You have to see this! Hiker tries and fails to scare off brown bear
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A FRIGHTENING SITUATION — A heart-stopping encounter was caught on camera when a man came face-to-face with a large bear.
The incident happened April 15, 2026, but the video is still circulating online with over 1.5 million views coming from one Facebook post alone.
Footage shows a bear slowly walking towards a hiker on a hiking trail in Sierra Madre, California.
Eric Chiu said he was walking the Mount Wilson Trail when he encountered the bear “about 10 feet away from me.” Chiu reportedly warned a nearby hiker about the bear, and the hiker then tried to scare the bear away.
Chiu recorded the hiker as he began jumping around in front of the bear wearing bells.
“I mean, he did the complete opposite of freeze,” one comment on the video reads. “He practically told the bear to eat him in body language.”
Another viewer quickly praised the hiker for what he did, “He did exactly what he was supposed to do when you encounter a bear. You make yourself look as large as possible and make as much noise as possible.”
As the hiker continued to try and scare the bear away, the bear kept slowly walking closer to the hiker before suddenly charging towards him.
Chiu said he hid behind bushes to let the bear pass before continuing hiking. Nobody was injured in the encounter.
Another video, taken later by Chiu, shows the bear on the trail, this time ahead of the hikers.
A list of what one should do and what should be avoided when hiking in bear country can be found here.
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