Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Canada Bear attack video

Fellow Campfire Folk;
We were discussing the fatal polar bear attack the other day on the regular campfire section and this popped up on a Canuck forum that I frequent.

This shows quite vividly how quickly life can unravel when a bear is involved in the melee.




The black bear sow in the video made nearly identical growls to a sow which I had a negative interaction with about 3 decades back. When I listened to the video that's what struck me - funny how some things don't leave you even after all these years.

Anyway I'm glad to see that the two in the video came out of it in as good a shape as they did.

All the more reason to practice with one's serious "shoo bear" arm too I would opine - as well as have it handy at all times when one is in bear country.

Thanks for looking and may we all have a safe summer as we head into bear country tenting and camping.

Dwayne

Don't bring a bow to a gun fight.

Dwayne, trust this finds you and family fine! Sure enjoy your posts all the time!

Thanks for this, I've been wanting to find some vocals of a pissed bear to show to Carolyn for our AK future. Just trying to educate. Need to find a bunch of different angled pictures to train her on too as her "first shots" on the still picture here were too low.

Going to attempt to attach a couple of pics for you for grins here. Not sure how this new stuff works... be patient.../Users/jeffrost/Desktop/DSCN4021.jpg/Users/jeffrost/Desktop/DSCN4020.jpg

Oops... off to tutorial or photo bucket.

I grew up with a guy who would bow hunt bears. I always told him he was nuts. Most of the time he would have a backup guy with a rifle of shotgun, but not always. I told him he just wanted a Darwin Award.

kellory;
Good evening to you sir, I hope this finds you well and thanks for the reply.

If I may tell a story on a good friend - who occasionally looks in here - I'll begin with his bona fides that he guided for both black bears and grizzly on the northern BC coast before moving to the Yukon.

While I'm not sure how many bears he was in on, it's got to be more than 3 dozen, so he's the fellow I ask bear questions to and who's opinion on the matter I trust implicitly.

Anyway somewhere along in the midst of his younger years, he told me a story of deciding he'd bow hunt a bear and was armed with said bow while sliding quietly up a northern BC stream in his waders. Presently he came upon a sow and cub - might have been more than one cub and am reasonably sure they were grizzly.

He related that he looked down at his bow, then at the bears, back at the bow and came ever so close to chucking the bow into the stream!

As far as I'm aware that was the last time he bow hunted for bears and perhaps bow hunted in bear country.

Now I know from other friends that a well placed arrow will kill a bear, but things have to be going your way - and they emphatically we're not going that way for the chaps in the video.

Thanks again and all the best to you this summer.

Dwayne

Thank goodness Canada has such strict handgun laws or that poor bear may have become sausage...

Jeff;
Thanks again for the kind words, I do appreciate them and will endeavor to deserve them in future posts.

In the other thread I believe it was jaguartx who mentioned buckshot to try on a pine tree - and honestly Jeff we've shot about every inanimate object one should and sometimes should not shoot with all sorts of long arms.

When it comes to bears, I'll take something which gives me the best chance of 2' minimum of penetration.

I very vividly recall talking to a BC provincial biologist who'd quit carrying a shotgun for a Model 70 in '06 loaded with 200gr Partitions. While he wouldn't go into details on what had gone on in his personal rodeo with no pay window, he was very anti buckshot when it came to stopping black bears who'd decided to get the ball rolling so to speak.

Our own Klikitarik posted a photo of a Brenneke slug out of a nuisance grizzly he'd had to shoot and if I recall correctly, he was underwhelmed with it.

Honestly if I could find some of the Latvian made Duplex slugs which are solid steel, I'd use them in a heartbeat, but so far they're not coming across the medicine line, so we make do with what we can find.

I'd not argue with anyone who preferred a rifle with a decent bullet either, but I've a lifetime of pump shotgun use - bought my first one 42 years ago - so the muscle memory is strong with me and pump guns and without going into too many details, I know I can run either a pump gun or a bolt rifle with reasonable proficiency in dicey situations.

The sound of the angry sow is spot on, though the one I spoke of also clacked her teeth together - which was incredibly loud even at 30-50 yards. It surely gets one's undivided attention anyway Jeff!

Thanks again and all the best to you folks as you migrate north.

Dwayne

My apologies for OT...
Cannot get the 24 hour campfire photo thing to download, finally had to go to Photobucket and its acting stupid too... I give up. LOL

The video you have can see one clicking at the start. Didn't pay attention if it was the same one. The roar kind of thing was what I was trying to get Carolyn to hear. MAD. OTOH I've spoken with our mentor in AK that has had a grizz, wounded, come at him without a sound IIRC but he was good enough, though it cost him 17 stitches IIRC.

When we don't feel like other things, its going to be Glock in 10mm with 16 rounds plus a mag somewhere handy-ish. 200 grain hard cast. Carolyn handles it fairly well and while I prefer to think of her not ever missing, 16 rounds should allow for a few oops, and hopefully still have rounds remaining if there is contact where the gun can be pressed against and pulled until empty. Past that I generally carry a 338-06 as all around, and she will be carrying a 50 beowulf with a full mag of 400 grain hard casts. Unless I pawn the 458 win mag off on her. LOL

There is never a fly on someone like you thats used to a certain gun though. And not sure why steel slugs would be non allowed in Canada if so, I believe they make mono copper ones which should be the next best.

Tis a tiny chance, depending on route and timing, that I might communicate before leaving next spring assuming it all works out like we are planning for me at least. I believe most all of our relatives are deceased at this point, but even a fair detour would be worth a hearty handshake!

Jeff

shrapnel;
Good evening to you sir, long time no talk - I hope this finds you and your fine family well tonight.

Indeed our laws regarding handguns are beyond silly and if I was able to do so legally, a Redhawk chambered in something that started with a 4 would be my constant companion.

That said, we make do with shorter barreled shotguns than my stateside brethren can easily attain - and though I've not used one in anger yet - in the situations where I was beginning a discussion with a bear it was nice to have the shoo bear arm to back up my side of the conversation.

On top is the one I've had for 42 or so years, the bottom one is a couple years now and has worked well enough that it's my primary meat packing arm nowadays.


Made up one for our eldest daughter to take along when she and her husband go tenting here in rural BC.


Have a donor in the safe which her husband and I are making into something for him to practice with too.

Anyway shrapnel it's good to hear from you again and I hope the summer is a great one for you and yours.

Dwayne

I am well sir, and thank you for sharing. Personally, I have only been around one bear while bow hunting deer, and a swear I reverted to my monkey ancestors, and left the ground behind. I was up a tree and about as high as I could go before I remembered that bears can climb if motivated enough. I stayed there, quiet as a mouse, until I knew that bear had no interest in me and had wandered out of sight. I have no idea what the bear massed, but the memory weighs 50 lbs.
Ohio has a law I am working to have revoked. Says "no second weapon" , and the only exception is a CCW. Which can not be used for any hunting purpose, but can be used for defense.
Without a CCW you are chit out of luck. (SOL)

Thanks and my best to you. I read the book "Son Of The Morning Star" and found it quite interesting. I have since read several other Custer related books, finding that Custer was not as stupid as many 21st century people believe him to be. Our documentary has gotten bogged down in production, but should be released later this summer. It has been over a year past original viewing times that the History Channel had given us, but I still have my fingers crossed it will be aired...

Thanks again, Kirk

Dwayne; as always sir you have started a good thread.

It would be a good thing if we could legally carry pistols in the "bush", lacking that option my choice in bear country is a Marlin guide gun in .45-70 with 400 grain bullets loaded "hard full up" as a buddy of mine would say. My wife when on her own takes a Marlin in .44 magnum with 300 grain bullets.

Through out my life I have had numerous encounters with bears, both grizzly and black and by the grace of god they have all gone well for both the bears and myself. The closest I have come to shooting a bear was firing a few shots over the head of an adolescent grizzly until he turned around and "headed out".

I would agree with you familiarity with one's firearms of choice is key as is awareness of bear behaviour. Thanks for sharing this video.

As always best regards to you and yours.

GRF

GRF;
Top of the morning to you sir, thanks for the reply. I trust all is well with you and your fine family.

Yes indeed a good lever gun is a force to be reckoned with - in the hands of a competent user of course. I picked up a little trapper length 92 clone from Italy this winter, but it's in .357 Mag so it's a fun arm, not intended for serious duty.

My rancher buddy who I cowboy for occasionally and help with branding annually used to carry a Browning 92 in .44 Mag, loaded with 270gr Speer as I recall. That thing was/is a thumper! Way more felt oomph than the 94 .30-30 which rode under my left leg when we're chasing cows.

That said, I have no desire to be on the receiving end of a 170gr Hornady Flat Nose either, you know?

Like you, my bear encounters have ended with me pointing an arm at the bruins while I explained to them in vivid, gory details my intent with said arm if they didn't find another place to be.

I must admit that with one young male I got downright Pentecostal with it in that I was speaking in tongues before he left - yelling actually. He thought he could take the little guy in the cowboy hat, but that day I was packing my slicked up, time tested Ruger 77 in .308 Norma - and it was about to receive a 168gr TSX in the head, which I absolutely knew he wouldn't appreciate.

This guy shifted back and forth on his front legs, all the while cocking his head back and forth and licking his lips. Now I know when a horse is licking its lips its cogitating the next course of action - so that's why I got verbally abusive with the bear as I was really and truly sure what MY next course of action was going to be..... cutting my bear tag and making sausage!

Anyway sir, it's always great to hear from you. I'm glad to read you folks are well heeled in the Alberta bush - but never doubted that for a minute. All the best to you and yours this summer.

Dwayne

Dwayne, you have more guts than I. I'd shoot first, and "ask questions later".

I have been involved in a few pig attacks,one bear I almost had to shoot,one nasty wounded buck I had to hold the horns tell I killed him with a knife,wounded caribou friend thought was dead that he shot and I had hold of the base of horns ,caribou got up and I still had hold of horns tell he shot it again " that was a nasty deal" ,also one nasty long horned bull with nothing but a canoe paddle with kids in canoe with very shallow river water. so I with the help of a knife maker built a heavy nasty spear to finish off wounded animals sometimes,my hand held spear has a 5 foot-3/4 inch steel tube with a solid ,hardened 7 inch blade sharpened on both sides its nasty and it has worked great,this spear is not met to throw its a hand held fight to death type. I never go any place hunting big game anymore without my spear,that bear in the video those guys would have been way safer with my spear in there hands. nice thing about this spear its legal to carry I just say its a long handled knife,if you ever have looked for a arrow wounded deer or bear at night a spear is legal ,but I do still carry a 44 too where legal.

wabigoon;
Good morning to you my cyber friend, I hope all is well with you and your fine family this bright and sunny morning.

It's more of being a pragmatist than anything else wabigoon. The spot where the social discussion took place was not new to me at all, in fact I want to say I'd already packed a big mature mulie and at least two decent whitetails out of there or within a few hundred meters of it.

So it was that I knew full well how far away the truck was at the time - way, WAY too far. How close I could get it to the carcass - not nearly close enough and finally how my day was going to go if I shot the recalcitrant bruin where we stood. It was - I felt at the time and still in hindsight feel, a much more prudent plan to cuss it out at the top of my lungs first. My good wife calls it my "dog voice" as she's witnessed it a few times when it's come out over the past 36 years we've been together.

The first time was when a large mixed breed mutt came sailing out of a yard towards a group of us as we were walking in a little BC semi-rural hamlet. The folks we were with were young couples as well - one couple from Ontario and one from the Lower Mainland and one couple had a young German Shepherd pup as I recall.

Anyway out of the yard comes this big mutt and I stepped in between it and the pup and explained life to the mutt, who subsequently left and as I turned back to the group they were staring at me in stunned silence. They were sort of quiet for the rest of the visit in fact.

On the way home I asked my young wife - we were both much younger then - what it was I'd said that was so bad. She replied in her usual wise way that the gentle people from urban upbringings had likely never heard a Saskatchewan farm boy tell a dog he was going to cut it's head off, shove it down it's throat and then skin it and make a seat cover with it's hide......

Well..... .... I was serious about the seat cover part of the conversation wabigoon and the dog sensed that seriousness!

Anyway, as you very well know, growing up working with all sizes of livestock and large dogs leads one to understand all sorts of things about the animals and ourselves too I suppose doesn't it? Perspective is a wonderful thing I've often said.

All the best to you and yours this summer wabigoon.

Dwayne