Predator Hunting - Time for a Trouser Change!

jckeffer · January 15, 2010, 03:40 PM

I don't know if this has been posted before, I just received it from my FIL.

Subject: Why we carry guns in Alaska

This guy lives just outside of Soldotna, Alaska.

Ruger .454 Casull (and some "hot" 350 grain solids).

Friends,

Have I got a story for you guys!

King season is over, and since I had a day off before silvers start, I thought I would go for a walk! This occurred at 11:16 am this morning (Sunday), just 2/10 of a mile from my house.

ON OUR ROAD while walking my dogs (ironically trying to get in shape for hunting season!) for the record, this is in a residential area-not back in the woods . . . No bow hunting . . . No stealth occurring . . . I heard a twig snap . . . And looked back . . . Full on charge-a huge brownie, ears back, head low and motorin' full speed! Came with zero warning; no Woof, no popping of the teeth, no standing up, nothing like what you think or see on TV! It charged from less than 20 yards and was on me in about one-second! Totally surreal . . . I just started shooting in the general direction . . . And praise God that my second shot (or was it my third?) rolled him at 5 feet and he skidded to a stop 10 feet BEYOND where I was shooting from . . . I actually sidestepped him and fell over backwards on the last shot . . . And his momentum carried him to a stop past where I fired my first shot!

It was a prehistoric old boar .. . . No teeth . . . No fat . . . Weighed between 900-1000 Lbs and took five men to DRAG it onto a tilt-bed trailer! Big bear . . . Its Paw measured out at about a 9 1/2 footer!

Never-ever-thought 'it' would happen to me! It's always some other smuck . . . Right?

Well, no bull .. . . I am still high on adrenaline . . . With my gut in a Knot (felt like I did 10000 crunches without stopping)! Almost puked for an hour after . . . Had the burps and couldn't even stand up as the troopers conducted their investigation! Totally wiped me out . . . can't even put that feeling into words .. . . By far the most emotion I have ever felt at once!

No doubt that God was with me, as I brought my Ruger .454 Casull (and some "hot" 350 grain solids) just for the heck of it . . . And managed to draw and snap shoot (pointed, never even aimed!) from the hip! Total luck shot!

All I can say is Praise God for my safety and for choosing to leave the wife and kids at home on this walk!

[IMG]http://i383.photobucket.com/albums/oo276/reefera4m/AlaskaGrizzly3.jpg
[/IMG]

Sriracha · January 15, 2010, 05:19 PM

Wow. Glad he's safe.

semi_problomatic · January 15, 2010, 08:37 PM

I don't care what you say a 9mm wouldn't of been able to do that!! I guess that shows you make your own luck.

Scorch · January 16, 2010, 02:25 PM

Varmint hunting takes on a whole new meaning "a-way up north"!

Carne Frio · January 16, 2010, 05:48 PM

Up here, sometimes your the predator and sometimes the prey.
And we love our guns !

DRice.72 · January 16, 2010, 06:20 PM

Makes ya want a .50 BMG to take for a walk!

rem870hunter · January 17, 2010, 12:15 PM

that is one really big bear

. glad the guy was not injured. just goes to show what carry can do.

STEINER · January 17, 2010, 06:39 PM

Oh my God... How does man manage to react so fast to instinct. Flight or fight? I am so glad you are alive. Wow!! You had the correct weapon. That helps.

Brenten · January 17, 2010, 07:00 PM

old bear was huge. lean and 1000 lbs. that is a big bear.

QuickBuick87 · February 8, 2010, 08:23 PM

Wow! My brother told me about this, and just had to register to see it for myself. He has the same .454 as this gentleman, and I even fired it at the range. What a cannon!! Nice shot 'shooting from the hip'. Glad it all worked out for you in the end.

Ken

jgcoastie · February 10, 2010, 10:11 AM

IIRC, this happened last spring...

Lucky shot(s) indeed.

GeauxTide · February 10, 2010, 12:44 PM

Been posted eleventeen times.

LordofWar · February 10, 2010, 02:45 PM

Seriously. Im sick & tired of this same bear being brought up twice a month.

Ole 5 hole group · February 10, 2010, 08:02 PM

+1 Lordofwar - what one should do is first figure out how much time this guy had to react to a full on charge from a brown. First off, he's closing on you at 42 feet per second. Does one think this guy can recognize the threat and draw his revolver in less than 1 second when just a nanosecond to turning his head and making eye contact with the bear he was happily walking down the street in white mode? A well trained pistolero in the orange mode – yes, he could but everything would have to fall in place to beat a second. The bear makes contact with you in less than 1.5 SECONDS. That's why most don't even have a chance to react from a charge at that range and tell their story of survival while getting stitched up at the local clinic. Anyone ever cut loose with a 454 Casull with full house loads from the hip? Ever done that twice? I think there's a lot more to this tale and the troopers gave this guy a pass. Now if the bear had made contact and he was able to do his thing after being knocked to the ground and chewed on a little - ya, I'd believe it.

James R. Burke · February 21, 2010, 07:19 PM

Belive it or not, this is the first time I read/saw it kept passing it by. Things may get streched alittle like the fishing etc. But wow no matter what happened that had to be something.

kaylorinhi · February 21, 2010, 09:06 PM

Draw and engage in les than 1.5 possible for a trained person with skill and the mindset, White cold not do it, but the twig snap send me to Orange in that Alaskan dirt road, the only thing that gets me is the dog's, no damage to either from the other 4-legs, I know my dogs would be to the bear faster than the bear to me?

I was not there and this is possible.

Either way would you engage this beast with a 2-3 inch barreled 454 if you didn't have too?

waterfowler · February 22, 2010, 08:40 PM

That was a close call. That is why people should carry guns

January 15, 2010, 03:40 PM	#1
jckeffer Senior Member Join Date: July 29, 2007 Posts: 185	Predator Hunting - Time for a Trouser Change! I don't know if this has been posted before, I just received it from my FIL. Subject: Why we carry guns in Alaska This guy lives just outside of Soldotna, Alaska. Ruger .454 Casull (and some "hot" 350 grain solids). Friends, Have I got a story for you guys! King season is over, and since I had a day off before silvers start, I thought I would go for a walk! This occurred at 11:16 am this morning (Sunday), just 2/10 of a mile from my house. ON OUR ROAD while walking my dogs (ironically trying to get in shape for hunting season!) for the record, this is in a residential area-not back in the woods . . . No bow hunting . . . No stealth occurring . . . I heard a twig snap . . . And looked back . . . Full on charge-a huge brownie, ears back, head low and motorin' full speed! Came with zero warning; no Woof, no popping of the teeth, no standing up, nothing like what you think or see on TV! It charged from less than 20 yards and was on me in about one-second! Totally surreal . . . I just started shooting in the general direction . . . And praise God that my second shot (or was it my third?) rolled him at 5 feet and he skidded to a stop 10 feet BEYOND where I was shooting from . . . I actually sidestepped him and fell over backwards on the last shot . . . And his momentum carried him to a stop past where I fired my first shot! It was a prehistoric old boar .. . . No teeth . . . No fat . . . Weighed between 900-1000 Lbs and took five men to DRAG it onto a tilt-bed trailer! Big bear . . . Its Paw measured out at about a 9 1/2 footer! Never-ever-thought 'it' would happen to me! It's always some other smuck . . . Right? Well, no bull .. . . I am still high on adrenaline . . . With my gut in a Knot (felt like I did 10000 crunches without stopping)! Almost puked for an hour after . . . Had the burps and couldn't even stand up as the troopers conducted their investigation! Totally wiped me out . . . can't even put that feeling into words .. . . By far the most emotion I have ever felt at once! No doubt that God was with me, as I brought my Ruger .454 Casull (and some "hot" 350 grain solids) just for the heck of it . . . And managed to draw and snap shoot (pointed, never even aimed!) from the hip! Total luck shot! All I can say is Praise God for my safety and for choosing to leave the wife and kids at home on this walk! [IMG]http://i383.photobucket.com/albums/oo276/reefera4m/AlaskaGrizzly3.jpg [/IMG]

January 15, 2010, 08:37 PM	#3
semi_problomatic Senior Member Join Date: July 27, 2009 Location: Ft. Polk Posts: 883	I don't care what you say a 9mm wouldn't of been able to do that!! I guess that shows you make your own luck. __________________ Freedom's just a word. If I'm gonna die for a word, my word is jello...

January 16, 2010, 02:25 PM	#4
Scorch Senior Member Join Date: February 13, 2006 Location: Washington state Posts: 15,248	Varmint hunting takes on a whole new meaning "a-way up north"! __________________ Never try to educate someone who resists knowledge at all costs. But what do I know? Summit Arms Services

January 16, 2010, 06:20 PM	#6
DRice.72 Senior Member Join Date: October 19, 2009 Location: Western North Carolina Posts: 451	Makes ya want a .50 BMG to take for a walk! __________________ They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety - Benjamin Franklin Light is faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright unitl you hear them speak! They should have stopped with "Congress shall make no Law...

January 17, 2010, 12:15 PM	#7
rem870hunter Senior Member Join Date: October 12, 2007 Location: N.J. and trying to decide what state to move to. Posts: 973	that is one really big bear . glad the guy was not injured. just goes to show what carry can do. __________________ BEAR Bows,Remington shotguns,Marlin rifles

January 15, 2010, 05:19 PM	#2
Sriracha Senior Member Join Date: October 9, 2005 Location: GA Posts: 310	Wow. Glad he's safe.

January 16, 2010, 05:48 PM	#5
Carne Frio Senior Member Join Date: August 28, 2008 Location: Near Fairbanks Alaska Posts: 829	Up here, sometimes your the predator and sometimes the prey. And we love our guns !

January 17, 2010, 06:39 PM	#8
STEINER Senior Member Join Date: September 24, 2008 Posts: 168	Oh my God... How does man manage to react so fast to instinct. Flight or fight? I am so glad you are alive. Wow!! You had the correct weapon. That helps.

January 17, 2010, 07:00 PM	#9
Brenten Senior Member Join Date: December 14, 2009 Posts: 208	old bear was huge. lean and 1000 lbs. that is a big bear.

February 8, 2010, 08:23 PM	#10
QuickBuick87 Junior Member Join Date: February 8, 2010 Posts: 1	Wow! My brother told me about this, and just had to register to see it for myself. He has the same .454 as this gentleman, and I even fired it at the range. What a cannon!! Nice shot 'shooting from the hip'. Glad it all worked out for you in the end. Ken

February 10, 2010, 10:11 AM	#11
jgcoastie Senior Member Join Date: February 15, 2009 Location: Kodiak, Alaska Posts: 2,118	IIRC, this happened last spring... Lucky shot(s) indeed. __________________ "To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them." -Richard Henry Lee, Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress, initiator of the Declaration of Independence, and member of the first Senate, which passed the Bill of Rights.

February 10, 2010, 12:44 PM	#12
GeauxTide Senior Member Join Date: April 20, 2009 Location: Helena, AL Posts: 4,424	Been posted eleventeen times.

February 10, 2010, 02:45 PM	#13
LordofWar Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 2009 Location: Pakistan Posts: 646	Seriously. Im sick & tired of this same bear being brought up twice a month.

February 10, 2010, 08:02 PM	#14
Ole 5 hole group Senior Member Join Date: November 13, 2002 Location: Red River Valley of the North Posts: 203	+1 Lordofwar - what one should do is first figure out how much time this guy had to react to a full on charge from a brown. First off, he's closing on you at 42 feet per second. Does one think this guy can recognize the threat and draw his revolver in less than 1 second when just a nanosecond to turning his head and making eye contact with the bear he was happily walking down the street in white mode? A well trained pistolero in the orange mode – yes, he could but everything would have to fall in place to beat a second. The bear makes contact with you in less than 1.5 SECONDS. That's why most don't even have a chance to react from a charge at that range and tell their story of survival while getting stitched up at the local clinic. Anyone ever cut loose with a 454 Casull with full house loads from the hip? Ever done that twice? I think there's a lot more to this tale and the troopers gave this guy a pass. Now if the bear had made contact and he was able to do his thing after being knocked to the ground and chewed on a little - ya, I'd believe it.

February 21, 2010, 07:19 PM	#15
James R. Burke Senior Member Join Date: January 3, 2009 Location: U.P. of Mich/Quinnesec Posts: 1,897	Belive it or not, this is the first time I read/saw it kept passing it by. Things may get streched alittle like the fishing etc. But wow no matter what happened that had to be something.

February 21, 2010, 09:06 PM	#16
kaylorinhi Senior Member Join Date: February 13, 2010 Location: The brown eye of america Posts: 463	Draw and engage in les than 1.5 possible for a trained person with skill and the mindset, White cold not do it, but the twig snap send me to Orange in that Alaskan dirt road, the only thing that gets me is the dog's, no damage to either from the other 4-legs, I know my dogs would be to the bear faster than the bear to me? I was not there and this is possible. Either way would you engage this beast with a 2-3 inch barreled 454 if you didn't have too? __________________ Buy your guns by Yardline, Not Looks.

February 22, 2010, 08:40 PM	#17
waterfowler Senior Member Join Date: January 31, 2010 Posts: 115	That was a close call. That is why people should carry guns __________________ If guns are outlawed, only the outlaws will have guns