hurt by a bear.  It has been determined that four juveniles were hiking together in the woods in the area of the campground when three were injured by a grizzly with two cubs.  After the attack the group became separated as some went looking for help.  Over a dozen officers responded; it took approximately 30 minutes, after the initial call to Dispatch, for all four hikers to be located.  All three wounded were transported to a hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.”

Bear attacks on multiple people are extremely rare.

There have been reports of at least two brown bears charging or been aggressive toward humans in the Eagle River area this week, at least in one case while protecting a freshly-killed moose calf.

This is a cautionary tale to be noisy and alert any time traveling on forest trails or in bear country, to avoid sudden encounters.  Grizzly bears are legendary for having a strong sense of space, and any intruder into “their space” will be dealt with harshly. Keeping a lot of distance is the best safe guard.