| Author | Message | ||
     Blake |
Besides laughing out loud, I just learned a new word, "spoor."  | ||
| Jeremy_02_x1 |
Hahaha, thats a good one, I will have to remember that one. I definitely will be checking out that show now. I love being entertained by people with a deficiency in their sanity. | ||
| Lowflyer |
Hehehe. 'Spoor' is slightly less refined, but certainly more descriptive than 'ordure.'  | ||
| Taxman |
grizzly bears are not nearly as dangerous as some of you are making them out to be. simply being in the same area as a bear does not mean you are in significant danger. thousands of people every year camp in northern michigan every year, most of them end up camping closer to a black bear or grizzly bear than they think. you do however take precautions. but if you have respect for a bear you will have a good story. factually speaking Gorillas/apes/chimps are far more agressive than any bear. i personally would not camp near a bear or a gorilla on purpose. but people who study them do. maybe this guy did have a screw loose. but when all is said and done this guy was probably not that far apart from another person who you all may have heard of.. Jane goodall who is now world renowned for her work camped and lived WITH animals that on several occasions tried to kill her. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
Pepper spray!? That will slow them down? I doubt it a lot. perhaps a 1911A would slow one down with a headshot. I would never trust my life to a CONDIMENT!  | ||
| Whodom |
Believe it or not, they do sell the stuff: http://www.self-protected.com/bearspray.htm I would tend to concur with the 1911A or maybe a Desert Eagle .44 magnum being a better choice... | ||
| Ezblast |
Nope - that gun is still to light for bears - start with 55 cal. and go from there - lol GT - JBOTDS! EZ  | ||
| Garrett1998s1 |
Just as a word to the wise..... dont try and shoot a bear in the head. Their skulls have been known to ricochet off hunting rifle shots. Also saw a show where they were testing the pepper spray. They would spray it on the ground where grizzlies are known hang out. Quite a few of the bears would roll around in the spot where they sprayed it. Maybe try hitting it with this and running like mad while its still down??? http://www.sshep.com/stun_gun.htm | ||
| Blake |
A handgun against a grizzly bear? No thanks. Don't underestimate the effects of pepper spray concentrate (capsaicin). It is virtually impossible to ignore. Not at all like the old mace stuff. Capsaicin is to Mace as a 44 magnum is to a pellet gun. http://www.absc.usgs.gov/research/brownbears/pepperspray/pepperspray.htm | ||
| Blake |
Capsaicin smells like Cajun food. Bears apparently like Cajun food. So don't spray the capsaicin around camp. Only use it to defend against a menacing bear. | ||
| Slowride |
I went hunting with a group of friends and we managed to get tag for a black bear. I was third man out watching the back as the guide led us through the forest. We came upon a bear and spooked him. He stood on his hind legs and came towards us. I watched as one man hit the bear in the chest with a .44mag Marlin guide gun and the bear dropped to its all fours and charged us. The other buddy fired and hit it in the shoulder with his .45/70 guide gun and it still was in a flat out run at us.... At this point we were all running backwards and pulling the rifles up to unload the magazines. The guide never moved and pulled his .454 casull pistol and let off 3 rounds in the bear and it slid to a stop just past him and 10 feet away from us. I don't know if any of you know the type of fire power we threw down and hit that black bear with, but it was A LOT! The black bear pails in contrast to the Grizzly or Brown. If and when I am in bear country, I now carry a S&W 500 in the 4 inch version and as always my rifle of choice. | ||
| Buellfighter |
I always feel safest around bears if I'm with someone who runs slower than I do! A friend and I were mountain biking in the Smokey mts. of Tenn. and encountered a bear about 40 ft. up the trail. The bear raised up on its hind legs lifted its front legs in the air then dropped to all fours and ran off. We could actually feel the ground vibrating as it ran off. We were telling the locals about it and they said the only way to get away from a bear in the mts. is to run down hill. Said with their weight and short front legs they would have to zig zag. Not sure if they were humoring me or not. | ||
| Djkaplan |
Seeing as how a mouse can make me shriek like a little girl, I highly doubt I would heed any advice on what to do if I ever encountered a bear. That's what was wrong with that bear guy, he was missing the little girl shriek gene. | ||
| Blake |
 | ||
| Davegess |
I like the story told in the Lewis and Clark Journal about the first encounters with Grizzlies. They had been hearing stories about these fierce creatures for quite some itme before they actually encountered them. The first chance to shoot these beasts was eagerly anticipated as the company was convinced they would be no match for the modern fire power they carried. At the first encounter the wind was in there faces so the bears could not smell them nor hear the shots very well and they were able to bring down a few as the bears milled around in confusion until shot enough to die. The second encounter was different. The men had little respect for them at this point and approached with the wind at their backs. The shot a bear, he rose up, figured out what direction his problem was in and took off at full trot towards them. Several more shot seemed to have little effect and they managed to beat a hasty retreat to the boats and steered clear of them after this. | ||
| Light_keeper |
People who live in Kodiak Bear country (This goes for coastal browns as well) learn to coexist with them. Having spent many years on Kodiak where bear siteings were a common occurance, I speak with a small amount of experiance. The first thing that you should know about the bears are that they are not black bears and don't act like them. I lived in a place called Bells flats which is an area in a canyon west of the town of Kodiak. For the most part the bears left us alone and we left them alone. During the salmon runs they came down the mountains each night thru our yard to the stream behind the house accross the street. At all time of year you look around to see if they are there when leaving the house. The reason being is you dont want to suprise them. If they hear you they will not come any where around. Unless they are sick or very hungry and smell garbage / fish etc. Some where I have a picture of me and a friend fishing and just inside the bushes is a bear. Just after the picture was taken it stuck its head out and looked around. We had not caught any fish yet so it did not bother us. 200 yards down the stream there were people with fish. The bear got the fish. The people got mad and threw rocks at the bear. Bad thing to do. We had heard of this guy Tredwell, who went out to spend time among the bears. The fish and game guys said it was only a matter of time before that would most likely happen. Hello these are wild animals who chase down deer for dinner. It doesn't take much of an imagination to make the next step. Lets see now Mrs Bear the cubs are hungry and the deer are on the other side of the Island. Oh yes Mr Bear and there arnt many fish yet and the cubs are very hungry. Hey that pest Tredwell and his girl friend are just over there what do you think? Although this is tung in cheek it is not that far fetched. Fact: Once a bear gets a taste for human they don't loose it. I was on Base security during two of my tours on Kodiak. The first tour we hardly saw any bears at all. The second tour they were coming into the housing area at night and raiding the dumpsters. Some were even there during the morning hours just before the kids were going out to catch the school bus. I don't even pretend to know all about the bears. What I do know is don't take chances around them follow the rules and we get along just fine. I have seen plunty of them. They are even more magnificant in the wild than you can imagine. TV can't even come close. I have some friends who were helo crews and some of their sightings were truly amazing. Were it possible I would live there again in a heartbeat.  | ||
| Newfie_buell |
OK, Has anyone ever had a Polar Bear crash through the front window of their house? It happened here a few years ago and the wildlife officials had to destroy the animal. Usually when a Polar Bear makes it down this far they tranqulize it and send it back north. Hasn't happened lately though with the mild winters. In the past they rode the ice floes from the North Atlantic. Here on the island all we have are Black Bears and I have never heard of anyone being attacked by them, then again I don't think anyone ever tried to get that friendly with them either. Other things we don't naturally have in this climate are Skunks, Raccoons, Snakes and those real big bugs you get in the Southern Us. | ||
| Taxman |
do any of you remember Fred Bear? he hunted everything on this continent with a recurve bow. including bears of all types, moose, deer, wild boars, and maybe even a pansy or two. your friends had some nice rifles Slowride. but what kind of cartridge did they use. the ammount of gun powder used, and size of the bullet can have a large effect on penetration. i'd be using this http://www.garrettcartridges.com/products.asp | ||
| Spatten1 |
Shot placement is key. Firing at a charging bear would not give you much of a chance for a double lung or heart shot, which a great archer could pull off from a stand. | ||
| Light_keeper |
For a great read about these bears try ALASKA BEAR TALES by Larry Kaniut. He has several books out on the bears and true storys from the bush and not even the bush. | ||
| Slowride |
Taxman, Nice! I would like a box of these please! GARRETT'S 45-70 EXITER AMMO $180 / 20 CTGS 500-GRAIN SPEER TUNGSTEN SOLID AT 1530-FPS LOL! and I thought my S&W 500 throwing a 440grain bullet was destructive. | ||
| Bandirola |
I spent most of my life in Juneau, AK and coexisted with both brown and black bears when hiking, fishing, etc. For the most part it is true if you leave them alone, they leave you alone. As mentioned above, a mom with cubs or an extreemly hungry bear means all bets are off and you are wise to leave the area immediatly. By the way, I know two of the people described in Bear Tales and the author embellishes the stories quite a bit for better marketing. Not to say that they were very lucky to still be alive today. Pepper spray (10% concentration not the 5% stuff sold for purses) will dicourage a curious bear, but won't stop one in a full charge. Dave | ||
| Light_keeper |
My wife grew up there as well. | ||
| Madduck |
If you are serious about stopping a real bear in a self defence invironment check out the ballistics on a 12 gauge 00 at 50 feet. Your range could be much less so get one thats damn reliable. My mossberg pump stopped one cold at 30 feet, 800 lbs just starting charge. Severed spine just behind skull, internal damage was incredible. Montana Grizzly. Powder charge burned off hair so didn't become protected species issue to warden. I never want to be in that situation again, and have worked very hard at avoiding bear country ever since. | ||
| No_rice |
pepper spray doesnt even stop a pissed off husband, how do you expect it to stop a pissed off bear. and as far as the taste for humans go, that is completely correct. i dont have that experiance with bears. have had a black bear cub, but not to full grown. anyway they are like other animals in the fact that they honestly seem to prefer humans after that first taste. we are a delicacy and easy prey depending on circumstances. i am may be nutz in having had wolves, cougar, bear cub, linx. but im not stupid. my environment is way different from the one he tried to do that stuff in. and i realize the conciquences trust me. i have some disfigured parts to prove it. and i blame no one but me for it. the odds are rarely in the humans favor. | ||
| Garrett1998s1 |
Got an email today from a friend about this cat being shot while deer hunting in Iowa. The cat was hunting calves in the field.weighed 200 pounds.  | ||
| No_rice |
got any idea where at in iowa? theres a few running around my areas. watched one chasing something down the road in front of the shop one night late. that was to say the least unexpected right in town. | ||
| Thansesxb9rs |
That's a big kitty!! | ||
| Garrett1998s1 |
North of Villisca close to Morton Mills. | ||
| Lowflyer |
I have seen that same pic before. A couple of years ago it seems. |
