Woman survives brutal bear attack on hunting trip with friend

JUNEAU, Alaska (KTUU/Gray News) – An Alaska woman is lucky to have survived a horrific bear attack during a hunting trip last month.

Amanda Compton, 44, was deer hunting with her boyfriend Nicholas Orr on Admiralty Island, one of the most bear-rich areas in North America.

But the routine trip took a frightening turn when they suddenly came face to face with a mother brown bear protecting her cub.

Compton said in a split second the bear burst out of the brush, catching her completely off guard.

“It was coming right at me and I didn’t have time to pull a gun,” she said.

The 44-year-old hunter said she fell to the ground and covered her head, but the bear’s jaws clamped down on her skull.

Somehow the attack only lasted a few seconds before the bear ran away. Compton was seriously injured but alive.

“It was so fast that I had to react immediately. I remember it lying on top of me, chewing on my head,” she said.

Orr added: “If it had taken a second longer I would have had to shoot. It was even scarier because I wanted to try not to kill them at the same time.”

Despite a deep cut to his head and a stab wound to his hand, Compton managed to walk back to the boat with Orr and the two then made their way to the hospital.

According to Stephen Bethune, a biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, bear attacks like this are extremely rare. He explained that the bear was probably acting in defense of her cub and ran away as soon as she no longer felt threatened.

Officials concluded the attack was an isolated incident and they would leave the bear alone.

Despite the life-threatening encounter, Compton says it won’t stop her from continuing to do what she loves.

“I fully expect to get back out there after I recover,” she said. “It [the attack] should have killed me. So I think it probably just comes down to me continuing to hunt.”

Compton’s story is a reminder of the unpredictable threats that the Alaskan wilderness poses to even experienced hunters.

Copyright 2024 KTUU via Gray Local Media, Inc. All rights reserved.