Editors’ note; The following article contains an image of the aftermath of a bear attack.
Bret Bohn doesn’t remember how fast he was moving or if his feet were even touching the ground. As he rushed down the snow-covered bank toward what was surely a bloody horror, there was a very real possibility that he and his father would soon be dead. The 35-year-old hunting guide and resident of Wasilla, Alaska, had just watched in shock as a hulking 8-foot grizzly bear plowed into his father at full speed.
“It looked like a semitruck hitting a fire hydrant,” he said. “I mean, one second, my dad is on his knees there, knelt in a shooting position, and then he’s gone and they’re down the mountain. So, basically, the bear just hit him and grabbed him like prey, behind the neck. He took him down just like he was a ragdoll.”
The bear dragged 77-year-old Glenn Bohn down the slope at a run. Without a second thought, Bret sprinted after them. The wildlife officials who later investigated the incident said Bret’s footprints were so far apart they looked like they were made by an Olympic athlete. He had his .375 rifle in one hand and his .454 Casull pistol in the other, ready for whatever might happen. Glenn and the grizzly were much further down the hill than Bret expected, but he followed the bloodcurdling sounds until he could see the fight.
“I was just going straight down into it [with the] .454 Casull double-action Ruger Super Alaskan Red Hawk, and I pull the hammer back ’cause I know it’s a light trigger,” he said. “I knew I was going to have to get close and things are going to happen fast. I don’t know how far, but I held the gun straight out and I was yelling. So, I mean you basically have two objects going at it in a full brawl, and I was the third party and I was making myself known as I approached them.”
The bear heard Bret’s shouts and lifted off Glenn to see what was happening. “I think my dad