Death in the Grizzly Maze

by Mike Lapinski

On the afternoon of October 5, 2003, in Alaska's Katmai National Park, one or more brown bears killed and ate Timothy Treadwell and his girlfriend Amie Huguenard. The next day, park rangers killed the two bears that they assumed were responsible. This frightening and chilling story immediately captured worldwide media attention.

Some bear experts felt that Treadwell's death was a matter of time, considering the unorthodox and highly questionable tactics he used in his life among the bears. Yet Timothy's surge in popularity, and his inglorious death, give rise to a plethora of questions.

More than just a story about Treadwell, Death in the Grizzly Maze delves into the issues raised by the new breed of reckless wildlife celebrities and answers these Was it a foregone conclusion that Timothy Treadwell had to die? Since Treadwell's actions were so obviously improper why didn't the National Park Service intervene? Did the bears have to die? How the actions of a few are affecting national park policy and promoting improper behavior when encountering wildlife are important issues for the future of wildlife conservation.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Outdoors, Nature, Animals, Biography Memoir, Adventure

200 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2005

Reviews

[Lisa]

I waited a long time to read this, and guess what? It sucked. Let's face it, there's only one reason to read this book, and even that doesn't pan out.

Apparently among those who would make excuses for nutball Treadwell, Lapinski in the end goes too light on factual details of the attack (yet audio exists). He does relate one thing I found profoundly disturbing, and even comments on it. This is what I hate about egomaniacs like Treadwell: it's always, in the end, all about them.

Now, I understand Treadwell was being torn apart by an insanely large and powerful mammal. But he was also an alleged uber-expert, with wisdom about bears known to no other living human. Yet, as Lapinski comments, during the attack, he calls to Amie to "Get out here". Lapinski thinks he didn't know what he was saying, didn't know she couldn't possibly have helped him. Yet he had the presence of mind to be specific: "hit him with a frying pan". In other words, get over here and give this bear a shot at you, too.

In the panic of the end his self-absorption and psychosis came to the surface. Because I hope to God if I were some sort of expert on giant hungry carnivores and was being eaten alive yet still had the presence of mind to know that 1. there was a frying pan in the tent 2. someone else was with me, someone I loved, and 3. I was a goner no matter what, that I would be screaming "run for your fucking life!" instead of "hit him with your purse".

The strangest thing about this book is that Lapinski expands on the bears' side of the attack while attempting to assign them personalities and motives. The result of his imaginings of what the bears are thinking and doing on that fateful day are silly but twisted, as if Disney's Country Bear Jamboree suddenly joined the Crips and Bloods.

[June]

One of two books that were published (around the same time--with similar titles!) about the Timothy Treadwell incident. This is NOT the better of the two. That is all you need to know...

[Owen]

This book is excellent, as a person who has been involve din the outdoors since i was a small child, a respect for the smaller species, Black Bear, has been drilled into my head. I cannot imagine doing the stupid things that Timothy Tredwell did, repeatedly.
The book goes in depth into a man who seemed to have lost his ability reason due to an obsessive need for recognition and a thrill. Tim, like the idiot who marched off into Alaska to live off the land and eventually killed himself, give minimal thought to what his action would do outside of the immediate. A very interesting look into the life and legacy of a man who wanted so very much to be remembered as a savior to the grizzly and instead ended up not just taking himself out, but also his girlfriend and two of his beloved bears.

[Colleen Lahey]

Tim Treadwell pushed the limit once too many times and unfortunately, his girlfriend was killed alongside him. What he did was stupid and as a result, two bears, that he professed to love so much, were killed. An interesting analysis of what happened to Tim Treadwell. I feel very bad for Amie and the two bears. Tim, well, if you do what he did, you know what happened is inevitable.

[Krista Rodriguez]

It was an easy read about a horrifying event. I learned some things about what not to do when faced with a bear.
Mainly don’t camp in a tent in a placed considered the “Grizzly maze” and if you hike in bear country carry bear spray and keep a healthy distance of 200 feet. These things seem like common sense to me.

[Gayle Gordon]

This was an interesting read but I think it might suffer a bit for being written too close to the events. The author seems to get some things wrong, or at least depicts them differently from accounts of the incident I read elsewhere. They are relatively minor things, but they are different from other accounts. Just for one example, he says that the tape of the attack ended because the battery on the camera ran out and most accounts say it was the end of a tape and the tape ran out. There were other examples, but that's enough to give you the general picture.
One thing I both liked and disliked about the book is the way the author created a fictionalized, speculative narrative of the last days and minutes of the victims' lives. My dislike comes from the fact that it is just speculation and it is described as if we know that is the way it happened. He does preface it with something like, this is what I think happened, but it still seems like unfounded assertions.
The part I liked about the speculative fictionalized part is that he includes the point of view of the bears involved. This is really total speculation, because no one really knows exactly what the bear or bears did, but it does give the reader the sense that the bears have their own thoughts and feelings, which of course they do. The bears involved were victimized as well, and their point of view is something I have never encountered in any other account of this event.
One thing I wonder about is, why did the people who went into the woods to look for the campers not bring bear spray? They brought weapons and ended up having to take down the bears, even though they did not want to. Bear spray might have saved two lives anyway, if it worked. The author is the inventor of one popular brand of bear spray and he reiterates in the book how effective it is. He devotes a whole chapter to it. That would be a question for the guys who were part of the recovery operation, but I just really wonder about that.
In conclusion, I like this book, but if you read it, don't let it be the only account you read of this event. Read some others and/or watch the excellent documentary by Werner Herzog called Grizzly Man.

[Sue Williams]

Timothy Treadwell was a bear fanatic. He went to Alaska yearly to "protect" them from humans. As his time with the bears progressed I think Timothy's spirit became part bear. He was very childlike in some ways and a bit off center mentally, and could not see that his increasing interactions with them was causing more harm than good. Some of the bears appeared to be accepting his presence but made no moves to go closer to him. Timothy had named all of the bears and knew their personalities. He was anthropomorphizing them. He had no fear of them, they were his friends. Unfortunately the bears were not in complete agreement with that. The last visit to Alaska and the bears was with his girlfriend who wasn't a big fan of bears. She was afraid of them but Timothy's enthusiasm for them convinced her to go with him. Timothy had set up camp in a location where the bears couldn't directly see them. They slept in a tent. That was the only protection. During the night a grumpy older bear found them and attacked them. Both Timothy and his girlfriend were killed. When reading the book it didn't appear that anyone was actively trying to convince Timothy not to go and some were actually enabling him. Perhaps they didn't realize the extent he was going to in order to be with "his" bears. Even if someone was seriously trying to prevent his bear visits, in Timothy's mind he was blending with them so no harm would come to him. At one point Timothy had said he would rather die by a bear than to harm one. And so it was as he wished.

[Robin]

Interesting book. Filled in the details of a story I already knew the conclusion to. Certainly a cautionary tale. Timothy was just begging to be eaten by a bear. Too bad he had to take another person and two bears with him.

[Suzanne LaPierre]

I bought this book in Alaska after I made a trip to Brooks Falls in Katmai National Park and became enraptured with the brown bears that feast on the salmon there. Watching them from the safe distance of the viewing platform, it was apparent that they each have different personalities and fishing styles and clearly prefer relationships with some of the other bears over others. I read Bears of Brooks Falls by Michael Fitz, who was a park ranger at Katmai for many years. I had forgotten about the Timothy Treadwell story until I realized that also occurred at Katmai National Park. Picking up this book, I gained more perspective on what happened with Timothy and Ami. I had to choose between the two books with similar titles that were written shortly after the tragedy- I chose this one because I appreciate that the author took the time to interview the families of Timothy and Amie Huguenard and devoted a chapter of the book to Amie's life, which is so often overlooked in the telling of this story. The tragedy that ended in the loss of two human lives and two bear lives holds lessons for all of us- in keeping a respectful distance from wildlife, as well as not letting the "star power" of one person stand in for the more significant research that has been done on bears- real research is often slow and rather boring. Timothy was an entertainer, not a researcher - he had a passion for the bears and that had some value, as he could interest other people in the plight of bears and wildlife. Unfortunately, he got too comfortable with "his" bears, throwing away his bear spray and eclectic fencing and camping in their pathways. He pushed his luck too far, with tragic consequences.

[Raphael]

This book presents a more nuanced view of Timothy Treadwell from his perception as an eccentric, bear loving goofball. It delves into his questionable and troubled life, giving the reader a sense that Timothy was a deeply conflicted man. He seems to be both completely aware, and simultaneously ignorant, to his problematic relationship with bears. There are some stylized conclusions drawn about him and inaccuracies compared to other media that came out later, including Werner Herzog’s incredible documentary, however, this book does a great job of analyzing Treadwell outside of the usual media people see. Timothy was contradictory, complex, and had a magnetic personality - it’s what drew so many to him in the first place. Despite his best attempts to be a bear, Timothy’s story is human to the core. He truly did love bears, though his actions certainly caused far more harm and misinformation than I think he truly understood. Great read and would recommend if looking for more information about Timothy Treadwell.

[Shana]

I have seen the doc about this incident a couple of times and became interested in learning more recently when I heard about this book on a podcast called National Park After Dark. (You should definitely check out this podcast if the material in this book interests you, it's for morbid outdoor enthusiasts and if you're reading books about fatal bear attacks it's probably right in your wheelhouse.) This was an interesting book about what led to the deaths of Treadwell and his girlfriend as well as other general information about bear attacks. Treadwell is a polarizing figure and I did think the author tried to show different viewpoints about his life and work. I really feel sorry for the family of the girlfriend who was killed with him. It's one thing to be willing to take crazy risks by himself but he shouldn't have put another person in that situation.

[Stacey Schmeidel]

At last, a straightforward, honest, thoughtful account about Timothy Treadwell, the self-appointed "bear whisperer" whose activities in the backcountry of Katmai National Park led to his death, the death of his girlfriend, and the killing of two bears.

Lapinski interviews people who knew and supported Treadwell (his family, his colleagues, his benefactors), as well as NPS staff, pilots, and others who had longstanding concerns about his activities in the wilderness.

An excellent addition to the bear canon. Good to read in conjunction with work by Barrie Gilbert, Derek Stonorov, Stephen Herrero and others who are experts on bear behavior.

[Jackson Quinn]

Not anything super groundbreaking, but a good book. I like a lot of the information about how the public perceives something vs what experts actually know. I think almost every field encounters this, but it hit especially close to home working in drinking water. Writing wasn’t great, some stuff repetitive and I’m not entirely confident in the accuracy, but the science and overall message is interesting

[Katie Gallardo]

The writing and journalism is superior - it’s refreshing to read non-fiction that covers all bases of a tragic story and imparts knowledge about how to safely enjoy nature. Not only was this book informative, it may be the best argument for carry bear spray I’ve ever read. If you like camping/hiking this book or the author’s other books are must-reads

[Lauren]

I liked the fact that this book wasn’t just about bashing Treadwell, it reminds us that he was a person and not just a personality. But at the end of the day, Timothy Treadwell was a fool that got himself, Amie and two bears killed.

[Don Kent]

If you want to know what Timothy Treadwell, the grizzly man, was really all about, read this book.

[Amber]

Incredible book about Treadwell's behavior and ultimately his demise in rural Alaska. There's a strong emphasis on respecting animals and their rules of behavior, which i appreciated.

[Venessa Johnstone]

Book was OK , I find Timothy annoying..

[Jace Stansbury]

Excellent read about the Timothy Treadwell story.

[Gwendolyn Pollard]

Took me forever to get through despite being a smaller boom and was very repetitive

[Catherine Smith]

Let me just say that this is by far my favorite book. when i had heard about treadwell's story of living in the wild with grizzly bears and roughing it out for months at a time i thought he was just another one of those celebrities trying to help out and bring light to this issue. hwoever, after reading this book the reader gets to see the transformation that this man went through from being an alcoholic to giving his life to these animals. as one of his friends stated in the book he felt more comfortable around these animals in the wild then in society with regualr people, he had more than a liking for these animals he truely wanted to become one of them. He would stay in the wild for months at a time just him a cheap hand held camera and nature, the footage and pictures he took were amazing because of the abnormal close proximity. he was known for his outrageous tactics and being dangerusly close with these animals (especially grizzly bears)... and it was ultimately the life he lived, the life he was known for that resulted in his tragic death. both him and his girlfriend were eaten alive by a grizzly bear, in which their is audio to this whole event. the work he did was amazing but he had a greater impact and shed more light on the issue after passing away.

[Connie]

I initially thought Timothy Treadwell was just plain crazy, a fanatic on the fringe of sanity! This book was really insightful, a window into his mental state. I believe that besides the "Adreneline Junkie" aspect, the man had some mental instability issues, possibly bi-polar even. I found myself interested in the way the author relayed the information and frustrated with Timothy Treadwell both at the same time. He definitely procured some valuable information in studying the grizzlies but at the expense of wisdom and good judgment. Rather than being remembered for the work he did he is instead remembered as a man who was a nut case. He made some really bad choices and set other people at risk by his actions. He might have been "brilliant" in certain aspects but Timothy Treadwell is not a man to be admired. In some ways, he hurt the very bears he professed to love.

[Darla Ebert]

Happily surprised to find a book that taught more than one lesson. And so I've changed my mind about going to live with the bears. And then more seriously and tragically, this is a story with an unexpected turn, a serious revelation told with candor and sympathy. Of course we know the protagonist dies and yet the opinion of the author, and of many others of Treadwell's friends and acquaintances, have come to the conclusion that Treadwell suffered from an, as yet undiagnosed mental illness which caused him to take huge risks and even unwittingly (?) to expose his girlfriend to those same risks.
It was a shocking revelation told from the viewpoint of an author who admired Treadwell and mourned his passing, as well as highlighted the life of Treadwell's girl
friend, Amie.

[David Ward]

Death in the Grizzly Maze: The Timothy Treadwell Story by Mike Lapinski (FalconGuides 2005)(Biography). In the fall of 2003, Timothy Treadwell, noted bear activist, and his girlfriend Annie Huegenard were killed and eaten by one or more grizzly bears on the Katmai Penninsula in Alaska. This book explores the life of this remarkable flake; it also considers the issue of the rise of celebrity wildlife advocates. There is also a truly remarkable documentary from Werner Herzog called “Grizzly Man” in release; I commend readers to both the book and the documentary. My rating: 8/10, finished 2006.

[Lisa Bell]

This book is about the recent and horrific mauling of Timothy Treadwell (aka, the Grizzly Man) and his girlfriend by Alaskan brown bears. It is an interesting examination of the life of a supposed "bear-whisperer" who was ultimately destoryed by the thing he loved the most. The book is fairly unbaised, and it explores the main conflict of the situation - was Timothy really "gifed" with bears, or was he a lucky lunitic that fate finally caught?

[Hayseed]

If you saw the movie, the book is a must, you will understand more about Tim Treadwell, it is a fast read, and ultimately sad. Good think about it book. Things could have been very different in the end if a few things had not happened or the Park Svc had done a better job to protect Tim. He needed help in many ways.

[Jen]

A very even tempered view of the Timothy Treadwell story. I can't believe so many people had contact with this guy and still allowed him to get away with so much stuff. And most surprising...even though I know he supports nature causes...Leonardo Dicaprio donated to the Timothy Treadwell Foundation...makes me think that Leo was a little bit crazy!

[Melanie]

The controversial look at the life and death of Timothy Treadwell - also an excellent movie -Grizzlyman**** - a must see movie to compare to the book and decide for yourself what side of the controversy you sit - I am still straddeling the fence.

[Lauri]

I liked this book. It provided a little more insight than the movie did. I'm still intrigued by this story and will likely read more about it. I'm now fascinated by bear attacks...call me gruesome.

[Kristy]

This is a really good book. It is facinating watching what Timothy Treadwell did to himself. It is an easy read, as well. I highly recommend it.