[Paddlewise] Wolf attacks Kayaker in Clayquot Sound

This is reprinted from The Vancouver Province, July 4/00:

Staff Reporter The Province; with Canadian Press
Two wolves found on Vargas Island after kayaker Scott Langevin was savagely
attacked therehave been shot and will be tested for rabies, according to a
television report.  The attack is believed to be the first documented case
of an attack by a wolf on a human being in B.C.

"What a way to be famous," said Langevin in a BCTV interview.   Langevin,
23, is in Victoria General Hospital recovering from the mauling, which
required 50 stitches to reattach his scalp.

He was surprised by the attack while he slept in his sleeping bag near a
beach campfire on the island, off the west coast of Vancouver Island near
Tofino. The University of Victoria studend survived by fighting the wolf
and attracting the attention of other campers.  He said he awoke to the
wolf biting him and trying to drag away his sleeping bag.

"I decided to try roll around to the other side of the fire," explained
Langevin, who was hoping to get a log or stick to aid in his fight for
survival. But the move backfired as the wolf "started biting the back of my
head."

"I'm sure I hit him a few times but it wasn't enough to get him off," he
recalled.

The wolf left after Langevin's friends started shouting. They called for
help on a marine radio.  Boaters Dave Leblanc and Doug Leys responded to
the call at 1:30 a.m. Sunday. Leblanc, 43,  said he knew by the tone of the
voice on the radio that the situation was serious. Leblanc, who has coast
guard experience, said he and Leys had sketchy directions but headed for
the beach where kayakers would most probably camp.

 After a 20-minute ride through the night, the pair arrived to find about
eight people on the beach  signalling with flashlights.   Langevin was
losing blood quickly but was conscious when he was loaded aboard the boat.
He was eventually airlifted to Victoria.  The brush with wildlife could
have been tragic had the kayakers not been so well equipped, said Leblanc.
"If they hadn't had radios, he well could have died."

 A kayak guide who leads trips to Vargas Island guessed yesterday that the
wolf who attacked Langevin may have become habituated to human beings.
"I've heard people were feeding the wolf -- people not in the know," said
Kim Crosby, 38, of Nanaimo's Wildheart Adventures, who had an encounter
with a wolf on Vargas last month.  He was guiding two other kayakers when
they saw the wolf.

"After we had our lunch, it came out of the woods towards us, not being
aggressive, just being  inquisitive. For a wolf that's very strange
behavior. "This wolf came right up to us and we decided it was time to
split."


______________________
Ian Cohen  /   Icon Architecture


***************************************************************************
PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not
to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission
Submissions:     PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net
Subscriptions:   PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net
Website:         http://www.paddlewise.net/
***************************************************************************