The Forest Does Not Bluff, and Neither Did He

There is a certain humility that comes from walking into a forest—a recognition that you are not the master of that place, only a visitor whose presence may be tolerated or may not. Serge Guitard has spent his life in the woods of northern New Brunswick, trapping and tracking, learning the language of animals that do not speak. At seventy-five, he knows the risks. But knowing a risk and surviving it are different things. On a recent morning, while picking blueberries near his home in Pointe-Verte, near Bathurst, Guitard encountered a black bear that did not bluff, did not hesitate, and did not leave him unchanged.

He saw the bear too late. "Two seconds later that bear charged me," he recalled. The animal struck him repeatedly, and Guitard pressed his head against the bear's chest to protect his face. He was bitten, scratched, knocked down, and dragged. In the middle of the struggle, he remembered the small knife in his pocket. "I squeezed the knife into his chest," he said. "And then it was a big silence, nothing, just silence … and then he disappeared" .

Guitard was left with more than eighty stitches across his head and body. He is recovering at home now, and he considers himself fortunate. The encounter also brought back something his mother told him when he was a child venturing into the forest: "Don't go in the woods alone because the bear is going to eat you." He said he now understands what she meant .

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 encounters are possible this time of year, even near residential areas and campgrounds, because bears are constantly searching for food. Sometimes a bear will perform a bluff charge—running toward a person to scare them before veering off. But if contact occurs, Gauvin's advice is direct: "Defend yourself with whatever instruments you can find." Rocks, bear spray, a small knife—anything that can be used to fight back .

Guitard said the experience will not keep him out of the woods. He will continue to carry his knife, and he plans to add bear spray to his equipment. He also said he may consider applying for a bear license next year . There is a quiet pragmatism in that decision—a refusal to let fear dictate the terms of a life spent outdoors. The forest remains what it always was: beautiful, indifferent, and occasionally dangerous. Guitard walked into it and walked out again, carrying scars and a story, and the certainty that the woods do not owe anyone safety.

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Sources: CBC News, Yahoo News Canada, Saint John Daily