Chris Hrapsky

KARE-TV

CENTER CITY, Minn. – In the annals of hunting stories, this one wins.

On a fall day near Sand Stone, Minn., Brandon Johnson, a hunter since he could walk, helped his camp track a black bear that his friend shot.

"We wanted to give it four hours before we went out and looked for it to make sure the animal had expired," said Johnson.

It was difficult to track the bear in the low moonlight and dense forest. Suddenly, what Johnson had been looking for, found him.

The 525-pound bear charged Johnson, knocking him unconscious briefly.

"One tooth of the bear just broke the (left arm) bone right in half," he said.

But Johnson had a 5-inch knife in his right hand.

"It's just going to town on my hand and I just keep stabbing it and stabbing it and stabbing away and I am screaming and yelling," he said.

It worked. The bear backed off and soon walked away, but minutes later it came back.

"I could feel like all the energy and adrenaline I had built up was leaving," he said.

The bear left a second time while Johnson screamed for help from his fiancée and friends in the woods.

But, for a third time, the nightmare returned.

"Once I got to the point where I thought I was going to die, and I got myself to the point where I was ready to die, there was no more fear," he said.

Johnson said he shoved his hand into the bear's open mouth, stabbing its throat.

The bear grabbed Johnson's leg, picked him up, slammed him to the ground, and walked away.

Johnson said he walked with the help of two friends 700 yards to waiting ambulances. Friends found the bear carcass the next day, 50 feet from where the attack occurred.

Johnson's extensive injuries have left piles of medical bills, and his wounds have prevented him from his contracting work – maybe for good. Friends have s et up a fundraising website to help support the family with the goal of raising $10,000.