I lived in Alaska for 20 years. Most of that time was spent in Juneau, but I had also spent time in Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Kodiak.

While I was living in Kodiak, I often went hiking in the back country, where bears were plentiful. These were Kodiak bears which frequently grew larger than grizzly bears. To prevent any unpleasantness, I often carried my rifle, a .350 Remington Magnum. To protect myself when I was fishing (and therefore couldn't be encumbered by the rifle), I then carried my .44 Magnum revolver.

One day I was fishing near Pasagshak Bay when I saw in the distance a rather large Kodiak bear. I wasn't worried, but I also knew it would be wise to keep an eye on him.

Well, I got lost in the fishing and the time passed by quickly. I remembered the bear and looked up to see that it was now less than 50 yards away. I looked around and saw a tall tree about the same distance away as the bear, but in the opposite direction.

I dropped my fishing pole and took off running for the tree. I got there only a few yards ahead of the bear, but the lowest branch was 30 feet above my head. I had no choice but to jump for it.

I missed!

But I caught it on the way back down, thereby cheating the bear out of his meal. He wandered off, but not before eating the two fish I had caught.