Pinecrest, CA – A man recovering from injuries he received after a bear incident near the Dodge Ridge Mountain Resort in the Pinecrest area of Tuolumne County this weekend recounts the incident.
The cyclist, who is not being identified, tells Central Sierra Broadcasting it happened so fast it is hard to remember exactly what happened: one moment he says he was pedaling his bike and the next the animal came out of nowhere and was right there.
“I was descending the road and suddenly, with no warning, the bear was right there beside me, and we collided,” recounted the cyclist.
He says his wife was right behind him on a bike, but only saw the bear running away and not the collision. He says he was injured in the exchange, stating, “I was taken to Sonora Adventist Hospital. I have a separated shoulder and some cracked ribs.”
As we reported here on Monday (6/6/26), according to Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Sgt. Nate Yorston, they received a call from CAL Fire TCU on Sunday, June 7, 2026, at around 7:30 p.m. for an ambulance regarding a bicyclist versus a bear in the Dodge Ridge Road area, and CAL FIRE TCU spokesperson Emily Kilgore reported an air ambulance was called to the scene.
The cyclist recalled that just minutes after the collision, around 5 p.m., Forest Team #332, which was monitoring prescribed burns in the area, came upon him lying injured on the ground. The team called the local U.S. Forest Service paramedics from Strawberry.
The cyclist has kept his sense of humor throughout his life-threatening ordeal with nature, telling us, “I will be fine, and hopefully the bear will be also. He didn’t leave his name!”
