Men try to kill bear; end up getting attacked by it

A father and son hunting duo set out to kill a black bear, but the bear ended up attacking them during the hunt.

It happened early Saturday evening when the two tracked a bear to a dead-end street in South Kitsap. When they spotted the bear, they shot it with an arrow, but it wasn’t lethal. The bear ran off. The Kitsap Sun says the duo was concerned with a wounded bear loose in the neighborhood, so they restarted their hunt.

Apparently it didn’t dawn on them to contact the Department of Fish and Wildlife. They probably should have. When they went back out to find the wounded bear, the bear found them. It charged the two, jumping first on the son, then biting and scratching the father’s arm. Turns out, bears don’t like being hunted and killed.

The two men were taken to St. Anthony Hospital in Gig Harbor where they were released after being treated for minor injuries. The bear was found Monday afternoon about 500 feet away.

It is bear hunting season, so the duo were legally allowed to hunt the bear, but, if I’m being totally truthful, part of me is happy the bear got a couple bites and scratches on the two. I’m not a fan of hunting for sport and none of the reports I’ve seen suggest the neighborhood was in imminent danger from the bear. If the bear was causing a problem with the neighborhood, you should contact the proper authorities who are trained to handle this, not jump out there like you’re Legolas and Oliver Queen doing your best to protect the public.