It's the video you have to see to believe. Two men have an unbelievable encounter with a bear in Botetourt County.
It was shot Saturday at a private pond. Billy Gray and his son were fishing when they saw a bear on the shore. The bear eventually comes out of the woods and goes right up to the two men who are sitting on the ground. What happens next is even more amazing.
"He came up and sniffed my right foot once and then he came back and swatted it and then grabbed it but he didn't do it in a menacing way at all. I think he was just playing," said Billy Gray, Roanoke resident.
The cell phone video lasts about four minutes. Billy Gray says the bear actually stuck around for about two hours. So long in fact, he and his son eventually gave up fishing.
We showed the video to Virginia's Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. Wildlife experts can't believe their eyes.
"If he was a fuel-feeding mode, that would have been a whole different video," said Jim Bowman, with the VDGIF. Bowman is concerned because the bear obviously has no fear of people. That tells him someone has been feeding it, which is a big no-no in Virginia.
"They become habituated to being fed, very readily they become habituated and that can present some public safety problems," said Bowman. Because if you don't have food, the bear could become agitated.
Billy Gray believes the bear came up to them because it smelled the fish they were catching. "We didn't get about five. I quit after he showed up. I had more fun watching him, it was beautiful," said Billy Gray.
VDGIF says if you ever have an encounter with a bear like in the video, you should back up slowly and make a loud noise. You should never under any circumstances run away. (Click here for more information on bears from the VDGIF.)
