Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Alaska 2020 Southeast AK Black Bear

I made it happen again this year! Harvested on May 6th, and I've been giddy ever since. I hope y'all don't mind another story.

I had one evening plus the whole next day to make it happen. My buddy and I got to our preferred tidal flat at about 19:00 on the first night, sat in this corner I like with nothing to show but a lot of new mosquito bites. While walking back out to the boat anchored in the bay, at around 21:30, we rounded a corner and saw our first bear. It looked like a black bear, but was also brown in color. First thought was a cinnamon bear, but light was fading fast. We got our glass up and tried our best to feel confident about what we were looking at, but it just didn't happen. Eventually the swirling breeze gave us up and it bolted. While finishing our walk back to the boat we startled a wolf that was stalking geese in the flats. It was really curious about us, and walked around us to get a good scent on us, coming as close as about 40 yards. My buddy kept his rifle up, and the wolf gave me enough time to load the pdf of the hunting regs on my phone, sadly to confirm that we missed the end of wolf season by 5 days. Lucky wolf, and the first one I've encountered in the wild! As we rowed back to the boat in darkness we were able to notice three other bears roaming the rocks. Too dark to tell, but we assumed a sow with cubs.

Back on the beach before first light the next day, crunching through frost, we decided to glass the area that the cinnamon bear went in the woods the night before, but that didn't pan out. So as it gradually got warmer we moved around to another spot. Sat there for most of the morning. We had to switch positions by a half mile about every couple hours because the wind kept changing direction. Sitting in the mud and grass in the tide flat made me glad for the used waders I found at a second-hand store this winter. Big upgrade from xtra-tufs and wool pants.
We took an early afternoon break back on the boat to nap and give the flats a break from any scent we'd been blowing around.

Back on the beach at 17:00, and my buddy and I each found grassy spots in the middle of the flats where we could cover the most area with binos.

At 19:45 I watched a brown bear sow with 2, 2-year cubs pop out of the woods and onto the beach about 500yards downwind from me. 99% sure those were the three bears we'd seen after dark the night before. It was pretty amazing being totally hidden from sight in the grass but watching that mama immediately stare straight at me. Smart bear, smelly me.

At 20:20, this black patch of moss I'd been watching in the shadow of the fringe suddenly looked...blacker. Oh boy, this was it! He just stood there and sniffed for the first few minutes, then started thrashing the trees in the fringe while deciding to come out into the open. I got to watch him stomping and huffing around for a good 10 minutes before he committed to the meadow. I had to keep shifting my shooting position to stay clear of the grasses in the flight path, but with gun rested on my pack and crouched over, it was go time.
230yds with 180gr GMX out of my .300WSM, and it smacked 'em good -- double lung through and through. He bucked up and then bolted for the woods again, but he only made it ten yards before piling up, right back where I had first seen him in the fringe.
A lot of interesting scars on his head. He even had a few semi-healed holes in his jowls from something clamping down on his snout. Was a scrapper for sure. No rubs at all, and the fur still on his paws was not even worn down -- I don't think he was awake for long. Fish and Game estimated he was about 10-11 years old.
We boned him out as fast as we could, singing camp songs (that sow and cubs were still down the beach). Hiked out, two trips in the row boat, motored back to town, and got back just in time for our 2am appointment on the grid back in the harbor. Long, great day.

I couldn't me more thrilled, and can't think of a better way to spend a day sitting on the beach here in AK.