Multiple DIY drift trips down Alaskan rivers have taught me a few things about bears. First and foremost is to avoid them. Our last few trips have been in June before the salmon have stared their spawn. We fished for Rainbows in the Bristol Bay area. The bears start their migration to the rivers after the salmon have arrived. Otherwise they are foraging for food in areas that are more productive.
A brochure called "Bear Facts" is put out in conjunction with various state and federal agencies concerning Alaskan bears. You can find it by doing an internet search. It talks about various topics such as making you presence known, not crowding them, cooking and storing food away from your tent (100 yards or as far as possible considering your camps location) and keeping a clean camp. It is suggested that either a .300-Magnum rifle or 12 gauge with rifled slugs is appropriate to dispatch of a bear in a timely manner. Heavy handguns such as a .44 magnum may be inadequate in emergency situations, especially in untrained hands. I found having guns on these trips to be a pain. For most trips I carried a 12 gauge with a shortened barrel. Checking them isn't easy, you have to be willing to expose your weapon to all kinds of weather, have the thing draped around your neck and ready to fire a moment's notice. If you fall in the river, guns work like anchors. All in all, you have a better chance of hurting yourself then a bear. In Alaska a quick medivac isn't always a possibility. The shotgun usually wound up strapped to the pontoon boat in its water proof gun sack because it was just to much hassle. Most likely if you have time to get the gun out, you have time to avoid the bear. If you don't have that time and unless the gun is right at hand, it doesn't matter anyway. A far as bears in a camp. Think about a bear rifling your camp at night. If your foodstuffs are far away as possible in bear proof container, let him go for it. Is it worth the risk to try crawling out of your sleeping bag, unzipping you tent (gotta keep those sketters out) and grabbing you gun all in the dark or at dusk? Talk about an accident waiting to happen. Besides is it worth shooting such an animal because he is checking out your food. Also the bureaucratic mess you've created will make you wish the bear had eaten you instead of your food. You will need to show that you had no choice but to shoot the bear along with salvaging his/her hide and skull to turn over to the authorities. We found seal bombs were great options. Commercial fishermen use them to scare the seals away from the nets. They make a M80 look like a black cat. When we set up camp we set off a couple. Every animal within miles knew we were there. Since we never had a bear get into our foodstuff or prowl our camp that we were aware of, I can't say what we would have we done. I guess we could have thrown a seal bomb in his direction. BUT, since the situation never came up, we were either one of the lucky most that never have a bear situation or we were doing things right. -----Original Message----- From: Kent Lufkin [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Wednesday, December 12, 2001 8:38 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: Weapon? Roger, I can't say that I've had similar experiences being accosted but have been considering the sidearm question nonetheless. While fishing in Alaska a couple years ago, our tent camp was regularly visited by grizzly bears, one of whom emptied a plastic Coleman cooler hung 25 feet above the ground in a cargo net. The tent camp came equipped with a .45-70 5-shot Marlin (complete with 4 rounds ;-), which quickly became our constant fishing companion. A couple days into our stay, a half dozen day fishers arrived who fished that same estuary every year. Being quite familiar with the bear situation, they all brought firearms. And all of 'em carried large caliber pistols. The weapon of choice was a .44 S&W revolver with a stainless steel frame and a 5- or 6-inch barrel. A couple others carried .40 cal automatics and there was also a .357 if I remember correctly. None of them had ever fired their sidearms in self-defense and there was some disagreement over whether their weapons would actually stop a determined attack by a provoked 600-lb adult grizzly. There was a consensus that the pistol was definitely better than nothing and was preferable to carrying a heavy, large-bore rifle. I'm planning to head back to Alaska this summer and have renewed my thinking along those lines. I would appreciate any thoughts others might have to offer. Kent Lufkin >Any thoughts out there, or personal experiences, where carrying a >weapon while flyfishing has been an advantage. I have a concealed >carry permit and have had for at least 30 years, as I used to make >bank deposits for my company after hours. Even though I have >retired from that company, I have kept the permit current, but >rarely, except when going somewhere remote, even take my weapon. >Several years ago I was fishing the Yak just off I-90. I was parked >on a frontage road less than 150 feet off of, and in full view of >the Interstate near Easton. I was on a dead end frontage road and >had turned the car around prior to walking down to the river. Upon >returning to the car, two unsavory looking fellows driving an old >blue Nova came tearing down this frontage road and spun their car >around and deliberately blocked my car from going anyshere. I had >my pistol in the trunk, as as they were getting out of their car and >approaching me, I quickly walked to the rear of my car, and po! >pped the trunk opener. I then re >ached into the trunk, grabbed the gun which was in a clip on >holster, and walked back to where they could see me put it on my >belt. I never drew the weapon, just showed that I had it. The >fellows involved left so fast that I am not sure their feet or the >car were even touching the ground. >The purpose of bringing this up is that I have had several instances >over the past five years where, when by myself, I have been >accosted. In each of these merely letting the other party be aware >that I was armed, by letting them see the holstered weapon, made the >difference. I know from reading past posts that some in this group >hunt as well as fish. I am sure that some feel very uncomfortable >around firearms. The purpose for my question is not to get into the >the guns versus no guns debate. Rather I would like to see if it is >just me who is running into situations like the above, or if it is >becoming a widespread problem. In none of the situations involved >have I even instigated so much as a conversation beforehand with the >perps. Just seems to be a bunch of people out there looking for >trouble, kicks, etc. I know many areas have experienced car >breakins, etc. The basin lakes in eastern Washington seem to be a >hot spot for this type of activity. I have been threate! >d several times at Nunnaly. If >any of you remember Gene Armstrong who worked at Kaufmanns in >Belleve, he had several similiar instances he related to me. > > I know guns, know how to use them, was brought up with guns in a >rural setting, and feel comfortable around them. I also am keenly >aware that if one carries a gun he better be prepared to use it, and >not have it used against ones self. I am also well aware of the >legal and moral ramifications of carrying and using a weapon. > >I would really appreciate thoughts, experiences, etc. on how to >protect yourself. Unfortunately, it is becoming more and more a >common occurance. > >Thanks, > >Roger
