Seen this morn on the Outdoor Channel - Brown Bear Hunt

[Teknys]

It was in Alaska of course - Coastal Brown Bears. Lot's of glassing from vantage points. The two hunts that were a stalk / ambush after the spotting. One was with a bow at very close range - succesful and exciting.

The other wasn't succesful but it was his weapon of choice that I was sondering about.
Don't know the specifics but the gun was BIG and scope was even BIGGER. Looked like a baseball bat on top. Bi-pod for sitting. This appeared to me to be too combersome for this style of hunting or does one actually try to shoot a Brown Bear from distance. Never been bear hunting so I'm curious about the style of weapon you would use in Alaska for these big bears.

Anybody hunt there or this way? It's the kind of hunt us stateside here just would dream about. Maybe I have it all wrong in my head what it might be like.

 

[Thebear_78]

Built this with bears in mind. Rem 700 in 375 RUM, 3-9 Ziess with backup peep. Running 260 AccuBond or 270 TSX @ 3000fps.

That said depending on area I would gladly use most any of my big game rifles. If hunting in heavy cover a bigger bore like 45/70 loaded hot or a 416-458 would feel better when watching 1k pound monsters under 100 yards!


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[Anonymous]

I've seen several rigs built up for coastal bears.... some fanciful, some not so much.

The ones I made up were all pretty similar- 2 .375Rugers, a .375H&H, and a .416Rigby. Everything wore a low powered scope in the 1-6x or 1-5x class except one of the Rugers which had an aperture sight instead but it was mostly to back up another buddy on his hunt.

My friend Bill took his Kodiak bear in Uyak Bay with a .300RUM....at bayonet range and a couple other friends took bears at 150yds and change with a .375 and a .325WSM. I just can't see hunting brown bears at long range... just too much "if" involved. One really harrowing follow up in the alder thickets in spring snow convinced me that was enough of that.

Never managed to shoot a coastal bear myself and pretty much just chase grizzlies as targets of opportunity now... and my .300 is just fine for that.

 

[Teknys]

Thanks for the feedback / info.

 

[Vince]

I've always thought the idea of hunting brown bear was to do it up close and personal not from afar.
It's called dangerous game for a reason. Don't take the thrill of it out by sniping from long distance. Save the long shots for deer, antelope, and elk.
That's my opinion and I'm sticking to it. I've not yet hunted dangerous game so I reserve the right to change my opinion after I experience it.

Vince

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[Blkram]

I've read a lot of different articles and stories of hunting brown bears over the years, and although I have not hunted them myself, I have taken a grizzly bear here in northeastern BC, at 8 yards, and helped Dr. Mike take his first grizzly bear, at 140 yards, and was with him when he tried to get his second (and I've taken a number of black bears and assisted quite a few friends collect blackies over the years). I have come across a couple of big old grizzlies over the years that would be 8'+ bears that would weigh close to 1000 lbs. I wear a size 11 boot, and when I can place my boot completely within the rear pad of their tracks with plenty of room to spare, and that does not include their toe pads, you know you've got a large bear!

My Dad has also guided hunters for grizzly bears for over 40 years, and they are the one animal that he just does not like to guide for. He says that they are too smart and dangerous to hunt at long range, and never hunt them from a lower elevation if it can be helped. Maximum range to shoot at one is 100-150 yards, and you want them to be unaware that you exist when you take the shot, and shoot again, even if you are sure that it is dead. He's seen too many "dead" bears come alive as you approach the downed animal. For the most part, he never carried a back up rifle, just an axe. He also says, do not throw a rock or stick at the downed bear, throw your hat or jacket...the response of the "dead\' bear is more likely and quicker! But better yet, shoot it again for safe measure. The guides that I've talked to and read about over the years have mostly echoed these same sentiments. Most of the old timers would not let their hunters shoot at an unwounded grizzly or brown bear beyond 100 yards.

I believe the minimum caliber that should be used is 30 cal, with premium bullets of at least 180 grains. The larger calibers with heavier bullets are preferred, and I feel more comfortable with a 338 caliber and a minimum 210 gr bullet at about 2400 fps. This makes the 338 Federal/356/358 Winchester good minimums in my book. (Yes, a well placed bullet from a smaller caliber with a lighter bullet will kill a grizzly bear, and I've met people who have had to use their 30-30 because that is what they had, but it would not be the best choice for a deliberate grizzly bear hunt). I built my 376 Steyr and have a great load with the 260gr AB (but also have a 416 Taylor that would be a great choice for a brown bear hunt using the 350 gr Swift A-Frame) to be used for my next grizzly hunt, when that day arrives, but use my 358 Win in a BLR as my camp/back up guide rifle, and look forward to also using my new commissioned rifle in 338 Federal for the same purpose.

And a grizzly/brown bear rifle should be quick handling, with enough power to perform as required, and the hunter should be very familiar with handling that rifle in all types of circumstances, should one have to enter the thick stuff, while following up a wounded bear. A large, cumbersome, and unfamiliar rifle in such circumstances would be the last thing you want in your hands.

As for scopes, use something with a large field of view for close work, but enough magnification and quality to work for low light conditions and those shots out to 100-150 yards. A quality piece of glass
such as a 1-4, 2-7, 2.5-8 will work just fine. I use these power ranges in scopes from Leupold and Tijicon on my rifles.

Better to be prepared for the worst and experience the best of events, than be unprepared and experience the worst of events when hunting grizzly/brown bears. The thrill of hunting dangerous game should be in the hunt of the bear, not in the fear and worst of outcomes when dealing with these powerful and intelligent animals.

I've seen quite a few hunting shows where grizzly bears and brown bears have been shot at long range, and just do not think that this is a good practice. For every one of those successful hunts shown on TV, I always wonder how many unsuccessful hunts are not shown???

Experience the hunt, and get closer. You will earn your trophy and experience a better hunt. Most people will never appreciate how far a wounded grizzly or brown bear can go, or how quickly, until they have to climb up the side of an alder choked hillside for 400 or 500 yards, only to find their bear long gone and now they have the unenviable task of following that wounded bear, that now has a half hour head start, to the conclusion of the hunt.

 

[Thebear_78]

Accidental double post

 

[Thebear_78]

This is a picture taken just outside my tent while moose hunting up near fairbanks. These interior bears are generally not as large as the coastal bears I normally see while black bear hunting but can still be impressive, especially when you know it was prowling around your text the night before. For the record my size 15 mud boots leave a very large footprint.

I agree shooting a bear outside of a couple hundred yards is a very bad idea. Generally your up high when you can see that far and the prospect of tracking a bear on steep ground is terrifying.

My buddy punched one a tad far back a few years ago and tracking it thru the thick brush was easily one of the scariest situation I have ever been in. Thick alders where you could see the talker ones moving but still not the bear less than 20 yards away. We backed out and even after going in the next day never recovered the bear.

I passed up a very nice interior frizz because it didn't give me the angle I wanted at just over 200 yards. I didn't have faith in my 180gr Partition out of my 300 win punching thru the near shoulder and had no desire to go into the thick hillside below the bear where I'm sure he would have wound up. No knock on the Partition I've just seen them stopped in bony spine and shoulder joints too many times in moose, with proper placement they work with the surety of taxes, and that bear didn't give me the shot I liked. It was a gorgeous blond bear with chocolate legs. It would have made an excellent rug.

The 30 cal 180gr bullet minimum is a good rule of thumb on the bigger bears and as long as you can handle it there is no maximum. When being charged my 375 RUM felt "puny". That's one of the reasons I'm having a 458 lott put together.

A lot of times while bear hunting I take more of a backup position as I try to get my kids or other less experienced hunters a crack at blackies over bait. I generally still get the meat and one can only have so many rugs. I would like to put a good brown bear on my wall one of these days, but time off is a premium and filling the freezer with moose generally takes priority.

Hopefully I'll get a crack at a good one this spring! Last year the kenai Fire ruined my spring season.


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[Anonymous]

A lot of good commentary here. Thanks.

I've seen one really honest 8'+ bear in the Interior and he was easily one of the largest I've seen anywhere. My friend shot at it 3x...swore he hit and we followed the tracks in snow for over a mile. Never saw a drop of blood but that was easily the scariest mile I've ever walked. I was actually pretty happy he missed it when all was said and done.

I wrote it up: http://hodgemansoutdoors.blogspot.com/2011/05/vanishingtracking-grizzly.html

Another friend of mine dumped one at 700 yards and change with a .338 Lapua. It worked...but I never thought that was much of a way for a bear to die.

Most of our Interior griz are in the 5-7' range and what they lack in size they make up for in grump. I got charged once from a bear from well over a 1/4 mi away. He broke it off about the time I was getting ready to dump him with the .375. Oddly in areas where they have a lot of pressure they tend to be very leery of folks. The first sight, sound, smell or intuition a person is around and they make tracks. We had one messing around in camp one night last year and I just let out a quiet, baritone "hey bear" and he rocketed out of camp like he was on fire.

Coastal bears on salmon streams can be pretty tolerant of people and other bears...I guess when they're on plentiful food they just adjust to other folks in their area. We see them in Valdez pretty regular when the fish are running and there is usually a gong show of people with cameras.

 

[skidmark]

Built this with bears in mind. Rem 700 in 375 RUM, 3-9 Ziess with backup peep. Running 260 AccuBond or 270 TSX @ 3000fps.

That said depending on area I would gladly use most any of my big game rifles. If hunting in heavy cover a bigger bore like 45/70 loaded hot or a 416-458 would feel better when watching 1k pound monsters under 100 yards!


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Awesome gun
I can tell you know whats going on.
Skid

 

[super-7]

I watched that one episode of best of the west in Alaska. The guide was less then impressed with having to take out a guy with a 7mm RM and Berger bullets. Maybe it was made for TV contraversy, the outfitter and the guide went round and round finally the guide agreed to do it against his better judgement. They put him on a decent bruin and I can't remember the yardage but it was somewhere around 500 if memory serves. Of course a one shot kill , like all the hunting shows...
Of course they got to flash back to the mistified guide that just can't believe his eyes. I. Was bored I guess it was entertainment, better then Oprah or Dr.Phil I guess.
I agree up close 100 and under, one to be sure of what your looking at, two to insure proper shot placement.