Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Does Bear Spray Work??

A. Go back to your original post and your "ass" question is answered
B. *I* call it when I decide to go hot, taking the Guide's suggestion of course, but I reserve the right as to when to go hot... Lastly, there WERE guides at DSC who were not absolutely wedded to the cold carry issue. It makes NO SENSE when hunting DG, other than outside the parameters discussed..

"Original post" is not very specific.
Name an AK guide that said you could go hot at your discretion alone. Certainly Phil did not say that and none of the guides I know ever say that. Period.

If this is what wadded your thong, YGBFKM.

Not a very good attempt at putting words in my mouth, but I guess you needed to salvage your obtuseness. My "B" answer's pretty clear, then again maybe I'm expecting too much.

Actually I’ve used bear spray once, in the case of a black bear sow with two cubs. She seemed more curious than aggressive. I pulled the trigger on the spray can to make sure it was going to work and the noise the blast made scared her away.

When I’m in bear country I always carry spray and a big revolver. The one I use first will depend on the situation. I don’t understand why so many people get hung up on arguing about this like it’s a one or the other thing. A can of bear spray weighs as much as a small water bottle. Not a big thing to strap on the belt of a backpack.

I have hunted in Kodiak Island Alaska three times for brown bear. After you spend enough time around bears, the raw fear goes away and you just get very mindful of them. If a bear has a bead on you and they are very close to you when you discover them around, there isn’t much that is going to save you unless you are with another person that has some type of deterrent. There are a lot of people alive today because the bear decided to leave the person alone. It isn’t natural for brown bears to want to mess with people. They generally prefer a calm relationship too. They are incredible animals. The only time I would get concerned is the sow with cubs scenario.

Good post!

Pardon the laughing during a serious subject, but, in thinking about this and visualizing it, all I can think of is John
Candy in the Great Outdoors with the bald headed bear.

I cannot prove a negative... but I know ZERO AK guides that would accept your position. I believe it is up to you to name one so I can verify their position.

If you are not wrong it means I lose the bet and bullets. You are only hiding from the fact you lost and have not claimed you won... telling, no?

I do not see that statement conflicted with what I posted: "Name an AK guide that said you could go hot at your discretion alone. Certainly Phil did not say that and none of the guides I know ever say that. Period."

And you pulled the entire US into it where we were clearly discussing AK bear guiding.

And a charge from a wounded buff.

I'm laughing at his funny statement. You do what you want to do and don't try to tell me what to do. That way we'll get along. Otherwise, GFY.

Yeah, and that was a really relevant argument to authority, no?

I like Jorge ok, but that was a softball/watermelon comparison.

dumbest thing I've ever heard and totally wrong as to legalities.

I don’t know any bears well enough to ask them if it works.

We do not have "game wardens" here which opens up a lot more area... but I have heard similar.

Maybe you should try to develop a first name relationship with one before asking.

It's entertaining when you dump a load in their ass. They look pretty cartoonish while running from it. We try to get at least 25 to 35 yards distance before we shoot. With our short-barreled 870s, the distance and the inferior ballistics of steel, it spills off enough speed to limit penetration to just under the hide and in the fat. The open chokes allow the patterns to spread quickly. I've shot at 20 yards when I've not had much choice and found the patterns spread enough not to be too concerned, but it's still moving faster than I like. Ones we've had to kill after the steel shot treatment show no penetration past the fat layer and only bruising on the muscle tissue.

One of the guys I use to work with killed a problem dumpster diver that he could hang a tag on. While we were fleshing the hide we found steel shot pellets that were of about three different stages of decomposition. There were the bright, shiney ones of less than a month or so. The dull grey ones of a couple of months and the dark brown/rust colored ones that were dissolving probably about three months. He had a hell of a time getting a shot on him. Every little noise sent him scurrying back into cover.

Steve
Have you folks used the plastic buckshot? I’ve used that on spring moose trying to own my hay shed, threatening me. Sends them right along.

Of course hair/hide differences.