Bear attacks in Alaska so far this year.

[Bear Paw Jack]

It appears there have been 4 bear attacks in Alaska so far this year, involving 5 victims. One bear got a 2 fer. For what ever reason people can’t get it through their heads, you can’t be too careful. At a minimum you need to have bear spray. Buy at least 2 cans because even the mid size can is only good for 7-9 seconds. People typically buy one can and assume they know what to do. The clip is harder to take off than people think.
Better yet guns are more effective IF you are competent in their use.

 

[contender]

In general,, it seems that bear attacks of all kinds have been slowly rising all across the country.

And yes,, we can only blame the people for it. Disney lovers, eco-freaks etc have been working to re-introduce all kinds of animals in places they used to live w/o accepting the facts of what will happen eventually.
Remove hunting as a control method.
Build gated communities.
Pass laws against hunting or trapping.

Results;
Animals have sanctuaries.
Animals breed & their populations grows.
Animals lose fear of humans.
Animals do what comes naturally, hunt food & defend their young or themselves.
Idiots try & "pet the fluffy Disney animal."

It's everywhere.

 

[thinckley]

 

[GrumpyOldMan]

I totally agree with Contender; it seems that most people regard wild creatures as Disney characters. Then they're totally dumbfounded when the animal reacts normally, and they're mauled or injured. "Gee, Bambi never kicked/gored anyone! I was just trying to pet him!"

 

[reuben_j_cogburn]

The woman in Kenai fired warning shots and that is what seemed to trigger the attack... I believe she was still on her deck and the bear came right up and mauled her.
The bear that charged last summer did retreat at a warning shot.... hard to believe how fast and agile those things are.. it turned 180 degrees in mid stride without even slowing down.. it's something you have to see to believe...

 

[RugerForMe]

Crazy how Fast anything happens.
I had a guy tell me he could pull his can of bear spray and hit his target faster that I could pulling a handgun and do the same because of the blast and recoil.
I responded with granted you're going to have a "sort" of shotgun effect with the bear spray as long as the wind is with you,
But I am 100% sure I will not feel the blast or feel the recoil do to a adrenalin rush.

Back in the early 80's hunting bear with my Dad. We had a bear pop out of nowhere ~ 15 yards in front of us on the trail into our blind. It turned to face us did that jaw popping thing and immediately headed at us at a dead run. I would swear I shot it once with my M77 in 30-06. My dad said it sounds like I was shooting a semi-auto, I shot and hit it 4 times only remember once. He rolled up about 8 paces in front of us. Still gives me goose bumps. DNR estimated it at 300# plus live weight.

 

[reuben_j_cogburn]

Crazy how Fast anything happens.
I would swear I shot it once with my M77 in 30-06. My dad said it sounds like I was shooting a semi-auto, I shot and hit it 4 times only remember once. He rolled up about 8 paces in front of us. Still gives me goose bumps. DNR estimated it at 300# plus live weight.

yeah... it really happens quick... when I killed hillary it was the same.. 40 yards became a few paces real quick. I shot five times... felt like a 100 tho, because she just kept coming..... I was wondering what was going on with my bullets!! I was shooting my .44 (thumper), with heavy 320gr bullets, One handed ... because I was trying to hold my dog back. she had just plowed him into the snow (she was comin back for round 2), and he was just wanting to go home (he was injured).... the trail was really uneven because of the natural terrain, so target acquisition was tough.. she was never where she was supposed to be... I thought I posted the story here.... after the event me an jack daniels write it all down..

 

[Yaworski]

I responded with granted you're going to have a "sort" of shotgun effect with the bear spray as long as the wind is with you,

That wind is a killer. My wife's pepper spray had expired so I decided to test it. I hung a sheet in the backyard so I could see the dye pattern, aimed, and fired. The wind shifted and blew it right back in my face. Not fun at all.

 

[Jakeintexas]

Had a friend on the freighter stationed in ANC charged by an Alaskan brown. Kind of a sad situation. Was mama bear with cubs. He was out hiking and had .44 mag. Broke line of sight and saw them; tried to freeze but she took off and charged pretty much instantly.

He scored 2 hits out of 6 shots with the first one hitting her in the shoulder, with her rolling and saving his life. He said that what surprised him is how fast it happened and how low a cross section she presented. She bled out and eventually died.

Shook him up quite a bit.

 

[Armybrat]

During WW2 in the Aleutians, two of my dad’s troops decided they were tired of C rations and went out to hunt some fresh meat.
One carried an M1 carbine, the other an M1 Garand.
Rounding a hill they were spotted by a large brown bear that immediately charged them really fast, so both started firing.

The bear finally dropped dead about 5 yards right in front of them.
They went back to camp to get a vehicle and several guys to load & transport the carcass to the mess tent so the cooks could butcher & cook it.
They discovered that none of the rounds of .30 carbine penetrated the bear’s hide, while several of the .30-06 Garand did the job (actually 2 head shots killed it).
I can imagine both soldiers had to launder their fatigues.

 

[hittman]

Another ……

https://www.foxnews.com/us/woman-attacked-brown-bear-hiking-friend-3-dogs-alaska-state-park

A woman was attacked by a brown bear Saturday while hiking with a friend and three dogs near a state park in Alaska, authorities said.

The woman sustained non-life-threatening injuries and is expected to recover, the Anchorage Police Department (APD) said Sunday.

The attack happened late afternoon near the Bear Valley residential neighborhood, adjacent to Chugach State Park in south Anchorage, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) said in a separate statement on Monday.

 

[Jeepnik]

I really would like to read some of the postings here. But when a web site insists I shutdown my ad blocker, I've even seen some that want you to turnoff your antivirus, I'm out of there.

 

[Bear Paw Jack]

She got very lucky.

 

[Jeepnik]

I did find a report on another site. So you live in Bear Valley. You go hiking in thick cover during high winds and are unarmed. Seems like this was an attempted suicide and should be listed as such in the reports.

Too many folks either not raised in Alaska, or raised watching Disney movies.

 

[Sam Summey]

Since the fire in Green River Cove (WNC) last summer we have had an increase in large wildlife (deer bear turkey) in my neighborhood (upper Green River Cove). Nice herd of deer and one known 350 pound bear who enjoys tipping trashcans (60 gallon on rollers). After the first TC attack I started putting a tiedown strap to keep mine closed, Casey the guy over the crest of the hill did the same. Evidently this really P.O'ed the bear, Casey's little trash can platform was turned into kindling and his trash can was found 50 feet down the cove behind my house. Nothing like a bear throwing a tantrum!

 

[reuben_j_cogburn]

They went back to camp to get a vehicle and several guys to load & transport the carcass to the mess tent so the cooks could butcher & cook it.

no reports on the taste of the meat?.... I've only had grizzly once.... that was all I needed.... or wanted... aging the meat only made it chewier and more pungent... really gross stuff.... never again... this wasn't an old or large bear.. and it wasn't feeding on salmon as it was to early in the season... it didn't matter.... it was awful....

 

[Armybrat]

no reports on the taste of the meat?.... I've only had grizzly once.... that was all I needed.... or wanted... aging the meat only made it chewier and more pungent... really gross stuff.... never again... this wasn't an old or large bear.. and it wasn't feeding on salmon as it was to early in the season... it didn't matter.... it was awful....

Dad didn’t taste it, but the battalion made short work of consuming the meat.
I do remember he said he heard a lot of negative comments about the taste. They seemed to rate it below the canned spam.

 

[thinckley]

no reports on the taste of the meat?.... I've only had grizzly once.... that was all I needed.... or wanted... aging the meat only made it chewier and more pungent... really gross stuff.... never again... this wasn't an old or large bear.. and it wasn't feeding on salmon as it was to early in the season... it didn't matter.... it was awful....

I recently saw a video on this. Taste is a direct byproduct of what they are eating. Coastal bears that eat a lot of fish, much of it dead and rotten will taste the same. Interior bears that eat more berries and such are supposed to taste more like pork.

 

[s4s4u]

They seemed to rate it below the canned spam.

I'd rate a lot of food below canned SPAM, I like SPAM

 

[reuben_j_cogburn]

I recently saw a video on this. Taste is a direct byproduct of what they are eating. Coastal bears that eat a lot of fish, much of it dead and rotten will taste the same. Interior bears that eat more berries and such are supposed to taste more like pork.

the talkeetna river is only about 2.5 miles from here... that's were the bears will be.. mine didn't take like pork!!.... not sure what it tasted like.. it was very strong tho... and the more it aged the worse it got! Now.. I eat a fair bit of black bear... only had one bad one.. but she was old... it still made good chili and stew tho.... so it wasn't a total loss....

 

[coachk64]

One of the best roasts I've ever had was from a black bear killed in northern WI. I don't recall exactly how my MIL fixed it except it was slow-cooked, but it was more tender and tastier than many beef roasts I've had. That was the only time I've ever tried bear and I look forward to trying it again some time.

And I also enjoy spam, but grilled, not so much straight out of the can.

 

[oldmarine69]

That wind is a killer. My wife's pepper spray had expired so I decided to test it. I hung a sheet in the backyard so I could see the dye pattern, aimed, and fired. The wind shifted and blew it right back in my face. Not fun at all.

You just said something I wasn't aware of. (Which isn't hard to do) I did not know the spray had an expiration date. The can I have on my backpack is probably five years old. Maybe I need to check it. And about the wind, that is something I try to always be aware of. We only have black bears, but they can get grumpy at times. Take it easy.

 

[oldmarine69]

One of the best roasts I've ever had was from a black bear killed in northern WI. I don't recall exactly how my MIL fixed it except it was slow-cooked, but it was more tender and tastier than many beef roasts I've had. That was the only time I've ever tried bear and I look forward to trying it again some time.

And I also enjoy spam, but grilled, not so much straight out of the can.

Love me some spam!!! And I have never eaten bear, but have always heard its rather greasy. Is that not necessarily so?

 

[Armybrat]

I'd rate a lot of food below canned SPAM, I like SPAM

As a kid 70 years ago I liked fried spam sandwiches.

 

[reuben_j_cogburn]

but have always heard its rather greasy. Is that not necessarily so?

I haven't found that.. I suppose if you compare it directly to beef or venison of something it could be considered so, but a "good" bear is very tasty... granted that true "fresh", bear meat, I have to eat over 4-5 days.. the vast majority is canned, so not truly "fresh".....

 

[oldmarine69]

I haven't found that.. I suppose if you compare it directly to beef or venison of something it could be considered so, but a "good" bear is very tasty... granted that true "fresh", bear meat, I have to eat over 4-5 days.. the vast majority is canned, so not truly "fresh".....

Thanks!! Good to know.

 

[Bear Paw Jack]

The bear attack on July 15 was a man and woman. They were hiking in the Chugach range near Anchorage. They had 3 dogs switch them with at least one that was off leash, the report gave no indication that the dogs played a role in the incident. Probably even more is that the area was heavily overgrown and it was a very windy day when apparently they came across a grizzly that was apparently napping after feasting on a moose kill. The winds and brush covered the sounds of the approaching couple. They didn’t have bear spay which probably wouldn’t have been affective with the wind, nor did they have a gun. The bear charged immediately and the person in the lead was the woman. Apparently she gave so little resistance that the attack was fast but relatively short then the bear broke off the attack. The man used his cell phone immediately and was able to get search and rescue and emergency services there fairly quickly. They were able to track the bear with a drone and with also finding the dead moose the bear had been eating on, sounds like they opted not to kill the bear.

More items like this can be viewed on the YouTube sight called. Scary Bear Attacks

 

[Bear Paw Jack]

Grizzly bear meat is so horrible you aren’t required by law to recover the meat, add to that if they have been eating fish, it multiplies how rank it can be.
There’s no way I even attempted to eat the meat of a grizzly I killed.

 

[M118LR]

https://share.google/S8qxs8e47sGTMWOLd

 

[Jeepnik]

No bear spray, no firearm, not even a stout stick. But they had their cell phones. Hey, maybe I should create an app that acts as a bear repellent.