Dan Bigley was enjoying a fishing excursion in Alaska when a sudden encounter changed his trajectory forever. His path crossed with a mother bear and her cubs, igniting a series of harrowing events that ended in him being dragged deep into the forest. As the bear attacked, Bigley slipped in and out of consciousness, still haunted by the final sound he heard before everything morphed into total darkness.
An outdoor enthusiast, Bigley treasured activities like fishing and hiking. On this particular day, he had just embarked on a new relationship with Amber. When a friend invited him for a fishing trip, he accepted, assuring Amber that he would call her once he was off the river. However, little did he know that he had under 12 hours of sight left, as he reminisced during an interview with the Black Rifle Coffee Company.
The following day, to his horror, Bigley found himself within close proximity of a gigantic brown bear. With previous encounters under his belt, he had a fair understanding of what to expect. But this incident strayed from the norm and took a petrifying turn. The bear, already agitated, refused to leave the area. Believing they had distanced themselves far enough for safety, they soon discovered the bear had cubs with her. She charged at them “at missile speed”, swiftly launching her attack.
“I can still see her eyes, blazing with fury and her mouth wide open,” Dan shared. “Before I even touched the ground, she had grabbed my legs, dragging me into the undergrowth.”
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In a conversation with NPR, Bigley provided more distressing details about the gruesome attack.
“She dragged me into the forest, claws pressing into my shoulders, her head hovering over mine. Then, she tilted her head to one side and bit down hard across my face,” he narrated.
Bigley recounted how he heard a “pitiful screaming sound,” resembling the cries of a dying animal, before realizing that he was the one screaming. But the sound that followed was far worse, a noise so terrifying that it still haunts him: the crunching sound of his own skull moments before he lost consciousness.
His friend, along with some fishermen nearby, acted promptly and rushed him to safety. He lost his vision permanently in the attack, but as he acknowledged, it could’ve resulted in a far dire outcome.
“Yes, I’m blind now, but I’m happy,” Dan Bigley revealed in his conversation with NPR.
