Man survives 3 bear attacks with knife | The Woodsman Hut | Forums

Wow, man he was lucky, I don't know if I would be searching at midnight if I wasn't 100 percent sure it was down

CENTER CITY, Minn. – In the annals of hunting stories -- this one wins.

It was a warm fall day near Sand Stone when Brandon Johnson, a hunter since he could walk, helped his camp track a black bear that his friend shot.

"We wanted to give it four hours before we went out and looked for it to make sure the animal had expired," said Johnson.

It was midnight, and low moonlight and dense forest made it difficult to track.

Suddenly, what Johnson had been looking for, found him.

The 525 pound bear charged Johnson, briefly knocking him unconscious.

"I'm going, 'this is a strange dream and it's opening its mouth and it's going in slow motion,'" he said. "I'm trying to stop it from coming down on my face and then I realize this is really happening."

Brandon's left arm was shattered -- now a chew toy for the wounded bear.

"One tooth of the bear just broke the bone right in half," he said.

In his right hand Johnson held a five-inch knife, his only defense.

"It's just going to town on my hand and I just keep stabbing it and stabbing it and stabbing away and I am screaming and yelling," he said.

It worked. The bear backed off and soon walked away, but minutes later it came back.

"I could feel like all the energy and adrenaline I had built up was leaving," he said.

The bear left a second time while Johnson screamed for help from his fiancé and friends scattered in the woods.

But, for a third time, the nightmare returned.

"Once I got to the point where I thought I was going to die, and I got myself to the point where I was ready to die, there was no more fear," he said.

Johnson said he shoved his hand into the bears open mouth stabbing it throat.

The bear grabbed onto to Johnson's leg, picked him up, slammed him to the ground, and walked away.

Friends found the carcass the next day, 50 feet from where the attack occurred.

Johnson said he walked with help of two friends 700 yards to awaiting ambulances.

He escaped certain death by slaying the bear with a knife.

Brandon's extensive injuries have left piles of medical bills, and his wounds have prevented him from his contracting work – maybe for good.

Family and friends have planned a benefit for Johnson on Jan. 17 at the Stacy-Lent Town Hall.

They've also set up a fundraising website to help support the family.

http://www.kare11.co...../20078121/