Bathurst

Serge Guitard has spent his entire life getting to know the New Brunswick forests around his home in Pointe-Verte, near Bathurst, and the animals that call it home.

As a life-long fur trapper, he's had some close calls with wildlife, but nothing quite like the recent experience he had with a black bear while picking blueberries.

Guitard said he suddenly spotted the bear too close for comfort.

"Two seconds later that bear charged me," he said. "And when he started to hit me and hit me, I squeezed my head very tight on his chest … protecting my face."

Guitard said he was bitten, scratched, knocked down and dragged around by the bear. But when he remembered the small knife he carried with him, he was able to fight back.

"I squeezed the knife into his chest," he said. "And then it was a big silence, nothing, just silence … and then he disappeared."

Guitard, who is now recovering at home, said he knows he's lucky to be alive. He will continue to carry his knife with him in the woods and will add bear spray to his checklist.

The encounter also has the 75-year-old reflecting on the advice he used to get as a child, as he ventured out into the forest.

"My mother used to tell me, 'Don't go in the woods alone because the bear is going to eat you,'" he said, adding that he now knows what she meant.

Defend yourself with whatever instruments you can find.

New Brunswick has a healthy black bear population, with males weighing more than 600 pounds.

Lindsay Gauvin, a biologist with the provincial Department of Natural Resources, said there is always the possibility of encountering one in the forests this time of year, even near residential areas and campgrounds.

She said they're always on the lookout for food, and if they get spooked by a human close by, they may become aggressive.

"Sometimes they will do a bluff charge, so they will run towards you to scare you, but then they'll just run across the side from you."

Gauvin said if the bear does make contact, people need to be prepared to fight back.

"Defend yourself with whatever instruments you can find," she said. "If you can find rocks to hit the bear, you know, on the head with it. Or if you do have bear spray or a little knife … you really want to defend yourself."

Gauvin said that it's always wise to carry something to defend yourself with — including bear spray — and to read the label carefully on how to use it properly.

That's advice Guitard is already putting to use. He said the experience won't stop him from spending time in the woods.

Asked whether he has a bear licence this year, Guitard said he doesn't. But given his recent near-death experience with a black bear, it's something he may consider for next year's hunt.