Grizzly Bears Attack Hunters in Alaska, Canada and Montana

[Alaska444]

Wish I could say I have never needed to use a seatbelt. I have been in two accidents that totaled the vehicle. One when friend of mine did a U-turn in front of another friend horsing around when I was a kid. I had bumps and bruises, my friend had a fractured pelvis from that T-Bone accident.

The second, was another T-Bone where a man ran a red light on my Toyota Sequoia. My 7000 pound vehicle did a complete summersault in the air the way he hit me and then landed on its left front and slammed into the ground.

I don't want to test the limits of a large handgun or rifle in bear country, but I do carry them when I am out there. I also try to keep the rule of having more than one person with me who is likewise armed. Just makes sense.

[Edhem]

All those attacked people thinks "It wont happen to me." And then, unfortunately it does. Sometimes with severe aftermath.

[Alaska444]

Looks like we need to add one more to the growing list!!!

http://www.twincities.com/ci_1921111...ce=most_viewed

[Edhem]

Doesnt say is it blac or brown bear?

[Double Naught Spy]

Lisa Lang, who has been hunting for six years, said she quickly considered her options, including loading a bow for a possible shot or making noise, a common tactic to scare off a black bear.

She chose to yell at the mother bear.

Yep, add to the list another hunter who made yet another bad decision. I fail to understand why armed hunters do not take bear threats seriously.

[Alaska444]

Today, 06:50 PM #55
Double Naught Spy
Senior Member

Join Date: January 8, 2001
Location: Forestburg, Montague County, Texas
Posts: 8,111
Quote:
Lisa Lang, who has been hunting for six years, said she quickly considered her options, including loading a bow for a possible shot or making noise, a common tactic to scare off a black bear.

She chose to yell at the mother bear.
Yep, add to the list another hunter who made yet another bad decision. I fail to understand why armed hunters do not take bear threats seriously.
__________________
"If you look through your scope and see your shoe, aim higher."
-- said to me by my 11 year old daughter before going out for hogs 8/13/2011

+1 DNS. Drop your weapon and yell instead!! Go figure.

[Ricky]

A friend of mine works for USGS. She spends a LOT of times in some beautiful country, so much so that I'm very envious but time the time winter rolls around she is glad to be home, and doing follow up reports and lab work. A few months ago we were discussing a close encounter with a Grizzly that my wife and I had in Glacier N.P. this last August. My friend told me that in all the years and all the field work done by the USGS there has only been one bear attack on an agency employee.
About 15 years ago a female USGS employee was doing field work alone in Alaska. In the A.M. she noticed a black bear kind of hanging around her. She kept an eye out for the bear as it was close by until afternoon. She lost sight of the bear, suddenly and without provocation the bear attacked. She was able to fight off the bear but both of her arms were so badly damaged that they were both amputated below the elbow. She continues to work for USGS.
Since then USGS employees no longer work in the field alone. I saw a nice picture of my friend, she is a fairly petite girl. She was working in Alaska in Polar bear country. She was carrying a double barrel shotgun slung over her back.
I live in N. California and have seen many black bears, none has ever been aggressive but I'd hate to be wishing I'd brought a gun if that odd bear decided to eat me.

[Alaska444]

I have read the account of that bear attack and it was simply a complete nightmare encounter having a bear eat her arms while she was still alive. Thankfully, bears don't always kill their prey before eating. Quite ghoulish, but at least he didn't take her life despite losing both arms. Pretty creep really to just imagine going through that entire encounter. Just one more reason to carry more than one form of bear protection.

http://www.huntshoot.com/forums/f5/m...el-bacon-4728/

[tahunua001]

sounds like the USGS worker might have been gradually working towards a pair of cubs and didn't know it. this is the first case I've seen of a black bear stalking a person. either that or it was incredibly emaciated and starving and had no other choice. I agree, more than one form of bear protection is a must. my first form is my pistol on my hip, my second is the pistol on my hunting partners hip

[Alaska444]

Add one more to the list from today:

National Interest - US
Wyoming Hunter Injured in Bear Attack
Published October 30, 2011
| Associated Press
Print Email Share Comments
MOOSE, Wyo. – A hunter has been injured after being attacked by a bear in Grand Teton National Park.
Officials said Sunday the 32-year-old Jackson man followed safety recommendations for handling such an encounter, including carrying bear spray and dropping to the ground and covering his head. The hunter did not fire any shots at the bear and he had not killed any elk.
Park rangers say warning signs have been placed in the area.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/10/30...#ixzz1cKXm40uv

[Irish B]

Briandg you are statistically 1500x more likely to be attacked and killed by a pit bull than by a "pet" wolf. If it came down to being charged by an angry grizzly no gun short of a .577 Trex or .458 socom ar would "feel" like enough gun.

[Lee McNelly]

Marlin 45/70 44 or larger pistol and a large knife

[dsa1115]

I fish and hike real close to Girdwood in a small town called Cooper Landing. And let me tell you, there are plenty of coastal browns and black bears in the area. I hike the Russian River Falls area near there, and never go in the woods without my 12 gauge loaded with slugs, a Ruger Redhawk on my hip, and a bottle of Counter Assault Bear Spray. While hiking it's also a good idea to wear a bell bracelet so a bear could hear you. Bears are pretty solitary, and if they can hear you or smell you, they "normally" aren't interested. The worst thing however is surprising one, especially a sow with cubs. But statistically speaking, moose kill a lot more people than bears do.

[2500ak]

Originally Posted by Irish B

If it came down to being charged by an angry grizzly no gun short of a .577 Trex or .458 socom ar would "feel" like enough gun.

.458 socom is comparable to 45-70 Government. That what I take with me loaded in a Marlin 1895. 5+1 shots, ghost ring sights, short barrel, and large lever. It's as good a bear gun as any.

[Alaska444]

dsa1115 I fish and hike real close to Girdwood in a small town called Cooper Landing. And let me tell you, there are plenty of coastal browns and black bears in the area. I hike the Russian River Falls area near there, and never go in the woods without my 12 gauge loaded with slugs, a Ruger Redhawk on my hip, and a bottle of Counter Assault Bear Spray. While hiking it's also a good idea to wear a bell bracelet so a bear could hear you. Bears are pretty solitary, and if they can hear you or smell you, they "normally" aren't interested. The worst thing however is surprising one, especially a sow with cubs. But statistically speaking, moose kill a lot more people than bears do.

Dear dsa1115, my dad had an a-frame cabin in Girdwood when we were kids up in Alaska and he used to go hunting with a friend of his from Cooper's Landing back in the 1960's. We spent quite a bit of time in that area especially Alyeska right around the corner. We went fishing for salmon down near Hope more so than the Russian River. Bears seemed to be more scared of us in those days because we never really considered bear protection when out fishing and other things. We just never saw them in those days.

Wouldn't go there without some big bore guns now.

[shootniron]

your odds of just getting mauled because you invaded some boars personal bubble are almost non existent.

Spot-on...hogs are pretty much a non-issue as far as the danger of being attacked by them.

[jimbob86]

As are your odds of being robbed/raped/murdered, so why Carry a gun at all?

It's not the odds, but the stakes.

If your are in Critter Country, go loaded for Critters, and if you are in Bear Country, go loaded for bear.

[dsa1115]

The area may very well have been different back in the 60's. But the Girdwood area as well as the rest of the Kenai have lots of coastal brown bears and black bears now as you know. The swamp areas just North of the Seward Highway have bears around, as do the lakes and rivers around the area. There have been a number of attacks around the Cooper Landing area and locals know this. I'm just amazed that according to this news report these guys I thought it said were from the Fish & Wildlife Department so I can't imagine they'd be surprised. Frankly, I don't know how they couldn't know this. On a little different note, if anyone ever wants to experience brown bears up close and personal in Alaska, there is a guide I've worked with a number of times named Jim Oltersdorf who works out of Soldotna, Alaska. Jim is extremely experienced in browns bears in particular and IMO, probably the best guide on the planet if you're interested in finding brown bears. He is expensive, but his knowledge and experience is worth every penny. He can be contacted at [email protected]

[shootniron]

jimbob86

As are your odds of being robbed/raped/murdered, so why Carry a gun at all?

My post was in regards to briang listing the boar higher on his list of dangerous critters than the grizzly.

Made no mention of odds of anything attacking, just that hogs were less likely than some others.

[JimOltersdorf]

I just wanted to say thanks for the nice comment that you posted about my work with the giant Alaskan Brown bears. Some of those experiences are featured on The Discovery Channel as well as The History Channel. They're great animals and yes, I've spent a bit of time with them in the Alaskan bush. In one remote area that I have flown to (about 320 air miles in by floatplane), it is not uncommon to be with between 25-35 individual bears a day in peak salmon spawning season. The last thing you see at dusk when you zip up your tent zipper is a bear and the first thing you see in the morning is a bear. All night long what do you think we hear? Pretty interesting and an experience no one would ever forget. What do I take besides my Nikon? A 45/70 and a can or two of bear spray. Oh ya, a huge dose of common sense when around them.

[Single Six]

I'll never venture into Grizzly country, but if I were to do so, I doubt I'd rely on pepper spray...I've seen it fail on both humans and animals WAY too many times.

[Lambdebois]

Zerojunk,

Ive notices the same thing over the last 6 years in the San Isabel and San Juan National Forests in Colorado and have similar feelings regarding the bears there losing their fear of humans in that area also.

Jim,
The first time I had bear circling my tent while we were sleeping.. was definetly something I wont forget. The person I was with woke up and assumed it was a person and when they didn't get an answer from yelling who's there several times... I figured I better let them know it wasn't a person. They shut up and grabbed there gun real quick.

In an area I don't really want to name.... I see bears every day. They arn't afdraid like the blacks I run into further noth in the state where its more populated...and it was not that way camping 6 years ago.