‘I’m going to die, this bear is going to kill me’

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This article was published 17/07/2020 (1919 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

BRANDON — A Dauphin woman attacked by a black bear in Riding Mountain National Park says she feels lucky she wasn’t seriously injured during Monday’s encounter.

Erin McKenzie said she was out for a run with her dogs on her favourite hiking path, Moon Lake Trail. She had her headphones on while running up a steep hill — her dogs a few feet in front — when a bear ran out of the forest.

“I guess we startled it quite bad and it must have heard me as I was passing by it… It confronted me and was about a foot away from me and it hit me twice, once in the face and once on the back with its paws,” McKenzie said.

She suffered a cut beside her nose, as well as four long scratches on the left side of her back.

“I’m not sure which strike happened first, it happened so fast that it’s a little bit of a blur,” she said.

“I do remember it standing up on its hind legs and almost as if it was getting ready to continue to attack… As quickly as it all happened, the bear took off back into the bush and my dogs didn’t even know what was going on,” McKenzie said.

“My initial thought was: ‘I’m going to die, this bear is going to kill me.’”

After the bear fled, McKenzie said she called her brother to let him know what had happened. It took approximately 40 minutes to walk the five kilometres back to the start of the trail.

“I think what I was most scared about was the amount of blood that was coming out of my face, because it’s quite frightening when you don’t know how serious of a cut you’ve sustained,” she said.

At hospital, medical strips were used to close the wound on her face.

Parks Canada confirmed the attack in an email Wednesday.

“On July 13, an individual had a surprise encounter with a young black bear on Moon Lake Trail in Riding Mountain National Park. The individual suffered lacerations to the face and back,” the statement reads.

Moon Lake Trail was closed July 14, after Parks Canada learned of the attack. The trail is a natural feeding and travel corridor for animals throughout the summer, according to the statement. It is currently filled with ripe berry bushes. On July 10, Parks Canada prohibited dogs and bicycles from the trail, and asked walkers to travel in groups of three or more.

“Human and wildlife safety is of the utmost importance to Parks Canada. The agency takes action to promote co-existence between people and wildlife, to ensure the well-being and safety of both,” the statement reads.

“It is important for visitors to remember that they share the surrounding habitat with wildlife. Riding Mountain National Park is home to many black bears and visitors can encounter a bear at any time or any place.”

The animal that attacked McKenzie ran off after the altercation, so there is no reason to believe it is aggressive, Parks Canada said. “Bears generally prefer to avoid people. However, encounters between bears and people do occur.”

McKenzie said she didn’t see the warning signs prohibiting dogs and the use of trails by individuals. With the number of other signs up, including regular warnings about bears and to practise physical distancing on trails, she says she missed them.

A sign posted at the beginning of the trail says people who violate restrictions could face a $25,000 fine under the Canada National Parks Act. The restrictions are set to end Sept. 15.

The experience was humbling, McKenzie said.

“I think we sometimes get a little bit too comfortable hiking the same trails that we’re so familiar with, and kind of lose a sense of how tiny we are out there… I’ll definitely take this experience and learn from it.”

— Brandon Sun