Leah Davis Lokan, 65, Was Killed by a Grizzly Bear While Camping in Montana

Leah Davis Lokan, a 65-year-old California cyclist, was killed by a grizzly bear while camping in a small Montana town. An autopsy report revealed that the bear severed her spine and broke her neck while attacking her while she was sleeping. The bear was later shot and killed by wildlife officials.

Lokan was participating in a bike trip through the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route when she was attacked. Her friend and sister were accompanied by her. At the time of the attack, Lokan was camping near the post office in Ovando, Montana. She was traveling with her sister and a couple named Joe and Kim Cole. When the couple woke up to the sound of a bear outside of their tent, they tried to scare the bear away. But the bear attacked again.

Lokan’s friend recalled hearing the bear’s growls as she was awake. After Lokan awoke, she armed herself with a bottle of bear spray. She rushed to remove food from her tent. Some of the items were dried lentils and snack foods. They were stored in bicycle saddlebags, but the bear was able to retrieve them.

It is believed that the bear was food-conditioned and was likely drawn to the aromas of Independence Day picnics. It is also possible that the bear had visited the area for a significant amount of time.

According to the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee executive body, the bear had a predatory nature and had learned to look for human food. In addition, the bear had a habit of approaching people who were sleeping. If the bear had attacked Lokan when she was asleep, it is unlikely that she would have been able to recover the food from her tent. However, after the first encounter, she relocated the food to a structure next to her tent.

The bear was reported as having weighed about 417 pounds. It was estimated to have been between four and seven years old. It was first seen by the Cole family about an hour before the attack. The bear had made two rounds of the campground. Eventually, a bear trap was set up by Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks. During the investigation, investigators discovered that Lokan had turned down a hotel room invitation and that the bear was in the area for a significant period of time.

A few days after the attack, the same bear made another pass of the campground and raided three chicken coops. DNA samples from those coops match the DNA of the bear that was found in the area where Lokan was killed. While there is no guarantee that the bear was responsible for Lokan’s death, authorities are confident the bear did.

Before the bear attacked, she had been sleeping in her tent. She and her friends had been in the area for five years and had enjoyed biking through the mountainous terrain. She also participated in the Chico Velo Trailworks program, which supported local trails.