# Montana Grizzly



## Joel/AK (Jan 12, 2013)

Basically it comes down to you need to cover your own butt. Whether spray, gun, flyswatter, etc.

Practice,practice.

I used to carry a .357mag. my friends would laugh. Finally challenged them one day. I put all 6 in a tea cup size pattern at 10 yards when they were lucky to put 2 out of there 454's , 460.

Gotta practice. Even the good sprays are in a holster and have safeties. It's not gonna be in your hands 24/7. 

Big bears generally are non confrontational. They usually let you walk by them then scoot out of the area. But there is that chance......


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## buckykm1 (Dec 19, 2011)

Joel/AK said:


> Basically it comes down to you need to cover your own butt. Whether spray, gun, flyswatter, etc.
> 
> Practice,practice.
> 
> ...



I carry a Glock model 22, 40 S&W some people think it's to small too, but When my Wife & I go back on my Range to practice, before we are done, I walk away from the target to 15 yards, draw, spin and rapid fire 15 rounds, and keep them pretty much in a paper plate size group, personally, i'll take 15 rounds from my 40 over a larger Cal. any day.

Kevin


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## Nostromo (Feb 14, 2012)

buckykm1 said:


> I carry a Glock model 22, 40 S&W some people think it's to small too, but When my Wife & I go back on my Range to practice, before we are done, I walk away from the target to 15 yards, draw, spin and rapid fire 15 rounds, and keep them pretty much in a paper plate size group, personally, i'll take 15 rounds from my 40 over a larger Cal. any day.
> 
> Kevin


That's good shooting to be sure.

Again, I don't know anything about the brownie's. But it's always been my understanding that the goal was to break them down in order to halt their charge. That should mean a front on shoulder shot. This would be better accomplished with a More powerful,heavier bullet of solid construction. Say a .454 or something along those lines. That's just my opinion of course.


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## Nostromo (Feb 14, 2012)

Remember, this is the animal you are trying to put a stop too.


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## buckykm1 (Dec 19, 2011)

Nostromo said:


> That's good shooting to be sure.
> 
> Again, I don't know anything about the brownie's. But it's always been my understanding that the goal was to break them down in order to halt their charge. That should mean a front on shoulder shot. This would be better accomplished with a More powerful,heavier bullet of solid construction. Say a .454 or something along those lines. That's just my opinion of course.



My issue with A .454 or something along those lines even a 44 Mag., is the recoil of them, you would be lucky if you could get a second shot on a charging bear ?, I stagger the rounds in my Mag ever other one 155 gr. JHP then 180 gr. FMJ , not sure if that would stop one ?, but I am sure that I can put all 15 rounds in one. just hope that I never have to find out.

Kevin


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## Joel/AK (Jan 12, 2013)

A friend of my wife's dropped a sow brown bear with a .40. took alot but she died. Happened along kenai river, just upriver of skilak lake in the gorge area.

Yes, you gotta break em and down and a bigger caliber is better but like Bucky said, 95% of owners of the super duper magnums can't handle a fast follow up shot.

Dropping the bear initially is job #1 , 2nd best is to turn the bear. If it gives me a split second shot for a better kill, that's what I will do. No perfect scenario. If you are charged your day basically went from bad to down right crappy.

I only carried a handgun maybe 10% of the time. Preferred rifles. No rifles had slings. Doesn't do any good hanging off your shoulder.

How we would practice is with my back to the impact area, my rifle or hand gun in carry mode my wife would throw an object , she would yell what the object is and I would have to turn and engage. Thrower was not in line of fire. Wife would be the shooter also.

Wasn't perfect but it was a quick reaction type of shoot at unknown distance or location.

Missed alot but hit alot.


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## Joel/AK (Jan 12, 2013)

Here's my story on when and why I took bears serious. Mid 90's just moved to AK. Out on one of my first hunts with a friend and I said I would go get water.

Grabbed the water filters and bottles and my 44mag. To get to the creek I had to go through a tag alder Grove with a crap ton of devil's club. You don't walk through it, that stuff sucks...lol

I was basically crawling through a tunnel the critters made. I totally ignored the fresh bear tracks. I was so stupid I probably couldn't identify brown vs black tracks.

Well I found the brown that made the tracks. Luckily it was more scared than I was. It ran off and I emptied my pants. Wasn't ready at all. Ended up good for both of us.

From that day on I just did research, practiced, used my head. Constantly learned.

I got lucky but it opened my eyes.


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## quest32a (Sep 25, 2001)

Bears are legit. Been charged once, my wife twice. Also been charged by a moose, That was actually a much closer call. With that said though, still spend tons of time in bear country and have spent lots of nights in a tent on Kodiak. This past fall on Raspberry island(kodiak archipelago) we had 3 brown bears on 1 elk kill within 36 hours. We ended up killing one of the bears(we had a tag) and the two other bears never really left. One of the others was around 7ft and the other was a massive boar around 10 foot. The one we killed was 9 foot 4, with a 26 inch skull.


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## Riverdude (Dec 21, 2017)

I remember reading a first hand account from a park ranger in AK who got mauled by a grizzly.
As the bear charged he was able to draw his 357 revolver. Bear knocked him on his back and got on top of him. He shot the grizz 5 times in the side of the head. With one shot left he put the muzzle under the bears chin and shot, killing the bear.
They did an autopsy on the bear and found the first five shots all hit the bear in the skull, but did little if any damage. They just bounced off.


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## buckykm1 (Dec 19, 2011)

Riverdude said:


> I remember reading a first hand account from a park ranger in AK who got mauled by a grizzly.
> As the bear charged he was able to draw his 357 revolver. Bear knocked him on his back and got on top of him. He shot the grizz 5 times in the side of the head. With one shot left he put the muzzle under the bears chin and shot, killing the bear.
> They did an autopsy on the bear and found the first five shots all hit the bear in the skull, but did little if any damage. They just bounced off.



I believe that, unless you hit it real square in the head it will just ricochet off. definitely wouldn't be my first choice for shot placement.

Kevin


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## Riverdude (Dec 21, 2017)

A simple test;
If your index finger won't fit down the barrel of your handgun, it's not big enough.
And solid bullets only please.


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## quest32a (Sep 25, 2001)

quest32a said:


> Bears are legit. Been charged once, my wife twice. Also been charged by a moose, That was actually a much closer call. With that said though, still spend tons of time in bear country and have spent lots of nights in a tent on Kodiak. This past fall on Raspberry island(kodiak archipelago) we had 3 brown bears on 1 elk kill within 36 hours. We ended up killing one of the bears(we had a tag) and the two other bears never really left. One of the others was around 7ft and the other was a massive boar around 10 foot. The one we killed was 9 foot 4, with a 26 inch skull.


Btw this bear lived for nearly half an hour and traveled 400 yards through alders with a .338 250 grain nosler partition through both lungs. Ended up shooting him 5 times to put him all the way down. Tough critters.


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## brushbuster (Nov 9, 2009)

Joel/AK said:


> One memory I have is of the wife and I camping on the kenai lake. Had a decent brown bear chase a cow moose through camp. Kinda caught us off guard....lol
> 
> That night my wife kept waking me up cuz she said a bear was sleeping right next to the tent. Got sick of it and gave her the rifle. Told her to shoot the SOB. She didn't and when I walked around the tent the next morning you could see where a big bear bedded down next to my wife's head.


My wife and I were taking our evening bath down on Jims river on the haul rd. Both of us were butt naked when a young grizz decided to cross the river 75 yards down stream of us. My wife couldn't decide whether to grab her shirt, the shotgun, or the camera. hahaha


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## brushbuster (Nov 9, 2009)

quest32a said:


> Bears are legit. Been charged once, my wife twice. Also been charged by a moose, That was actually a much closer call. With that said though, still spend tons of time in bear country and have spent lots of nights in a tent on Kodiak. This past fall on Raspberry island(kodiak archipelago) we had 3 brown bears on 1 elk kill within 36 hours. We ended up killing one of the bears(we had a tag) and the two other bears never really left. One of the others was around 7ft and the other was a massive boar around 10 foot. The one we killed was 9 foot 4, with a 26 inch skull.


 When I lived there I was more concerned of moose attacks than I was bear. I had a young bull chase me up a tree one winter. We were both walking down the same snow shoe trail, he wouldn't budge off the trail, and charged me. Luckily the tree wasn't far off the trail.


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## brushbuster (Nov 9, 2009)

I carry a 12 guage short barrel with pistol grip on a sling when I go to AK


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## Forest Meister (Mar 7, 2010)

brushbuster said:


> When I lived there I was more concerned of moose attacks than I was bear. I had a young bull chase me up a tree one winter. We were both walking down the same snow shoe trail, he wouldn't budge off the trail, and charged me. Luckily the tree wasn't far off the trail.


Did you climb a tree with snowshoes on? FM


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## brushbuster (Nov 9, 2009)

Forest Meister said:


> Did you climb a tree with snowshoes on? FM


No, The trail was fully packed and I didn't need them anymore.


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## Forest Meister (Mar 7, 2010)

brushbuster said:


> No, The trail was fully packed and I didn't need them anymore.


Fortuitous! FM


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## brushbuster (Nov 9, 2009)

Forest Meister said:


> Fortuitous! FM


I literally had to swim in the snow to the tree, while the bully stood and watched with his ears back


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## Joel/AK (Jan 12, 2013)

I agree with moose. They are more of a legit problem than a bear.

I swear that swamp donkies don't need a reason to stomp you. Been charged many times by them. Mostly in Anchorage and Wasilla. Stupid critters seemed to always use my running boards of my truck as a pillow. Everytime I hit my auto start to warm up my truck, I prayed that the cow wouldn't kick the crap out of my truck....lol


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## hbibicoffvii (Dec 9, 2011)

buckykm1 said:


> As some of you know, I have hunted Montana the last few years, and I hunt a Grizzly area, so While I was in Montana this past fall. We stopped at the local Ranger station one day, basically to ask if the cover on my Truck would be considered Bear prof. In Grizzly Areas, no food , Drinks , Trash or even a Grill or empty cooler can be left outside, everything has to be in a Bear prof container, or 10' up and 4' out hung in a Tree.
> ( by the way, if a Ranger stops at your Camp, and things aren't Bear prof, it is a $225.00 fine for each violation. ) He said that they are dead serious about things being Bear prof in Grizzly areas.
> 
> So we were talking about Bear attaches too while we were there, He told us that Grizzly sightings were up in the area I hunt, and went on to tell us that in some areas now, a Gun shot, or even Elk calls is becoming like a dinner bell to the Grizzlies, they have learned that means food is there. and attaches are going up more every year from what he told us.
> ...


Whoa, now that's scary. I'm starting to get into Western Hunting. Thats a good lesson to share. Thanks.


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