While doing research for an upcoming destination piece on Kentucky’s Red River Gorge, I came across this story in the Lexington Herald-Leader on what is reported to be the first ever bear attack in the state. Fifty-six-year-old hiker Tim Scott gives the paper a detailed account of his Sunday afternoon black bear run-in on the Pinch-Em Tight Trail in the Daniel Boone National Forest. The bear pursued Scott slowly, and eventually bit him multiple times in the right leg. After another group of hikers intervened, Scott was freed and taken to the hospital where he received approximately 60 stitches. The Red River Gorge Recreation Area is currently closed, as the Forest Service tries to locate the bear. Despite the unfortunate incident, black bears are rarely aggressive toward humans. As an experienced hiker, Scott recognized this and told the paper he wouldn’t be deterred from hitting the trail in the future: “I have to defend the right of bears to be where they live. … It was theirs before it was ours.”
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