Posted on 08/29/2011 11:09:26 AM PDT by marktwain
A grizzly bear killed a Michigan man whose body was found by hikers last week in Yellowstone National Park, officials said Monday.
The victim was identified Monday as John Wallace of Chassell, Mich.
(Excerpt) Read more at npr.org ...
Thanks to the Bush regime, Americans now CAN carry according to the laws of the state in which the national park is located.
A CCW permit allows one to carry in National Parks where ‘Open carry’ is not allowed
He had just returned from a trip to Glacier National Park in Montana.
. Since he was an avid jogger I ask about hiking in the park. He said the scenery and views from the trails was almost beyond words.
Being a hunter I ask about grizzlies. He said the only bears he saw were at a great distance.
Being a inquisitive man he had ask a ranger how they dealt with problem bears, namely grizzlies. In the case of self defense the ranger said they used 12 gauge pump guns with extension magazine tubes with a birdshot shell in the chamber followed by a slug, then birdshot followed by a slug and alternating the two until the tube was full.
Since he and I had never discussed firearms before I assumed he meant buckshot not birdshot. When I ask him about this his reply was "no it was birdshot for the first shot aimed at the bears face with the intent to blind the bear. Followed by a slug aimed for a vital organ. The 3rd shot was birdshot aimed at the face and eyes, followed by a slug to the vitals. As told to him by the ranger."
Over the 30+ years he was my doctor I never knew him to joke or yank my chain with a story like this.
I have never heard or read about birdshot followed by a slug used to dispatch a problem grizzly.
Perhaps someone else has heard of this "method".
“With their 2.5 to 3.0 inch forehead?”
Did you just make that up?
JC
I previously read a very convincing article recommending
revolvers over pistols for bears because if a bear manages
to overrun you, his hair will clog that slide action on pistols.
That would render you helpless, while the more “primitive”
revolver action could keep firing away. Made sense to me!
JC
Yep, and US Army Corps of Engineering are next!
JC
That doesn’t sound credible to me. Once you decide to fire on dangerous animals of any type, it is purely shoot to kill after that! I could imagine a beanbag or fire cracker until he charges, then it is all-out kill shots.
JC
We used no 9 birdshot to shoot at a bears sensitive paws. Stinging such was usually enough to run off a bear who had violated the space an wouldn’t leave. Association of human noise an pain was a lesson they learned quick.
I never staggered such a load when I carried a pump shotgun but first round was a number 9 birdshot.
I was taught later on in a violent charge you may have time for 2 fast shots if suprised. A double was a very short handy package an two firing pins was better than one as well.
A bear will trash you before he bleeds out from even a vital hit to heart OT lungs etc.....
The stop shot I was taught was go for that big ole wet soft nose on the critter with a slug first an OO buck second.
A Ruger Super Redhawk in 454/45 loaded with garretts hammerheads is a very good hand gun choice yet I think I’d stick with the double 12 Ga . Mine was an old American Gun Company Knickerbocker with 18.legal length barrels that was degreased an lightly coated with rustolium as a finish on the exterior an lubed with zippo lighter fluid that after it evaporated made the best lube that wouldn’t freeze up in extreme cold.
My choice if I was back in big grizzly country would be a double 12Ga and a lightweight SW 329PD 44mag loaded with 200grain hardcast hand loads for that specific scandium variant of the 29.
Its a fast hard hitting controllable rig if your primary long gun is out of hand for whatever reason when such a threat of pissed off bear should present itself......
Always a last resort exercise of three to five seconds so practice that nose or snoot shoot ......
My opinion....an what I’ve seen an done.
Stay Safe.
LOL
Perhaps too many PBS documentaries...I know I’ve heard it more than once.....HOWEVER!
Trying to find data to support that now.....on google or bing....
After sifting through dozens of sources, NOBODY is will to provide a measurement or a typical Griz skull thickness....
I’ve never heard of using birdshot. Sounds wrong to me. Birdshot is a very poor penetrator, even at close ranges, and the pattern at a distance is probably too open to guarantee blinding the bear.
I don’t like the idea of blinding the bear anyway. You could easily end up with a blind and very mad bear that can still track you down by smell. Also, I’d hate to have blinded the bear without killing it, and then have it run off. Maybe you only get one eye?
Who knows what will happen then? It might come upon someone else...
I see potential disaster with birdshot.
If you want more pellets, then maybe go with smaller buckshot, like #4 buck. And alternate that with slugs.
Not enough penetration, and you are unlikely to get off more than a couple of well placed shots if surprised by a grizzly.
Those couple shots need to be powerful.
25mph is about 36 feet per second. A bear that is 30 yards from you, will reach you in well under 3 seconds if makes an effort. More like 2 seconds, because they can really move when they charge.
You need to draw and aim and fire in under two seconds for a bear that is 30 yards away and charging you.
Even if he’s a whole football field away, he’s going to be on you in just a few seconds. Plus, when he’s farther away, he’s a smaller target. They have been clocked at 35mph in a charge, which is 51 feet per second. Meaning just 6 seconds to cover a football field.
Regarding the use of handguns when in a ‘furball fight’, the autoloading pistol is subject to:
1. Pressure on the Beastie’s furry body may move the slide out of battery, thus rendering the gun useless.
2. Autoloaders, with very few exceptions, do not produce as much muzzle energy, penetration, etc. as do revolvers. If you own a Wildey, please ignore the last line.
However, a revolver being fired in a mass of fur may well have the hammer are full of fur, thus either slowing the hammer to the point where the primer won’t fire, or the hammer may be completely blocked.
When in brownie territory, having a companion with the same rifle/revolver you have makes survival much more likely. While Bruin is beatin’ on you, your companion can use his/her guns to end the Bad Bruin Behavior (BBB) incident.
Something people should understand about predators in the area now:
Your report is entirely accurate - for 40 years ago. Back then, wolves had not been re-introduced, bears were rare and *scared* of man.
Today, the situation is far, far different. Wolves are spreading out all over the northwest US - they’re in WY, MT, ID, WA, UT, OR, and I’ve heard of at least one sighting in northeast NV.
Grizzlies are now much more numerous than they were 40 years ago, and they know that humans don’t put up much resistance - that we’ve been conditioned to back off now.
People should read the journals of Lewis and Clark to find out what bears were like “back in the day” before we pushed them back.
“Do NOT feed the bears...”
Not even the Chicago Bears. Go Lions!
Forget I asked...I found no definitive answers either, except 2.5 - 3.0 inches would be about 20% of the average grizz skull length which wouldn’t leave much room for the brain. Bear skulls are highly sloped which is problematic. The largest Kodiak skull was approx 30 inches long, so I guess it varies widely, eh?
JC
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.