from huffingtonpost
So he says, "I'm 100-percent sure it did want to save my life," he said. "We made eye contact. I'd seen the bears before and I know she knew who I was."

“I know she knew who I was.” is an example of anthropomorphism and is a false, dangerous presumption.

It was a little harder to find the longer version of the story I saw yesterday but... I found it.
It has in addition, "“Biggs, a naturist, has hiked that same trail several times and has seen the mother bear and its cub last spring and fall. He said the encounters with the bears were friendly.
"(The cub) stood up on its hind legs and put its paws up and I got to play patty-cake with it," he said.”

“patty-cake”?

This guy, Robert “Treadwell II” Biggs, is pegging my BS meter.
I'm supposing he tried to “patty-cake” with mama's cub's again and she batted him around a little and the story is a concoction to cover for his imprudent action.
Just supposing...