Alaska Runner Uses Bear Spray to Fend Off Attack: 'Nightmare Come to Life'

An Alaska marathon runner used bear spray to fend off a bear attack on a popular trail, an encounter she described as “a nightmare come to life.” The incident occurred on August 13, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Klaire Rhodes, 28, was running alone on the Wolverine Bowl trail in Chugach State Park when a brown bear attacked her. She deployed bear spray to stop the attack and then self-rescued to the Prospect Heights trailhead in Anchorage.

Rhodes was taken to a local hospital for treatment. Biologists interviewed her and searched the attack site but found no sign of the bear. They posted warning signs at the trailhead and reminded visitors to carry deterrents like bear spray.

Although officials did not name Rhodes in their statement, she confirmed on social media that she was the attacked runner, saying she felt “incredibly fortunate” to have escaped with relatively minor injuries. Her most severe injury was a deep puncture wound to her left hip, along with claw and teeth marks.

“At risk of sounding dramatic but being totally honest, the moment felt like a nightmare come to life,” she wrote. “And yes, bear spray works.”

Rhodes, who has won three consecutive Mount Marathon races, said she was preparing for a race in Europe in less than two weeks but was unsure how the attack would affect her training. She expressed mixed feelings about returning to racing while grappling with anxiety about running in the woods again.

“Strange to feel overwhelmed with gratitude to be OK and knowing I probably have some intense trauma to work through,” she wrote.

Alaska wildlife officials estimate that hundreds of thousands of bears inhabit the state, with some areas having one bear per square mile.

The attack on Rhodes came about four months after a brown bear injured two U.S. Army soldiers at the Elmendorf-Richardson base in Anchorage. On July 9, a brown bear mauled a Kenai resident after climbing over a fence with two cubs. Nine days later, a bear attacked a woman hiking with a friend and three dogs.

A study by Alaska’s epidemiology section counted at least 68 hospitalizations from bear attacks over a 17-year period starting in 2000, nearly all from brown bears.

Neither authorities nor Rhodes provided specifics about the attack. Rhodes said she was grateful for the support but refused to “rehash” details online, preferring to control the narrative rather than leave it to social media trolls.