Post by James on Oct 25, 2015 14:14:19 GMT -5
I don`t think I posted this topic before but if I did I apologize so here goes... Had the chance to hunt one of the rivers off Bristol Bay in south west Alaska for brown bear. My main handgun was my Freedom Arms 454 with a 7 1/2" barrel plus a Magnaport brake topped off with a Leupold 2.5-8X. I had three boxes of Corbon 360gr Penetrator ammo for a hippo hunt that never happened which gave me a good 100 yard group so that covered the 454. Also carried a Wesson 744 with a 4" barrel installed. The 44 was loaded with Buffalo Bore`s powerful 340gr LFN at a listed 1425fps. Its a wicked load for a 4" handgun.. It rained almost all the day`s there which kept the fire going in the small tent stove to keep my clothes dry even though I had rain pants and jacket and thigh high waders. My guide and I would leave before sunrise in a small boat to a different stand each day that had salmon nearby. The warm weather had caused an explosion of water plants in the streams that were hell on any propellers so using long poles were the order for the day in shallow waters. We glassed a few bears that were out of range for the Casull until the day we crossed a stream and made our way through the alder thickets until we found a good shooting stand that was hidden from the opposite bank. We sat until the sun was getting ready to set when a bear popped out of the alders about 100 yards away and was gone in an instant and then a few minutes later he was out again and walking in my direction. My Casull was on a Bog pod pistol rest giving a rock steady hold. At exactly 50 yards he turned to the stream giving me a broadside shot. The 360gr Penetrator blew through both lungs that caused the bear flip and roll while biting at the entrance wound while tearing up the ground. He expired just as he lunged into the water. It took 20 minutes for us to cross the stream while we radioed for a larger boat. When we reached the bear the sun had set and another rain storm began. My photos show the bear as he lay in the water after sun down. There was no chance for any pictures as he looked like a drowned rat and was half covered in mud.
When home I talked with the taxidermist and wanted a half mount looking like they do when they stand on their hind legs and survey their domain. A most magnificent way to see a brown bear in the wild. He was`ent a monster and was close to 7 1/2 but he was my brown bear taken with a 454....