Just Outside Soldotna, Alaska

[Ray S S]

Greetings, here is an email I received yesterday, Tuesday, Sept. 28th. Not sure if it is brand new or not, but the story
and pics are pretty good.

It goes as follows:

Just Outside Soldotna, Alaska

King season is over, and since I had the day off before silvers start, I thought I would go for a walk. This occurred
at 11:16 AM this morning (Sunday), just 2/10 of a mile from my house ON OUR ROAD while walking my dogs (ironically trying to get in shape for hunting season) for the record. This is a residential area-not back in the woods. No bow hunting.
No stealth occurring.

I heard a twig snap and looked back. Full-on-charge a huge brownie, ears back, head low, and motoring full speed! Came
with zero warning; no woof, no popping of teeth, no standing up, nothing like what you think or see on TV! It charged
from less than 20 yards and was on me in about one-second! Totally surreal! I started shooting in his general direction.
And Praise God that my second shot (or was it my third?) rolled him at 5 feet and he skidded to a stop 10 feet BEYOND
where I was shooting from. I actually sidestepped him and fell over backwards on the last shot. And his momentum
carried him to a stop past where I fired my first shot.

It was a prehistoric old boar. No teeth. No fat. Weighed between 900-1000 lbs, and took five men to DRAG it onto
a tilt-bed trailer. Big bear! It's paw measured out a 9 1/2 footer!

Never-ever-thought 'it' would happen to me! It's always some other schmuck....Right?

Well, no bull. I am still high on adrenaline. With my gut in a knot (felt like I did 1000 crunches without stopping)!
Almost puked for an hour after, Had the burps and couldn't even stand up as the troopers conducted their
investigation! Totally wiped me out. Can't even put that feeling into words. By far the most emotion I have
ever felt at once.

No doubt that God was with me, as I brought my Ruger .454 Casull (and some "hot" 350 grain solids) just for the
heck of it. And managed to draw and snap shoot (pointed, never even aimed) from the hip. Total luck shot!

All I can say is Praise God for my safety and for choosing to leave my wife and kids at home on this walk!

Now, if Hillary, or Barry Hussein, or anyone else in this administration starts making noises about taking away
your right to protect yourself with a gun, we need to let them know where we stand. VERY QUICKLY!!!

 

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[Blacksheep]

WOW! Had that happened to me I would have no need for coffee for the next six months! That paw/claws are
huge! Thanks for sharing.

 

[RJGMC]

HOLY COW!

That is the first wall to wall bearskin rug I have ever seen!

That is one massive animal.

Thanks for sharing the story.

Bob

 

[Old Town]

Great story and a great picture. In such a pinch, I'll choose Dick Casull's big cartridge over god any day.

OT

 

[kc10bull]

Wow! you are a lucky. That's alotta bear. What are your plans for him?

 

[Dano Sverige]

There was one doing the "blog" rounds a few years ago,also in Alaska, which was double the size of that bear! It'd already killed and eaten a couple of guys,one of who had emptied 6 .38's into it! Can't imagine something that size bearing down on me and looking down forlornly at my .38 cal.

 

[Old Town]

There was one doing the "blog" rounds a few years ago,also in Alaska, which was double the size of that bear! It'd already killed and eaten a couple of guys,one of who had emptied 6 .38's into it! Can't imagine something that size bearing down on me and looking down forlornly at my .38 cal.

A .38 is all you need to solve your problem. Shoot yourself in the head and suffer a more pleasant and quicker death. This is my advice on being charged by a Grizzly and armed with a model 10.

OT

 

[packerbacker]

We drive thru Soldotna every time we go to AK. It's between Anchorage and Homer. Lots of bears and moose. A noticeable lack of deer. Towns are all small; you are through them in a minute and nothing but wilderness beyond. If you pull over to relieve yourself you always want to keep an eye out for the critters. We're never armed when we go up there because we usually just head to the ocean but most residents will carry a sidearm when trekking through the woods. Dang moose will attack you as readily as a bear. Thanks for sharing the pics. Helps reinforce my "watch out" mentality.

 

[Monty]

Most people don't realize the size and tenacity of a mature brown bear. I didn't until I saw one that had been mounted in an upright position with mouth open and teeth with huge arms and claws bared. It scared me just seeing it and looking up at it's height and size. They use to tell you that if you are in bear country to carry at least a .44 magnum revolver. But now days the experts say that the .44 mag is insufficient to a really enraged bear intent on doing your harm. Alaskan fishing guides who work in bear country in the salmon season usually carry a shotgun with slugs. And as far as handguns, they tell you that if you must, you need something with more power and the Casull falls into that category. Unless your are an accomplished shooter, most people I know really can't handle the Casull because of the recoil. Even the guys who can shoot it respectfully don't like to go plinking with it as you might a .38. That old bear with the condition he was in was I am sure just in search of an easy meal. Unfortunately a pink skinned human is much easier to kill than a moose, so you were very lucky. Great post! Monty

 

[Ray S S]

Blacksheep, yup, that paw with those big claws would do some awful damage if he connected with you. You are welcome
and thanks for your comment.

Bob, Thanks, and that is a pretty hefty handgun. Thanks for your reply.

kc10bull, yup, this guy was really lucky. This was an email to me so I don't know any more of the details. Thanks

Dano, yeah, that is pretty small to stop a large bear if he is charging at you. Thank you for your reply.

PB, Wow that would be a wonderful trip. I have always been interested in Alaska. My niece, who was living there while her
husband, being in the Army, was stationed there. She said that most of the people there carried sidearms all the time. She
saw several bears, but not close-up, but the moose would come up close to their house. She had to keep close eye on
her little daughter to keep her from getting hurt by the moose. Thank you for your interesting reply.

Monty, yes, I too, have seen them mounted standing up with paws outstretched and mouth open like they are growling
and they are pretty ferocious. I grew up in black bear country but never had any encounter with any out in the woods. I had
friends that have shot them and have eaten bear meat. This guy in the email landed some very lucky shots considering
such a surprising charge. I am glad that you liked the story and pics. Thank you for your nice reply.

Ray

 

[bigscoop]

There's a video of an all out bear charge on youtube attacking a hunting party (can't post it here because it's been disabled by request, has to be seen on youtube) amazing how fast it can happen, even more amazing how fast the guide reacts.

 

[Dano Sverige]

Finally got off my a$$ and tracked down the bear i was talking about earlier.

The pictures are of a man who works for the US Forest Service in Alaska and his trophy bear.

He was out deer hunting when a large grizzly bear charged him from about 50 yards away. The guy emptied his 7mm Magnum semi-automatic rifle into the bear and it dropped a few feet from him. The big bear was still alive so he reloaded and shot it several times in the head.

The bear was just over one thousand six hundred pounds It stood 12' 6" high at the shoulder, 14' to the top of his head. It's the largest grizzly bear ever recorded in the world.

Of course, the Alaska Fish and Wildlife Commission did not let him keep it as a trophy, but the bear will be stuffed and mounted, and placed on display at the Anchorage airport to remind tourists of the risks involved when in the wild.

Based on the contents of the bears stomach, the Fish and Wildlife Commission established the bear had killed at least two humans in the past 72 hours including a missing hiker.

The US Forest Service, backtracking from where the bear had originated, found the hiker's 38-caliber pistol emptied. Not far from the pistol was the remains of the hiker. The other body has not been found.

Although the hiker fired six shots and managed to hit the grizzly with four shots (the Service ultimately found four 38 caliber slugs along with twelve 7mm slugs inside the bear's dead body), it only wounded the bear and probably angered it immensely.

The bear killed the hiker an estimated two days prior to the bear's own death by the gun of the Forest Service worker.

Think about this:

If you are an average size man; You would be level with the bear's navel when he stood upright. The bear would look you in the eye when it walked on all fours! To give additional perspective, consider that this particular bear, standing on its hind legs, could walk up to an average single story house and look over the roof, or walk up to a two story house and look in the bedroom windows

"That's bigger than the average bear boo boo"!!

 

[bigscoop]

Dano......I wonder how much ground a charging bear that size can cover in just a few leaps? Even at say, 50 yards, I've heard they can cover that distance in a flash.

 

[Old Town]

I once saw a movie shot of archer Fred Bear arrowing a brown bear solidly through both lungs. Perfect shot for a broadhead. The bear took off running and it looked like a quarter horse it was so fast. Maybe faster than a quarter horse. Luckily it ran away from Fred Bear the shooter or the film would have been even better. This bear ran like a scolded dog for about 300 yards before folding up. All caught on film.

I came away amazed by how fast the stupid bear was. Had he charged the 40 yards back at the archer, even a rifleman on ready would have been challenged. I shoot rifles a whole bunch and would not feel able to center a bear's brain pan with one shot as he came in bobbing and weaving and very fast.

OT

 

[DigginThePast]

Here ya go. S&W .500 Magnum. Fun to shoot.

 

[Dano Sverige]

I had the same concerns TT,then realised i enjoyed upsetting people,and posted anyway!

Never gave it a moments thought actually. The guy with the crappy .38 probably wasn't a hunter either...didn't seem to faze the bear one bit!

 

[trikikiwi]

I saw 'Soldotna' - and all I could think of was THE COUNTER

Mike

 

[Old Town]

I had the same concerns TT,then realised i enjoyed upsetting people,and posted anyway!

Never gave it a moments thought actually. The guy with the crappy .38 probably wasn't a hunter either...didn't seem to faze the bear one bit!

Now if the .38 guy had just capped himself as I suggested earlier he'd have suffered a great deal less. Being torn apart by a big bear with bad breath is not something I'd dig on. I'd rather shoot myself.

Nobody ever listens to good advice.

OT

 

[Dano Sverige]

Originally there was a pic of mr .38cal's body when they found him.He wasn't "torn apart",he was in remarkably good shape apart from being dead that is! Yogi had eaten his right leg to the bone...but other than that there didn't seem to be a lot wrong,suggesting he was swiped by one of those tree trunk arms,which broke his neck or something. Maybe he died of fright? I would have!!!

 

[The Beep Goes On]

There are a lot of griz coming down out of Yellowstone onto my mom's property in WY. They've always been around, but they are coming down to the lowlands quite frequently now and are seen often. I think I will get her some appropriate Xmas gifts (bear spray, short semi-auto 12ga with slugs). She's 72, but tough as nails.

If you saw the post about the ranch burning down, this is the new house going up...