Against The Odds — “In Their Own Words: Mauled By A Grizzly | 1”

Episode Overview

This episode features a gripping, firsthand account from Alex Messenger, who survived a nearly fatal grizzly bear attack at age 17 while on a 42-day canoe expedition in the Canadian Arctic. Alex walks listeners through the wilderness adventure, the attack itself, and his challenging recovery—physically and mentally—highlighting themes of resilience, survival, and personal transformation.

1. Setting the Stage: The Wilderness Adventure

The Expedition Begins

• Alex Messenger, raised in suburban Minnesota, was drawn to adventure from an early age thanks to his family’s camping trips.
• Joined a YMCA adventure program, Camp Mnogen, which kindled his love for wilderness paddling and backcountry teamwork.
• By 17, Alex was ready for Camp Mnogen’s “biggest, most remote trip”: a 42-day, 600-mile whitewater canoe journey from the Northwest Territories to Nunavut, outward bound from Holdaya Lake.
• The group, called the Olmstenoord, included six teenage boys and their experienced guide, Dan (late 20s). A girls’ group, the Femmes du Nord, was also completing the same route.
• Complete self-sufficiency was required—no support or easy retreat (09:14).

Wilderness Realities

• The land was both awe-inspiring and unforgiving: sweeping tundra, endless sun—necessitating eye-masks to sleep—and relentless black flies and mosquitoes.
• Wildlife encounters included musk oxen and, in an early foreshadowing, a distant grizzly bear across a canyon (14:00).
• Alex was aware of the dangers, including whitewater, hypothermia, and grizzlies, and described their bear safety training: “Most of the training is about, like, what do you do at the outset? How do you avoid an encounter in the first place?” (07:49).

2. The Day of the Attack

Layover Day at Princess Mary Lake (24:00–26:00)

• Day 29 started as a restful layover—cinnamon rolls for breakfast (which turned out to be disappointing "allspice rolls" due to a trading mix-up).
• The boys decided to hike the ridge behind camp; Alex, tired, opted to nap and join them later.
• Waking alone, Alex felt an urgent compulsion to climb the ridge and take in the view.

The Encounter

• As Alex moved across the ridge, he suddenly came face-to-face with a charging 600-pound grizzly bear, only 30 feet away.
• “We crested into each other's line of sight and I saw that this wasn't a musk oxen, this was a grizzly bear. Its eyes just locked on mine and we both stopped, and we both had this moment of surprise.” (23:35)
• Remembering his training, Alex tried to stay calm: “Hey bear, whoa bear, it’s okay bear.” (24:32)
• He didn't have his bear spray with him: “...it wasn’t our practice to carry it on our person every time. We assumed we would be surprised by a bear while we were sleeping.” (23:55)

The Attack (24:55–26:00)

• The bear bluffed, then charged. In a moment of desperate instinct, Alex threw his waterproof camera case at the bear, striking its nose and temporarily diverting it.
• The bear kept attacking—each time Alex dodged, but the bear’s claws and teeth landed glancing blows, culminating in a swipe that sent Alex flying and a massive bite to his thigh.
• As the bear bit down: “I just feel this excruciating pain, this tearing and pressure...And at that moment, my body was completely overwhelmed. That pain hit my kill switch and then I blacked out.” (25:46)

3. Aftermath and Rescue

Waking Up Alive (27:47)

• Alex regains consciousness. The bear, still watching him, moved away only when Alex played dead and averted his eyes.
• Realizes, elated, he’s survived, but his injuries are severe.

Struggling Back to Camp (28:20)

• “My adrenaline is on the red line… But I can tell that something is very wrong with my leg. It hurts. It’s not working right. And I’m limping terribly…” (28:52)
• The group initially believes Alex is joking. Once they realize the truth, guide Dan rapidly assesses and treats his wounds.
• Alex’s injuries are cataloged: facial bruises, bite wound missing the femoral artery by a quarter inch, claw marks, and two toes partially sliced off.
• “If it had hit [the femoral artery], I would have bled out before I got back to camp.” (29:54)

Decision to Self-Rescue (38:33)

• Nearest town, Baker Lake, is over 100 miles away; helicopter rescue isn’t immediately available.
• Team manages wounds and contacts medical experts via satellite phone. Critical concerns include infection, blood clots, compartment syndrome, rabies exposure, and potential PTSD (31:00).
• “There’s actually benefit to him staying with the group,” based on new research on trauma recovery. (32:05)
• They resolve to paddle out: “...the only way out now was to paddle. If all went well, they could reach Baker Lake in three days. But time was tight.” (39:42)

4. The Trek to Safety

Paddling Out

• Alex participates in his own rescue, paddling despite pain: “I’m actually able to paddle, which is amazing. I’m able to help assist with my own rescue, which was very empowering.” (40:25)
• The journey is perilous: storms strand the group for days on 30 Mile Lake and infection worsens in Alex’s wounded leg.
• Makeshift surgery becomes necessary: “...did some surgery on my wound with a pair of scissors. I bit on a piece of leather while he used some field sterilized scissors to debride that wound...very painful, but critical.” (42:55)
• Eventually, a helicopter is finally dispatched (44:40).

Reaching Medical Care (45:14)

• Evacuation to Baker Lake for IV antibiotics, then to Winnipeg for further treatment and the all-important rabies shots.
• Wound recovery takes two months. Permanent physical issues (range of motion, weakness) take almost a year; psychological recovery is a longer road.

5. Long-term Impact and Reflection

Physical & Emotional Recovery

• Vivid nightmares and hypervigilance become frequent: “Every boulder was a bear and every shadow was a bear.” (47:25)
• Graduated exposure—first with his family in secure environments—helps him rebuild confidence in the outdoors.
• “I would do these kind of like desensitization steps. And I had… various security blankets… a tactical vest and a machete and bear spray…” (47:58)

Transformative Lessons

• Alex returns to Camp Mnogen as a guide and later joins a search and rescue team, giving back by helping others.
• On the attack: “At first, I was very upset, and I very quickly switched to a sense of appreciation, because it could have done a lot worse. And it was ultimately just being a bear in the wild.” (49:50)
• Expresses relief that authorities never found and destroyed the bear: “It was defending itself, and it could have killed me... it didn’t.” (50:00)

Notable Quotes & Reflections

• “I recognize more about my capacity and threshold for challenges and pain and things like that, but it definitely made me much more appreciative of the time I have here and being alive…” (50:36)
• On annual remembrance: “I call it Bear Day, and I mostly try to take intentional time that day to remember what happened and the horror of it, but then also to think about what I’ve done since, what I’ve done in this extra year that I’ve had to live.” (52:38)
• Full closure came with the publication and audio recording of his memoir. After finishing recording, Alex’s son Orson ("bear cub") was born: “There’s a lot of power and meaning in that... There was a bear crossing the road on our way home from the hospital.” (51:12, 52:17)

6. Legacy

Ongoing Adventures & Family

• Alex and his wife now have two children and take them on outdoor excursions.
• Looks forward to sharing Camp Mnogen with them when they are older.

A Life Forever Changed

• The attack irrevocably altered Alex’s outlook, catalyzing a deep appreciation for life and the everyday.
• “Every July 31, Alex finds a way to mark the day that changed his life.” (52:38)

Key Takeaways

• Preparation, training, and teamwork are critical for wilderness survival—but luck, improvisation, and resilience can make a life-or-death difference.
• Trauma recovery involves intensive physical and emotional work, but long-term healing and even growth are possible.
• Encounters with wilderness are unpredictable; respect for the environment and its creatures is essential.

Selected Memorable Moments with Timestamps:

• “Hey bear, whoa bear, it’s okay bear.” — Alex Messenger (24:32)
• “My body was completely overwhelmed. That pain hit my kill switch and then I blacked out.” — Alex Messenger (25:46)
• “If it had hit [my femoral artery], I would have bled out before I got back to camp.” — Alex Messenger (29:54)
• “I call it Bear Day, and I mostly try to take intentional time that day to remember.” — Alex Messenger (52:38)

For Further Reading:

• Alex Messenger’s Memoir: The 29th Day: Surviving a Grizzly Attack in the Canadian Tundra (2019)
• Upcoming Novel: The Ice on the Lake (March 2026)

Host: Cassie De Pecol
Guest: Alex Messenger
Episode written and produced by Rachel Matlow for Wondery