Recent grizzly attacks on Montana elk hunters

[LeddSlinger]

Drilldog I had a extremely close encounter once and a false charge once and believe me when I say it's a life changing event.
Its been several years and I still have dreams about it.In some dreams I don't make it.
I carry a 44 mag with 310 gr hard cast bullets with enough W296 to shoot through a Grizz from front to back and I still feel its not enough.Just re-telling the event makes me shake and at times I can still smell his breath!
A close friend was bull rushed by a grizz and was knocked down the side of a hill into a dry creek bed.A few broken ribs and a dozen stiches later We left the hospital in Helena.
Even one close encounter is too much and I wouldn't wish that on anyone.
Just my 2 cents
Old Rooster

I hear ya. My encounter was in the dark. My father in law and I always started hiking before shooting light in rifle season because it takes us a few hours to get up in the mountains. Ran into the bear near the base of one of the the ridges we hike up. Had we not heard him moving around, we would have walked right into him. He went his way and we walked back to the truck until it was light out. Needless to say, we dont hike in the dark anymore. Lol.

One of my best friends was charged by a sow with 2 cubs. He had a 12ga shotgun with him and was hunting grouse while taking a break from archery hunting. Shells were 2-3/4", 7.5 bird shot. When he happened upon the bears, she came at him so fast all he had time to do was wheel around and fire from the shotgun from the hip. He got one shot off and she skidded dead on the ground 7 feet from where he was standing. Contacted FWP and multiple wardens investigated the incident with him over a 2 week period before finally deeming his case self defense. Said it was like a human homocide scene. Had the bear been a ways further when he fired, the 7.5 birdshot round may not have done much, but being she was so close when the round went off, the 7.5 shot was still in a very tight pattern and acted like a big slug. Hit here right square in the head.

 

[Joe Hooker]

I've talked to Biologists and Game Wardens in both Wyoming and Montana who have all said that it's past time to get a season going.

When the professionals who work in the woods every day tell me that, I don't need statistics.

Besides, 84% of statistics are made up, anyway, and 100% of the time they are tilted in favor of those using said statistic.

Again, I want proof, they said and professionals in the field don't change
anything. I hate they say....

 

[bigngreen]

Yep I believe every bit of it, I grew up in the sticks 30 miles west of kalispell, and there have been grizzly bears there for all of my 27 years. Good luck getting FWP admitting it! But I love the bears, love watching them, and being around them. But when (hopefully not if) they open a season, I won't be able to apply fast enough.

I saw my first grizzly within miles of where the most recent attacks have been in the Gravelies, it was back before we used 4 wheelers for everything my first year I was allowed to go to cow camp, we were up there a week early to ride the fences and I watched three grizz feeding out on the fresh grass, never will for get that first time. I grew up on the MT ID boarder, spent everyday in the most magnificent country in the world, used to tend sheep camp, haul cans of Prince Albert, papers and beef all year to the herders and sometimes stay in camp when they got to go to town once a year. You'll never see or be involved in more messed up stuff in the mountains than spending 12 hrs a day on a horse with 1200 head of sheep and dog coming out of everywhere. You haven't lived till you find your self standing in the pitch black in your undies with a 30-30 and flash light trying to sort out what the heck is going down with sheep bells running everywhere and dogs freaking out!! Those days are long gone, last band of sheep were sold of up there ten years ago, my buddy still runs a few bands in the Gravelies and Sweetwater.

 

[swe123]

Again, I want proof, they said and professionals in the field don't change
anything. I hate they say....

You seem to have your proof. Those of us that live in the real world have ours.

 

[Old Rooster]

bigngreen it sounds like you have lived the "Good Ole Days" my friend.
It sure is funny that something so big can be that fast!
I carry a 44 mag but know in my heart I most likely won't have time to use it.
I figure when I'm on the ground getting mauled is when I will get to use the 44 but it gives me some comfort just carrying it.
Going from,I see Grizz to him being just a few feet away was a blink of an eye.
I wouldn't wish that memory on anyone.
All be safe.
Old Rooster

 

[Joe Hooker]

I saw my first grizzly within miles of where the most recent attacks have been in the Gravelies, it was back before we used 4 wheelers for everything my first year I was allowed to go to cow camp, we were up there a week early to ride the fences and I watched three grizz feeding out on the fresh grass, never will for get that first time. I grew up on the MT ID boarder, spent everyday in the most magnificent country in the world, used to tend sheep camp, haul cans of Prince Albert, papers and beef all year to the herders and sometimes stay in camp when they got to go to town once a year. You'll never see or be involved in more messed up stuff in the mountains than spending 12 hrs a day on a horse with 1200 head of sheep and dog coming out of everywhere. You haven't lived till you find your self standing in the pitch black in your undies with a 30-30 and flash light trying to sort out what the heck is going down with sheep bells running everywhere and dogs freaking out!! Those days are long gone, last band of sheep were sold of up there ten years ago, my buddy still runs a few bands in the Gravelies and Sweetwater.

Thank you, that's what I wanted to hear.

 

[bigngreen]

I caught the very end of the good day, some of the last of the guys who came here to settle were still alive, they had stories of trading with the Indians when they çame through from the Centennial to Salmon ID area. One of them came out on a train and he said it got shot up by Indians so he kept going and this was the end of the line at the time so he got of.

 

[Joe Hooker]

I caught the very end of the good day, some of the last of the guys who came here to settle were still alive, they had stories of trading with the Indians when they çame through from the Centennial to Salmon ID area. One of them came out on a train and he said it got shot up by Indians so he kept going and this was the end of the line at the time so he got of.

Kinda funny Bign, I ran trains for UPRR for 38 years. I know the salmon/ challis area well. My grandparents owned a motel in Arco.

Spent many a summer in the Stanley/Redfish area. Just got back from the
Diamond D ranch last week.

 

[bigngreen]

Kinda funny Bign, I ran trains for UPRR for 38 years. I know the salmon/ challis area well. My grandparents owned a motel in Arco.

Spent many a summer in the Stanley/Redfish area. Just got back from the
Diamond D ranch last week.

Ive spent a lot of time in Salmon, worked a summer for a FWP biologist making his ranch work and doing damage control trapping. Really love the area!! I spent some serious time getting two UPRR TRIPs running, last summer a bunch of that stuff has JD engines and we're the only ones who work on them from Idaho Falls half way up MT.

 

[Southernfriedwerewolf]

If they reintroduce them here in Colorado they wont get hunted for 20 years if ever. Luckily our Dow said they dont want to introduce them or wolves for now. But the idiots may vote them to be introduced anyway. But those of us whove hunted northern Colorado have seen both wolves and grizzlies already..

I got hit up by a young man taking signatures at chataqua park for introducing wolves in Colorado last weekend. Their hope is in next year's ballot

 

[Daves762]

I live in Southwest MT. The grizzly bear has been on the endangered species list, longer than the lifespan of any grizzly. There is no grizzly bear alive in MT, that

Seems the grizzly bears are attacking more frequently due to high population numbers
https://www.ammoland.com/2019/09/pi...-on-archery-hunters-in-montana/#axzz61Ie7sMsp.

There have been 3 more maulings since this one all in the same area.
Be safe all of you western hunters out there and bring plenty of pistol with you when in grizzly country.

has ever been hunted, and has no fear of man. Black bears on the other hand, run like hell any time they smell, or see humans. Because they are hunted they fear man. Although the grizzly has been delisted the enviro-terrorists have filed injunctions to stall the process of issuing tags, and opening the grizzly to hunting. I saw the exact same thing happen when I was stationed in CA with the cougar. Game warden told me one time how the cougar has decimated the ecosystem due to overpopulation. Seems lack of balance, and regulated hunting leads to the same results each time. I know I've got my spot picked out for the day I have a grizzly tag in my pocket.

The grizzly population is way beyond targets, they are in places they never have been recorded, their over populated that is why the FWP wants a season.

Getting paid for wolf kills is a joke, a friend of mine has cattle in the area of these grizzly attacks, they had a pack come through and kill 7 head and by the time they got to them the bears had been on them so no pay. They had another one killed a just before these attacks happened and when they flew it there were 9 grizz on the calf and 20 in the drainage and they got a couple wolves. The ONLY thing keeping the ungulate population from crashing is the air plane and gunning wolves, they can't keep up with them breeding right now!!
Wolves chase people all the time around here, they'll follow you our of the mountains. I'll take a Mt lion ANY day over a wolf pack!!

Yes sir. There is a REASON why wolves were eradicated in the lower 48 by the pioneers and it WASN'T cause ammo was cheap at Walmart. Another lesson of history the left has forced us to repeat.....

 

[MThead]

I'm in Montana and I just carry bear spray unless I'm hunting then I have both. Less weight, less messy, less paperwork and more . You are not going to shoot at a bear on top of your kid (well maybe) but you can wash off the bear spray.

 

[MThead]

Whoops, didn't mean to do that, wasn't going to weigh in, but since I'm here...bigngrn is on the right track with numbers in the Gravelly's. Can't speak to the data, just having hunted it for 20 yrs can say the sign is there. Was there a week ago, had an encounter while packing meat. First time while hunting there... Certainly the hunter numbers are waay up...blew me away... I'm no mathematician but this equation appears to equal trouble on the horizon especially when we believe a can of aerosol will "teach em a lesson" a quote from a bear biologist. That "theory" has been repeatedly and recently torpedoed, just ask the latest recipient's of round two of the attacks, doesn't sound like the bear had seen the light just yet. No, in the land of fang and claw the Lingua Franca is not eye and lung irritation...

44 mag 310 grain hard cast for me.

 

[Flatbow]

I too have seen both Griz and Wolf here in North Idaho BEFORE wolves were introduced. So dont get your Hope's up that they won't still do it else where. Stay vigilant and let your voice be heard. It's all we can do.
One of my buddy's spent the weekend driving looking for tracks and bugling up the Saint Joe river were we use to hunt and did not hear or see a single Elk track. However, he did see a pack of wolves (at 1000+ yrds) that had 20 dogs in it!!
How does anything have a chance against that?!