MAULED: Lessons Learned from a Grizzly Bear Attack

[BRICKBURN]

Just an FYI to all the folks on AH.

It is the 5th Anniversary of the Grizzly Attack that nearly killed a good friend of mine.
After some reasonable recovery time he has gotten his story into print. It releases shortly. You can pre order the book if you are interested.
Have a look.

An inspiring true-life survival story set in the remote backcountry of the Canadian Rockies.

In August 2017, 32-year-old Jeremy Evans endured multiple ferocious attacks by a protective female grizzly bear while hunting in the Alberta wilderness.
Jeremy’s injuries were massive, his scalp and face destroyed, an eye and his jaw dangling down. The tendons on one leg had been fully severed during the mauling. His hands were damaged where he had physically fought the bear. It was more than a dozen kilometres to where he had parked his truck in darkness early that morning and absolutely no one was near. Thoughts of his wife and their eight-month-old daughter consumed Jeremy as he stumbled and crawled for hours back to his truck, before driving himself several kilometres to a backcountry lodge for help. All the while, Jeremy thought of his young family and the upcoming sixth wedding anniversary that he feared he might never be able to celebrate.

Mauled carefully details what happened deep in an Alberta forest where few modern humans tread. Jeremy’s miraculous recovery and life lessons learned when so close to death show that human determination can defy the greatest of odds, and that setting small goals along the road to recovery can lead to remarkable achievements. Despite the traumatic stress the encounter produced, Jeremy holds no animosity toward the bear and still enjoys spending time in the backcountry. To him the grizzly was doing what the best parents do: protect their young.

https://www.amazon.ca/Mauled-Lessons-Learned-Grizzly-Attack/dp/1771604832

 

[shotgungibbs]

Sounds like he took quite the "bear beating", and lived to talk about it!

 

[sestoppelman]

Yikes!! Sounds awful. A couple of local hunters were killed near Sitka when I lived there in the 60's. These were of course the larger island brown bears, but they can all put you in the grave in a hurry if they want to.

 

[gillettehunter]

Be an interesting story to read. I was hunting around 30 yrs ago and a fellow in my party was mauled by a sow near Teton Nat park. I was chased by the same bear later that day. Luckily I was on a horse and was able to escape. I liked hunting there, but my wife forbids me from returning. Maybe I'll write the story up on here sometime.
The fellow mauled was Wally Cash. Broken ribs, dislocated shoulder, broken collar bone, over 100 stitches. He also had a titanium plate put in to cover a hole where the sows tooth went thro his skull..... Bears demand respect.
Bruce

 

[BRICKBURN]

Sounds like he took quite the "bear beating", and lived to talk about it!

It was horrendous actually. I did not sleep very well from just seeing pictures.

He was attacked three times by the sow and fought her off with his bare hands.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Be an interesting story to read. I was hunting around 30 yrs ago and a fellow in my party was mauled by a sow near Teton Nat park. I was chased by the same bear later that day. Luckily I was on a horse and was able to escape. I liked hunting there, but my wife forbids me from returning. Maybe I'll write the story up on here sometime.
The fellow mauled was Wally Cash. Broken ribs, dislocated shoulder, broken collar bone, over 100 stitches. He also had a titanium plate put in to cover a hole where the sows tooth went thro his skull..... Bears demand respect.
Bruce

My friend tends to hunt on the flat land now for some reason.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Yikes!! Sounds awful. A couple of local hunters were killed near Sitka when I lived there in the 60's. These were of course the larger island brown bears, but they can all put you in the grave in a hurry if they want to.

They certainly can. After a bear gets large enough that it can fit your skull in its mouth, it just does not matter anymore.

 

[Ragman]

My gosh that would be terrifying. Your friend is one tough dude. My cousin’s father-in-law was killed by a grizzly by Prince George back in 1998. He was out for a hike and stumbled on to the bear on it’s moose kill. He was quite the individual as well. I believe they named a park after him.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Stumbling on to Grizzlies, now that they are no longer hunted here, is becoming all too common place. Many have lost all fear of humans.

 

[Inline6]

Stumbling on to Grizzlies, now that they are no longer hunted here, is becoming all too common place. Many have lost all fear of humans.

It's a shame that the people that make the rules, at not out in the woods understanding what is actually going on. Seems the people that live in the bubble know what's best.

 

[Paul Raley]

For those of you in the know I see there is a lot of literature about bear spray and side arms recommended as protection against bears . My common sense says that a powerful handgun might be a good form of protection , my question is : Have there been any incidents where people have successfully used handguns to protect themselves against a Grizzly ? If so what happened and what firearm was used ?
I assume anything that can stop a Grizzly will stop a black bear too .
How effective is bear spray compared to a powerful handgun ?
As a South African I do not know much about bears so I would be interested in hearing what those of you that have experience and knowledge about bears have to say .

 

[SaintPanzer]

For those of you in the know I see there is a lot of literature about bear spray and side arms recommended as protection against bears . My common sense says that a powerful handgun might be a good form of protection , my question is : Have there been any incidents where people have successfully used handguns to protect themselves against a Grizzly ? If so what happened and what firearm was used ?
I assume anything that can stop a Grizzly will stop a black bear too .
How effective is bear spray compared to a powerful handgun ?
As a South African I do not know much about bears so I would be interested in hearing what those of you that have experience and knowledge about bears have to say .

The problem, of course, is determining the reliability of the source. That is to say, it's not likely a site/study devoted to firearms is not going to publish data that undermines their thesis. Likewise, sites that prefer the use of spray over firearms would downplay the use of firearms. Usually, the "Spray Types" make one valid point: shot placement matters.

That understood:

How Effective Is Bear Spray? | Yellowstone Bear World

yellowstonebearworld.com

Defense Against Bears with Pistols: 97% Success rate, 37 incidents by Caliber

On the Internet, and in print, many people claim that pistols lack efficacy in defending against bear attacks. Here is an example that...

gunwatch.blogspot.com

Wyoming: Another Successful Handgun Defense Against a Grizzly Bear - The Truth About Guns

&#9664Previous Post Next Post▶ On May 31, 2018, at about two o’clock in the afternoon, 23-year-old Noah Kolis was guiding three friends from Chicago. They started at his boyhood home near Cora, Wyoming. His dog, a Chesapeake-Lab mix, was with them, heading to some rock formations nearby. Polis...

www.thetruthaboutguns.com

So yes, both have been used.

 

[Paul Raley]

Interesting information - thank you !

 

[Nevada Mike]

For those of you in the know I see there is a lot of literature about bear spray and side arms recommended as protection against bears . My common sense says that a powerful handgun might be a good form of protection , my question is : Have there been any incidents where people have successfully used handguns to protect themselves against a Grizzly ? If so what happened and what firearm was used ?
I assume anything that can stop a Grizzly will stop a black bear too .
How effective is bear spray compared to a powerful handgun ?
As a South African I do not know much about bears so I would be interested in hearing what those of you that have experience and knowledge about bears have to say .

A very close, long-time friend of mine was hunting moose on the Kenai some years ago. He had brought along a 454 Casull revolver and gave it to his guide to carry. During the hunt they were making their way through some alders and jumped a large (boar) brown bear from its bed. The bear circled around behind them, struck their backtrail and immediately charged up their trail - at full speed, according to my friend. Its intent was clear. They both opened fire, my friend with his rifle and the guide with the heavy revolver. The bear died about ten feet from them from a shot from the revolver the guide carried. I beleive it was hit in the head.
True story - my friend took one claw and photos of the bear. The bear was lying flat on his belly and measured nearly 4 feet to the top of his shoulder. The 454 Casull revolver that killed the bear could be laid on his head between his ears with room to spare. he was BIG. My friend's guide said that if they reported the incident to the state wildlife authorities an investigation would ensue and his remaining hunt time would be taken up by co-operating in the investigation. They decided to leave the bear and say nothing about the incident.
I will not disclose my friend's or the guide's names or the exact location where the incident occurred.

 

[Longwalker]

As I write this from my cabin in the BC bush, I am 30 km away from a cattle ranch that lost 68 calves and 11 cows to large predators last year. Most were grizzly kills. Some were wolves. The cattleman’s association actually pays a bounty on wolves of $750 per if they are designated problem animals. 5 grizzlies have been shot by ranchers in the neighbourhood this summer. Those bears were “wasted” but understandably were eliminated due to the threat that they represent. Seems to me that an outfitter could have marketed that opportunity and turned a liability into a benefit for the local community. But our government has banned licensed grizzly hunting. Seems tragically similar to some African countries/ predators.

 

[BRICKBURN]

For those of you in the know I see there is a lot of literature about bear spray and side arms recommended as protection against bears . My common sense says that a powerful handgun might be a good form of protection , my question is : Have there been any incidents where people have successfully used handguns to protect themselves against a Grizzly ? If so what happened and what firearm was used ?
I assume anything that can stop a Grizzly will stop a black bear too .
How effective is bear spray compared to a powerful handgun ?
As a South African I do not know much about bears so I would be interested in hearing what those of you that have experience and knowledge about bears have to say .

Comparison of efficacy in Canada is simple. Handguns are not allowed. Bear Spray is what you can use.
Proper training and knowledge in its use is a big factor in successful bear defence.
A huge factor is actually having immediate access to the spray when required. Chest harness is the best placement and not strapped to your pack , etc.
Bear Spray works when properly deployed will deter a Grizzly.
I hope to never have to test the theory and training.
Jeremy volunteers his time to aid training to get Wilderness EMTs up to speed and other back country users. When you actually meet a survivor it carries a lot of weight.

 

[Rickmt]

I think the average hunter or hiker would be more likely to deter a bear with spray than a gun. Unless you carry a big gun and really know how to use it spray would be my choice. My wife and I always carry the big can of spray when we are hiking here in Montana.

 

[flatwater bill]

Wow....what an ordeal. THAT will be a good read for all of us that hunt in bear country. Regarding defense, for me, rifle hunting elk in grizzly country, I've gotta have my rifle.....not sure I would benefit from adding a handgun or a spray. But I can certainly imagine things going wrong, and going wrong too fast to get the rifle in play unless it was already in both hands...........FWB

 

[BRICKBURN]

Wow....what an ordeal. THAT will be a good read for all of us that hunt in bear country. Regarding defense, for me, rifle hunting elk in grizzly country, I've gotta have my rifle.....not sure I would benefit from adding a handgun or a spray. But I can certainly imagine things going wrong, and going wrong too fast to get the rifle in play unless it was already in both hands...........FWB

Spot on. Hug that rifle (I do).
Several incident reviews have shown hunters don't ever get a chance to use their rifles. At least with a bear spray in a chest holster you will have a defence on hand whatever you are doing in camp or on the trail. If you are "playing dead" you will have a chance to use the spray if it's on your chest.

 

[1dirthawker]

Have there been any incidents where people have successfully used handguns to protect themselves against a Grizzly ? If so what happened and what firearm was used ?

yes,

they are handguns that have a "4" in their caliber, 44, 45 etc.

waaaay better than a sharp stick.