Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

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JimT
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Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by Ben_Rumson »

Whoa! That's one hearty fellow... Hearty enough to carry a 12ga pump one would think...
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by Old Ironsights »

According to his Facebook post he didn't have time/couldn't get to his pistol for the first attack, and the second attack separated the gun in its holster from his body.
I thought that if she came back a third time I would be dead, so I had to do something. Staying in position on the ground, I slowly reached under my chest to grab at the pistol I was unable to get to earlier. I felt I needed something to save my life. The pistol wasn't there. I groped around again but nothing. I wiped the blood from one eye and looked around.
No bear.
The pistol and holster were lying five feet to my left. The bear's ferocious bites and pulling had ripped the straps from the pack and the holster attached to it.
Dummy had his gun attached to his pack... no wonder he couldn't get to it.

And frankly, after the first attack you wouldn't have been able to pry the revolver out of my hand without sedating me... but I'm funny that way.
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by JimT »

Here's his full story ..

Grizzly 10/1/16
Hello everyone.
Thought I should share yesterday morning's Grizzly incident.
I took an early morning hike in the Madison valley to scout for elk. Knowing that bears are common throughout southwest Montana, I hollered out "hey bear" about every 30 seconds so as to not surprise any bears along the trail.
About three miles in, I stepped out into an open meadow and hollered again. A few more steps and I spotted a sow Grizzly bear with cubs on the trail at the upper end of the meadow. The sow saw me right away and they ran a short distance up the trail. But suddenly she turned and charged straight my way. I yelled a number of times so she knew I was human and would hopefully turn back. No such luck. Within a couple seconds, she was nearly on me. I gave her a full charge of bear spray at about 25 feet. Her momentum carried her right through the orange mist and on me.
I went to my face in the dirt and wrapped my arms around the back of my neck for protection. She was on top of me biting my arms, shoulders and backpack. The force of each bite was like a sledge hammer with teeth. She would stop for a few seconds and then bite again. Over and over. After a couple minutes, but what seemed an eternity, she disappeared.
Stunned, I carefully picked myself up. I was alive and able to walk so I headed back down the trail towards the truck 3 miles below. As I half hiked and jogged down the trail, I glanced at my injuries. I had numerous bleeding puncture wounds on my arms and shoulder but I knew I would survive and thanked god for getting me through this. I hoped the bleeding wasn't too significant. I really didn't want to stop to dress the wounds. I wanted to keep moving and put distance between us.
About five or ten minutes down the trail, I heard a sound and turned to find the Griz bearing down at 30 feet. She either followed me back down the trail or cut through the trees and randomly came out on the trail right behind me. Whatever the case, she was instantly on me again. I couldn't believe this was happening a second time! Why me? I was so lucky the first attack, but now I questioned if I would survive the second.
Again I protected the back of my neck with my arms, and kept tight against the ground to protect my face and eyes. She slammed down on top of me and bit my shoulder and arms again. One bite on my forearm went through to the bone and I heard a crunch. My hand instantly went numb and wrist and fingers were limp and unusable. The sudden pain made me flinch and gasp for breath. The sound triggered a frenzy of bites to my shoulder and upper back. I knew I couldn't move or make a sound again so I huddled motionless. Another couple bites to my head and a gash opened above my ear, nearly scalping me. The blood gushed over my face and into my eyes. I didn't move. I thought this was the end. She would eventually hit an artery in my neck and I would bleed out in the trail... But I knew that moving would trigger more bites so a laid motionless hoping it would end.
She suddenly stopped and just stood on top of me. I will never forgot that brief moment. Dead silence except for the sound of her heavy breathing and sniffing. I could feel and her breath on the back of my neck, just inches away. I could feel her front claws digging into my lower back below my backpack where she stood. I could smell the terrible pungent odor she emitted. For thirty seconds she stood there crushing me. My chest was smashed into the ground and forehead in the dirt. When would the next onslaught of biting began. I didn't move.
And then she was gone.
I tried to peek out without moving but my eyes were full of blood and I couldn't see. I thought that if she came back a third time I would be dead, so I had to do something. Staying in position on the ground, I slowly reached under my chest to grab at the pistol I was unable to get to earlier. I felt I needed something to save my life. The pistol wasn't there. I groped around again but nothing. I wiped the blood from one eye and looked around.
No bear.
The pistol and holster were lying five feet to my left. The bear's ferocious bites and pulling had ripped the straps from the pack and the holster attached to it. Now trashed, that backpack may have helped prevent many more serious bites on my back and spine.
I picked everything up and moved down the trail again. I couldn't believe I had survived two attacks. Double lucky!
Blood was still dripping off my head and both elbows and my shirt was soaked to the waist and into my pants. But a quick assessment told me I could make it another 45 minutes to the truck without losing too much blood.
I continued the jog just wanting to put more distance between that sow and I.
At the trailhead was one other vehicle. I really hoped that person didn't run into the same bear.
I snapped a couple quick photos and a video of my wounds, laid some jackets over the truck seat and headed for town. I stopped a rancher along the way and asked him to make a call to the hospital. When I got into cell service, I made a quick call to my girlfriend to ask how her morning was going, before freaking her out and asking her to bring me a change of clean clothes to the hospital.
Another call to 911 and I gave the operator a quick run down of my injuries and asked her to call the hospital and give them a heads up that I was ten minutes out.
Moments later I was met at the front door by the doctor, nurse and an officer. I had to ask the officer to open the door, put my truck in park, and unbuckle my seat belt. My left arm was useless. He was impressed I had taken the effort to buckle.
Once inside, the x-rays revealed only a chip out of the ulna bone in my forearm. Following was eight hours of stitching to put me back together. Most were arm and shoulder punctures and tears. A 5" gash along the side of my head will leave a nasty scar, but I'm hoping my balding doesn't come on too quickly and leave that one exposed. :)
And finally, this morning, numerous deep bruises and scrapes are showing up from the bites that didn't quite break the skin. Dark bruising in the shape of claws, line across my lower back and butt where the bear stood on me. Also a few more chest bruises and facial abrasions from being smashed and slammed into the ground.
Not my best day, but I'm alive.
So thankful I'm here to share with all of you. :)
In a couple weeks I will have to clean out the truck a little better. My girlfriend says it looks like I had gutted an elk in the drivers seat.
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by gamekeeper »

She obviously didn't take to people scouting for Elk in her territory....
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by RIHMFIRE »

Whoa... one lucky guy ......good thing we don't have grizzlies down here!
These past two weekends I have had 3 encounters with black bears.
One about a half hour before daylight. Full moon. Just settled in my treestand. He stunk
Second one was in my truck, sow was feeding her two cubs on the logging road.
And the third, I had just finished the call of nature and went back to my truck to get my stuff and head to my stand, and there he was.....right where I use the facilities.
And I don't carry bear spray.....I carry a 45
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by AJMD429 »

. . . I hollered out "hey bear" about every 30 seconds. . .
There's his problem....he was calling the bear...!
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by Sixgun »

I don't get it....if I was attacked TWO times and my body sliced up the last thing I would thinking about would be talking into a camera.....coherently.

Doc...would he have been able to be coherent like that?----6
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by 1894cfan »

Sixgun wrote:I don't get it....if I was attacked TWO times and my body sliced up the last thing I would thinking about would be talking into a camera.....coherently.

Doc...would he have been able to be coherent like that?----6

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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by Blaine »

I'm not saying I'm jealous, but Washington is dripping with black bears, and I've never seen one in the wild. If I stopped buying the tag, I'd prolly have one drop out of a tree on my dang head.
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by JimT »

Sixgun wrote:I don't get it....if I was attacked TWO times and my body sliced up the last thing I would thinking about would be talking into a camera.....coherently.

Doc...would he have been able to be coherent like that?----6
Followup articles in the newspaper talk about how they were amazed he didn't go into shock... though I am sure he did. He had enough savvy to keep going. Tough guy I think. He is a well-known (in his area at least) custom knife maker.

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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by Camel73 »

Some animals just got attitude, plain and simple. Kinda like people, ha.

Remember that "Grizzly Man" up in Alaska? He knew there was something off about the bear that eventually ate him, and his girlfriend. Although many would agree he was stupid about what he was doing.

This guy thought he was taking extra precaution though... I would have thought all was good after the calling got her to beat the feet for a bit also... Hmmm, attitude man.

Out where we camp... Sorry, we don't screw around with seasoning.. I mean, bear spray.
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by marlinman93 »

Had a cougar track me once during elk season. I happened to double back on my trail in the snow and saw the cougar tracks on top of my boot prints! Scared the heck out of me, and I had my '06 and my S&W 629 .44 Mag. I walked back to the truck with that 629 in my right hand, and continuously checked my back for the cougar!
I'm guessing he was in shock after the first attack, or he wouldn't have continued without his pistol in his hand.
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by AJMD429 »

Sixgun wrote:I don't get it....if I was attacked TWO times and my body sliced up the last thing I would thinking about would be talking into a camera.....coherently.

Doc...would he have been able to be coherent like that?----6
The fancy-schmancy answer involves stuff like cortisol levels, adrenergic amplification, and endorphins, but that's just doc-talk for "...some folks are just tough sumbiches..." :D
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by Sixgun »

I'll say.....on the sum B thingy. What a dude! (In Sixgun terms)----6
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by GunnyMack »

I saw on Fox News app yesterday that a hunter in Wyoming was returning to his elk to pack it out when he too was attacked by a grizz.
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by Nath »

Ideology and the fear of man nearly killed this feller !

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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by walks with gun »

If you think that's bad, just wait till Hillary tears us a new one.
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by Old Ironsights »

GunnyMack wrote:I saw on Fox News app yesterday that a hunter in Wyoming was returning to his elk to pack it out when he too was attacked by a grizz.
Yeah. Local news said he basically got his face ripped off and was life-flighted to Denver(?).

IMO if/when I get an Elk tag in a bear area, I'm getting a bear tag too...
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by MrMurphy »

Never hunted for either but I've read enough times that in some areas, firing a shot is basically a dinner bell for bears, and it's a race to get the meat/antlers out before the bears find you....so one guy works, the other guy guards.
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Re: Good Reminder To Carry More Than Just Bear Spray

Post by Old Ironsights »

MrMurphy wrote:Never hunted for either but I've read enough times that in some areas, firing a shot is basically a dinner bell for bears, and it's a race to get the meat/antlers out before the bears find you....so one guy works, the other guy guards.
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