Pick a fight with a grizzly bear, and you’re probably going to lose.
There aren’t huge amounts of grizzly bears in Greece, but there are some, and two unlucky hikers came across a particularly angry one. While walking in the Fraktos forests, where the country borders Bulgaria, they encountered the huge beast.
According to their report, the bear sprang on them, giving them only seconds to react. The grizzly bear, in that short time, managed to kill one of the hikers. They were prepared for the animal, with spray, but given almost no time to defend themselves.
The surviving hiker spoke to the Greek newspaper, Kathimerini, about the horrific situation. “I didn’t have time to react, that’s the truth. My dog got in the way and gave me two to three seconds to get the pepper spray out. I sprayed [the bear],” they recalled.
This angered the bear, and it ran across to the other hiker. They were, unfortunately, standing on the edge of a huge ravine. “[The bear] ran away, went to Christos, who was on the edge of the cliff. She gave him a push and he fell down.”
The surviving hiker had managed to climb a tree at this point and called for help.
Emergency Services Unable To Save Victim Of Bear Attack
The fallen hiker was recovered by the emergency teams and taken to a local hospital. However, it was too late for the man, and they later died of their grizzly bear-inflicted wounds. The fall into the ravine was over 2,000 feet.
Brown bear attacks are rare in the region. According to Arcturos, there are around 500 bears in the north of Greece. They usually stay out of the way of humans and will only attack when provoked. In this case, the pepper spray and dog will have spooked the grizzly bear, and it responded by pushing the hiker down the ravine.
You can hardly blame the hikers for behaving the way they did, though. In a face-off with a wild bear, most people will act on impulse and try to defend themselves. It’s impossible to stay calm.