Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Dall Sheep with Blackstone

This photo charts our intended course. We are going by a landing stip called Hurricane Hill (I'm to learn why that particular name that night), and we are headed to a a mountain near the number 4 that the outfitter wants covered, as rams have been spotted there. Hurricane is between 1 and 2, the guide is in the foreground with the dog, and the Grizzly is spotted from the number two, on the far side of the ridge


We get to #2 and Brett spots the grizzly and I say let's do it. Down we went, quickly losing sight of the bear. After about an hour, we're in the valley he was in, but we are trying to manage our position to avoid surprise/ambush. Suddenly, and from a totally unexpeced direction, but safe distance comes the bear. Wind is good, bear closing the gap.....I laser a spot at 200yds and think that I will shoot when he gets broadside after that. All the little things I'm trying to think of, like scope covers, scope power, safety, shooting position. I slip a round into the chamber of the NULA "free hand", so that I'll still have three in the magazine for such a dangerous creature. I can't believe my luck, just as he turns broadside, Brett whispers "180", and BOOOM the .30-06 rings out, and my only thought was to re-load PDQ! JAM, two live rounds attempt to enter the chamber at once! My brain will not compute, I just keep looking at the bear and trying to get the bolt forward, with Brett hissing "shoot again". The tension is ratcheting back by the time I get the jam cleared, it has become clear that Mr. BIG has not moved since the first shot. I'm thinking, "it fed fine at the practice session, several days ago". We approach the bear SLOOOOOWLY. At about 30yds we both stop for a long time to assess the situation, still no movement, so in we go.

I can't find a wound on the bear; then, just above the entry side front paw, there is a trickle of blood, and some from the nose. It's not til we skin it that it is revealed a pencil hole entry on the left shoulder, and pencil hole exit on the right; never saw the damage in between. The light was fading and a post-mortem was not in the cards. Brett beat me up the mountain even with the bear hide/head. It was dark when we got there.