Grizzly/Black Bear Encounter Stories

kiddogy

WKR
Joined
Jul 14, 2019
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595
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idaho
was once bowhunting for elk , walking down and old overgrown logging road . I rounded a corner and found myself about twenty yards or so from a big sow with a couple cubs. we stared at each other for a minute or so . then I just slowly backed away . and went up the ridge to give em room.

pucker factor was pretty high for a moment or two.



from the ridge I watched them for about an hour .

one of the cubs climbed up a tree. ran up it about as fast as a squirrel would. eventually the sow and other cub moved off up the ridge across from me . when they left ,the cub in the tree started wailing.

the sow gave out a bark and that cub ran straight down that tree ,
( again just as a squirrel would ) to join them.

till then I had no idea bears could climb so well
 

PNWGATOR

WKR
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Oct 14, 2014
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2,612
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USA
Had a bud hunting northern Idaho with his longbow looking for a bear in the berries. He spotted a beautiful bear gorging itself in the high country and put the moves on it. It took a bit of time to close the distance and play the wind, but he was finally within about 20-30 yds. He had an arrow knocked and was figuring out the details of how to get this bear killed when the bear came out of the berries where it’d managed to have morphed into a grizzly! Now, as my bud tells it, when that bear came out of the berries it paused and looked right through him. He said he was about to sh!t himself. The bear went back to the berries and my bud proceeded to slip away as quietly as he slipped in. He found a large boulder some distance away and got on top of it, slipped his pack off and dug his .41 mag out of the bottom of the bag and sat up there and collected himself.
 
Joined
Apr 5, 2015
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I grew up in a place without bears so this was the first bear I saw in the wild. I hiked up a trail from a well used front country camp ground in Sequoia NP. Apparently there was a lot of bear activity at that camp.

I hiked a couple miles to a large water fall with a pool at the base. The last few hundreds yards were a narrow, twisty but well cut trail through 8 foot high brush with a lot of blind corners. It was hot so I stripped to my shorts. I was only carrying a bottle of sunblock that I stuck in my boot. I jumped into the cold water and swam to the other side and got out on a rock. A few minutes later I looked over and saw a bear sniffing my clothing pile. He/she seemed interested in my sun block. It was cool at first but then I was worried the bear would haul off my boot. Eventually it moved on down the trail but the pucker factor was high especially in that thicket. I kept looking over my shoulder the whole way back to the car.
 

FLAK

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Jan 22, 2014
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2,287
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Gulf Coast
Long story short. Hunting out of Bethel. Wee hours of the morning. Dreaming I could hear a bear outside the tent breathing.
Woke up, remember smiling cause it was only a dream. Then I heard a bear sniffing inches away from my face. He must have heard me
snoring and was checking me out. Was less than a foot from my face
and I was wrapped up like a Burrito. Just knew I was about to die.
Next morning there was what looked like about 5 gallons worth of Blueberry Bear Sh*% right outside the tent.
I dont sleep well in Grizz country now.
 
Joined
Jun 7, 2018
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716
Location
Tennessee
Was working up a creek going to my spot day before elk rifle season opened in Colorado. Had to go through some think stuff and came around a bush and was face to face probably 10 ft with a big cinnamon phase black bear. He ran about 30 yards but then got curious and started coming back my way. Was fumbling around for my rounds to load up the rifle (no bear spray) all while yelling at the bear. Finally got it loaded when he was about 10 yards and he stops turns and leaves out of sight. Look down at my feet and there's a kilt mule deer fawn he was eating on. Could've been bad had he had the fight response instead of flight but I love thinking back on the encounter now

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Joined
Jun 7, 2018
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716
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Tennessee
Also had a bear come check me out trout fishing about a month ago but he didn't get quite as close. Maybe 10 15 yards

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Joined
Mar 9, 2019
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kamloops british columbia
It was the last day of my hunt and I put a Caribou down. I was 4-5hrs from the trail where my atv was. I needed to pack the entire animal out in one trip. My pack was busting at the seems with boned out meat and I had a rope tied between the last bag of meat and the entire bou head, which I slung around my shoulders. It was a struggle and I was about an hour from my atv walking on a game trail. I rounded a corner on the trail and spotted a big burly grizz about 45 yards in front of me on the same trail and going the same direction as me! His huge ass slowly waddled out of sight. I was wondering why he hadnt smelled me as the wind was blowing my hair right at him. He suddenly re appeared, nose in the air taking huge sniffs. He stood on his hind legs and took a couple big whiffs. He then dropped and started loping right towards me! All I could do was scream as loud as I could. The big grizz skidded to a stop looking for the noise. When he spotted me from about 30 yards his eyes got huge. I was holding the bag of meat and the caribou head up over my head. He then tripped ass over tea kettle and smashed through the timber away from me as fast as he could. I fell to my back, rolled out of my pack and grabbed my rifle from my pack. Later that night in camp having drinks my 2 other hunting partners roared in laughter about how the "3 headed ghoule" had scared the shit outa the grizzly!
 
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Joined
Apr 2, 2019
Messages
328
When I was 12, my Dad dropped me off on the edge of a soybean field for an afternoon bow hunt. I was on the ground right next to a heavily used “deer” trail that was coming out of a huge bay. About 30 minutes before dark, I heard something coming 30-40 yards away. I drew my bow aimed at the head of the trail (less than 10 yards away) and out comes a huge black bear. All I remember is dropping my bow and hauling ass to the middle of the field. I turned around and apparently the bear has done the same thing. Couldn’t even talk when my Dad came to pick me up. After the fact......one of the coolest memories of my early hunting days.
 

Mosby

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Jan 1, 2015
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I had a black bear come within a few yards of me when I was a kid deer hunting. I was sitting on a log before the sun came up and I could hear him breathing in the laurel but I couldn't see him. Scared the crap out of me. One of the worst I ever heard was a guy in Lock Haven, PA was cutting fire wood and had a tree fall him. A black bear came in and finished him off, while he was trapped under the tree. There are not a lot of good ways to die but getting eaten by a bear has to be one of the worst. The first and only official bear kill in PA that I am aware of.
 

Beendare

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May 6, 2014
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Corripe cervisiam
My guess is the stories that guys can actually tell...are pretty anti climactic- /grin

Heres an example; Camped on Kodiak early in the season [sitka blacktail] many years ago. Wind was blowing [as usual] and the tent was flapping pretty loud and its raining so I was in and out of sleep. I hear the canned goods we brought clanging around 8' outside the tent and I'm thinking, "Dang that wind is pretty strong to be banging those canned good in a hole in the tundra around- then the realization-BEAR!

I'm fumbling with the flapping tent zipper and a flashlight, my buddy has a shotgun...and there is the biggest head on a bear right outside our tent. Luckily he got out of dodge as soon as I shined him and yelled hey bear.
 

EastMT

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Dec 19, 2016
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Eastern Montana
We had just moved from the Midwest to Washington, never been in bear country so pretty freaked out. Dad took us camping in NE Washington on an old logging road.

Pitch a tent, all 5 lay down to sleep. About midnight I heard something and peak out of the window, see a big creature walking towards the tent. I yell “bear” loud enough to hear across the canyon. The tent erupts like a volcano, crap flying everywhere, I bet the tent expanded to twice its size, mom and sisters screaming, dad grabbing the pistol. Opens the door, it’s our German Shepard wandering around hahahahaha.

Dad does a lot of cussing, lay down, shut up, first peep gets a paddling. The 4 of us laid there listening to dad snore till daylight, zero sleep. Good times......


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Joined
Sep 3, 2018
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85
Location
Lewistown, MT
I've been reading a lot about backpack hunting in grizz country lately as I plan to start that next year, so this is all good stuff. Keep it coming, guys!
 
OP
BeastOfTheTrees
Joined
Apr 17, 2018
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ANF
I had a black bear come within a few yards of me when I was a kid deer hunting. I was sitting on a log before the sun came up and I could hear him breathing in the laurel but I couldn't see him. Scared the crap out of me. One of the worst I ever heard was a guy in Lock Haven, PA was cutting fire wood and had a tree fall him. A black bear came in and finished him off, while he was trapped under the tree. There are not a lot of good ways to die but getting eaten by a bear has to be one of the worst. The first and only official bear kill in PA that I am aware of.

Was one last year some college kid near the poconos I believe, was snapping pictures of the bear as the bear walked up on him all the way until it took him down and killed him.....I’m from Warren County, The Allegheny has a whole bunch of big bruins
 

Mosby

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Was one last year some college kid near the poconos I believe, was snapping pictures of the bear as the bear walked up on him all the way until it took him down and killed him.....I’m from Warren County, The Allegheny has a whole bunch of big bruins
Didn't hear about that one. I grew up in Lycoming County.
 

RockinU

Lil-Rokslider
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Jul 20, 2019
Messages
115
My first ever mountain hunt was with a guide, he'd grown up in the area, but it was his first year guiding. We were still hunting down a trail, cow calling a little as we went, when we heard a loud snap of a branch or stick breaking. We froze, scanning the direction it came from.

About the time I caught sight of movement the guide starts yelling "bear! bear! Shoot, shoot, shoot!!", and this black bear was coming on a string in a big hurry. I'm freaked a little bit, start to swing my rifle up, but before I even get it to my shoulder the bear turns hard off trail into dark timber...then silence. Like crazy quiet.

I'm a little shook at this point, so I ask the guide: "Do they do that often?". He replies: "Never seen one do that before...". I ask: "What now?" He says: "I know another spot..."

The other guides had a lot of fun at his expense, telling him he shouldn't use his wounded cow call.
 

jhm2023

WKR
Joined
Jan 2, 2018
Messages
614
Location
Delta Junction, AK.
My wife and I got charged by 2 grizz while bowhunting together. What looked to be an old sow charged and got 4 rounds from my 454 because of it. The boar which I'm guessing was waiting for her to come into heat followed right behind her to see what the commotion was all about then charged once he saw us. Thankfully he only needed one shot as I only had 2 left in the cylinder. I did learn that I don't like grizz within 10 yards of me, swift a-frames are awesome in magnum handguns, and I prefer more than 6 rounds at my disposal.
 
Joined
Jul 20, 2019
Messages
79
First encounter with a black bear was when I was 15. My buddy (14) and I had driven up 9 hours to do our annual camp in the Rockies (yes, it was illegal for us to be driving; we were from the country and unofficially learned to drive around 8 or 9). We were ignorant kids and only knew bears were a thing to be considered....out-of-sight, out-of-mind.

We caught fish all day and cooked some up on the campfire one night while drinking way more beer than any 15 year old should have available. Didn't clean-up after dinner, just crashed in the tent thinking tomorrow we will clean-up. I woke up in the middle of the night hearing our beer bottles being tossed about and a lot of huffing and groaning. I listened and listened trying to understand whether it was just a bear or a sow and cub(s). I guess fear took ahold and I decided it was a sow and at least one cub, therefore I wasn't going to move...and I didn't, until the bear stepped on the tent! I swung so hard I think I concussed my friend. He was half sleeping and didn't acknowledge that a bear had just taken down the corner of our tent! As he puts it..."we were singing church songs in our head the rest of the night."

Found out the next day that an old lady had chased it off with a broom because it got into her pies she had set out to cool. That was the first time my man-card was reviewed...

I've had a couple of other encounters with bears but I will say I have run a clean camp since that moment. It was a long, long night and the mess to clean up the next day was unimaginable.
 
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