To explore more of Pennsylvania, my then boyfriend and I drove to Linn Run State Park, chose a trailhead at random, and headed down a long, leafy path that followed a creek.

After about an hour, I saw movement and realized a black bear was standing in the creek. I hid behind some trees.

I signaled to my boyfriend to join me, but he wanted to get a better look and ignored me.

I was mad. I pulled on his arm, but he wouldn't budge. Then I saw that the bear had two cubs. "We have to get out of here," I said.

He wasn't getting it. The mother bear lunged toward us in a false charge. I gripped my boyfriend's arm, and we held our ground.

I waited until the bear turned to her cubs, then took a deep breath. "Run," I whispered. I didn't bother looking behind me.

Are you a survivor? Send your tale of backcountry peril to submissions.sierra@sierraclub.org or share it with us on Facebook.

This article appeared in the November/December 2019 edition with the headline "Overbearing."