Claws and effect: encounter with grizzly rattles Olympian
Canmore biathlete ‘did everything right’ to avoid a horrible ending to her jog
Emma Lunder is used to racing against high-level skiers, but it was the recent charge of a grizzly bear that had her heart pumping like never before.
The Olympic biathlete says she was out for her usual jog along Loki’s Trail in Canmore on the morning of July 17 when she could see a mother bear and two cubs from about 50 metres out.
Lunder said she immediately turned back.
“But as soon as she saw me, she charged,” said the 27-year-old, who competed for Canada at the Pyeongchang Winter Games last year.
“She got within like 20 metres, I would say, so I started screaming my head off and got my bear spray out and was walking backwards with one hand in the air just yelling at her.”
The bear was three or four metres away when Lunder pointed in the direction of the grizzly’s head and deployed her bear spray. The bear instantly turned around and ran away.
Lunder, who lives and trains in Canmore, said she sees black bears on a weekly basis on the trail, but this was the first time she’d encountered a grizzly and its cubs.
“As soon as you yell, they are usually running in the other direction. This was definitely not any bear behaviour that I’d ever experienced before,” she said.
“Honestly it was so fast that I didn’t have a ton of time to think about what was happening and just reacted. I didn’t feel like I was thinking at all. I just, like I don’t know, tried to survive when she was running at me.”
John Paczkowski of Alberta Environment and Parks said he’s “highly confident” that the bear family in question is the same one that’s been seen several times on wildlife cameras on the periphery of Canmore since May 21.
The park ecologist said the mother bear is “fairly wary.”
“This is fairly typical of the kind of surprise encounter with a female grizzly bear, where the grizzly bear acts defensively,” Paczkowski said.
“The bear responded defensively by charging towards her (Lunder) to give her a bit of a warning; (it) stopped, and then proceeded to keep coming.”
Paczkowski said Lunder deserved full marks for her response, having managed to ward off the bear and escape safely “with a great story to tell.”
“Hats off to the jogger because she has had bear spray training. She did everything right,” he said.
“She was carrying the bear spray, it was accessible, she was able to get it out in a few seconds and she knew enough to wait until the bear was within spray range at about three metres.”
Alberta Environment and Parks issued a closure for the area following the encounter.
The closure affects Highline Trail, Riders of Rohan, and East and West Connector Trails. It also includes all access trails between Three Sisters Boulevard and Peaks Drive, as well as all land south and west of Three Sisters Parkway.
Paczkowski said the closure is a standard precautionary response following bear encounters. The region has now entered buffalo berry season, which often draws bears to the area, he added.
He advised hikers to make noise and travel in groups, to keep pets on leashes and carry bear spray in case of surprise bear encounters.
Lunder said she’s thankful she had bear spray with her.
“I was obviously very shaken up after this happened,” she said.
“Honestly, I just pictured what would happen if it hadn’t worked or if I didn’t have it.”