Moose Droppings

A Virginia Bear Hunter Survives an Attack by a 600lb Black Bear

Mar 08, 2007 @ 07:08 pm by Moose

Photo From The Hook

This past fall the reports of a bear hunting getting attacked by a bear he thought was dead flew around the net and I included the story on the blog as well. This was not actually true and I did post a correction when initial news reports were shown to be wrong.

Though the Hensleys say that in the months since the incident, they’ve received tremendous support from friends and strangers, they’ve also dealt with negative comments and criticism. Initial media accounts of the attack alleged that Hensley approached the bear thinking it was dead. Jennifer recalls in particular a blog post on ESPN.com that made light of the incident: “Memo to all muzzle-loading rifle hunters: Before approaching a 600-pound black bear you’ve just shot, it might be a good idea to reload your gun.”
“It made him sound like an idiot,” Jennifer complains.
Willis also resents people making assumptions about her father.
“The most important thing to me is that people understand that it wasn’t stupidity that got him in this spot,” says Willis. “It wasn’t inexperience, and he wasn’t looking for a thrill.”

A detail interview including an audio clip has been posted on The Hook that I thought some of my readers may find interesting. Mr. Hensley has sure had his share of hunting mishaps over his lifetime that I think he might be part cat with 9 lives.

In his nearly 50 years of hunting, Hensley has had numerous hunting mishaps.
In the early 1980s, a friend mistook him for a turkey and peppered his upper body, including his face, with buckshot. A few years ago, he fell from a tree stand and broke his back. He once got lost in a blizzard in Montana and had to hike 30 miles to find help. And on two other occasions, he was attacked by bears– one, an angry mother protecting her cubs, and the other a male trying to pull Hensley down out of his tree stand. He escaped injury both those times.
This time was different.

I’m glad Mr. Hensley is progressing medically and I hope he makes a full recovery. His story is one of inspiration and caution for all of us who venture afield.