Bearing it all

Bear defense and bear hunting differ. Alaskans think highly of a 12 ga with slugs for brown bear defense.
I met a fellow in Churchill, Manitoba while goose hunting, he was on his way to Alaska to hunt Brown Bear. He booked a year in advance, the guide told him to buy a bolt action .375 H&H, once he could shoot it well to call him to set the date for the hunt.
 
tactikel said:
Bear defense and bear hunting differ. Alaskans think highly of a 12 ga with slugs for brown bear defense.
I met a fellow in Churchill, Manitoba while goose hunting, he was on his way to Alaska to hunt Brown Bear. He booked a year in advance, the guide told him to buy a bolt action .375 H&H, once he could shoot it well to call him to set the date for the hunt.
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I used to keep a Remington pump with buckshot and slugs in the plane in Alaska.
 
I think we need to support programs that bring bears into urban environments - especially polar bears. I've heard that their habitat is shrinking, and, conveniently, lots of downtown offices are now vacant. I think we should be able to set up some refuges in those downtown offices for polar bears, and THEN I will have justification for getting a bear defense firearm!
:evil:

I don't want to hear anyone's negativity. Keep your facts away from my dreams!
 
21H40 said:
I think we need to support programs that bring bears into urban environments - especially polar bears. I've heard that their habitat is shrinking, and, conveniently, lots of downtown offices are now vacant. I think we should be able to set up some refuges in those downtown offices for polar bears, and THEN I will have justification for getting a bear defense firearm!
:evil:

I don't want to hear anyone's negativity. Keep your facts away from my dreams!
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I support this
 
When I hunted Black Bear in Canada the guides choice of weapon for tracking a wounded Bear was a 12 gauge riot gun with slugs. Fortunately they did not need to track my Bear!
I used a 300 Win Mag but if I were hunting the larger bears I would look at the largest dangerous game cartridge that I could shoot well. Someone mentioned the 375 H&H, or maybe one of the 416's.
 
Meeks36 said:
If I had a dollar for ever thread started about bear defense I could afford a 375 H&H.
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Actual bear attacks are all too rare. Alligators have a much more successful track record with attacks, but I don't ever remember a "What caliber for alligator?" thread o_O

If I had a dollar for all the bear attacks in Iowa, I would still need more dollars - a lot more dollars - for a new 375.
 
21H40 said:
Actual bear attacks are all too rare. Alligators have a much more successful track record with attacks, but I don't ever remember a "What caliber for alligator?" thread o_O

If I had a dollar for all the bear attacks in Iowa, I would still need more dollars - a lot more dollars - for a new 375.
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That's because you can outrun an alligator, barely. I've seen my wife do it when she and I were younger, two twelve footers that were intent on having her for lunch, in fact, at the Brazoria Wildlife Refuge here in Texas. I did not know that alligators could run as fast as I witnessed, or for as long as they did.
 
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Rifle wise the minimum I would carry into Polar Bear territory is a 30-06. Ideally with some quality Buffalo Bore or Lehigh rounds.
 
Back many many years ago when I had even more to learn than I do today. I was out deer hunting alone. No one else in the area. It was late in the day and shadows were long. I decide to still hunt my way back to the car. Thick pines with a lot of under brush. There ahead of me about 60yds or so I spotted a black mass under a pine. I stood there for what seemed to be 20 or 30 minutes watching. Just enough brush so I couldn't see what it was, for sure. I raised my rifle so to see through my scope. With the brush and shadows I just couldn't tell for sure. Then it hit me. It had to be a black bear laying at the base of that pine tree. It couldn't be anything else. With the way it was laying I couldn't tell the head from the tail. I had to get closer. I started inching forward, rifle up, thumb on the safety of my 700 ready to push it to the off position. Every couple feet I would stop and wait. It took forever it seemed to get within 40 yds. Still couldn't tell head from tail. A couple more feet. So nervous, shaking all over from excitement. Any second now. It's going to get my wind and jump up. I raised my 700 to my shoulder, kicked off the safety and waited. Come on bear, wake up. Nothing, it didn't move at all. I took one step to the right, making just a little noise in the leaves. Nothing. I put the crosshairs of my scope in the center of the black. Now I could see. AN Old, Rusted, Crumbled metal 55 gallon barrel.
I think about that every time someone talks about black bears. This is the first time I've told anyone. But, it's a good memory of old hunting days. At least for me.
 
doubleh said:
Yes, and it is so powerful it splashes water everywhere. One of the dumber shows on TV and that is saying a lot.
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That show, Alaskan Bush People, Duck Dynasty, the two or three gold mining ones, homestead rescues and off grid living, etc. I guess folks can’t get enough of staged reality shows. Adds spice to their city lives I guess.

I bought some .22 ammo with ‘Choot ‘em! on the box. I guess those guys parlayed their ten minutes of fame into something that has some $$ attached. Probably a good deal for them. :thumbup:

Stay safe.
 
My main experience with black bears was playing peek-a-boo and follow-the-leader with them when I was a small child.
Watching them fall out of our apple trees was a hoot.
I didn't even feel threatened by them when one wandered into the house - I just waited until he finished eating the salmon that my valley girl mother left out. He politely left by the same window that he used to enter.

Gators?
Back in 'Bama, we called 'em mobile speed bumps.
They'd crawl up on the warm blacktop on cool nights.
It could get downright exciting if you ran over one at about eighty miles per hour.

I never carried a gun with either of these critters in mind... .
 
21H40 said:
Actual bear attacks are all too rare. Alligators have a much more successful track record with attacks, but I don't ever remember a "What caliber for alligator?" thread o_O

If I had a dollar for all the bear attacks in Iowa, I would still need more dollars - a lot more dollars - for a new 375.
Click to expand...
Bear attacks are rare but threads about bear attacks are plentiful. And everyone knows it’s S&W 500 or better for gators!
 
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