Update of Pistol Defenses Against Bears 123 Cases, 98% Effective

[M-Tecs]

Update of Pistol Defenses Against Bears 123 Cases, 98% Effective

https://www.ammoland.com/2022/04/update-of-pistol-defenses-against-bears-123-cases-98-effective/?ct=t(RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN)&fbclid=IwAR2sIJlxqJ8hRK2rZ5MadNOIKaWgP_6MTzDit0wWE em60dKHcneQW_hPR9U#axzz7QFtomuwy

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Very interesting article. I guess the moral to the story is: If you're going to prowl around in bear country take a worthy handgun. I notice that the .22 wasn't mentioned! ;)

DG

[Led]

Interesting that the calibers primarily used were 44 mag or smaller.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

We have plenty of black bears in these parts, many right in town. And i do get out in the woods a fair bit. Reading this convinces me i should always be armed with a suitable handgun. I'll need some proper leather for my SBH and Bisley.

[Divil]

The article certainly reinforced the idea that while a pistol may not be ideal, if it is all the defender has it can be and often will be effectively used in bear attacks.

[megasupermagnum]

The very first one just goes to show how little people know, and how much these shootings are about panic, not actual defense. This guy thinks he was honestly charged by a pissed off bear.

In reality he bumped a bear, probably taking nap, she chattered her teeth, as bears do when spooked. He then panicked, shot her, and for some reason shot the cub too. He probably flung his soiled underwear, then proceeded into town to tell everyone how brave he is. I'm not saying I'd do better, but this was not a life or death scenario.

[M-Tecs]

The very first one just goes to show how little people know, and how much these shootings are about panic, not actual defense. This guy thinks he was honestly charged by a pissed off bear.

In reality he bumped a bear, probably taking nap, she chattered her teeth, as bears do when spooked. He then panicked, shot her, and for some reason shot the cub too. He probably flung his soiled underwear, then proceeded into town to tell everyone how brave he is. I'm not saying I'd do better, but this was not a life or death scenario.

Interesting you know all of that from an event that happened in the Spring of 1961 to a professional bear hunter?????? Sounds more like he was setting, checking or baiting his traps when the encounter happened. As too the cub being killed Washington State and the timber companies had a bounty on bears at that time. Killing bears was his job.

https://www.ammoland.com/2022/04/update-of-pistol-defenses-against-bears-123-cases-98-effective/#ixzz7QPamOFde


Spring, 1961, Washington State, Grays Harbor County, .357 magnum, black bear, From The Education of a Bear Hunter by Ralph Flowers p. 115,116

I was standing in a little clearing about fifteen feet in diameter and I couldn’t see the bear until she burst out of the thicket, heading straight for me, clicking her teeth like castanets. I saw black in my sights and pulled the trigger and the old bear skidded to a halt, right at my feet. I put another bullet into the yearling, and then I sat down on the log by the trap, my heart thumping as I realized how close I had been to tangling with that mad sow bear.

I walked over to look at the mother bear and saw that my bullet had hit her directly in the top center of the nose, just below the eyes, and had gone straight into her brain, killing her instantly.

The author, Ralph Flowers, was severely mauled twice in his professional bear hunting career. In both cases, he did not have his .357 revolver with him.


https://www.skinnymoose.com/racktracker/2007/09/18/the-education-of-a-bear-hunter/

This book is a first person account by Ralph Flowers of his career as a professional bear hunter in Western Washington on the Olympic peninsula. While Ralph worked for a private timber company, his experience in spot and stalk and hound hunting bears is a valuable lesson to the sport hunter today. Ralph lived in a remote cabin, with his wife and family. The black and white photographs included in the book are worth the purchase price alone. I bought the book while in college for the hound hunting stories alone. I never expected to glean so much first hand knowledge of bear behavior.

The fact that Ralph professionally accounted for over 1000 bear kills shocks many readers. In this area where bear densities were resulting in thousands of stripped trees, depredation was the only means available at the time. I found this comment below on the reviews section of the Amazon page and I thought it gave an interesting perspective about the person Ralph Flowers.

” This man was my uncle. He is not long dead. He died only recently…. he loved bears so much that he is the primary reason bears are no longer hunted for killing trees. You see, he researched and developed a food that when put out in areas where the bears are a nuisance, it keeps them from harming the trees because they are full due to his food. He is only telling how things were back in his day when he was a professional bear hunter. This is how he clothed and fed his family. He was also an artist who loved to paint beautiful paintings of animals and also sculpted them out of wood. He traveled the world as an older man finding ways of conserving bears. I found his book very interesting for me because this is where I was raised and hearing about the early days of his hunting was very enlightening for me. It is early pioneers who pave the way for others to follow. If not for this gentle and extremely talented man, Weyerhauser would still be paying professional bear hunters to hunt them down and kill them. This book is very educational as to these methods that were used, but is also told very straight forward. He does not sugar coat anything. This is how he brought attention to the plight of the North American Black Bear.”

I think anyone who is a student of wildlife management should read this book as a glimpse into how our views of wildlife and their role in the ecosystem have changed. It also pays tribute to the days when we were still “exploring” the wild parts of the West for timber and other resources. The emphasis today has changed to a more “hands-off” approach to resource management rather than the “rough and tumble” ways of our grandfathers whose stories captivated us when they built the Al-Can Highway, the Alaska Pipeline, the Transcontinental Railroad. They weren’t out to destroy the resource, but their focus was more on achieving a goal of building a nation. Now that they accomplished that, we have the task of balancing nature and the wild with expanding development.

Education of a Bear Hunter by Ralph Flowers is 320 pages in paperback published by Binford & Mort Publishing. You may find it on Amazon.com or in a used bookstore near you.

[armoredman]

I am glad all we have down here are brown bears, and they tend to be smaller, and far away from the desert. If I was to spend serious time in bear country, I might buy a 10mm!

[dverna]

M-Tecs, thanks for posting that. I just ordered the book.

[TurnipEaterDown]

"M-Tecs", Thanks for the post.
Skimming the article, it looks to be well written (the comments on the reporting of incidents is spot on in the type of things a good researcher/reporter would consider).

It helps dispel the '...well even though I never experienced, or read factual accounts of...I know...' static.

I used to spend a lot of time for a "normal" person in the woods. My father would rather have been picking mushrooms, berries, fishing, hunting, or cutting wood than anything else. For much of my childhood I went with him as much as possible.
While I have only seen 4 or so black bears while out & about (not hunting), and most of those in a car driving to/from some place "remote", my father related of seeing many and having one chase him out of a berry patch after popping up on the other side of a bramble.

Me, I have never practiced pulling a pistol/revolver out of a holster quickly, and so believe in general it would do me little good. The bear could probably take time to consider if a side of berry or tuber was the best complement to my carcass, and still get me...
However, I have wanted a 4" or so 44 special DA revolver for a long time, and maybe this is an excuse... :)

[Bmi48219]

?….If you're going to prowl around in bear country take a worthy handgun. I notice that the .22 wasn't mentioned! ;)DG

A single shot 22 rifle took the 1953 world record polar bear.

https://www.ammoland.com/2017/06/bella-twin-the-22-used-to-take-the-1953-world-record-grizzly-and-more/#axzz7QRbcqfcW

[Sig]

A single shot 22 rifle took the 1953 world record polar bear.

https://www.ammoland.com/2017/06/bella-twin-the-22-used-to-take-the-1953-world-record-grizzly-and-more/#axzz7QRbcqfcW

That was a grizzly.

[Bmi48219]

That was a grizzly.

You’re right! I Had polar on my brain. Making the point all the more appropriate.
I first saw that story researching my brother’s Cooey training rifle.

[M-Tecs]

M-Tecs, thanks for posting that. I just ordered the book.

I did the same. The paperback was cheaper but I found a hardback in nice shape for not much more.

[charlie b]

The bulk of that could convince me that a 9mm with the right bullets is plenty. IF I am able to draw and shoot well enough under pressure.

[FergusonTO35]

The bulk of that could convince me that a 9mm with the right bullets is plenty. IF I am able to draw and shoot well enough under pressure.

9mm FMJ or hard cast will penetrate into next week and allows for alot of follow up shots in a hurry. I am honest in admitting that I can't shoot big bores worth a hoot so my Glock 19 would be my choice.

[Jtarm]

I can’t get past the genius who almost emptied his magazine firing warning shots, leaving him with 2 rounds to stop the charging bear.

Smart.