My confidence in bear spray has lowered...

[Cammalu]

I don't think you know how to post a link correctly. Anyone want to help.

Graphic Video: Man Got Mauled by Grizzly and Survived
http://www.outdoorhub.com/news/2016/10/03/man-got-mauled-grizzly-bear-survived/


Edited to add video description


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[cyndi]

The first link works fine. I deleted the second link which didn't work.

 

[TrainChaser]

There doesn't seem to be an original post. The first one showing is from Cammalu, who seems to be referring to another one. There's nothing about bear spray mentioned.

 

[SternWake]

Weak stomachs should not click.

Wounds from Grizzly Bear Attack --

 

[DannyB1954]

Bear didn't like his meat with pepper?

 

[dragonflyinthesky]

That's one tough dude. Wonder what brand bear spray he used?

 

[Queen]

Mama with cubs, I imagine nothing short of a cannon would have stopped her. Definitely wrong place/wrong time for that guy!

 

[akrvbob]

Having lived in Alaska for 45 years and tons of time in the backcountry, I have strong opinions about this topic. Here are a few:

1) Bears are incredible animals, nothing is guaranteed to stop them, you just choose what is most likely.
2) In Alaska bear spray has a proven track record of being by far the best method of defense with the least likely-hood of making the situation worse or failing you.
3) Guns are an extremely poor choice for many, many reasons:

*They are too heavy and awkward to have with you at all times. I personally have drug guns all over Alaska, then set it down and walked to the creek for water and run into a bear there. Bear spray can literally be with you 99% of the time and that will not be true of a gun.

* The easier a gun is too carry, the less useful it is. I've drug a .44 all over Alaska, despised it every second, and knew the whole time that if I ever had to use it would NOT kill the bear but would make it certain to kill me instead of just maul me and then leave.

*Brown Bears often BLUFF CHARGE. They just want to scare you away and then get their cubs away from you to safety. Pepper spray won't make it worse, but may make it better. Shoot it once with a gun and now its no longer a bluff--it wants desperately to kill you. Very, very few guns will kill a bear with one shot dead in its tracks--ain't gonna happen. A famous outdoor writer in Alaska (Craig Medred shot a bear one time with a 454 Cassul, the bear mauled him and then ran away and died. Craig was lucky and lived.

* Guns are too SLOW to bring to aim and firing position. Bears are incomprehensibly fast! Bear spray in a shoulder holster can be fired without even removing it from the holster, just twist it around to aim--and it can easily be their 100% of your waking day.

Bear Spray may not be ideal, guaranteed or perfect--BUT, it is far, far, far better than a firearm.
Bob

 

[GrayWhale]

That was an excellent read, Bob. So if you shoot a bear with a gun, it will almost definitely want revenge and attack you?

Much less possibility that it would back off due to getting injured and in pain?

 

[GotSmart]

Montana Grizzly Bear Notice:

In light of the rising frequency of human/grizzly bear
conflicts, the Montana Department of Fish and Game
is advising hikers, hunters, and fishermen to take extra
precautions and keep alert for bears while in the field.
We advise that outdoorsmen wear noisy little bells on
their clothing so as not to startle the bears that aren't
expecting them.  We also advise outdoorsmen to carry
pepper spray with them in case of an encounter with a
bear.

It is also a good idea to watch out for fresh signs of bear
activity.  Outdoorsmen should recognize the difference
between black bear and grizzly bear poop.  Black bear poop
is smaller and contains a lot of berry seeds and squirrel fur.
Grizzly bear poop has little bells in it and smells like pepper
spray.

 

[Van-Tramp]

I do agree with Bob, but I still would never go without the gun. Bear spray has an effective range of 20-30 feet and is a single-use tool. Guns can reach out and touch much further than that (fake charge or not) and have many uses before empty.

There was a recent study that compiled data from bear encounters from the 70's to modern day. In that study they found that bear spray was about 90% effective at stopping an attack, which is great. Here is the interesting bit... guns, were nearly just as effective at 86% for handguns and 82% for long guns! How handguns are more effective? They determined it was because most of these scenarios happened AFTER the bear made actual physical contact with the person. Basically, a bear was actively on top of and attacking, and the person was able to bring a handgun to his defense... and at that range, handguns are extremely effective. Bear spray would be useless and a long gun even worse in those scenarios.

No matter which tool you carry, they all have about the same statistical effectiveness, just be sure to carry one or the other!

Where bear spray beats out guns (by huge margins) is the death of the bear. In nearly every case in which a gun was used against a bear, the bear was either killed on the spot, or died later. Uses of bear spray do not kill the bears, but some argue that a bear grows a greater immunity to the spray the more often it is sprayed and the more likely it will simply ignore it in the future.

Here is a fun fact - bear spray is actually a bear ATTRACTANT! If you spray some in your camp by accident, you do not want to sleep there that night. You will almost certainly be visited by bears if you do.

Personally, I have upped my bear-game in my backpacking/hiking kit. Not only do I carry my handgun, I also carry a 9oz bear spray on me, and my hiking partner. There is no reason a person can not choose BOTH tools to bring out into the field.

 

[Every Road Leads Home]

I agree with Vantramp IF you are comfortable around and have a decent amount of experience with a gun. If you've never shot a gun and are buying one for bear protection, i'm going to say it's gonna be virtually useless to you for protection from bears.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Personally, I have upped my bear-game in my backpacking/hiking kit. Not only do I carry my handgun, I also carry a 9oz bear spray on me, and my hiking partner.

You carry your hiking partner? 

Might I suggest an addition to your kit would be a small boat horn, readily available.  A relative, who is a fishing guide in Alaska and has had numerous encounters with bears, explained that if a bear doesn't run at the sound of the boat horn it is going to charge.

I agree with Vantramp IF you are comfortable around and have a decent amount of experience with a gun.  If you've never shot a gun and are buying one for bear protection, i'm going to say it's gonna be virtually useless to you for protection from bears.

One of my bitches with the Bear Spray crowd is that I have not met very many of them that have actually practiced with it (including Forest Rangers).  You need to develop muscle memory with whatever tools you plan on using in a high stress situation.

 -- Spiff

 

[Oopslala]

I carry both when I'm in bear country and the pistol when I'm in the desert on long hikes.

It's interesting that most locals I've met will use a gun over bear spray any day, and most travelers you see have the spray and bells. Like mentioned above, they both can be effective.

I personally like having the gun because weather can be a huge factor in spray. Plus I like the peace of mind with the gun.

My very first hike in gunnison i saw a bear and only had the bear spray, and I felt very exposed and unsafe, haven't gone out without the pistol since.

Whatever someone's most comfortable with should be what you use. Obviously if you've never shot a gun in your life, or they make you uncomfortable then spray is for you. I definitely won't be caught out there without some self defense.

 

[Milk Hauler]

Magnum 500, the best "bear spray" ever [SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND TIGHTLY-CLOSED EYES]

 

[rvpopeye]

That piece would probably put my rig over the GVWR....I'll just stick with the flame thrower backpack i have already.

 

[DannyB1954]

How about wear a skunk costume, and show them your ass?
Just a thought. Probably not a good one.

A lady once told me when hiking in bear country with her husband she only carried a .22 pistol. So she could shoot hubby in the knee while she ran away.

Well enough failed attempts at humor, There are other critters that will jump you from behind like a mountain lion, (especially if you are jogging or mountain biking). I don't know how effective bear spray would be. Wolverines and badgers can be a bit unagreeable as well. On another thread someone called gun toters paranoids. I disagree. I think it is the last line of defence, but a good one. More than a couple of people who thought they knew what a bear would do are dead. If you are counting on one thing to work, and it doesn't, that may put you in a difficult position.

 

[FALCON]

IMO, the bear spray worked. If he didn't spray the bear, he might be dead and his body picked clean by now.

Grizzly bears aren't deterred by bear spray or by bullets nearly as well as brown or black.

I read the accounts of Grizzly bear encounters from the Lewis and Clark journals (in the "Undaunted Courage" book). They are striking. Unless they landed a really well-placed shot, they'd have to shoot a Grizzly 10-15 times to kill it. I don't recall what kind of guns they had, but I know that at least some of the old guns pack a lot of punch at close range, which they were always shooting from. I carry bear spray but concluded that my only hope is that any Grizzly I encounter doesn't decide he/she wants to come after me.

 

[FALCON]

There was a recent study that compiled data from bear encounters from the 70's to modern day. In that study they found that bear spray was about 90% effective at stopping an attack, which is great. Here is the interesting bit... guns, were nearly just as effective at 86% for handguns and 82% for long guns! How handguns are more effective? They determined it was because most of these scenarios happened AFTER the bear made actual physical contact with the person. Basically, a bear was actively on top of and attacking, and the person was able to bring a handgun to his defense... and at that range, handguns are extremely effective. Bear spray would be useless and a long gun even worse in those scenarios.

I had thought bear spray would be effective with a bear on top of you. I can see it not bing as effective as a handgun (since the bear spray needs to hit the bear's face, but a bullet doesn't, and pointing a gun the right direction is more obvious than a can of spray). But why would bear spray be useless?

 

[flying kurbmaster]

there are 3 fatal bear attacks a year, 15 fatal dog attacks a year, 90 fatal lightning strikes a year, 505 deaths from accidental firearm discharging a year(US only)( according to Wiki). I imagine the bulk of bear attacks happen in Canada and Alaska where the Grizzly bears live.. If you stay in the lower 48, looks like buying rubber boots would be your best investment.