A Minnesota hunter is thanking his stars after he escaped being mauled to death by a bear that was shot by one of his other hunter friends. Brandon Johnson, a veteran hunter, was on a bear hunt with his friends earlier this year when one of the members shot a large 525-pound bear. According to USA Today , he set off to find the carcass of the animal four hours later — only to find the injured bear alive and really angry.
According to Johnson, he and his friends set off to track the animal in the woods in low moonlight a good four hours after it was shot.
“We wanted to give it four hours before we went out and looked for it to make sure the animal had expired,” said Johnson.
However, before he could find the bear, it found him. The bear, already injured, took no time in charging at Johnson. Before he could react, the animal had reached him and knocked him unconscious. The bear attacked with such force that his left arm bone was broken in half. Johnson regained consciousness briefly after he was knocked out and saw the bear still around inflicting more damage to his broken hand. Reacting fast, he got hold of a five-inch pocket knife that he was carrying in his right hand. He stabbed the bear multiple times.
“It’s just going to town on my hand and I just keep stabbing it and stabbing it and stabbing away and I am screaming and yelling,” he said.
That trick worked and the startled bear retreated and walked away — only to come back again a few minutes later. It was not done yet. The bear was still in attack mode and was about to charge again when Johnson screamed for help from his fiancée and other friends.
For some reason, the bear decided not to attack Johnson anymore and disappeared into the woods.
According to Johnson, while he was initially terrified when the bear attacked, some time later, when he almost thought he was about to die, there was no fear left in him .
“Once I got to the point where I thought I was going to die, and I got myself to the point where I was ready to die, there was no more fear,” he told Time .
The bear, which was already injured by the gunshot, suffered even more injuries at the hands of Johnson. He had managed to stab the bear in its open mouth and throat. Before the agitated animal went away, it had also managed to grab Johnson by his legs and slammed him on to the ground. Minutes later, his friends arrived at the location. Ambulances were called in and he was taken to a hospital for medical evaluation.
The bear, however, was not as lucky. The carcass of the bear was found the next day — barely 50 yards from where Johnson was attacked.
The bear attack, however, has left Johnson with huge medical bills. Unable to do his contracting work, his friends have turned to the Internet to help raise some funds for him. So far, they have managed to raise nearly $9,000.
The description on the fundraising website for Johnson reads as below.
“Brandon Johnson defied death by defending himself with a 5 inch knife against a 525 lb black bear. Brandon has been hunting and tracking bear for over 25 years. In fact, Brandon has not hunted bear the last 3 years after he arrowed a 500 plus bear. His passion is helping other hunters including his son and fiancée (Tracey) be successful. Killing an animal is not why we hunt, it’s a part of the hunt… a very small part. Spending time with family and friends is why we hunt!”
[Image via KARE-TV]
