Bear attack in your tent

+1 DMZX

Two encounters with bear and I found myself wearing pants and a belt to sleep. Attached to the this belt is a 6in fixed blade as well as my .45 w/ SWC "Super" reloads. It may seem like overkill but this is only when camping in bear country. You don't have time to look around the tent for said implements. When elsewhere, my two friends are next to me.

Also one poster mentioned slathering himself with fresh salmon...unless you really enjoy running at Carl Lewis velocities thru the woods and uneven terrain wouldn't rec it.
 
Two encounters with bear and I found myself wearing pants and a belt to sleep. Attached to the this belt is a 6in fixed blade as well as my .45 w/ SWC "Super" reloads. It may seem like overkill but this is only when camping in bear country. You don't have time to look around the tent for said implements. When elsewhere, my two friends are next to me. - forte
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In my college days, I worked as a seasonal for the North Cascades National Park.

A fellow ranger had set up a small camp deep in the park. She left her pack out side of the tent, but for some reason a large black bear began tearing through the door of her tent as she slept. Keeping her head, she used a Swiss Army knife to cut a backdoor and escaped to a rock slide. The bear tore up her gear and left it scattered about a good sized area. She called for help the next day when the dispatcher came in. I met her at the trail head and went up to help clean up the mess.

That little knife might have spared some injury, and I never forgot that incident.
 
I'm definatly a semi-auto kind of guy, but I have a .44 magnum for when I go more than 70 yards behind the house. When I was a kid, one of my neighbors lost his arm from the elbow down trying to pet a bear that came into his yard.

We just have the cute little black bears here, so a .44 is probably enough. I think if I lived out west I would have a .500 mag.
 
Recently had a small (300lb) black bear invade a house with people in it at night. Home owner killed the bear with a .40 S&W semi auto as it started up the stairs towards the bedrooms....I think flat point .40's can be used (last resort!) against small preds like black bear and kitty cats but any where near a gris or a Brownie as Alaskins call them calls for min., .12 gauge pump with slugs. I have read about Gris taking full mags from .300 Win Mags and still attacking so handguns in general are more to make YOU feel better not really take out a gris. IMHO:)
 
I would think an early alarm of some kind is a must. I suspect if a bear had his head in my tent a 12 guage wouldn't seem big enough. I'd probably go with at least a 44 mag, and a short powerful rifle/shotgun, and maybe a Glock 10mm for backup-backup.
 
Bear in your tent

My thanks for all of your replies. Some really good and some pretty funny. Here in the Georgia, Tenn. and N.C. mountains (Nat. Parks, State Parks), you best not be seen carrying a shotgun to protect yourself as the Rangers would nail you hard. I could probably get by keeping my pistol concealed. I also realize that a 44 magnum would really be my best carry weapon but I just cannot afford another pistol. So from all of your comments, I am still not sure if I should carry my Glock 40 cal. or my S&W 357 mag. I agree with Deanadell that if a bear should be attacking my tent there would definately be a hole made in my tent wall and a streak of poo left from the tent to my pickup. Maybe I best sleep in my pickup after all. Thanks to all; you gave me some good thoughts and I have enjoyed all of your comments.
 
Several studies of water fowl have shown that multiple hits with smaller shot seem to be more effective at quickly dropping flying birds than fewer hits with larger shots.

I do not know if this would translate to bears, . . . but I do know that I can take almost any auto loader and crank out a whole bunch more rounds in the same time I would do with a six gun (saying nothing about having to stop at six with a six gun).

I would suggest you take the .357 and a friend, . . . have the friend time you for 6 shots at 3 feet, . . . then try the .40 with +P ammo in it. That, if I were you, is when and why I would make my decision.

May God bless,
Dwight
 
Best thing for bears - put a packet of salt in one pocket and a packet of pepper in the other. It gives them some spices with their meal LOL.

Seriously though, you really need to get a 45-70 lever gun loaded with Grizzly ammo. That round is designed for bear hunting.

My brother was turkey hunting and a bear didn't see him and came closer and closer and closer..... My brother freaked out and just shot his 22 LR into the ground and the bear turned around and high tailed it out of there. I bet if he would have actually hit the bear the bear would have turned on him and attacked him. Best thing to do in my opinion is shoot your first shot away from the bear to try to scare him off. Almost every bear hunting video I've seen after the first shot the bear will charge. If the bear is not actively charging in the first place or protecting cubs, etc. I think your best bet is a warning shot to sting him in the ear drums.
 
Chuchiua would help as an alarm. I'd just put the largest pistol you have in your sleeping bag and a good 12 gauge, with light, beside it. And make sure all your food is up in a tree!
 
Dern,the actual accounts here of bear encounters are pretty scary.

Your only a bears decision and a few seconds away from an attack.
 
I've encountered bears on a half dozen trips into the back-country. I've never felt threatened. My wife once woke up with a bear sniffing at her through the mesh screen, about 3 inches from her face. She was so scared, she could move or scream.

I take a Glock 20 into the back-country these days.
 
Recently had a small (300lb) black bear invade a house with people in it at night. Home owner killed the bear with a .40 S&W semi auto as it started up the stairs towards the bedrooms....I think flat point .40's can be used (last resort!) against small preds like black bear and kitty cats but any where near a gris or a Brownie as Alaskins call them calls for min., .12 gauge pump with slugs. I have read about Gris taking full mags from .300 Win Mags and still attacking so handguns in general are more to make YOU feel better not really take out a gris. IMHO
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You're also in Western WA? 300lbs is not small for a black bear. Maybe in Alaska. 200 lbs is average for most of the lower 48. 400 lbs is a trophy and a record booker. http://www.wahpetondailynews.com/articles/2008/09/08/sports/doc48c53d4da8ea5844240635.txt
 
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Handgun for bear defense use

in my opinion there is no handgun that is up to the task for use against a ****** off grizz in your tent or campsight bent on turning you into a horsedervy. A 12ga pump or auto loaded with 3 inch slugs or sabot rounds is the only medicine for a close up and personal encounter with a bear. In order for the shotgun to be effective in a defensive situation is
to have it in your hands in the first place and not sitting on the table or leaning up against a log. You must also be able to deploy your weapon instantly. There are damn few shooters that have the skill to stand and empty a shotgun at a charging close up encounter with a g.b. My God, how many of us have ever actually seen one in the wild? They are your worst nightmare, they are huge, powerful muscled, dense tissue, heavy boned, 6 inch claws on each foot and some of em are 10 foot long or bigger, they are also smart , very tough. A g.b. can run 100 yards with their lungs full of blood and their heart exploded in about 5 seconds and still kill you before you even know you are dead. Yes a handgun in your mit is better than holding your johnson but not much better. There are also some G.Oes that would argue that the G.B. is the most dangerous game on planet earth. A pistol I think NOT.
Cheers&Tighter Groups: Eaglesnester
 
We had a joke amongst us friends in Alaska. Best recipe for bear defense is a partner, but pick one that you don't particularly like, and can definately outrun.

...just wrong...just wrong...
 
sapello what part of the country are you in and do you plan on going camping in places with bears? For black bears almost anything from 40S&W and up will do I believe as long as it's a flat point hard cast bullet. With brown bears and Grizzly and Moose you want atleast a 44 magnum with a flat point hard cast. Just don't ever go in areas where there are bears in the first place, it's not worth the risk.
 
i live in a city that goes right up and into a mountain, so bears coming into the city isnt a uncommon happening. however, i live a good 10-15 miles form the mountian and recently we had a bear roamin around my neihgborhood. i liek to go jogging at night and never watch the news so i didnt know about the bear until about 2 weeks after it was first seen. so i borrowed my buddys Persa Canario and took my Xd with me joggin for a couple weeks. never ran into the bear and it ended up getting captured and released. but a big dog and a semi out loaded with 14 round of hollowpoints made me feel a helluva lot better
 
I love bear stories. One year my wife and I were fishing and camping in northern Minnesota and had a bear problem all night long. We got in late afternoon and had wild rice,ham and apples for supper. I had packed my 12 ga. and some slugs, but I did not think that I would need it, Anyway, mt wife was doing the dishes and I was closing up the little utility trailer for the night when I heard the bushes shaking. I grabbed the 12 and told my wife to just get in the car as calmly as I could. As I was heading for the car myself this black bear came right through our campsite inbetween the tent and the car. He was as big as an office desk I swear.

We had all of the food packed in the car so we just waited awhile and he wandered off. We figured we were OK so we went in the tent to bed. After we had just fallen asleep we heard the most God Awful bellowing and snorting and wheezing just outside our tent It sounded like Godzilla on steroids. My heart was beating so fast I thought it would jump out of my chest. I had the shotgun in the tent, but let me tell you that I had no desire to use it.

The bear fell in love with our campsite and left and returned 3 times that night. He just stood right next to the tent bellowing. We heard a lot of banging and crashing. We just laid there playing possum. We were afraid to leave the tent and bump into him and afraid to stay in the tent as well. As you can imagine we needed to tap a kidney desparately, but could not leave the cover of the tent.

After the longest night of my life I woke to sunshine and peeked out of the tent. We made it OK, but the car had a crushed and sprung hood, each window was slimed, and 2 doors were battered and clawed. He wanted our apples.
 
My God, how many of us have ever actually seen one in the wild? They are your worst nightmare,
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We had a joke amongst us friends in Alaska. Best recipe for bear defense is a partner, but pick one that you don't particularly like, and can definately outrun.
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This is totally off topic, but when I was 17 I had the good fortune to go to a place called Brook's Lodge in Katmai National Park, Alaska. The place is crawling with Grizzly bears, and they are used enough to seeing people that they don't seem to pay much attention to you. There is a viewing platform where you are literally about 10 yards from this:
brown-bear-salmon-fishing.jpg

Anyway, one time I was walking to this platform ( about a half mile trail through the woods if I remember right) by myself (probably not a real good idea, but being 17, I didn't want to hang out with my parents/siblings). I met up with some lady along the trail and we decided to walk together. Shortly before we reached that viewing spot, we came around a corner to find a HUGE brown bear standing up itching it's back on a tree about 20-30 ft from us (no exageration). I swear to God the thing was at least 8-9 feet tall. I actually do remember thinking "when this thing charges us should I leave her in the dust or should I try to help her?" I honestly don't know what I would have done (I don't think you know in a situation like that until it actually happens). After it was done scratching, it just lumbered off. I almost wet my pants - seriously. It was the one of the scariest things that has ever happened to me (but was also one of the coolest)

Two things I can tell you about grizzly bears:
1) They are the most intimidating animals you can imagine
From that viewing platform you could sit and watch them fight over fish and the best fishing spots (literally feet from you) :eek::eek: absolutely awesome (emphasis on the awe)
2) You can smell them before you see them (sometimes)
Right before we came upon the one we met, I could distinctly smell what smelled like garbage - it was the bear.

One of my other best memories is (and this is probably one of the stupidest things I have ever done) at night I would sneak out to go the shore of the little lake this place is on to um, smoke ;). It wouldn't get dark until very late, so even though it was around midnight or so, it was just like dusk; there would be bears frolicking and sparring maybe 150 yards down the beach. It was like being in the discovery channel or something.
 
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