My first bad experience in Alaska, I got charged.

Misfit6669

Misfit6669

In Memoriam
I have been debating the last few days about sharing this with everyone, as it has got me a little screwed up right now. As you can tell, I have been trying to flood my brain with all the pleasant happenings while in Alaska. By me doing so, you have received a lot of pictures from me over the last couple of days. I was hoping it would help fix what happened last weekend but I donââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t think it will. I might be dealing with it better already, since I am able to talk about it; I guess I should say type about since I havenââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t told anybody that this has happened yet. I am physically ok, so donââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t worry, it was just a really, really close call. I keep doing the what-ifs and that is starting to catch up with me. Itââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s driving me crazy but I am hoping that talking about it will help. Maybe you guys have some tips about near death experiences. I can tell by typing this stupid message, Iââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢m still putting off talking about it...


ââ"šÂ¬Ã‚¦As most of you know, I moved up to Alaska this year. I moved here from Colorado where I did some backpacking. I have always been pretty comfortable in the woods. I used to think I could handle myself in the woods just fine. I am 35 and like to think I can hold my own in most situations. I have been studying martial arts for the last 15 years. Everything from Tang Soo Do in the early days to Kempo Karate in the middle and then Wing Chun. The last 4 years have been spent learning Pukulan Pentjak Silat Tongkat with Maha Guru Muda Bob Vanatta, an Indonesian art. By far the best of everything I have learned. It is very much a blade art and there are very few times I donââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t have knife on me, sometimes two. Ok, I think I am still putting off talking about this.


I want to get into backpacking again here in Alaska but feel I need to learn a lot more before I put myself or Brandi in too bad a situation that I canââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t handle. As most of you know they have some pretty big brown bears out here. For the most part, 95% of the oneââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s you come across wonââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t bother you but that still leaves 5% and that is still too high a number for me. I have been looking into handguns to carry while backpacking but it was going to be a tough buy. I know I should have a high powered riffle instead but I am not going to carry one with me while backpacking. A handgun would be easier to carry but do they even make a handgun that will drop a big brown, I donââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t think so. From my very limited knowledge of handguns and browns, you have to be pretty lucky to drop a charging brown. I had planned on not putting myself into that situation until I felt better about that type of situation. I have purposely avoided any hikes that would take me and Brandi too deep into the woods. The plan was to buy a gun, maybe a pair this winter to be ready for next summer. Letââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s just say that I will be buying a gun this weekend instead.

I had already been studying the brown bears to learn as much as I can.

I can now recognize a brown bear track from a black bear.
GrizzlyTrack.JPG


I know what their scat looks like
GrizzlyScat02.jpg

Sorry mods if that picture is too much, I am only posting for educational reasons. Please let me know if itââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s border line and I will remove it within the hour. If itââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s really that bad, Iââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢m sure you guys will delete it but please donââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t send BrianD after me.

I didnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t before but I know now about their diggings
BearDigging-Large.jpg


And I am even keeping a closer eye on the trees but itââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s not as easy to notice as you would think.
BearClawMarks01.jpg


I think most of you saw this but just a couple of weeks ago a couple were killed by a brown.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8371132/


I havenââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t even got into all the moose dangers.
 
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Last weekend while Brandi and I were at Hatcher Pass, I went off into the woods a little too deep. I had to go to the bathroom and being a guy, itââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s never that hard to find a bathroom. I started up a hill to get away from the water; I guess I still got a little backpacker in me. I just couldn't remember how far I should be from the steam. I think itââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s at least 50 feet but it wasnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t going to hurt to go a little farther. Plus I thought I could get a good camera shot from the top of the hill and then take a leak on the other side. As I got closer to the top of the hill, I started hearing something on the other side. The first thing I do is get my camera ready. Nothing happens so I start going farther up the hill. As I come around a big rock, I can see the top for sure, maybe 35 feet away. I still hear a little movement behind the hill so I get my camera ready. I look down to make sure it was on action mode and as I look up, thatââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s when I see them. Itââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s a mother and her cub. The mother had her back to me but I think the cub was looking at me. My first thought was to take a picture of them both. As soon as the click of my camera did its thing, the mother turns around and charges down the hill towards me. The cub goes down the other side of the hill but the mother is coming right towards me. What really has me bothered it that I froze. I didnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t try to run, I didnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t even go for my knife which I can have ready in about a second. I know a 5ââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ spyerco isnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t much but it was all I had and I didnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t even go for it. Instead, I just stand there and take another picture of the mom while she is running down the hill towards me. I think she was a third of the way down when I took that second shot. I still stood there like a frozen idiot with my stupid camera as my only weapon. She was still running right towards me when I took my 3rd and final shot with my camera. I think she is about 4 feet from me, when she decides to go towards my left. You can see from the picture that she is heading left but itââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s kind of blurry. She just ran right passed me and on down the hill. Like I said, no real physical damage but it still has me rattled for sure. My heart is beating faster just thinking about it. How long does it take for these feeling to go away? After all the years I have trained and I just froze, I think that has me the most bent. I guess what doesnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t kill you makes you stronger but I am not seeing it in this case. Thanks for letting me share this with you, maybe I can get some better sleep tonight.
Here are the pictures, sorry for the blurry ones but what do you expect;)



Here is where I first saw the mom and the cub.
HatcherPass2036.jpg


Here is the mom about 15 to 20 away and you can tell she isnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t happy.
HatcherPass2037.jpg


This is the last one, look how close she is.
HatcherPass2038.jpg


Here are some shots I was able to get from the safety for our jeep.
HatcherPass2024.jpg

HatcherPass2039.jpg

HatcherPass2046.jpg



All the above is true, except me getting all that freaked out about it and I guess I didnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t really freeze, it was about 75 outside. If you do have any handgun recommendations, I would like to hear them.

Brandi and I had so much fun joking about our first animal attack, I thought it would be fun to share with you all.

Brian
 
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Cute, B****. Got me going all right. (I'm leaving next weekend for a 12 day backpacking trip in NM. We did have one brown explore our campsite during a similar trek 3 years ago, so I'm already "keyed up". Of course, compared to Alaska, ours are only "Mew Mexico" bears.)

In any event, I guess I see that you were threatened by one variety of what we affectionately call the 'mini bears' (Ursa rodentia) They actually do a lot more damage to packs and rations than the real thing...just out of pure numbers and their stealthy ways. And, they're too quick to shoot reliably...check out Bill Murray's solution to a near relative in Caddyshack.

By the way, since you can differentiate bears, do you know the difference between a squirrel and a chipmunk? (There's more white meat on a chipmunk...)

"I'm Chip!" "I'm Dale." (I'm exhausted and going to bed...)
 
Re: My first bad experience in Alaska, I got charged.

Misfit6669 said:
I have been studying martial arts for the last 15 years. Everything from Tang Soo Do in the early days to Kempo Karate in the middle and then Wing Chun. The last 4 years have been spent learning Pukulan Pentjak Silat Tongkat with Maha Guru Muda Bob Vanatta, an Indonesian art.
Click to expand...




buy a gun
 
Thanks Todd
That helps a lot, wish I would have thought of that.

anyways

Have a blast Gary, which part on NM are you going to. I love the Chaco area. Need to get some sleep myself.
Brian
 
thats some funny stuff....keep the pics coming i always look forward to seeing them

BTW are you up there with a man by the last name of wilson? just curious because i know someone else also up there surveying right now
 
Brian,

did you doodoo in your pants as you were being charged? It really sounds like a pretty intense experience and you might want to consider some counseling due to the extreme nature of the experience.

Vike Bron is probably a good one to ask about guns though. Although truthfully with the size and speed of your last attack not sure any large caliber weapon will work.

Glad to see you are still with us or at least Brandy is still with us. :-)

Gotta admit though was a bit concerned at first. Very good.

Kip
 
i dunno but you would thing that sever rounds from like a colt 45 would stop him. dunno if you need him to stop in one shot but at least you dont have to calk *sp?* it every time.
 
I'm thinking a Daisy Red Rider Model 9938 Repeater. Be careful, it might be too much firepower for you, big fella.
 
Oh, man, you got me so badly. I was really getting worried for you. I need a pair of pliers to get the hook out of my mouth.

Just for that I am going to log on to every evangelical web site I can find and put Brian Misfit on the pray lists.

Bah, hah, hah, hah....................revenge is mine I say! Soon thousands and thousands of people all over the globe will be praying for you,
praying at you.
point, point.............

Hey, how about Hindu, and Moslem web site too. And Wiccan, And Jewish, and atheist, or never mind.

You got me.

Lane
 
LOL I though you were serious...hope "momma bear" didn't meet the lower end of your car. But anyways are you gonna pick up a gun?
 
Yeah but not this weekend, I would like to get a reasonable handgun just in case. Also will get some bear spray.
Brian
 
u r 1 sick puppy, dude. i don't believe you had me that caught up. i should have known with it being you that there was a catch. good one... :)
 
HAHAHAHA! It's my birthday and that might be the biggest laugh I've had yet! Thanks!

I'm not an expert, but I've read a few hunting magazines and stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night, so here goes. :fun2:

I was in the Boulder gun store last weekend. They have a 500 magnum that would get the attention of about anything, including a sherman tank. If your serious, something large like that would be a good thing in a revover. You might even be able to find something in a military type of fold out stock which would make shooting that type of cannon bear-able. Regardless, you'd really need to go to the range pretty regularly to get use to it. You might rather just take a 9mm and use it for the practice at the range to save $$.

What does happen with a cannon like a 500 mag is you learn to flinch and that wastes your effort. You'll be jerking the shots off in all directions. My uncle target shoots like we reef and he does it pretty well at a national level, so I've heard a lot of stories. Last fall he was telling me about a couple of guys who had taken in their 500 mag to the range and couldn't hit anything with it. They started talking with him and telling him how the gun was really inaccurate. They gave it to him to try and he put 5 shots in the black... He then explained the flinching and how to teach it out of your system. :uzi:

You could always carry a short small shotgun with slugs in it. Much easier to shoot. Accuracy in hunting or defending yourself, is always more important than the caliber (with the exception of the red ryder bb gun, which will shoot your eye out). :hmm5:

How'bout this: Make a lot of noise while hiking, carry bear spray and run faster than Brandy! :inlove: :love2:

Awesome story. I'm still laughing. :lol: :lol:

Here is to your safety. :beer:
 
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