How to hunt brown bears

[Abbe Osram]

Hi Guys,
As this is a UK forum I dont think that too many here have been brown bear hunting but I give it a shot anyhow, maybe someone from the States or Alaska has been hunting it.

I would like to know a little about the type of shotgun would be good choice to buy. What do you think is the right ammo? Slugs or buckshots? Could you tell me something about hunting technics. How do you drop shoot a bear rushing you. My neighbour and I are in disagreement over it. He says that shooting him in the head even with a normal 12 gauge should do the job if one waits long enough, I doubt that and think that the bear still gets to me before I kill him.

thanks
Abbe

 

[pumbaa]

I have to say i would have no idea as to what would drop a bear , But a friend went on a school trip to Alaska and was told some storys about a grizzly that Once it was eventualy killed had a very large assortment of old bullets lodged in its skull . It may have been a story to scare the kids but it makes me think you might want to go for vital organs as opposed to the head .
Pumbaa

 

[C_Claycomb]

Slugs. Don't even consider buckshot for hunting!! Bear are notoriously tough if you annoy them first. A solid, low expansion slug should give you the bone breaking penetration you need. Forget head shots. Your neighbor seems to be thinking about last ditch efforts rather than hunting. Head shots are considered a bad choice for most hunting of large game at anything past spitting distance. Bear skulls are very flat and don't offer much of a target from the front anyway.

I have read of people shooting lion with 12guage, two instances. One with buckshot at 40 yards. The shot barely broke the skin and could be removed with finger preasure. The other was killed instantly when shot up the nose with light bird shot....at about 10feet. I don't know how far away you want to be from this bear of yours, but slugs sound a much better idea!


(Disclaimer No I haven't tried any of this...I just used to be addicted to US hunting magazines )

 

[Stuart]

the choice of fire arm for brown bear hunting is not really relevant to British bushcraft, I am sure there are dedicated hunting forums where this question would be better posed.

Be aware that mentioning firearms repeatedly on the forum changes the security status of the forum in the eyes of many work and educational facility firewall systems.

This would result in people who access the site from work or collage to being unable to view the site.

 

[Abbe Osram]

how is the choice of fire arm for brown bear hunting relevant to British bushcraft?
I am sure there are dedicated hunting forums where this question would be better posed.

Be aware that mentioning firearms repeatedly on the forum changes the security status of the forum in the eyes of many work and educational facility firewall systems.

This would result in people who access the site from work or collage to being unable to view the site.

Hi Stuart,
I am not living in UK but in Lappland Sweden, for me its important. As hunting, fishing, trapping, tanning etc is part of Bushcraft, at least for me. I know we have some guys like me living in Canada, US, Norway, Sweden and I guess Finland too they might know what I am talking about. I placed my question in the fair game second and thought I would be safe against breaking any rules, am I not?


cheers
Abbe

 

[Stuart]

You’re not breaking any rules abbe, I simply wish to bring to your attention that repeatedly talking about fire arms on this forum could result in the forum becoming inaccessible from offices and educational establishments.

Many such establishments run programs which prevent the viewing of sites containing too many references to words placed on their 'banned' list this is something completely beyond our control

Whilst talking about hunting with fire arms is not against the rules these please be considerate and keep in mind that continues fire arm conversation may result in many members being unable to view the site.

 

[Abbe Osram]

You’re not breaking any rules abbe, I simply wish to bring to your attention that repeatedly talking about fire arms on this forum could result in the forum becoming inaccessible from offices and educational establishments.

Many such establishments run programs which prevent the viewing of sites containing too many references to words placed on their 'banned' list this is something completely beyond our control

Whilst talking about hunting with fire arms is not against the rules these please be considerate and keep in mind that continues fire arm conversation may result in many members being unable to view the site.

Ok mate, I understand.

sorry
Abbe

 

[Lurch]

changes the security status of the forum in the eyes of many work and educational facility firewall systems.

Sheesh. What a sad world we live in.

 

[Kane]

Too right

Kane

 

[Abbe Osram]

Stuart, I have a question born out of curiosity and not to start an argument:

What is going to happen if we do a lot of knife talk here in the forum will that not too kick in a protection filter on the servers?

Cheers
Abbe

 

[C_Claycomb]

True, but Stuart has a very good point. My office firewall for email already blocks the most ridiculous number of words and phrases making simple comunication quite difficult at times. Our rules are not even set within our site or even this country, but at the US Corporate level.

Anyway.

I have found http://www.fieldandstream.com and http://www.outdoorlife.com to have some good information. I am sure that there are some US forums that discuss all this stuff with far greater authority (or enthusiasm or something ) than we can muster here.

 

[Stuart]

Stuart, I have a question born out of curiosity and not to start an argument:

What is going to happen if we do a lot of knife talk here in the forum will that not too kick in a protection filter on the servers?

The word knife alone does not appear to incur the wrath of these programs, but if you include words like t.a.c.t.i.c.a.l or w.e.a.p.o.n. along side the word knife. These programs prevent access.

 

[Hoodoo]

Different sized bears present different problems. Large grizzly on left, medium-sized black bear on the right. Note the sloping forehead on both. A side s.h.o.t would be a better choice. However for h.u.n.t.i.n.g., heart and lungs are always the best shot. S.h.o.o.t. at a safe distance.

A charging bear can cover ground very quickly. Big bore is always better. The bigger the bore the better. If it doesn't hurt a LOT to s.h.o.o.t., it's probably too small. If you feel comfortable trying to stop a bear at close yardage with a s.h.o.t.g.u.n, then may the force be with you. Most people would not choose that to hunt big bear. Black bear, maybe. More of a last resort for protection.

Something that will throw a big chunk of lead 100-200 yards with excellent accuracy is a good choice for h.u.n.t.i.n.g.

 

[Spacemonkey]

I would say go for a recoil operated device, such as the excellent Benelli system as opposed to a gas operated semi. These are far more tolerant of varying loads and can cope with lightweight buck or slug without adjustment. I would have thought that slug would be your choice as i believe that you are talking about a defensive situation not an active hunting situation? If not, this is might give you ideas: http://www.fieldandstream.com/fieldstream/shooting/article/0,13199,1007499,00.html The .700 nitro express Holland & Holland job sounds interesting, though at $100 a cartridge might be a little costly...

ps, hopefully nothing to upset the filters, though people at work should be WORKING not reading my drivel. If i was your boss.... Grr.... And students should be studying!!

 

[Abbe Osram]

I would say go for a recoil operated device, such as the excellent Benelli system as opposed to a gas operated semi. These are far more tolerant of varying loads and can cope with lightweight buck or slug without adjustment. I would have thought that slug would be your choice as i believe that you are talking about a defensive situation not an active hunting situation? If not, this is might give you ideas: http://www.fieldandstream.com/fieldstream/shooting/article/0,13199,1007499,00.html The .700 nitro express Holland & Holland job sounds interesting, though at $100 a cartridge might be a little costly...

ps, hopefully nothing to upset the filters, though people at work should be WORKING not reading my drivel. If i was your boss.... Grr.... And students should be studying!!

Thanks mate, its indeed for defence while hunting birds. I want to have some backup ammo which does the job in case my dog hits on a bear and starts running back to me having a brown angry monster on its tail.

cheers
Abbe

 

[Spacemonkey]

Yes, after being charged by a boar a couple of weeks ago, and doing a spiderman impression up a 12ft sheer rock face, I can appreciate your concerns!

 

[stotRE]

I have never hunted bears but i have hunted many wild boars or 'pork senglars' as they are known in Catalonia.

They have a bad temper especially the females with young and i always use a solidshot 12 guage cartridge.

A head shot is a suicide shot as in it will have zero effect.
You need to shoot behind the head and severe the spinal cord this is easy to do as they charge at you with their head down.

I think that a bear probably charges in a similar manner.

For self defence though a shot in the air will scare away a bear so you don't have to kill an animal for no reason.

 

[Spacemonkey]

I think they call them javalinas in my area?? Do you know if they allow bowhunting in Catalonia?

 

[stotRE]

In spanish they are called 'jabalis'.

Unfortunatly mate bowhunting is also banned in Spain.

 

[RovingArcher]

The havalina is a fearsome little beast, but is usually faking when they charge, snapping and popping their teeth, trying to put the offending creature into a quick retreat. They are a favorite of the archery hunting crowd in the US, where it is legal to hunt with bow and arrow.

As for the brown bear. Keep in mind that a brown bear or grizzly can run down a thouroughbred and kill it with one swipe of it's massive paws. That leaves very little time (seconds) for the human to react to a charging bear. Even from a hundred or more yards away. Of course, the closer the bear, the less time you will have to respond. We have stories of hunters being mauled before they can even try to protect themselves. Many archery hunters and fisherman that are hunting without an armed guide carry a short 12ga for bear defense. The first round is buck or 00 and the follow ups are slugs. The first is discharged into the face of the bear to stop it's charge, perhaps daze and blind it for a second. Long enough to pump the others into the bear at close range, bringing the 1200# giant to it's final resting place. The other side is, the bear gets up and has supper.