BEAR ATTACK!!!

[Bowsnbucks]

Great to hear Natty !! One of the BEST teachers I ever had in high school was a biology teacher. He made class interesting in a variety of ways and had many hundreds of specimens that he collected while on vacations, during the summer, weekends, etc. His love of nature was INFECTIOUS, and you could tell how much he was involved and into it by his demeanor. He made class interesting. God bless teachers !!

BTW ........ you teachers are all over-paid and one of the main reasons our economy is in bad shape !! :D:confused:o_O:D

 

[gwm]

Wow. Glad everyone is ok.

 

[chummer]

Unbelievable story, glad you are okay. I walked to within 20 yards of a very large bear two summers ago. It was not a fun experience. If I would of had my dog with me it would have went horribly wrong.

 

[Maya]

I would have done the exact same thing NE Pa, amazing story!

 

[Buckly]

There was a story in the PA game News years ago about a radio collared bear they traced that was hibernating under a guys cabin porch, Kind of tucked itself under there and covered the entrance so not easily seen. The game commission decided not to inform the cabin owner. The bear returned for several years. Can you imagine if he decided he was going up some weekend to put on a new porch! I thought that was somewhat irresponsible of the game commission at the time, and after this story I can see it could have been a very dangerous situation.

 

[jaximus]

Yikes! I'm in an area with a large bear population and I'm not a huge fan of them. I've had one startled cub start up my tree when I was 14. Ive nearly walked into a few leaving the stand in the dark. This past bow season I had a trail can pic of me leaving the stand and 7 minutes later a big boar smelling my tracks. Sends shivers up your spine. I've come across a few legit 'dens' with my dogs, but never a nest.

I'm always Leary of some of the big deadfalls down by our creek because that area seems especially bear-y

 

[NE PA QDM]

Monroe county, right where frein was captured! The hangar he was found in was less than 1 mile from our place

What part of NE PA are in? I'm in Sullivan County. I have seen more than my share of bear tracks/fresh sign at this time of year and later into the winter while shed hunting. Shedding the standing corn fields can get sketchy at times.[/QUOTE

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Monroe and Pike Counties - both loaded with bears. We're polluted with them around my camp too. Gotta have eyes in the back of your head in archery season ...... pre-winter feeding frenzy time. Bears are on the move all the time.

 

[bueller]

Has anybody ever used that spray marketed for fending off bears? Is that stuff worth a damn?

 

[wiscwhip]

My brother and another of his buddies that live in WY hunt some areas in west central WY where the WYFG Dept drop off problem grizzly bears from Yellowstone and other popular areas. Some spots they hunt are so dangerous the locals won' go in there. My brother has never had to use his as of yet, but one of his buddies has used it twice on big bears and he is alive and unmauled and swears by the stuff. He feels it is more effective that a magnum handgun.

 

[bueller]

My brother and another of his buddies that live in WY hunt some areas in west central WY where the WYFG Dept drop off problem grizzly bears from Yellowstone and other popular areas. Some spots they hunt are so dangerous the locals won' go in there. My brother has never had to use his as of yet, but one of his buddies has used it twice on big bears and he is alive and unmauled and swears by the stuff. He feels it is more effective that a magnum handgun.

That's why i asked, a non fatal gunshot can really piss something like a bear off. I don't know what the active ingredient is but I've been hit with OC spray and it incapacitated me (couldn't open my eyes) for nearly 30 minutes.

 

[NE PA QDM]

My brother and another of his buddies that live in WY hunt some areas in west central WY where the WYFG Dept drop off problem grizzly bears from Yellowstone and other popular areas. Some spots they hunt are so dangerous the locals won' go in there. My brother has never had to use his as of yet, but one of his buddies has used it twice on big bears and he is alive and unmauled and swears by the stuff. He feels it is more effective that a magnum handgun.

i work with a guy who was stationed in alaska for a while. i don't think he ever had to use the spray but now in PA he carries it with him when he's bow hunting and he says it definitely works. if it works on alaskan brown bears i'm sure it works for black bears. he also carries a gun, but maybe i'll pick up a can or two of that as well to take with me in the woods.

 

[GloryDaysDesign]

Hey I am also from NEPA. From Bangor, PA! If you guys are local, are their any QDMA meetings or anything I could attend? Nice to meet you, virtually!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Someday isle]

Wow - what a crazy story. It'll make a nice anecdote for the rest of your life but also a little traumatic for you, your dog, and unfortunately the bears. When we deal in nature we're most often the outsider. Glad you and the dog are okay!

 

[H20fwler]

Holy crap! That could have been so much worse in so many ways...mama bear with cubs usually never turns out well.
I am so glad I don't have to deal with any bears here.


My youngest son is also a biology/science major..he is working on his Masters now.

 

[4wanderingeyes]

I have had a couple occurrences with bear, but luckily none that ended with me having to kick a bear. I have been in stand, and once daylight broke, saw a cub in my tree, and momma in a tree about 20 yards away. I got out of there asap!

I have been coon hunting and had my dogs tree a bear a few times, in my experience a bear will run up a tree, or run away if it has the chance. But I assume for the time of year your dog probably stumbled upon the makeshift den, and woke momma up, and she was to sleepy to run, and she probably didnt want to leave her cubs.

In late winter when in gets above freezing, or on sunny days, bear will get up and relieve themselves, and try slightly to find something to eat. When I go out and hinge cut, I will see fresh bear scat, and fresh bear tracks quite often. I use to have a small den in an old campsite, where there was a large log pile from the dozer. I knew enough to stay away during the winters. Although one winter I was up for the late season deer hunt, and walked past it, and noticed a large black object in it, I just kept my distance.

I am glad you and your dog was ok. I know if it was my, I would have done anything possible to save my dog. I usually carry while I am in the woods now, especially when I have my dogs with me. I am not as concerned with bear, as I am with wolves. For the safety of the dogs, not my safety.

 

[Someday isle]

This really brings up a topic that might be good for another thread. Who carries a sidearm when doing habitat work? We don't have bears, but there's always rumors of bears in this part of the state, with just a few confirmed sightings. We do have wild hogs though. I've been face to face with a wild boar, not on my property, and it was a little intimidating. My neighbor had one on camera last summer but no one ever laid eyes on him. Neighbor is down there every weekend and he carries a 22 pistol all the time. I doubt that'll do him much good.

 

[4wanderingeyes]

I bring a 9mm with my to my cabin, but if my dogs arent walking with me, I dont usually carry it in the woods. Most wild animals scurry before humans get close, if you arent trying to be quiet, they will usually be gone, or get out of there asap when they see you. Dogs on the other hand tend to run after them, or sometimes the bear/wolves look at your dog as a possible treat, which they wouldnt do to you. I have had wolves sniffing the campsite shortly after my dogs were out in the mornings. Sniffing the dogs tracks. The reason I dont carry is, I am usually busy doing something, and having a side arm in the way is, well sometimes in the way. Like cutting trees, planting, discing, removing rocks, etc.. I use to carry everytime I was in the woods, but after 15+ years of having nothing to worry about, I stopped worrying. Except when it comes to my dogs. I am always concerned when they come with me. Their noses can lead them to trouble.

 

[NE PA QDM]

This really brings up a topic that might be good for another thread. Who carries a sidearm when doing habitat work? We don't have bears, but there's always rumors of bears in this part of the state, with just a few confirmed sightings. We do have wild hogs though. I've been face to face with a wild boar, not on my property, and it was a little intimidating. My neighbor had one on camera last summer but no one ever laid eyes on him. Neighbor is down there every weekend and he carries a 22 pistol all the time. I doubt that'll do him much good.

Since this incident I carry when doing any work (or ANYTHING) on the property.
I used to naively think we wouldn't find anyone or anything on the property that could hurt us. Now I don't take any chances. I carry a small 380 or a 9mm; neither is a huge gun but both would have been big enough to stop that bear from point blank range
I went back to the bear nest last month. I had the game commission stop by after the incident, they said it might be re-used this year. I'm happy to say it is no longer in use and has mostly disintegrated.

I'm looking forward to looking for sheds again this year but I think I'll leave the dogs home. Still having nightmares about that day...........

 

[NE PA QDM]

I bring a 9mm with my to my cabin, but if my dogs arent walking with me, I dont usually carry it in the woods. Most wild animals scurry before humans get close, if you arent trying to be quiet, they will usually be gone, or get out of there asap when they see you. Dogs on the other hand tend to run after them, or sometimes the bear/wolves look at your dog as a possible treat, which they wouldnt do to you. I have had wolves sniffing the campsite shortly after my dogs were out in the mornings. Sniffing the dogs tracks. The reason I dont carry is, I am usually busy doing something, and having a side arm in the way is, well sometimes in the way. Like cutting trees, planting, discing, removing rocks, etc.. I use to carry everytime I was in the woods, but after 15+ years of having nothing to worry about, I stopped worrying. Except when it comes to my dogs. I am always concerned when they come with me. Their noses can lead them to trouble.

I had two dogs with me at the time of the attack. My yellow lab clearly smelled the bear and was sprinting around the woods looks for something for a few minutes before my older and more docile black lab stumbled upon the nest. I let the yellow dog run, falsely assuming he was chasing the scent of turkeys that were no longer around. Lesson learned. The hard way. I'm glad they weren't both hurt. I'm glad I wasn't attacked. I still can't believe I stomped on the head of a bear and lived to tell about it. Truly an awful experience.

Looking back, although I now carry 100% of the time I'm in the woods, I'm glad I DID NOT have a gun with me that day. I surely would have killed that bear, no question about it, based on the assumption that my dog or me would die if I didn't kill her.

Her cubs all died but I suspect she did not.

It's such a miserable emotional topic, certainly the most stressful day of my life.

I will carry every day, for the rest of my life, and hope that I never ever need to unholster a sidearm.