'I thought I was going to die' ( bear attack )

JUNEAU EMPIRE ^ | December 2, 2007 | KIM MARQUIS

[george76]

Juneau man recounts Friday morning bear attack on Admiralty Island .

A "crack" in the brush. A split second to turn and see the bear. Another second to click the gun's safety off.

That's all the time Dr. John Raster had before the brown bear attacked him.

"I screamed and fired a shot into the air," he said. "It was already on me and the gun was still pretty much slung around my shoulder. He bit me and started scratching me and pushed me down into the water."

The Juneau doctor had been walking alone Friday morning along a stretch of beach on Admiralty Island, just a few hundreds yards from a cabin where he stayed with a hunting party.

"I thought it was my neck," he said. "I thought I was going to die ... I was afraid it was going to eat me and drag me into the woods."

He may have lost consciousness or been stunned, but a few minutes passed before he realized he was soaked through and cold.

Thursday night they heard a bear outside the cabin popping its teeth and breaking branches...

Friday afternoon, they packed up and took a floatplane back to Juneau.

[Fawn]

Fun! I can see you all sitting around hanging dead animals....and the kids enjoying every minute. Glad you had such a great time.

[Ditter]

~sigh~ Typical anti hunter comment. Hunting is so much more than killing animals, someone who didn’t grow up in a hunting family could not possibly understand.

What was that comment about a dogs paw? We don’t kill dogs, we consider them our children.

[Fawn]

Jumping to comclusions. I’m not anti hunter...I just don’t think its wise to subject a 4 year old to it.

[duckandcover]

Yes, and here’s a little liberal environmental tune to go along with your comments:

“Little brass bells will scare the bear...
Little brass bells with scare the bear...
Little brass bell will scare the bear...
...Then fire a shot into the air!”

And ... Little... ahhhhhhhhhh! he got me...mommie... ;-)