'It's Coming Right at Us': Hikers Encounter Bear in Alaska's Katmai National Park

Two hikers crossed paths with two brown bears while on a walking trail in Alaska’s Katmai National Park and Preserve, recently shared video shows.

Photographer Alex McGregor was on a walking trail at the national park with a friend when they stumbled across two bears on the path.

Video shows one of the bears as it walks toward McGregor, who slowly backs away from the scene while providing a nervous running commentary. The bear appears to inspect where McGregor was standing before it turns around and walks in the opposite direction – much to McGregor’s relief.

Speaking to Storyful, McGregor said he counts himself lucky that he knew what to do in this situation. “We were trained to get off the trail and give them the right of way, while making sure the bear knows we’re there so we don’t startle them,” he said.

“This bear had other ideas,” he added.

The video, originally recorded in August 2021, gained traction online after McGregor shared it to TikTok in March 2023. The video garnered over 900,000 views at the time of writing. Credit: Alex McGregor via Storyful