Sidearm when hunting bear?

[satx78247]

Yet another GREAT reason to have TWO weapons.

yours, satx

 

[Karl Helweg]

If I were to go bear hunting and only black powder was allowed, I would carry my 1847 Walker.

This would be a good choice imho.

If I had to worry about bears bigger than the little dudes we have around here I think I'd want something from the magnumitis school of gun shooting and in the hands of a buddy who is a really good shot. But here in Addy the bears are black bears and they are not too keen on being around people.

Britsmoothy - "What be wrong with a howdah pistol? Seeing as y'all ignored the slung short blunderbuss!

Why would someone want the challenge of hunting a large bear and then tote a nitro gun! May as well just use a nitro gun in the first place, no?"

In a BP only area a Walker (or maybe Dragoon)"loaded for Bear" would be my first choice too. I own a blunderbuss and dragoon sling but it is still just one shot. Just for coolness maybe: http://www.middlesexvillagetrading.com/PDBF.SHTML

As they say in the ad, you might explain your intent and ask if they happen to have one of the larger bores available. When I have had close encounters with bears there is no gun in the world that would feel big enough or fast enough. A large bore closed cartridge handgun and a slower running hunting buddy might be safest.

Reload immediately. Picture what you would feel confident holding if you had to follow a blood trail into a alder thicket.

 

[Alden]

Karl, you almost LIVE in Alaska! Yeah, as my backup for a life threatening situation I'm gonna risk it some more on that India-made Howdah...

I have a whole Brother-in-Law. After talking with him I drove three counties away to the biggest gunshop in the region with a buddy and found a used, like new, Ruger Super Redhawk in .41 Mag. On a whim I went to the lobby and called the clown (not my term, my Dad's for him when he suggested to my sister she not marry him, just sleep with him for the Summer). I told him where I was and what I had found and asked "before I put a deposit on it are you SURE you're gonna do this"? "Do what?" he asked. "Go bear hunting with handguns!?" I replied. "Are you outta your mind!?" he squeeked, and pretended we'd never discussed it and that he'd agreed to go...

 

[Karl Helweg]

Alden - And you are where? :wink: At least I moved out of the State of Anchorage.

It takes me about 30 minutes to fly to the densest brown bear population in the world http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Admiralty_Island (IF I get a wild hair to try bear hunting. I am not sure that I "need" to hunt for something that is also hunting me. Worse, it would be a short jump for me to choose to hunt with a less than modern device.... I personally worry that IF I were to get a bear it would most likely be in the evening and have to cape it in the dark. Bears do not have that silly no hunting after sunset rule and a brownie would take quite a while to cape even with good knives. I can find lots of other hobbies right now that help me resist bear hunting here.

 

[Alden]

Hey, that's LOS Anchorage to you buddy!
; )

 

[Karl Helweg]

If someone here happens to get a wild hair and wants to hunt black bear (or Sitka blacktail or wolf) we can probably arrange for a place(s) for you to stay here. We are selling our 25' boat but it is not sold yet - if you are a brave soul. The sane thing to do for a cheap hunt is charter a licensed Transporter.
Brown bear and mountain goat require a licensed guide or kin for non-Alaskans to hunt.
Just in case it is anyone's dream here.

 

[BrownBear]

Bears do not have that silly no hunting after sunset....

No kidding.

Worse yet, when you're walking out in dusk or dark, every single stinking mossy rock and stump turns into a bear.

Hard on an old body to pucker as you walk, with "bears" around every corner, whether you actually see hair or not. :rotf:

Worst bear encounter I ever had was on an elk hunt on Afognak years back, making repeat trips into the hills to pack meat. Came around a blind corner on the same trail as the last round trip, and darned near landed on a big expanse of brown hair, waist high and stretching further than an arm could reach in every direction.

Turned out one of my hunting pards had decided to salvage the hide, stretching it across a log to drain a bit before packing. Always carry Preparation H on an Alaska hunt! :rotf:

 

[satx78247]

Sounds about right to me.

Remind me sometime to tell you about the night 25+ years ago, when I nearly shot a "talking Coke machine", while looking for a jail escapee in a dark/closed "strip shopping mall".
(I liked to have never "lived that one down" & got LAUGHED AT for a long time afterward.)

yours, satx

 

[Karl Helweg]

Bears do not have that silly no hunting after sunset....

No kidding.

Worse yet, when you're walking out in dusk or dark, every single stinking mossy rock and stump turns into a bear.

I feel better knowing that I am not the only bearanoid person.

 

[BrownBear]

...bearanoid....

Dat's me fer sure! :rotf:

The bear in my icon photo is a neighbor, passing through our yard several times a year and a frequent visitor on local rivers. Know him like my neighbor's dog, but I absolutely hate not knowing exactly where he is when I'm wandering deep brush.

 

[Geraldo]

Ah, the miracle of Photoshop.

 

[BrownBear]

Ah, the miracle of Photoshop.

Yup, it's such a powerful program it can make a guy from Florida an expert on Alaska. :rotf:

 

[Geraldo]

It's not enough to make me an expert, just a skeptic. There are all sorts of faked animal photos on the net, just do a search

 

[BrownBear]

You clatched on this one.

 

[satx78247]

I just HAVE to find/post the photo sequence (made by an "automatic game camera") of a fellow in South LA being "stalked by" a 12 foot plus gator. = The sequence shows him bending over to "check a trap" & then almost getting bitten "in the toucas" by the gator & then FLEEING. = It LOOKS "pretty funny" but I'd bet it was NOT at all amusing to the fellow involved.

yours, satx

 

[robinsroost]

This kind of reminds me of the story of the guy going on a fishing trip, to the back country of Alaska. He asked if it would be a good idea to take a .357 magnum pistol with him, for protection against grizzly bears. He was told that no one had ever successfully defended their life against a grizzly bear, with a .357, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try!

On a more serious note, I was once on a black powder hunt in the Ocala National Forest, in central Florida. I was set up in the corner of a clear cut when I saw a very large black bear, scent trailing me towards where I was sitting. Needless to say, you couldn't have driven a 10 penny nail, up my arse, with a 3 pound lag hammer! When I got over the shock of being hunted, I reached into my pack, to get my camera. Dosen't make sense, to me, now as to why I reached for the camera. Anyhow, the bear saw me move and addled off into the woods. It was not a comfortable feeling having only one shot available, facing a 500+ pound bear, if it was in a bad mood, injured, or had cubs. Fortunately, it was none of the above. It is amazing, how something that big could walk so quietly. Now, when I hunt black powder, I carry a stainless 1858 new army .44, loaded with 30 grains of 3Fg. Keep yer powder dry.......Robin :wink:

 

[BrownBear]

...and addled off into the woods.

That's about the worst time in any bear encounter, charge or not. You can't see that sucker any more, and you don't know where he is. But you know he's close!!!!! :shocked2:

Had a nasty encounter with a grizzly once on a moose hunt in interior Alaska. I was pretty cool and collected until the charge ended and that SOB slinked off into nearby alders.

Man, I couldn't get out of there fast enough!

Made my way out into standing water in the middle of a great big muskeg a hundred yards from the nearest twig. Took off my pack frame and stood it on end, then sat on it to keep my eye on the back trail for a while.

Pulled out a pack of smokes, figuring to relieve the jitters. Ended up with 18 cigs floating in the water all around me without getting a one in my mouth!!!! :rotf:

 

[longcruise]

I don't get the PhotoShop reference???? Looks like a smallish to mediumish black bear kill. Maybe I'm missing something viewing the pic on my phone?

 

[BrownBear]

Maybe I'm missing something viewing the pic on my phone?

There's another blackie looking in from the edge of the light pool. The individual posting the pic is above reproach, and the PS reference was BS.