Wow, he's very licky to survive that. Wonder what caused the Grizzly to turn on him?
Just goes to show that even in a somewhat controlled enviroment, animals can still be deadly and one must keep their wits about them in case something similar this were to happen to them.

The man is VERY fortunate to have survived this attack with only minor (although life threatening)injuries! It just goes to show you that you can never predict how a wild animal will react in a given situation.

this is pretty cool
but maybe the guy taking pictures should have stopped shooting pictures and start shooting bear as soon as the guy fell off the truck

Wow! The guy is lucky. It appears that they need to evaluate their bear cage securment for the truck, and maybe a provide aflat surface on the top of the cage to walk on when releasing the bear. That could have helped. Where is OSHA when you need them?

They are a dangerous animal, people need to be able to protect themselves at all times...

Wow very scary

If the cage had been bolted to the truck, it wouldn't have come off, and the guy would have been able to stay out of reach.

Wow, sounds like it was good he had his .357 accessible.

ALL bear are tempermental and too unpredictable.

Wow trapped between a mad bear and a bear cage. Some days its just better to stay home! :) Glad he got only minor cuts, could have been MUCH worse.

come on F&S. this is OLD stuff! let's try and keep the news current???

This is just a sad story...for Kis and the bear.

that guys lucky he still has his head!

Seems to me I saw these pictures several years ago and the wilflife officer killed the bear with his 357 mag handgun.

He's a fortunate man to be alive!!!!!

Good thing he had his gun.

wow, i would have crapped my pants.

I'm not visiting Field & Stream again until the survey window is limited to the home page only.

I would have taken action much sooner. I think I would have shot the bear when it turned and was trying to get to the warden before the cage was even pulled from the truck. I may have fired a warning shot into the ground in a safe direction to see if the sound scared the bear off but shot 2 definitely would have shoot to kill. But it is also certainly much easier to Monday morning quarterback than to actually react when in the situation. Thank god that he survived.

I have seen those photos many times before but never knew the story. Was almost certain that the release site was Tuchuk Creek near the Canadian border in Montana and I was also almost certain that was Louis Kiss on top of the crate. The Big Sky mudflaps were a giveaway and I fished off that bridge many times when I was a kid (fifty years ago!). Absolutely thrilled to finally know I called this one correctly. After I left for the Army, Louis measured my first bull elk. He has been retired for a long time (if he's still alive). At the time of this photo he was more than just a game warden. He was in charge of the district. He was a fine fella. A good warden, thoughtful, pleasant, and sensible.

these are just as interesting as they were the first time i saw them as a kid .

in pic 13 is that a piece of flesh on the ground of something else?

look at the claws on pic 22. Huge!!!!

Wow, talk about a bad day.

that .357 was a good investment

In all my bear encounters i use a gun called "the judge" you put one round of .410 to blind him then its open fire with the .45 with the same gun. This guy is clearly an idiot. This was not the bears fault and if this guy was working for a park he would be fired.

WOW that would really suck

You can read all about this incident and many other fascinating bear tales in "Great Montana Bear Stories" available through Riverbend Publishing.
http://www.riverbendpublishing.com/

This guy is really lucky!

I think that the photographer should have been pointing a 7mm with a scope instead of a 35mm with a telephoto, would have saved that man some pain.

I am wondering a couple of things - 1.Why wasnt the containment unit straped down? 2. Why would you release on what looks like a bridge? The bear comes out and sees stright ahead, he may for a moment felt cornered with no where to go? These guys should know better than that.

Wild animals, never know what they are going to do. Glad he was not hurt worse!

Can someone get rid of all this spam!!

I note a big error in the story. The Bob Marshall Wilderness is a roadless area. Always has been. It is impossible to drive a vehicle "deep into the heart" of the Bob. That site was almost certainly Tuchuk Creek right up against the B.C. border.

I wonder what brilliant Montana Department of Fish & Game worker decided that securing the trap in the back of the truck with any of the following: rope/wire/bolts/MIG/bungee/boot laces/belt was unnecessary.

wow that would have been a scary situation

As Red Foreman would say: "The reason bad things happen to you, is because You are a Dumb-Ass!" ;-)
For those who beleive this incident should spark Ranger Rick to pick up Bear hunting is no different than thinking if a minority commited a crime against you... You should join the Klan!
~This was an avoidable "accident". ALL accidents are avoidable.

They should have turned that bear into a rug back when it killed the cow. Just sayin'.

Very old article but timely. Just on a forum where talk was that you needed a .500 ba-magnum something or other for bear country. ...and yeah, like luke said, I would have crapped my pants too.

Smith & Wesson? That looked like a GP100 in stainless to me.

FYI;To locate this site,leave Hungry Horse Mt,to Spotted Bear,then west via Meadow Ck.horse camp to Bunker Ck. From the locked gate hike 6 miles to the bridge which hunters used to camp at.From there it's about 2 miles to this bridge (Mid ck.)where the photos were taken. Not the first time for Lou Kis. the previous year there was at least 8 problem griz dropped in this area.One year Lou left a note on my sleeping bag saying he had dropped a sow & cub that day.(Iwas in area w/goat tag)Per my info; there was a shotgun ready for trouble, but unable to make a safe shot. All this about the time that Bill Ronny(sp ?)was editor of Outdoor Life. Let me say that Lou Kis was a fair man & not foolish as some may think.More info available, but think I've ran out of space.