Nick Mott

So I've had a handful of encounters, a couple that are really, really scary. So just about like two days after the first episode of the podcast came out. Which was about grizzly bears. I was out on a trail like less than an hour from my house with a friend. We were on sort of a trail run hike type thing going up a mountain. And we both had bear spray on our running vest. So on our chest.

So bear spray is kind of like a big can high powered pepper spray. It can spray out to 30 feet. You spray it at a bear charging you supposed to stop it in its tracks. So I was 15 feet ahead of my friend and we came around what turned out to be kind of a blind corner and I heard something. So I looked up and I saw these two silhouettes, a big silhouette and a little silhouette.

So bear spray is kind of like a big can high powered pepper spray. It can spray out to 30 feet. You spray it at a bear charging you supposed to stop it in its tracks. So I was 15 feet ahead of my friend and we came around what turned out to be kind of a blind corner and I heard something. So I looked up and I saw these two silhouettes, a big silhouette and a little silhouette.

So bear spray is kind of like a big can high powered pepper spray. It can spray out to 30 feet. You spray it at a bear charging you supposed to stop it in its tracks. So I was 15 feet ahead of my friend and we came around what turned out to be kind of a blind corner and I heard something. So I looked up and I saw these two silhouettes, a big silhouette and a little silhouette.

And immediately within a second or two, the big silhouette gets down on all fours and I see the sun hit its back. I see brown fur. I realize it's a grizzly and her cub, which is basically the worst situation you can be in in terms of a grizzly encounter. And this bear, she got down on all fours and she just started running at me and she was less than 50 feet away.

And immediately within a second or two, the big silhouette gets down on all fours and I see the sun hit its back. I see brown fur. I realize it's a grizzly and her cub, which is basically the worst situation you can be in in terms of a grizzly encounter. And this bear, she got down on all fours and she just started running at me and she was less than 50 feet away.

And immediately within a second or two, the big silhouette gets down on all fours and I see the sun hit its back. I see brown fur. I realize it's a grizzly and her cub, which is basically the worst situation you can be in in terms of a grizzly encounter. And this bear, she got down on all fours and she just started running at me and she was less than 50 feet away.

So this all happened in a matter of seconds, but it felt like an hour. I remember taking a couple steps back and I slapped my chest with both hands to grab the bear spray. And by the time I got it out, she was essentially to me. And the safety was still on the bear spray, so I couldn't spray it yet. In my head, I decided I'd jump off the trail onto the steep slope and

So this all happened in a matter of seconds, but it felt like an hour. I remember taking a couple steps back and I slapped my chest with both hands to grab the bear spray. And by the time I got it out, she was essentially to me. And the safety was still on the bear spray, so I couldn't spray it yet. In my head, I decided I'd jump off the trail onto the steep slope and

So this all happened in a matter of seconds, but it felt like an hour. I remember taking a couple steps back and I slapped my chest with both hands to grab the bear spray. And by the time I got it out, she was essentially to me. And the safety was still on the bear spray, so I couldn't spray it yet. In my head, I decided I'd jump off the trail onto the steep slope and

to my buddy Jacob, it looked like I was kind of just, I just fell. And anyway, I was sliding a few feet on my back and that gave me the extra second or two I needed to get that safety off. As I did, the bear continued coming towards me and I sprayed. And in my head, I was 15 feet behind myself. It felt like she wasn't that close.

to my buddy Jacob, it looked like I was kind of just, I just fell. And anyway, I was sliding a few feet on my back and that gave me the extra second or two I needed to get that safety off. As I did, the bear continued coming towards me and I sprayed. And in my head, I was 15 feet behind myself. It felt like she wasn't that close.

to my buddy Jacob, it looked like I was kind of just, I just fell. And anyway, I was sliding a few feet on my back and that gave me the extra second or two I needed to get that safety off. As I did, the bear continued coming towards me and I sprayed. And in my head, I was 15 feet behind myself. It felt like she wasn't that close.

My friend later told me she was at most two feet away from me as I was sliding down this hill.

My friend later told me she was at most two feet away from me as I was sliding down this hill.

My friend later told me she was at most two feet away from me as I was sliding down this hill.

Exactly. I sprayed. It hit her and she immediately sort of reared up. I remember seeing her ears perk up and she started snuffling like something was bothering her. And she she turned around and she ran back down the trail the way she'd come from. And then we got out of there.

Exactly. I sprayed. It hit her and she immediately sort of reared up. I remember seeing her ears perk up and she started snuffling like something was bothering her. And she she turned around and she ran back down the trail the way she'd come from. And then we got out of there.

Exactly. I sprayed. It hit her and she immediately sort of reared up. I remember seeing her ears perk up and she started snuffling like something was bothering her. And she she turned around and she ran back down the trail the way she'd come from. And then we got out of there.

Yeah. Had she been any closer, she'd have been on top of me. So that was far and away my closest encounter. And it was traumatic. I've still been flashing back to that moment. It makes me feel kind of nauseous and still sort of grappling with what that means for my own role in these activities I like to do, these places I like to go.