Why Bears Ate Their Friend, "Grizzly Man," Timothy Treadwell (9 photos)

Large predators always pose a danger. Even if it seems like you've formed a strong emotional bond with an animal, there's always the risk of a status shift and turning from a close friend into a hunted animal. This is exactly what happened to American Timothy Treadwell, who considered grizzly bears his friends. The animals ultimately ate the hapless naturalist and his girlfriend while they were filming another video about "cute bears."





Timothy Treadwell was born in 1957 in Long Island, New York. He was the fifth child in a very ordinary American family. In school, Timothy excelled in his studies and was involved in sports. He even became a star on the school scuba diving team. He loved animals and, in elementary school, kept a pet squirrel named Willie.



Everything changed when he entered college and moved to another city. He began to behave strangely. Treadwell claimed to be an orphan from the UK and born in Australia. His parents later told reporters that while away from home, their son had become addicted to alcohol and drugs, which had affected his mental health.





Timothy's life was turbulent and carefree. A turning point came when he nearly died from a heroin overdose and his girlfriend left him. Then Treadwell realized he needed to make a change. He quit drinking and using illegal drugs, then went traveling to Alaska. In 1989, he first visited Katmai National Park and fell in love with the place.

Mad Naturalist

In the park, Treadwell observed the lives of grizzly bears and soon realized he wanted to devote his life to studying them. In one of his books, Timothy wrote that it was these animals that helped him finally break his bad habits. Alaska's mountain forests are not the best place for wintering, and bears hibernate in winter. Therefore, Treadwell only visited Katmai during the warmer months. In total, he spent 13 summers in the park.



Timothy Treadwell wrote books about grizzlies, photographed and filmed them, and observed the animals in the wild from close range. He became a true expert on these predators and even founded an animal protection association called "Grizzly People." The naturalist toured American schools giving lectures on bears, reaching audiences of several thousand.



The videos the naturalist shot are astounding. In them, Timothy fearlessly approached grizzlies, talked to them, and even petted them. Moreover, Timothy did some absolutely insane things, like playing with cubs in front of their mother. National Park staff often clashed with the bear lover. They considered him crazy and even banned him from the park.

The Last Trip to Katmai

But Treadwell listened to no one and continued to return to Katmai every summer. He often brought his girlfriend, Amy Huguenard, who was also an avid wildlife enthusiast, with him. In 2003, the couple returned to Alaska. This time, they planned to visit an area of ​​the park called Big Green. Timothy called this place with its tall, lush grass "The Grizzly Maze."



Timothy Treadwell and his girlfriend, Amy Huguenard

It must be said that Treadwell chose an unfortunate time for the trip. It was August—late summer, when bears are actively feeding, trying to gain fat for hibernation. They are especially aggressive at this time, and park rangers warned visitors about this. But Timothy and his girlfriend were confident and behaved as usual.



Treadwell and his girlfriend spent their days filming bears in the tall grass of Big Green, and spent the nights right there in the meadow in a tent. On October 5, 2003, Timothy made his last contact. He called a friend on a satellite phone. A plane arrived to pick Treadwell and his girlfriend up the next day, but the naturalists never showed up at the appointed location.

Death on the Big Green

The concerned pilot contacted national park rangers. They headed to the naturalists' camp and made a gruesome discovery. Timothy and Amy were dead, their bodies dismembered and partially eaten. There were numerous bear tracks around the remains of the nature lovers, so the cause of death was obvious even without an autopsy.



Rangers later tracked down and shot two grizzlies, finding human flesh and pieces of clothing in their stomachs. The deaths of Treadwell and Huguenard marked the first bear-related tragedy in the 85-year history of Katmai National Park. This incident prompted park officials to tighten controls on tourists.



The unusual story of the nature lover's life and death inspired director Werner Herzog, who made the 2005 documentary "Grizzly Man" about Timothy Treadwell. Filming for a feature film about the bear lover was scheduled to begin in 2004, with Leonardo DiCaprio slated to star. However, the project fell through for a variety of reasons.