Curious Brown Bear Gets Fly Fishermen Sweating In Alaska

Bear charges fishermen
B Jonasson

This bear was just telling them to get out of his fishing hole… that’s how you know it’s a good one in Alaska.

Grizzly bears also known as brown bears on the Alaskan coast are the largest land predators in Alaska. Male bears, called boars, in Alaska can weigh up to 1,200 pounds, and females can weigh up to 600 pounds. In Alaska, bears are known to go near rivers and streams during the salmon runs. Salmon is a great food source for these massive animals and provides the calories, fat, and protein they need.

This can sometimes bring them into contact with fishermen who are casting their lines in the same areas. While most interactions between grizzly bears and fishermen work out in the end, they are still a serious encounter. For the most part, all bears are generally shy and will avoid people if possible. However, they can become aggressive if they feel threatened or if they are protecting their cubs. With an abundance of food sources, these bears rarely go hungry, but still will charge if they feel inclined to do so.

These fishermen were enjoying a day on the river when an Alaskan brown bear came to pay them a visit on the shoreline. The fisherman notices the bear and immediately go to their bear aware training. They make lots of noise and pull out bear spray as the bear moves in closer. This bear seems as though it’s coming straight for them, while the men back up and continue to yell and be ready.

Eventually, the bear has enough of the noise and decides to head out, perhaps just curious about the men near the fishing hole. The men move away from the area as they process what just happened. That is as much of a scare as you can get without a straight-up charge… Alaska is one wild place.

Grizzly Bear Charges Across Alaskan River

A fisherman’s nightmare.

Any fisherman who’s had a good day fishing out in grizzly country has them in the back of their minds. I mean, it’s hard not to when you’ve spent the day wrestling slimy and smelly fish, getting coated in a smell that draws those massive animals right in. It’s a frightening thought, that you’re coating of fish juices can make you dinner instead of your fish.

Grizzlies are a massive animal that require a lot of food daily. Especially in more northern areas they need even more fat to get through the harsher winters. And then throw in the fact that these fisherman are in their kitchen, in areas where they feed… they’re bound to get incredibly territorial.

This video shows a large grizz quickly making its way across a river and charging towards a large group of fishermen as they scatter quickly. As the bear approaches one of them, who sounds like he’s perhaps the fishing guide says:

“With all of us here, he can’t do much…”

Umm, he definitely could…

He stands his grounds and begins screaming and throwing rocks at it, however, when the rest of the group panicked and started to run… that could’ve made things much worse. Thankfully, the bear disregards much of the noise and the panic and just comes in to get what he wanted the whole time… a fish. The fishermen are all definitely shook up though, but then again, how could a you not be if you’re not used to seeing a grizzly bear coming run into your fishing spot?

Enjoy that flight back to California, boys…

Woman Fishes From A Boat With A Bear

It’s no secret that bears like to fish.

A group of 17 brown bears was recently captured on a livestream video at Katmai National Park. The bears can be seen snatching salmon with their paws and jaws, which is the typical way that most bears catch fish.

But then there’s this special brown bear from Russia who hits the water with a rod and reel like a person.

The bear has lived in captivity for its entire life and his name is Archie. He was rescued by Veronica Dichka after the Safari Park where Archie previously resided announced they were going out of business two years ago.

Footage of Archie and Veronica fishing together a lake in southern Siberia has gone viral on social media, and elevated Archie to being somewhat of an internet celebrity in the bear world. The bear doesn’t actually operate the rod and reel, but does wait patiently on the boat while Veronica does the fishing.

The two don’t just fish together though, as Veronica told the Daily Mail that she spends almost all her time with Archie.

“He sees me as a member of his family, we share food, he sleeps in my arms when afraid, and hides behind me. We rescued him from the safari park but can’t release him into the wild as he has lived in captivity his whole life. 

Archie spends every day with us and is madly in love with water. He loves it very much when I take him to new places, so this shooting was a pleasure for him!”

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