Deer and Bears

 Last week diving for cucumbers found Mike and I doing the combination of shrimping and diving. Our good friends, Scott and CJ, did a dive and deer hunt combination. We learned the story back in town at the fuel dock.
  On the way back to town Scott and CJ spot a couple of deer standing on the beach. They get down their little zodiak skiff and CJ paddled to the beach.
  Scott backs the big boat out and watches. He gave CJ a hand held radio, which is common practice here in Alaska.
  The deer move off the beach and into the woods as soon as CJ gets close, so he follows in hot persuit.
  Here is CJ's side;
  "I'm sneaking through the thick undergrowth on a nice game trail. I know the deer have to be close. I see movement up ahead and freeze. It is the butt end of a big brown bear. Not a good thing at all. Just then the two deer come racing down the trail away from the bear. I aim the gun when the radio starts squaking."
  "CJ! CJ! Cj, are you there?" Scott's frantic voice booms out in the quiet forest.
  CJ is desparetaly trying to muffle the radio and line up for a shot at one of the deer
  "There are two bears somewhere near you!" Scott's frantic voice booms over the radio again.
  CJ lines up a deer and pulls the trigger. A good shot, the deer goes down.
  Now back on the boat Scott is seeing things a little differently.
  As soon as Cj heads into the woods, Scott notices a couple of big brown bears on the beach lumbering along.  They turn and head into the forest on a collision course with CJ.
  Scott is on the radio trying to warn CJ when he hears a single riffle shot boom out.
  Now Scott is almost in a panic. Did the two bears find CJ? Did he shoot in self defense? Is he being mauled right now?
  "Are you there? Are you alright?" Scott keeps on the radio.
  "Hey, I'm fine, Scott. I just shot a nice buck. I'll be right out with it." CJ replies back.
  Scott relaxes a bit to hear CJ's voice but is still very alert knowing there are a couple of bears somewhere near him.
  As he draggs the buck to the beach the other deer shows itself, and CJ makes another good shot. Two bucks down, and still two bears in the woods close by.
  With the hair standing on his neck, CJ field dresses the two deer and gets them to the skiff. He paddles back to the boat and Scott picks him up.
 After comparing stories Scott and CJ learn that there were actually three bears in the woods with CJ, the two Scott observed on the beach at the same time CJ was seeing the back end of one in the woods.
  We all got a good laugh at the stories told at the fuel dock, but all were very thankful that the bears did not get agressive with CJ. It could have turned a deer hunt into a very intense situation. It is never a good idea to wrestle a brown bear in the woods.