.45 ACP Kills grizzly Bear

[Justin251]

Leave it to the media to neglect the most important parts of the story.

What was he carrying? 1911? XD? Glop? What holds 9 rounds, a 1911 with an 8 rd mag?

Open carry or concealed?

And finally, most important, what loads? I'm betting hardball.

Also, I agree with what one of the comments after the article says: I'd like to buy that man a cold beverage of his choice.

My hi-point 45acp holds 9 rounds.

I'm confident I could kill a bear with it. I can put all nine shots on a target the size of a dinner plate at 25 yards.

 

[cp1969]

Can you do that with the dinner plate moving?

 

[DeadAye]

Can you do that with the dinner plate moving?

And not just moving - Coming at you faster than a race horse can run!
And not looking as friendly as your dinner plate either!!
And --- Well, you get the idea.

 

[kbm6893]

'bout 10 years ago a large male black bear walked up on a ladies porch as she was feeding breakfast to her two grandchildren, aged about 3-4. She looked out the kitchen door window just as that bear stood up and put both paws on either side of the door and looked in the window.
Grandma reached and got a 30-06 and essayed 2 well placed rounds in the bruins chest, killing him pretty much DRT.....
Well, the Dept of Natural Resources Ranger and I go to the scene....
As much as I regret the killing of the bear, I am satisfied that that woman truly believed she was saving the life of her grandchildren....
The High Up types in the DNR wanted her charged, we said no, and she never was....

That's my point. You made the right call. If you hadn't, some grandmother would be charged with the crime in defending her grandchildren. Bunch of nonsense. Some park ranger who wasn't there makes the call if the bear's actions were agressive, and the book is closed.

 

[Out West]

I doubt that the shooter would have reported the shooting if it had been some kind of "thrill kill". More likey, after he fired and the bear disappeared, the hikers beat feet out of there. They reported the shooting since the bear had been agressive and they were not sure the bear was dead. Sounds to me like responsible behavior.

Out
West

 

[4864]

Nine rounds with a .45! Yeah that would do the job I think.

"The shooting? It was justified."

 

[Justin251]

Can you do that with the dinner plate moving?

And not just moving - Coming at you faster than a race horse can run!
And not looking as friendly as your dinner plate either!!
And --- Well, you get the idea.

A grizzly bear's head is A LOT bigger than a dinner plate.

I've got head shots on squirrels and whitetails.

Though, I will admit. None of them were trying to kill me and they weren't with my .45. lol

 

[Onomea]

I'm not sure if you'd want to shoot a griz in the head. Might glance off or not penetrate sufficiently. Seems to me we had a member post here a ways back about trying to put a deer down, a deer that had been hit by a car, by shooting it in the head with 45 ACP, and it did not do the job very well.

(And I have no expertise in this at all -- just sayin'. )

 

[Justin251]

Well, my .22lr and .17hmr explode squirrel heads. My savage .308 does the same with deer heads.

In the death of Timothy Treadwell the forestry officials were attacked by a medium size grizzly and it took over 25 9mm hits to bring it down.

Honestly, I'd rather have my .357 than my .45 for a sidearm if I were hiking. Although, I'd think a 45acp would be able to do the job should you hit a vital area. A direct head shot should do the trick but a glancing probably wouldn't.

In one of my dad's fur fish n game mags it tells the story of a woman that killed a very large grizzly from point blank range with a .22lr.

 

[4864]

"Honestly, I'd rather have my .357 than my .45 for a sidearm if I were hiking."

Same here. My 629 Mountain Revolver too!

 

[Justin251]

Well, my brother reloads and he's got me some "sho nuff bear stoppers" lol. That's what we call them.

Although, there aren't very many bears in southern Alabama. Black bears are becoming more common though.

 

[S42N8]

What, no "the bear was just getting his life together" comments?

Seriously, this'll become one of those cases where carrying in parks gets attention. I would like to know what ammo was used; I'd think something along the lines of a nice 210-grain Silvertip in .44 Mag would be better, but can't fault the results.

 

[jkc]

Last I looked, Alaska law permits killing wildlife in self-defense (even to include killing wildlife that might be be threatening your life indirectly, such as by tearing up your vital gear and supplies...), as does AZ, and, I hope, most states. Once again, we see a report by an incurious reporter not savvy enough to even ask, much less answer, the many questions raised here so far. This pathetically ignorant, oblivious, clueless reporting is indicative of what's wrong with the MSM.

 

[4864]

Below is the official National Park Service release:


Denali National Park & Preserve (AK)
Grizzly Bear Shot By Backpackers

Two backpackers, a man and woman, encountered a grizzly bear last Friday evening while hiking in the dense brush along the edge of Tattler Creek, which is at the west end of Igloo Canyon, approximately 35 miles from park headquarters. The man, who was in the lead, drew a .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol when they heard a noise coming from the brush. When the bear emerged from the thicket and ran toward the other hiker, he fired approximately nine rounds in its general direction. The bear stopped, turned, and walked back into the brush, where it quickly disappeared from view. The backpackers ran and hiked approximately a mile and a half back to the road, where they encountered a National Park Service employee who called in the incident to the park's communication center and transported them to the Toklat Road Camp. A ranger there did a short preliminary interview with them around 10 p.m. Because of the concern that a wounded bear was in the area, four backcountry units were immediately closed and bus drivers were instructed to not drop off day hikers in Igloo Canyon on Saturday. Early Saturday morning, rangers and wildlife technicians flew to Toklat via helicopter to conduct a secondary interview with the two backpackers. Afterwards they flew over Tattler Creek and all of side tributaries, very low at times, to determine if there was an active, wounded bear. No bears were seen during the overflight. Late in the afternoon, three rangers hiked into the site and found the bear dead in a willow thicket approximately 100 feet from the pistol casings. The bear's body was transported via helicopter to a landing site on the park road and brought back to headquarters on Sunday, where park wildlife biologists are assisting with the investigation of the bear carcass. The backcountry units have been reopened. The case is still under investigation, and the names of the backpackers are not being released at this time. Park wildlife biologists and rangers are trying to determine if there was a justification for shooting the animal. It is legal to carry a firearm in the former Mt. McKinley National Park portion of the park, but it is not legal to discharge it. This is the first known instance of a grizzly bear being shot by a visitor in the wilderness portion of the park. The estimated grizzly bear population in the park north of the Alaska Range north is 300 to 350 animals. [Submitted by Kris Fister, Public Affairs Officer]

 

[Andy Griffith]

The bear, if very young, very old, injured, starving or startled would likely be the cause of the attack.

However, it also could have thought of the hikers as just an easy meal too.

All God's creatures have teeth and claws, except man, who was given brains...he used this brain to discover fire, design spears, knives and guns.

Now, these hikers have another bear to deal with- the bureaucratic bear known as the NPS which likely won't turn them loose so easily.

 

[oldman45]

At least this thread has remained bearable.

I hope Smokey the Bear was not the one that got smoked.

 

[Model29Lover]

Really!!

Come on now, who goes out in the deep country wanting to kill a Grizzly bear with a .45?? Even if it was a .45 long colt which would be the best of the .45 round if you ask me, that round wouldn't be on anyone's list who had any knowledge of calibers !! That investigation should have taken about 30 minutes. Find out if the hits were from elevation, if they weren't they would not it wasn't planned and taken their statement, and if they didn't contradict themselves a lot in the statement, that should have been the end of it, period!!!! Reasonable doubt will win the case for the defendant if they try to file charges. No jury in their right mind would convict someone of defense against a Grizzly Bear!!! Some people are so devoid of common sense it is scary, I can't understand why this was even a question of wrong-doing!!!!

 

[Rangerpat]

Oldman 45,
Smokey Bear is a black bear originaly from New Mexico, he now resides at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. and will turn 66 years-old on August 9th. Thanks for thinking of him!

 

[rock doc]

Oldman 45,
Smokey Bear is a black bear originaly from New Mexico, he now resides at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. and will turn 66 years-old on August 9th. Thanks for thinking of him!

Not to get further off the OP's original topic, but I believe Smokey Bear died around 1976 and is buried at the Smokey Bear Historical Park, NM.

Anyways, a 45 acp proved to be better than nothing when confronted by a huge omnivore.

 

[novalty]

Because this country is insane and the politicians that make the laws are insane. I guess you're supposed to take the bullets out of the gun and throw them at the grizzly all the while yelling "Shoo".

I think yelling "Shoo" would only futher provoke the bear. Right "Shooboy"