Troy,
I assure you that I'm the "lucky" man...that's all. If she had made the slightest change in her M.O. I'd been rollin' on the ground in a heap o' trouble. In retrospect, she had to keep a hold of the tree with her paws and couldn't use them to pull with. If she had pulled on the stand...?
I'm not desirous of having second helpings anytime soon; in truth at all! I did learn a couple new things (in retrospect) and will commit them to memory. Almost 50 years in Alaska and being around hundreds of bears (both seen and more unseen)won't ready one for an encounter of this kind.
In a way (since I escaped totally unscathed) this "post episode" has a kind of manly, outdoor romantic thing going. I've endured my 5 minutes of fame already. I will do everything in my power to avoid a sequel. I will however, "jump back on the horse," so to speak. That, you can bank on.......grins.
best,
Mark
PS. Hope you are able to keep up with lettin' the kid out hunt ya! I really enjoy those pics you post (hint)
