Katelynn Lane was walking along a salmon stream near Bells Flats, Alaska, when a Kodiak bear with her cubs crossed her path.
She tried everything taught in safety protocols: making noise, standing her ground. It did no good. The bear advanced and attacked her. Her dog Vesper bought her the seconds she needed by barking and distracting the animal, giving Lane just enough time to climb up a slope. But the bear returned and grabbed her right leg while she was lying on her back, with her feet facing the hillside.
There, without fully thinking it through, she did what she had practiced in jiu-jitsu: she blocked with one leg and struck the animal directly in the face with the other. The bear retreated with her cubs. The entire encounter lasted just three minutes, while Lane remained on a video call with her father. She ended up with deep bruises and scrapes on both legs, but alive—and she is already planning to go walking with Vesper again, this time with bear bells.
