Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game shot placement for charging grizzly

I'm not talking about the 100 yard dash here. I'm not saying that they run out of steam after a couple hundred yards, but simply that compared to Caribou, grizzly are not long-distance athletes.

First, Take a deep, slow breath and make sure your weapon is ready.Don't run..or move much.

IF the bear is REALLY intent on mauling-killing you and it's not just a bluff charge, wait until it's within 15 yards...ESP with a 12 gauge..

Kneeling position is best as it's stable position...and more inline with the bear's chest and head.You'll either die or kill the bear..You'll have time at 12 yards to rack the pumpgun and shoot again once after the initial shot to the face.Jim

You were not there and have no way of knowing if the charge was real or a bluff.Regardless of his intentions,he was running flat out and could have been on us in a few seconds if I had not fired.With nowhere to go,and a grizzly tag in my pocket,I made the decision to fire,and am reporting the results since they are relevant to the thread.

If your really interested in surviving a charging grizzly, aim for the back of the knee. From what I hear, its extremely painful...and the amount of noise your hunting partner makes after being shot should destract the bear long enough for you to retreat to a safe shooting distance.

No, you won't. If that bear is "really intent on mauling-killing you" at 12 yards you will not have enough time to shoot, shuck a second round, and shoot again. If that bear is coming hard and you wait till 12 yards to shoot, even if you kill him DR-F-T his momentum could very well run you down. Assuming of course that in your scenario he is running at you full tilt. Bears hit full tilt in about 3 feet. And 12 yards is about two bounds for a big grizz.


After reading this entire thread, and the other similiar thread, I've come to the conclusion that not very many people have any concept of how fast bears are. How quickly they hit top speed when they are motivated.

If a bear is coming for you, a motivated bear, intent on killing you, and you were not aware of him prior to him being inside of 25 yards, or if you weren't on a hair trigger, cocked and unlocked with that weapon up, the next thing you would know was that you were being shat out the south end of a north bound bear.

All this talk of "where do I aim" is fine and dandy, when you are behind a keyboard. In a true to life situation even if you know that bear is there, and you are becoming aware of his intentions to you prior to him coming for you, the absolute best the average joe is going to be able to pull off is a center-of-mass shot at a brown blur.

An experienced guy, might have a bit of a better chance if he reads the situation properly and has a killing intent on that bear before he gets determined...

Nice, I'll have to keep that one in mind! Especially since I am slower than most of my hunting partners.

Carl

aceman,

First things first...aim for cantre of mass with your magnum slugs. Try to hit big bone with your first shot. This will slow the bear down/knock it down, and hopefully give you time for follow up shots.
Second, if you are going to load buckshot, find some 000 buckshot. There are fewer of them in the shell, but they are bigger and will penetrate better, if the bear gets that close, and you are down to your last shot.
Third, try ot find out whether or not your local gunclub brings in anyone to do firearms qualifications or bear training. We have a fellow in BC (cannot remember his name at this particular moment) taht does both types of training. He does timed training with shotguns at close range, including reloading and firing, where you have to make so many of your shots on target at various ranges to qualify. He also does a charging bear simulation, where the target is moving towards you, and you have to hit it in the kill zone three times to qualify. Not only does this increase your familiarity with your firearm, it teaches you how to remain calm under pressure of time and shot placement. Not quite the same as a charging bear...but a good place to practice the required skills to handle your firearm under pressure. He will also do similar training with centerfire rifles.

Seems like KodiakHntr is one of the few that know what a big grizzly in his prime can do. I'm not talking about a two year old that just got off mommie's tit and clumsily chases new born calves because he's half starved and doesn't know how to kill.
I still say that if a large Grizz in his prime is intent on getting you, you had better hope there's lots of distance between you and him and no alders and trees in the way. I still say a scope is a handicap in that scenario. I've never shot at a charging grizz but have shot a couple of charging blacks. Have witnessed a deer get run down by a grizz and it was awesome to see. The bear knocked it down and immediately tore out a piece of that deer the size of a 10 pound roast. It looked like it tour the whole neck out while holding it down with it's front legs. I've spent many years working remotely and have seen many things that would really surprise you about grizzlies. They even kill and eat each other, which isn't common with blacks.

Similiarly used for Polar bears in the Arctic. A length of 3/4 inch pipe about 1.5 ft long. Carry in back pocket-"When asked what that is for" the answer is bear protection. "How is a pipe bear protection" Reply a blow to the back of the your knee while I make my escape.

________________
Kodiakhunter, I was replying to the original poster, aceman, who said he'd have an 870 12 gauge..:)Jim

"As a new member to the forum, I live up in Alberta and do alot of wilderness camping with my boys very close to the rockies.
I always carry my reliable 870 12ga. pump with magnum slugs and 00buck, and always wondered exactly where to place the slug with a charging grizz within 25-50 yds."
______________________________________________

A 12 gauge won't be worth a damn at much past 12 yards..and unlike some, I can work a good pump pretty fast close in...Agreed not much time but I could get three off in less than 2 seconds..

Would I survive a determined big bear's charge at 12 yards with a 12 gauge??
Who knows..:) but I'd either live or die trying..as will most who find themselves on the receiving end of a close charge by powerful dangerous game..:) Jim

If you "need" to hit a charging bear, it's better to hit than miss. If missing is possible, I'd rather miss in front of rather than over a bear. "Spraying" a bear with debris seems, IME, to be a lot more effective than just making noise at them.

The following vid shows several things which seem to be true about bears from what I've seen:

-they are often easy to "drop"

-a "dumped" bear will often recover very quickly

-they move real well when they are motivated

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZnsL7-UdGc

BTW, 170 grain RN Corelokts (30-30) penetrate better than 2 3/4" standard Foster type 12 gauge slugs.

378
This one time at bear camp...

I suppose it is better to keep the fantasies than to believe they are all just looking to be understood... But I have watched a lot of bears for a long time...
art

I have had more than a couple uncomfortable experiences with Grizzlies and browns but fortunately have not had to kill one as of yet in self defense. IMO grizzies ar very fast, I have watched a grizzly take down a bull caribou twice and attribute the kills to strategy more than speed though speed definately helped. I was on the north slope hunting Caribou back in like 1996. We were along the Kuparik river, I awoke to a mountain house rumbling volcano in my stomach and had to get out of my bag and take care of business badly. I walked as far as my stomach would allow from camp (I was hurting bad) and squatted down in some brush to release the demons inside me, as I was taking care of much needed business my eyes started to survey the landscape to see if anything was out and about (its huge country). As I looked around , keep in mind, my trous were around my ankles no weapon nearby, I suddenly caught movement out of the corner of my eye and I quickly shifted my eyes to the movement. It was a mediumish Caribou Bull running at full tilt down the edge of the Kuparik in the brush and as he blasted past me at about 25 yards, I caught a second movement out of the corner of my eye and when I looked I about double chit myself! It was a mediumish sized griz also running at full tilt pursuing this Caribou. As that griz barreled past me at the same 25ish yards I coulda sat right in my own chit to avoid being spotted. All I kept thinking was "Please dont see me , Please dont see me!" I had no weapon and my pards were sleeping like babies no more than 40 yards away That [bleep] ran past me and never even saw me, having his full focus of attention on the caribou in front of him. I would have been [bleep] had he seen me and thought [bleep] chasing this one I'll eat the one that aint running, and this bear was in full predator mode. To watch how fast that grizzly covered ground from so close away was plain [bleep] amazing! He ended up getting the bull at the top of the hill as the bull went right around the rocks and the bear went left and they ran right into each other. I awoke my buds in rapid fashion once I was done chitting myself literally. I now never leave camp to take care of business without a weapon as I have twice been caught off guard by a griz while taking a chit and it aint no fun!

I'll also add that after having bow hunted grizzlies a bunch and having stalked probably 20-30 grizzlies up close and personal with a bow or the camera that Arts statements above abut 40 yards not being charging distance , is correct. "Almost" every grizzly that we get busted by while closing the distance to bow range will want to get a better birds eye view or smell of you before checking out. Especially where we are always trying to defeat their ability of winding us and approaching them from down wind. It seems to me that many will get as close as 20 yards or closer and then circle to check your smell before hauling azz. Though having been bluff charged more than once they have all either hauled azz or remained content on bluffing you to stay back if they felt like holding their ground. But I am not gonna lie and say that when they start coming right towards you to check you out that chit dont get a little giddy in your head. Your thinking....he's gonna circle us, he's gonna circle us.We have video of one bear that bluff charged my buddy twice while rooting something good, but never came for real. My pard held at full draw for several minutes on that bear and he finally [bleep] up and turned broadside, and after the arrow hit he didn't come our way , he went the opoosite way in a hurry. He ran for about 150 yards before dieing on a gravel bar just off the closest braid of the river. So keep in mind that a bear that comes inside 40 yards is most likely just checking you out to decide whether to run from you or eat you and you have to pay close attention to body language cuz I am always thinking, this chit can go real good or real bad right now!

I think the key is to shoot an autoloader and have a bayonette mounted on it. Kneel, aim for center mass and keep shooting. Once he's too close to shoot then make use of the bayonette. Grenades would work but the fuses are too long.







OK, so I'm mostly kidding but it's no worse internet advice than some of the other stuff in the thread...:)

Steely Eyes..:)
IF This was MY original post..I'd have had a REM 1100..or maybe a CZ in .375 H&H..:)...AND a good knife ..:)

Historically, there have been more than a few grizzlies kilt with good knives in the hands of strong & desperate men I'm told..and a few men who have survived serious grizzly attacks also.
The rest who encountered a sow w/cubs were lost to the historical archives..:(..

A good knife( bayonet) would not be my personal 1st choice but ANY weapon is better than none I suppose..:) Jim

Im busting him between the eyes if i can. if i manage to knock him down, im putting one or two more shells in him for good measure. dont want a wounded bear getting back up to finish the job!

AlaskaCub

I've never yet had the opportunity to hunt the big browns or grizzly with my bows..tho I know they will work and I have the patience and will for it.

I've killed alot of 400# + black bears, lions and elk & deer and pigs among assoterted smaller game in near 50 years of bow and rifle hunting.
Have a bit of close in combat experience too.
Not afraid of dying well for a decent reason.

When you get my age you are more concerned about still being alive with no damned good reason..Jim

Trust me , I know what you mean. As I get older it seems that my mind tends to think too much about stuff that I never used to even consider. [bleep] me up from time to time honestly, as I mostly end up thinking about my boy and the phone call my wife may or may not end up getting from some stranger. But hell, thats hunting in Alaska pretty much regardless of species targeted. My gut check alarm was going off like crazy last year when me and my pard landed on a brown bear infested lake on Kodiak completely on a dice roll that we could hike and find goats. Only problem was we were surrounded by brown bear that we could literally see from the air. Man I was doing some serious gut checks and weighing pros and cons and we ended up squashing the plan on a hunch. Only a few hours later I was face to face with a hungry brown on a dead run in my direction after a deer I just shot, and closing in on 60 yards with my crosshairs all over his head. Its Alaska jim, chit happens, and often when you least expect it. I can tell you one thing, it constantly reminds you that your alive!....grin. I wont trade that for nothin!


Oh and I leave May 16th for my annual griz hunt, hope to have some pics for you when I get back!

Now that's funny.

I got a pard that was surrounded, surrounded I tell ya, by eight brownies...and only 10 months ago.