During A Recent Podcast, Luke Bryan Shared His Close Encounter With A Bear

Buckle up because this story is a roller coaster involving Luke Bryan and not one or two, but five grizzly bears!

On October 23rd, Bryan appeared on Joe Rogan’s podcast. During the podcast, Bryan revealed that he had a close call with some grizzlies on his salmon trip in British Columbia.

The compelling story begins with his description of the trip. He said:

“So, we’re flying in on helicopters to fish the salmon runs heading up into the mountains of British Columbia. It’s an amazing trip. You fly over in a helicopter, look down, and see huge schools of salmon. You take your fly rod, catch them, and have a beer.”

The pilot had warned Bryan’s crew that he had seen some bears in the area. Bryan and his friends thought it would “add to the adventure.”

Grizzly bears for reference below.

Luke Bryan’s Fishing Trip That Turned Grizzly

On the first day of their fishing trip, Bryan was walking back to the helicopter to get himself a beer when he said he saw a bear heading towards his friend. He yelled out to his friend to warn him. Then he shared what the bear did next:

“It came down the bank, jumped in the water, and we eased back to the helicopter. Then, another grizzly appeared about 30 yards from us. I’d left my beer on the bank, and this grizzly actually stuck its tongue in my beer before jumping in the river.”

The grizzly actually drank his beer! Unlike most people who would run from the situation, Bryan instead went and drank his beer after the grizzly.

In his own words: “I grabbed the beer and drank it, thinking, ‘grizzly spit!'”

The pilot urged the men fishing with Bryan to move, so they returned to the helicopter and went down the river.

When they had set up in the new location, Bryan said he “looked across [the river], and there was a grizzly galloping on the other side.”

He continued to say:

“I’d already seen two mature grizzlies, so I figured this was just a baby bear. I thought, ‘That’s cute.’ But then, that grizzly hit the opposite bank, leapt about 20 feet into the air, and splashed into the river. It was like a Volkswagen Bug slamming into the water. I took off back to the helicopter while two bear cubs and their mother followed me.”

This time, he ran, “By the time I reached the helicopter, my trip was ruined—I couldn’t relax.”

Watch Luke Bryan recount his bear encounter on Joe Rogan’s podcast below.