During a hike along the Howe Sound Crest Trail in Vancouver, Canada, Geoffrey Zhou, a 21-year-old engineering student at the University of British Columbia, and his four friends spotted a large black bear.
Zhou shared their experience, stating they initially noticed the bear as a dark shadow emerging from the fog. He said that the bear spent half an hour following his group.
After spotting the bear, he and his friend were forced to hike about three-quarters of a mile up the trail backward until they found a spot to hide behind a bush.
According to SWNS, the engineering student at the University of British Columbia recounted:
“We first noticed the bear when we caught a glimpse of a dark shadow emerging from the fog."
“It stayed at a constant pace, so we hiked back at a slightly faster pace as to not alarm it while maintaining distance.”
Despite their shock and his group wanting to run, however, Zhou had wilderness training and knew what to do. So, he directed his friends to climb up and crouch down behind shrubs. He immediately guided them on safety measures.
He added: “I directed my friends to climb up and crouch down behind the shrubs. They were shocked and wanted to run.”
Then, Zhou informed his friends to remove their packs in case it charged at them. He would deploy bear spray, and they would flee. Fortunately, the bear passed by without incident, coming within 15 feet of the group.
He recounted: “As we were hiding behind the shrubs, I informed my friends to take off their packs in the event that it charged up at us."
“I would empty the bear spray on it, and we would make a run for it, possibly throwing our packs at it to create some distance.”
This is not the first time a human has been threatened by an angry bear. Meanwhile, in Vancouver, a 'Coke Bear' is accused of consuming 69 stolen soda cans from a woman's vehicle. In North Carolina, a man recently had a close encounter with a large black bear on his patio.
