Bear attack thwarted: Cyclist uses bike to fend off mother bear

A man from British Columbia was cycling through a forest when he unexpectedly encountered a mother bear with cubs on his path. He defended himself from the attack in a rather unconventional manner. Using his bike, he struck the confused animal on the snout. Thankfully, the cyclist emerged from the perilous situation unharmed.

Forest ranger Matthew Corbett reported to the Victoria News portal that the man was riding along a forest trail towards Anderson Flats National Park, in the western part of British Columbia, when he encountered the mother bear with two cubs foraging for berries.

The mother bear is known to forest rangers and had previously fled at the sight of humans. However, as Corbett mentioned, this time, she was likely startled by the cyclist and attacked him, pinning him to the ground.

The cyclist placed his bike between himself and the animal, protecting himself from bites. He recalled an old piece of advice that if you hit a bear on the nose, it will run away. Following this advice, the mother bear indeed fled.

The Forest Service does not intend to search for the mother bear, assuming it was a defensive attack.

Public broadcaster CBC recalled a similar story from 2017 on its portal about a man, also from British Columbia, who was attacked by a young grizzly, and who defended himself by first hitting the animal on the nose, and then with a piece of wood lying nearby.

British Columbia is bear country. It doesn't matter where you live or spend your free time; even in urban areas, you will be close to bears and their habitats - warned the British Columbia Ministry of Environment for 30 years.