Quote:
Originally Posted by Angus46
Back to your original post, lots of people have it right. Bear spray and noise are a great deterrent, especially if we are mainly talking black bears. Yes, overwhelming they don’t want anything to do with humans and if it’s a mom and cubs, if she knows your coming she will take them and head off. So number one, try to constantly make some noise and if you can carry it, some spray is good for an encounter. Many times of you walk up on them they will try to figure out what you are and what they are going to. That is a great time to deter them before there would be a need to shoot them. Many times shouting, making yourself known will work.
That being said, although very rare there are times that they are hungry, or will be aggressive. This is both black and brown bears. In that case, I don’t think you want to be questioning what you have decided to carry or worrying about the size of the bear.
Number one rule, bring enough gun! What many have said is very important, and correct. A 44 mag, 300gr hard-cast over a nice heavy load of 2400 is what you want to shoot or more if you can handle it. However in my experience this gun/load is about all the normal person can tolerate. It is right on the edge of uncomfortable.
What none one has said yet is out of what. This is very important. Those nice Smith and Wesson’s, a Taurus or many others won’t handel those loads. Get a Ruger Superblackhawk or Redhawk. They will work every time and built like a tank. There are others out there that will handle it but those guns are the most common. Also in my opinion I like the longer 7 1/2 in barell. You will get a significant increase in muzzle velocity, a bit less blast, and i think they point/aim better than the shorter barrel.
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Very grounded advice, I appreciate that. Yes, I definitely understand that they are very rarely aggressive, this part I know from experience. I see em all the time and usually when I see them they are already running away. And I make noise, I yell frequently and often walk brusquely. But not always. I did once wander quietly between a mother and a cub. I became aware of the cub when he saw or smelled me and took off away from me. I turned and checked behind, momma was foraging about 50 yards behind me, hadn't caught wind, I was right between them completely unaware. I slunk away. I think the wind saved me that time. But I think it was too many experiences like that, happy lucky endings that have lulled me into danger. Seeing the big guy was a wake up call.
I live just a short distance from the smokies, and while there is a lot of bear hunting in the area, the piece of the Pisgah National Forest that my land is adjacent to is a bear sanctuary, so they are even more concentrate here. So while getting attacked is very unlikely, the odds have to stack up with so many encounters.