Is it possible to spear hunt a grizzly bear?

I like Double Naught Spy's concept of Beer for Bear, what an evolutionary idea!!!

Cave bear were routinely killed with spears by groups of early man. The key here is groups of men working together. This is a definite advantage. Even then I would assume not all of the men survived all of the time. Spears were typically big long sticks with heavy stone points not the modern concept of an elegant point on a perfectly straight polished wooden shaft. Early spears were not intended for throwing but up close stabbing action. Spears killed everything from Mammoths to bras to larger herbivores. Doable in groups but not a good idea alone. So back to the Beer concept. Beer attracts friends. Friends with spears that can easily become drunken enough to go after bears.
 
From what I've read, the Lakota Sioux often hunted in groups. They killed these great bears whether encountered out on the prairie or within the forests of the Black Hills. These warriors didn't seem to care about the limitations of their short bows and flint tipped arrows.

Jack
 
Mobuck - Probably a "once in a lifetime" endeavor.

Like jumping from an airplane without a parachute! :eek:

Just because you CAN do something - doesn't mean you should!:rolleyes:
 
I'm sure it's possible to attack a grizzly with a spear and survive, but I think a more accurate way to say it is "It's not impossible to attack a grizzly with a spear and survive."

Either way it's not a good idea.
 
Natives hunted for food, clothing, shelter, etc. I'm thinking there were much "better" alternatives than grizzly bears for all those.
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They also hunted, raided and indeed killed each other for nothing more than bragging rights ...... There would be no better animal quarry available to "Native Americans" than the grizzly bear for pure bragging rights!
 
I'm sure it's possible to attack a grizzly with a spear and survive, but I think a more accurate way to say it is "It's not impossible to attack a grizzly with a spear and survive."

Either way it's not a good idea.

^Yeah, and call me crazy but I'd like to come out more than just surviving.
Some sweating is ok, maybe a bruise or scrape from the hike in/out. You could still hunt bear and survive but be in excruciating pain as you nearly bleed out and can feel your brain with your index finger.

Not for me, no thanks.
 
Here is another OLD link that you may want to dig through.

http://forums.outdoorsdirectory.com/showthread.php/11340-Black-Bear-with-a-Spear

It looks like Alaska would be your best bet for bear with a spear in the US.

I am to old to even think about it now but I have used a shovel but that was almost 20 years ago and a black bear. The shovel that I had been using for slicing through tree roots when I was placer mining was still shaving sharp when I took that trip to my outhouse log that night and it was not a large black bear.
 
I am not a Veteran,but I was fortunate enough to hear a seasoned ....WW2 vintage Sgt Major say "No sense practicing something you can only screw up once"
 
If prehistoric humans could hunt all those big animals, including bears, with just spears, why couldn't modern humans?
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Modern humans can, but generally don't, because we don't like to accept the body count of dead and permanently maimed hunters that goes with spear hunting large dangerous animals.

If you have enough hunters to pin cushion the bear, most of them will be able to get away while the bear kills one or three before it finally dies...

Yes, the best guys can throw a javelin 100yds or so, but how much penetration does it have at that range?? AND without the accuracy to ensure a hit on the vitals, enough penetration only results in a VERY upset bear.

Yes, primitive man hunted all the big dangerous game with spears, and every other weapon they had. And while primitive man survived as a species, the death rate of the individual hunters was nearly as high as the death rate of what they hunted, when it was big enough to hunt them back.

There are places that allow spears as primitive weapons for hunting. You can go after deer or bear with one, where legal.

Grizzly Bears aren't legal to hunt, with anything, as far as I know. If you want that challenge, I would suggest you go for the Alaskan brown bear. Also ensure your life insurance is up to date!

Also be aware that a bear will "run down a spear" to get to you. There is a REASON a boar spear has a crossbar, and I think a bear spear (not a javelin) would benefit from that as well. Because, worst case, you will be pitting your strength against the bear, holding it out of reach with a pointy stick until it dies.

There was a fellow some years back, who was attacked by a grizzly while bow hunting deer. He survived, managing to kill the grizz by stabbing it repeatedly with a broadhead arrow.

A few months later, still in casts and bandages, he went to court over the killing of the protected bear. (yes, he WAS charged with illegally killing the bear).

In his case, after looking at his injuries, the judge threw the charges out.

You can't HUNT a grizzly bear, but you can hunt its even bigger cousin. Primitive man died in large numbers doing things like that. IF you are up for the challenge, go for it, like the man said, you can only screw it up, once! :eek::rolleyes::D
 
I personally would use a .416 Rigby at a minimum.
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I'm not sure I'd need anything QUITE that powerful, especially if it'll weigh enough more that it'll affect handling. I'd want a warmed-up .45-70 Marlin lever action, a .358 Winchester Savage M99, or a Remington 7600 in .35 Whelen, if the latter could be had.

Excellent point about only having to get it wrong once.
 
Ha! I have to laugh. Only clicked on this one to see if it had any firearm discussion because the moderators tend to lock these down quickly when they don't.

Two mods, barely any firearms discussion and neither mod locked it up! (not that I care... but I do find it funny...!)

Any time I have seen any video of a motivated bear it occurs to me that he need not ever bite me. Pretty sure even a small bear could knock my head clean off my body with minimal effort. The strength these animals possess is awe-inspiring.
 
I suggest that the OP read (pardon any spelling error) Kanut's book "Bear Tales of Alaska"
Just for fun.
 
Yes, primitive man hunted all the big dangerous game with spears, and every other weapon they had. And while primitive man survived as a species, the death rate of the individual hunters was nearly as high as the death rate of what they hunted, when it was big enough to hunt them back.
......

You can't HUNT a grizzly bear, but you can hunt its even bigger cousin. Primitive man died in large numbers doing things like that. IF you are up for the challenge, go for it, like the man said, you can only screw it up, once!
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I see, thank you for the information. Again, this is not something I would be planning on trying anytime soon (if ever!). The issue with primitive humans hunting is what I was very curious about, i.e. did they have a high death rate in doing so or did primitive humans work out a system whereby they could hunt large dangerous animals fairly successfully without a ton of risk.

As for trying it, that would be after having done a ton of practice and development in spear throwing with and without an atlatl, having hunted multiple other animals in said fashion, and having men well-skilled with firearms with me in case the spearing failed.
 
Ha! I have to laugh. Only clicked on this one to see if it had any firearm discussion because the moderators tend to lock these down quickly when they don't.

Two mods, barely any firearms discussion and neither mod locked it up! (not that I care... but I do find it funny...!)

Any time I have seen any video of a motivated bear it occurs to me that he need not ever bite me. Pretty sure even a small bear could knock my head clean off my body with minimal effort. The strength these animals possess is awe-inspiring.
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There was a fellow at another forum who actually started a thread asking the question if he could hunt a boar by kicking it. He said he was well-trained in Muay Thai and had good strong kicks, and that he thought he would be able to kick the boar and break its ribs. The responses to that were hilarious.
 
The issue with primitive humans hunting is what I was very curious about, i.e. did they have a high death rate in doing so or did primitive humans work out a system whereby they could hunt large dangerous animals fairly successfully without a ton of risk.
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I took this as a serious question, not a troll, and worthy of a serious (somewhat) answer, as the OP seemed a bit under informed about the realities of the subject.

ALL of the experts who study our stone age ancestors report the same things, that their lives were hard, dangerous, and fairly short. Their skeletons show many and frequent injuries that had fatal results, and that some survived massive injuries, for a time, at least.

Killing large, dangerous animals with pointed sticks and rock is a high risk thing. Done today, with modern medicine, probably many of the injured would be saved, but we would still lose some. I expect the death toll was much higher percentage in primitive times, where a deep cut or a crushed foot could be fatal, eventually.

Mankind eventually developed the bow, which reduced the risk tremendously (by increasing the distance from horns, hooves teeth and claws), but there was still significant risk.

Using fire to stampede animals over a cliff, or luring/chasing game to a spot where large rocks could be dropped on them were tactics used when conditions allowed.

Successful hunters were the peak of primitive societies, not just because they brought in food, but because they survived to be able to do it again, and again. It has only been recently that movie and TV recreations of stone age hunts have begun to show how dangerous it actually was for the hunters.

(I didn't see a sticky requiring this to be closed if not gun related, and I think the question has been answered, so this is probably a good point to stop.

Now, as to some martial artist kicking a boar to death, I'd put my bets on the boar.:p
 
It has only been recently that movie and TV recreations of stone age hunts have begun to show how dangerous it actually was for the hunters.

(I didn't see a sticky requiring this to be closed if not gun related, and I think the question has been answered, so this is probably a good point to stop.
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One question, but what are some of these movie and TV recreations of stone-age hunts that are realistic? (I would love to watch some of them).

Now, as to some martial artist kicking a boar to death, I'd put my bets on the boar.
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Yes, one response was, "There will be much squealing, but it won't be the pig" :cool:
 
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