Bullet, not bear, killed hunter in Mont. grizzly attack

[peyton]

I just saw this, and it is very sad that in trying to save his friend, his shot actually killed him instead. I think it was better that he tried to do something than just running away. I hope more details are forthcoming.

Hunter in Mont. grizzly attack shot by friend - US news - Life - msnbc.com

 

[DeadAye]

There was so much WRONG here that those guys really shouldn't have been *hunting* without a guide.

BUT
Calling it a Grizzly ATTACK?
Shame on the reporter AND the editor AND publisher...

 

[williamlayton]

Without trying to be too stoic--it is possible that this was the best outcome.
I am not saying it was--just expressing the thought that it is a possibility.

Dead-eye
Why do you say that they should have been hunting with a guide?
Blessings

 

[DeadAye]

I believe that they should have been hunting with a guide because they didn't know what they were doing.

Grizzlies and Black Bears are easy to tell apart.
A kill shot wasn't made on the bear in the first place.
AND they NEVER should have gone into *thick cover* after the bear.

A guide would have, or at least should have, prevented this from happening from the very start when they misidentified the bear.
He (or she) would also have known how to track a wounded bear (BAD NEWS BEAR, btw) without putting everyone in mortal danger.

I was a deer processor in a previous life and have seen MANY deer that looked like someone used an Uzi on them.
People think they are out there to *shoot a deer*, or in this case a bear, but don't seem to have the slightest idea of how to kill a deer cleanly. They actually think that if you shoot something it will die and a 7mm Magnum will kill anything if you can just hit it.

A guide would have made sure that they knew where the shot needed to be placed before they ever hit the woods and, hopefully, would have stressed that you don't squeeze the trigger UNTIL you have THE shot.

As ALWAYS - It's ALL about SHOT PLACEMENT -

 

[jkc]

I was expecting to read that the shooter found it necessary to quarter the deceased to pack him out...

 

[williamlayton]

Deadeye
Thanks.
Blessings

 

[m75rlg]

Grizzlies and Black Bears are easy to tell apart.

-

While I agree with much of your post, this is not always the case. Young grizzleys can look much like color phase black bears. Therefore, it isn't always easy to tell the difference between a black and grizzley bear.

The last kill I was in on in an area that held both species, my partner and I discussed the ID for a couple of minutes before we finally got a good look at the profile of the bear's face, and could be sure it was a black.

This one ended up in a blood trail into a willow thicket, and a close encounter (less than 10 yards) before we got a chance to make the kill. Both of us connected with rifle shots at nearly the same instant and the bear fell close enough for me to poke him with my rifle barrell without moving forward!

If the bear had been in attack mode in that thick stuff when we finaly saw it that close, instead of flight mode, we very well could have been hurt. If we hadn't been cordnating our movements in the thicket, with only one moving at a time and the other covering, we easily could have been in danger of an accidental shoot.

My partner, who first shot the bear, was a former marine and was at that time a professional hunting guide. I am a veteran of a special Coast Guard unit had received combat firearms training, both in service and from the FBI, as well as training as a law enforcement officer. (I'm no longer an LEO, and am retired from the Criminal Justice System.) I consider myself a reasonably experienced hunter, having killed well over 100 head of big game animinals, although no prior bears. I have however, trailed/chased/captured humans in wooded and urban settings, and find the tensions and dangers much like that wounded bear track.

Also, if a bear is wounded, especially in an area with other hunters, there is a responsibility to finish the job, however unpleasant it may be.

It is unfortunate that the hunter died, and I feel for the surviving hunter and the grief and guilt he is suffering.