Brian Braconnier and Keith Farkas were hiking on a mountain near Fernie when they heard the eerie sound of a low growl mere moments before a mother grizzly bear lunged at them.

“We are so thankful we’re sitting here, the two of us, making these statements,” said Farkas on Thursday night in Fernie.

“Rather than our wives writing our obituaries.”

The two Fernie men in their 30s were attacked by a grizzly bear on Wednesday morning as they were hiking along a basin on Mount Proctor when a mother grizzly attacked. The men said what happened in 30 seconds seemed like an eternity.

“I heard a growl and then we heard a second growl,” said Farkas.

“Before we could even react, the grizzly was on us. She hit Brian in the back, knocked him over, took him downhill and out of my sight behind some shrubs. I couldn’t see what was going on. I could just hear him screaming my name and the bear growling. I saw a cub following her downhill and it was also growling. That’s when I reached for my (defender) shotgun that was strapped to the outside of my pack.”

Braconnier said the bear hit him four times, and on the third time, the sow grabbed his arm and flung him through the air.

“When I landed, I grabbed my pepper spray. When she came at me again, she was at an arm’s distance as I used the bear spray on her. It deterred her but she still ran me over. In two lunges she was back up the hill towards Keith. I could hear him screaming but I couldn’t see a thing,” he said.

While Braconnier was screaming, Farkas fumbled with the straps on his backpack, trying to get the gun out. Then, with shaky hands, he loaded the gun.

“I saw her paws. I took one shot. She stood up and seemed to writhe in pain like the shot had connected with her. Like lightning, she was around a corner and coming at me airborne from above,” said Farkas.

“She clawed me and pushed me back. I landed on my back in the most terrifying position with my head downhill and my feet uphill. I was screaming. Her face was one foot away from my boot and she turned around and left.”

Braconnier said he knew then that they had to get out of there fast.

They grabbed Farkas’s backpack that the bears had dragged a few meters down the trail and left in the same direction they had come, looking over their shoulders in fear that the grizzly was coming back.

“We got to a safe zone,” said Farkas. “I was bleeding badly. I took off my shirt and put on bandages. I took a look at Brian’s hand. He had three cuts so I bandaged him too. Brian couldn’t see a thing. The pepper spray had hit him, the bear and me. Brian was practically blinded by the spray. We had an ok field (first aid) kit. I knew his wounds were worse than mine but I didn’t say anything to him. I just bandaged him up and said, ‘Come on. Let’s get going.’”

Farkas said he knew that somehow they needed to get down that mountain quickly and get to a hospital. It only took them one hour to get down the mountain, when normally the hike takes two hours.

When asked what they might do differently, Braconnier said he would be more cautious of noises while Farkas said he will practice loading a shotgun as if he was in a stressful situation.

Both men look remarkably healthy but their wounds are deep, both emotionally and physically.

Brian Braconnier, Keith Farkas and Joe Caravetta

Braconnier suffered injuries to his arms, legs and right wrist. Somehow the bear’s teeth managed to miss the main vein in his wrist by millimeters when she threw him through the air.

His legs are scratched and bruised from being “bounced around” by the bear.

Farkas has puncture wounds on both arms from the bear’s claws so large that you could stick your finger into them. His left arm is swollen from the impact and it does not have full range of motion yet.

“Both gentlemen did nothing wrong,” said Sgt. Joe Caravetta, a B.C. conservation officer. “They’re smart. They were prepared. They had different levels of defense and they had a gun that wasn’t even loaded. The men were not hunting. They were out for a walk to do some scouting for their next elk hunt this fall.”

Caravetta said conservation officers have searched the area and found no evidence that the bear was seriously wounded. He said they had ended the search for the mother grizzly as of 6 p.m. Thursday.

The Fairy Creek and Mount Proctor Recreation reopened Friday morning.

Source: vancouversun.com