u/FreakinWolfy_

Video from my buddy who is a cop in the area and the bear was just fine afterwards.

We were sitting on a hillside looking for moose when this sow and her two cubs paid us a visit. Luckily, I spotted her about 500 yards off, feeding on blueberries, and was able to keep an eye on them as they made their way in our direction.
When she got within about 50 yards I stood up and shooed them away as it didn’t appear that they were intending to change course at all.
I always love watching bears in the wild, but it’s nice when there’s a little more real estate between us.

Sorry for the quality, but I thought this was too neat not to share. I was recently up caribou hunting and caught this interacting through my spotting scope. The golden eagle made several apparent passes at the cubs before landing in a spruce where the sow took a swat at it.

Tent is an Ankihiale Outdoor Zeta 1 with an extra floor mat for the vestibule. It’s set up for a stove, but I rarely use one since I’m weight restricted with the float plane.

I run a Barney’s frame pack and your usual hunting gear. Mountain Hardware 0 degree bag, Big Agnes Rapide pad, and Kelty camp cot for a sleep set up. The tent functions great up north of the Arctic Circle where I hunt, both in blocking out the midnight sun in the early part of the season, and keeping in warmth later on as it gets closer to freeze up in September.

After about a bajillion hours of simulated instrument on the way to my IFR rating, I was finally able to get some actual time with a CFII who’s been helping me with my CPL.

I was glassing for bears this past week and had this young lynx walk to within about 10 yards of me before realizing I was there. It was super neat.

Ruger Super RedHawk Toklat in .454

For context, I spend about a third of my year in a tent in bush Alaska. This is for bears, though it would do well dealing with a home invader behind the neighbors fridge.

Seen in the Yukon Flats this week

My buddy had previously come to Alaska to hunt with me, but we were absolutely wrecked by poor weather. I promised that next time we’d get it done, and after a couple of years he made his way back up to try for a coastal black bear in Prince William Sound.

We had to again fight the weather and find a sheltered cove to ride out a late spring gale, but on our third night in the field we spotted this big bruin on the beach right across the bay from camp. Talk about luck.

It was 10:30pm at this point and getting dark fast, so the two of us hopped in the canoe and attempted a stalk. We were nearly busted when the bear decided to hurry to the next open patch along the shore, but we managed to divert and take (relative) cover about 240 yards away.

The tide rises at a rate of about 1” per minute, so I did my best to brace the canoe against the incoming water while my buddy lined up his shot. It was dark enough that we had to wait until he stepped in front of a fallen tree in order to clearly distinguish him from the dark timber behind.

The shot was a perfect double lung and the bear didn’t move more than ten feet before expiring just out of view. We didn’t know it at the time and nerve wracking as it was, we didn’t have time to wait to go look for him. We paddled in to where we last saw him about five minutes after shooting and were relieved to find him dead.

We immediately got the photos out of the way and set to work gutting him. The tide was rising fast and by the time we were ready to drag him into the canoe, the water was already touching his rear paws. We did our best to get him in the canoe, with me standing about thigh deep in the water trying to hold it level.

My buddy climbed into the bow and I straddled the bear to counter the weight tilting us over, basically just on all fours on the gunnels of the canoe, which was a less than comfortable position to say the least. My buddy did his best to paddle back across the bay while I hung on for dear life as I’d almost certainly drown if I fell in with my chest waders on.

We finally made it, and it took a Herculean effort to haul the bear up above the tide line where we could properly skin and quarter it. I squared the bear raw at 7’3” which is massive for one of our black bears. Absolutely one of my more memorable pack outs and a great hunt!

My buddy had previously come to Alaska to hunt with me, but we were absolutely wrecked by poor weather. I promised that next time we’d get it done, and after a couple of years he made his way back up to try for a coastal black bear in Prince William Sound.

We had to again fight the weather and find a sheltered cove to ride out a late spring gale, but on our third night in the field we spotted this big bruin on the beach right across the bay from camp. Talk about luck.

It was 10:30pm at this point and getting dark fast, so the two of us hopped in the canoe and attempted a stalk. We were nearly busted when the bear decided to hurry to the next open patch along the shore, but we managed to divert and take (relative) cover about 240 yards away.

The tide rises at a rate of about 1” per minute, so I did my best to brace the canoe against the incoming water while my buddy lined up his shot. It was dark enough that we had to wait until he stepped in front of a fallen tree in order to clearly distinguish him from the dark timber behind.

The shot was a perfect double lung and the bear didn’t move more than ten feet before expiring just out of view. We didn’t know it at the time and nerve wracking as it was, we didn’t have time to wait to go look for him. We paddled in to where we last saw him about five minutes after shooting and were relieved to find him dead.

We immediately got the photos out of the way and set to work gutting him. The tide was rising fast and by the time we were ready to drag him into the canoe, the water was already touching his rear paws. We did our best to get him in the canoe, with me standing about thigh deep in the water trying to hold it level.

My buddy climbed into the bow and I straddled the bear to counter the weight tilting us over, basically just on all fours on the gunnels of the canoe, which was a less than comfortable position to say the least. My buddy did his best to paddle back across the bay while I hung on for dear life.

We finally made it, and it took a Herculean effort to haul the bear up above the tide line where we could properly skin and quarter it. I squared the bear raw at 7’3” which is massive for one of our black bears. Absolutely one of my more memorable pack outs and a great hunt!

Chambered in 300PRC
Leupold Mark V
MDT Hunt 26 Chassis
BSF 18” barrel
Zermott Origin action
Triggertech trigger

I have an over barrel suppressor coming soon from Scoute Arms.