Sleeping Idaho hunter wakes up to black bear biting his head

BOISE, Idaho (AP) – A hunter camping in central Idaho woke up when a black bear started biting his head, and he couldn’t get medical care for three days because he was in such a remote wilderness area.

Idaho Fish and Game officials said in a statement Wednesday that 29-year-old Stephen Vouch of Boise had been hunting bighorn sheep with friends and awoke to the attack at 2 a.m. Friday.

Vouch yelled, and one of his friends shot the young male bear with a .45-caliber handgun. Vouch then shot and killed the wounded bear when it climbed a tree.

Vouch received first aid, then the hunting group rafted downstream before flying out of the rugged Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness on Sunday.

He was treated Monday at a hospital for cuts to his head and released.