Are you afraid of black bears?

[boneaddict]

That jaw popping always has a way of adding to the pucker sensation....



The boar that attacked me came at an unreal pace.   I knew it was coming. I went from puckering to life and death mode.     He wasn't backing down.  When he charged it was crazy fast....crazy fast.   I hit him in the chest full speed.   His momentum slammed him into me and knocked me ass over tea kettles.   It knocked my hat off and thats what he pounced on.  When I quit tumbling down the hill I had another round in and crossed his shoulders as he chewed on my hat.  He would have ripped me a new one.  Damn nice bear.

[rasbo]

the one that came after me I shot at point blank range in the face,it flipped him over and he left asap...big bear,we never found him,I found parts of lips or gums not sure,but we followed him with a decent blood trail for about 1 1/2 miles in a steep thick drainage,pouring rain, we lost all sign.never found him.his front pad was a full 6inches ,I still worry when Im hiking in the dark now..I can see that event like it was yesterday in my mind..

[fillthefreezer]

i wasnt until this thread

[h20hunter]

Exactly what I was thinking!

[NWWABOWHNTR]

Amazing how quiet they can be... I was calf and cow calling during early elk last year... for about 15-20 minutes, after I decided to get up and move to another area, I stood up, took a few steps and there was a big cinnamon bear looking down into the reprod at me... from 10 or so yards... of course no arrow nocked.... and out of my mouth came the proverbial... "$H.....t", of course it just bolted the other way when it realized there was not a nice calf dinner down there.  Not scared but sure do hold a lot more respect for what they can do.. biggest fear is the sow and cubs....

[Pathfinder101]

i wasnt until this thread

 

Cool stuff Bone.  Davy Crockett's got nuthin' on you...

[Machias]

Several times I have been sitting in a treestand and had a bear walk out from under my stand that I had no clue was there.  My two scary situations were both with smaller bears, one while predator calling.  I heard pine needles directly behind me being stepped on.  All the hair on the back of my neck stood up as I knew in order to hear that, it was close.  I turned and there about 10 yards away was a small bear, one that I did not want to shoot, so I spoke to it softly, it stepped forward.  I stood up and squared off on it and spoke again, a little drewl dripped from it's mouth and it pinned it's ears back and took another step forward.  I'm thinking crap it has no idea what I am.  It got a face full of pepper spray and left.  The other time was in Northern Maine.  I was fishing for brook trout along the Machias River.  I had a five foot ultra light spinning rod and reel and inadvertently walked between a small sow and her very young cub.  She bluff charged me three times and I think I filled my shorts all three times! 

[rasbo]

Several times I have been sitting in a treestand and had a bear walk out from under my stand that I had no clue was there.  My two scary situations were both with smaller bears, one while predator calling.  I heard pine needles directly behind me being stepped on.  All the hair on the back of my neck stood up as I knew in order to hear that, it was close.  I turned and there about 10 yards away was a small bear, one that I did not want to shoot, so I spoke to it softly, it stepped forward.  I stood up and squared off on it and spoke again, a little drewl dripped from it's mouth and it pinned it's ears back and took another step forward.  I'm thinking crap it has no idea what I am.  It got a face full of pepper spray and left.  The other time was in Northern Maine.  I was fishing for brook trout along the Machias River.  I had a five foot ultra light spinning rod and reel and inadvertently walked between a small sow and her very young cub.  She bluff charged me three times and I think I filled my shorts all three times!

who woulda thunk prairie doggin could be so exciting I killed a small one that came in while calling,walked up from behind just a foot or so away,it had a bad limp,when it wiffed me it turned an put its paws on a downed log and looked at me,maybe 15 feet.I dumped it..first bear for me...It had been shot through the gut by someone,i found out after skinning it....I later found out an old ranger vet shot at one a mile or so above me that morning,Im sure it was that bear...

[boneaddict]

Amazing how quiet they can be... I was calf and cow calling

Had that with a grizz over in North Idaho.   Calling moose and heard a twig snap behind me.   Turned to have a griz standing RIGHT THERE.   Felt a little naked with the longbow in hand.   Thankfully he also felt a bit duped.   

[Machias]

Thankfully he also felt a bit duped.   

Nope he was thinking crap a Sapphire Hawk!! 

[LITTLEBUCK]

I have to say Yes, and No with a healthy respect as well. Never been attacked but have had two occasion that bear were so close I could here them breath and oh the pooping of those teeth is almost to much. Both times I was in timber with 6 foot high huckleberry brush where you could see at the most 10 yards. After an encounter like that you spend the rest of the day looking behind you. The encounter that has stayed in my mind the most for over 45 years, is when I was 8 years old. My 16 year old brother, his friend and myself were 2 miles back in the woods at a small pond about an acre in size just  messing around. The frogs were going crazy. We started shooting the 22 in the water to shut up the frogs, which did not work. From across the pond we hear a very low and loud growl three times. What really put the hair up on the back of our necks was the frogs in the pond went completely silent. You could hear a pin drop except for our hearts racing. As an 8 year I was scared out of my mind. What made it worse was my brother and his friend ran and left me standing there. To this day I have never forgiven him for that one. Was it a bear, more then likely due to a very large population in that area at that time. But it sure as heck was not afraid of us.

[Machias]

I have to say Yes, and No with a healthy respect as well. Never been attacked but have had two occasion that bear were so close I could here them breath and oh the pooping of those teeth is almost to much. Both times I was in timber with 6 foot high huckleberry brush where you could see at the most 10 yards. After an encounter like that you spend the rest of the day looking behind you. The encounter that has stayed in my mind the most for over 45 years, is when I was 8 years old. My 16 year old brother, his friend and myself were 2 miles back in the woods at a small pond about an acre in size just  messing around. The frogs were going crazy. We started shooting the 22 in the water to shut up the frogs, which did not work. From across the pond we hear a very low and loud growl three times. What really put the hair up on the back of our necks was the frogs in the pond went completely silent. You could hear a pin drop except for our hearts racing. As an 8 year I was scared out of my mind. What made it worse was my brother and his friend ran and left me standing there. To this day I have never forgiven him for that one. Was it a bear, more then likely due to a very large population in that area at that time. But it sure as heck was not afraid of us.

Bigfoot

[LITTLEBUCK]

I was going to say that but wanted to keep this thread on track.

[Skyvalhunter]

Amazing how quiet they can be... I was calf and cow calling

Had that with a grizz over in North Idaho.   Calling moose and heard a twig snap behind me.   Turned to have a griz standing RIGHT THERE.   Felt a little naked with the longbow in hand.   Thankfully he also felt a bit duped.   

Did you atleast get some good pictures of him?

[seth30]

Yikes, I have a story like that myself but involved another predator.  My uncle and I sat under a tree and cast our lines out in the pond.  After a while I kept hearing something above me.  I just figured it was a bird or squirrel.  Nope a big cougar looking down at us.   I was 10 or 11 at the time, but I figure we either woke him up, or he treed up when we walked to the pond, and we just happened to sit under that tree.  I bet the cougar was more scared of us than anything.