Taken to Hospital After Driving Himself Home
An early-season archery hunt along Montana’s Rocky Mountain Front turned into a fight for survival when a grizzly bear attacked a 20-year-old bowhunter south of Augusta.
The hunter was pursuing big game on state land near Elk Creek and Haystack Butte on the morning of September 14 when he encountered a bear and was attacked.
Despite suffering severe, non-life-threatening physical trauma, the wounded hunter made it back to his truck, drove himself all the way home, and was subsequently transported by private vehicle to Benefis Hospital for emergency medical treatment.
State biologists officially confirmed the animal involved was a grizzly bear after analyzing hair samples collected directly from the victim.
Investigating game wardens and bear specialists from Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks (FWP) later located a domestic cow carcass approximately 150 yards from the attack site.Â
FWP officials emphasized that early autumn archery hunting along the Rocky Mountain Front carries heightened risk. Grizzlies are actively foraging during hyperphagia, and aggressive defense of localized food sources like carcasses puts them directly in the path of silent archers slipping downwind through the brush.
