A 61-year-old Canadian man was attacked by a black bear Sunday and managed to walk away from the “fist fight” with just a few scratches.
Rick Nelson has years of boxing training, which came in handy when he was walking his dog. A cub got scared when he spotted Nelson sitting down on a log and let out a yelp.
“It was so close I could touch it,” Nelson told CBC News. “It let out a yelp, because I scared the heck out of it.”
Nelson has several years of experience as a bear hunter and quickly understood the cub was calling on his mother.
“I knew right away I was in trouble,” he told CBC News.
Nelson got on his feet and spotted the 320 lbs. mother coming at him “full speed.” With no sticks and rocks around, Nelson had to pull out his boxing skills. His first punch hit the bear in the teeth. The bear then responded by scratching Nelson across the face and chest.
“I knew it would swing first with its left but it would really come with its right, because most bears are right-handed,” he said. “I had the perfect shot to take. I did an underhand and hit it right in the snout.”
The bear admitted defeat after the punch and walked away from the situation.
“It just turned around and walked way like nothing ever happened and followed the cub,” Nelson said. “So I really lucked out there.”
Black bears usually avoid interactions with humans, and attacks of this nature are rare.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.