By Dean Maddox, Public Safety & Crime Reporter

With the backing of green activists, California Senate Democrats are advancing legislation to pave the way for reintroducing grizzly bears to the state. The goal of organizations backing Senate Bill 1305, like the Center for Biological Diversity’s Bring Back the Bears campaign, is to restore populations that have been gone since 1924.

At one time, the Center for Biological Diversity notes 10,000 grizzly bears roamed the wilds of California. However, while green advocates romanticize the idea, few seem to grasp what sharing the landscape with these animals actually means.

Just ask Daniel Crago.

The 32-year-old from San Carlos was hiking the Grinnell Glacier Trail in Montana’s Glacier National Park on May 28 when he was blindsided. He had bear spray on his belt. But the attack came so fast he never got the chance to use it.

Crago had briefly split from his hiking partner and was taking in the view when he spotted a small grizzly cub. As he scanned the area, a larger grizzly just 15 feet away locked eyes with him. In an instant, the bear charged with a roar.

“I said, ‘Hey bear! Hey bear!’” Crago recalled. “As soon as it looked right up at me, it charged. You could hear the roar. I just stuck my arm up out of self defense.”

The grizzly bit down on his right forearm, crushing both bones. It knocked him backward and dragged him about 20 to 30 feet before releasing him. The entire nightmare lasted less than 10 seconds. Crago needed multiple surgeries. He faces more, including a possible skin graft. He says he feels “extremely lucky” to be alive thanks to a doctor hiker who applied a tourniquet.

This is the reality most people don’t picture. Grizzlies aren’t lumbering cartoon characters. They can sprint up to 35 miles per hour. That is faster than most humans can run. Young ones can climb trees. Adult grizzlies weigh 400 to over 800 pounds. They stand up to 10 feet tall on hind legs. They possess the strength to shatter bone with a single bite or swipe. Surprise encounters, especially near water or in thick brush where you can’t hear each other coming, are the most dangerous.

Experts with the National Park Service and Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team note that grizzlies are far more aggressive than black bears when defending territory, cubs, or food. Play dead is often the recommended response. Fighting back usually escalates things. But in a sudden charge like Crago’s, there is barely time to react.

California lawmakers behind SB 1305, which passed the Senate 29-9, want a roadmap for reintroduction by 2030. They talk ecological restoration and tribal input. Critics point out the state’s 39 million people, sprawling suburbs, hikers, campers, and ranchers already struggling with predators. History shows why grizzlies were wiped out here in the first place. Humans and these powerful animals don’t mix easily.

Daniel Crago had bear spray. He made noise. It still wasn’t enough when the bear decided he was a threat. That is the kind of coexistence Sacramento Democrats are pushing toward.