Brown bear size expectations

[Jared8054]

I’m headed for a brown bear hunt on the peninsula this fall that I won on a raffle ticket. It’s a 10 day hunt I’m really wanting a 9’+ bear but I know that’s not always the reality of hunting. what day would you go for an 8’6” bear? Also and gear or other tips would be appreciated. I’m in my mid 20s so not to worried about any physical limitations.

 

[Scottf270]

You are playing with house money. I would say base your decision on your desire for a bear and if your likely to ever hunt them again. I'll try to explain.

Any brown bear near 9' is gonna look huge to anyone who doesn't know what they are looking at. You could rug it or full body mount and it would look impressive to most people. Just be advised any taxidermy work is gonna cost from 4 to 10 thousand bucks.

I will use the old sayings of , " you can't kill a big one if you shoot a small one" and " don't pass on an animal the first day you would take on the last day". If you truly want a giant, you gotta be okay going home empty. Also, if you pass a smaller bear early in the hunt, you may never see another one later. It's all a risk.

I have paid to hunt brownies twice. Once on Kodiak where I took a 28" bear on day three. I hunted the peninsula and could have killed a smaller 9' bear but passed. It was painful to spend the money and come home empty, but killing a lesser bear would have meant nothing and cost thousands more in taxidermy costs for an animal I didn't want.

I would play it like this. I'd hold out for a giant. If you are blessed to see a good lesser bear later, I'd take it and be happy. But I'd also be okay with going home empty. You still will have hunted what I consider the greatest game animal on earth. You really can't lose either way.

 

[Roofer1]

shot a 9' bear with a nice coat on kodiak 3 years ago. it's a rug on the wall now and to this point no one even knows what they're looking at. I walk past it every day and rarely look in its direction. But... I think about the weather, coffee on the glassing knob, float plane ride in, conversations with my guide, .... (you get the picture) almost every day. Make sure you enjoy your time while you're there, whatever that means for you. I'd say talk to the guide and see what he feels is a good bear for the area you're in and if you get the opportunity shoot one. All that said, from what little I know about the peninsula getting a 9' bear doesn't seem unreasonable.

 

[Jared8054]

You are playing with house money. I would say base your decision on your desire for a bear and if your likely to ever hunt them again. I'll try to explain.

Any brown bear near 9' is gonna look huge to anyone who doesn't know what they are looking at. You could rug it or full body mount and it would look impressive to most people. Just be advised any taxidermy work is gonna cost from 4 to 10 thousand bucks.

I will use the old sayings of , " you can't kill a big one if you shoot a small one" and " don't pass on an animal the first day you would take on the last day". If you truly want a giant, you gotta be okay going home empty. Also, if you pass a smaller bear early in the hunt, you may never see another one later. It's all a risk.

I have paid to hunt brownies twice. Once on Kodiak where I took a 28" bear on day three. I hunted the peninsula and could have killed a smaller 9' bear but passed. It was painful to spend the money and come home empty, but killing a lesser bear would have meant nothing and cost thousands more in taxidermy costs for an animal I didn't want.

I would play it like this. I'd hold out for a giant. If you are blessed to see a good lesser bear later, I'd take it and be happy. But I'd also be okay with going home empty. You still will have hunted what I consider the greatest game animal on earth. You really can't lose either way.

Brown bear is my dream animal I do have the financial means to go again if need be in the future. Anything from that 9-9’6” I know I would be leaving happy. I just know if I don’t hit that 9’ mark I’ll be going back at some point. I don’t think I would go back for 10-15 years because I have a young family so at what day would you go for that under 9’ bear?

 

[TSAMP]

Brown bear is my dream animal I do have the financial means to go again if need be in the future. Anything from that 9-9’6” I know I would be leaving happy. I just know if I don’t hit that 9’ mark I’ll be going back at some point. I don’t think I would go back for 10-15 years because I have a young family so at what day would you go for that under 9’ bear

You clearly care alot about the size of bear. Hold out for it. Then come back here and let us all know how it went.

 

[Theringworm]

Having won a raffle and playing with house money, I would ask the question posed above, is this a once in a life time hunt, or can you make it happen again if you wanted to?

Personally, with house money and the ability to go on another hunt down the road, I am not shooting anything I wouldn’t 100% be proud of. Likely holding out for as close to 10’ as possible. If I go home empty handed so be it. I’ll just book another hunt. If this is a OIL hunt and going again is not an option, my expectations would be more realistic and I would be happy to shoot a bear that was a “shooter” for that area based on my guides recommendation.

For the vast majority of friends, family & acquaintances that see the animals we have hunted, they will mean nothing. I don’t hunt for them or for what they will think. I want the experience and the memories. Be selfish, shoot whatever you like and be proud of it. On the Peninsula, the vast majority of good outfitters aren’t shooting sub 9’ bears. Not even a consideration generally so I would think a 9’ or greater is the target size anyways. Now, you may never see a 9’ or bigger bear. That’s just hunting.

I’ll be on the Peninsula in 28’, not with a raffle tag, so I am trying to answer this question as well. Good luck.

 

[Jared8054]

Having won a raffle and playing with house money, I would ask the question posed above, is this a once in a life time hunt, or can you make it happen again if you wanted to?

Personally, with house money and the ability to go on another hunt down the road, I am not shooting anything I wouldn’t 100% be proud of. Likely holding out for as close to 10’ as possible. If I go home empty handed so be it. I’ll just book another hunt. If this is a OIL hunt and going again is not an option, my expectations would be more realistic and I would be happy to shoot a bear that was a “shooter” for that area based on my guides recommendation.

For the vast majority of friends, family & acquaintances that see the animals we have hunted, they will mean nothing. I don’t hunt for them or for what they will think. I want the experience and the memories. Be selfish, shoot whatever you like and be proud of it. On the Peninsula, the vast majority of good outfitters aren’t shooting sub 9’ bears. Not even a consideration generally so I would think a 9’ or greater is the target size anyways. Now, you may never see a 9’ or bigger bear. That’s just hunting.

I’ll be on the Peninsula in 28’, not with a raffle tag, so I am trying to answer this question as well. Good luck.

Can you pm me who you’re going with, and I have a couple gear questions if you have time.

 

[Jared8054]

shot a 9' bear with a nice coat on kodiak 3 years ago. it's a rug on the wall now and to this point no one even knows what they're looking at. I walk past it every day and rarely look in its direction. But... I think about the weather, coffee on the glassing knob, float plane ride in, conversations with my guide, .... (you get the picture) almost every day. Make sure you enjoy your time while you're there, whatever that means for you. I'd say talk to the guide and see what he feels is a good bear for the area you're in and if you get the opportunity shoot one. All that said, from what little I know about the peninsula getting a 9' bear doesn't seem unreasonable.

Thanks for the info. I know a true 10’ is a rare bear and a true trophy, but I don’t feel like it’s a realistic expectation unless you plan on going multiple times and pass up lots of what I would consider great bears. I’m hoping 9’ is a realistic chance but I’m going to get in contact with my guide and see what he says.

 

[VernAK]

For me, hide quality comes first. A 10' rug with poor hair or large bald spots isn't as desirable as a plush 8.5'.
Don't get in a hurry to make taxidermy decisions as your home choice may not have the space etc. Get the hide tanned and hang it by the nose with a nice pic alongside. LEAVE ROOM FOR MORE!

I'm not fond of rugs and have given away my last grizzly. Tired of tripping over the damned things.

 

[Jared8054]

For me, hide quality comes first. A 10' rug with poor hair or large bald spots isn't as desirable as a plush 8.5'.
Don't get in a hurry to make taxidermy decisions as your home choice may not have the space etc. Get the hide tanned and hang it by the nose with a nice pic alongside. LEAVE ROOM FOR MORE!

I'm not fond of rugs and have given away my last grizzly. Tired of tripping over the damned things.

That will definitely play a factor for me and I haven’t thought about. If I feel like it’s my OIL bear I’m sending it over to Kanati Taxidermy for a full body.

 

[BRWNBR]

I’ve never shot a number. But everyone hunts for one. Always struck me as weird.

The only time the size of your bear matters is when you tell the story to someone else. Their first question “how big is it?”
This is your hunt. Your experience. Your adventure.

For me, I could care less about what number the hide squared, I can measure that six different ways and get whatever number I want. Heck I can make up a number and no one will know what it even is.

But the memories like a previous poster said…memories are everything. If I had a mature bear and the stalk was awesome and the set up sweet and a great day to be in Alaska. Boom. I had a riot. Basically. You do you. If you want bragging numbers than hunt for that and like others have said be prepared to come home empty. If you want a dead bear and the experience of that, hunt that way and communicate it to your guide so you guys are on the same page.

Social media don’t care what you shoot.

 

[TaperPin]

There’s a lot of thought, and circular thoughts going around and around, that goes into what makes a trophy in anyone’s mid 20s, so it’s not just you. In time it will become more clear, but you are young and any adult bear is better than no bear for your first. Whatever you decide now, may change once you’re there and the guide can provide a good idea of what he’s been seeing the prior week. Just like any hunting, some years big animals are everywhere and other years here seem to be more small ones than normal.

Not all browns are created equal. I’ve seen some old guys that look like an old sick dog with a beat up face and crappy fur while others in the area look amazing. I’ve been lucky to see a real giant bear 50 yards away on Kodiak while we weren’t hunting and the size still makes my pulse race just thinking about it.

 

[Jared8054]

I’ve never shot a number. But everyone hunts for one. Always struck me as weird.

The only time the size of your bear matters is when you tell the story to someone else. Their first question “how big is it?”
This is your hunt. Your experience. Your adventure.

For me, I could care less about what number the hide squared, I can measure that six different ways and get whatever number I want. Heck I can make up a number and no one will know what it even is.

But the memories like a previous poster said…memories are everything. If I had a mature bear and the stalk was awesome and the set up sweet and a great day to be in Alaska. Boom. I had a riot. Basically. You do you. If you want bragging numbers than hunt for that and like others have said be prepared to come home empty. If you want a dead bear and the experience of that, hunt that way and communicate it to your guide so you guys are on the same page.

Social media don’t care what you shoot.

I guess since I’ve dreamed about this hunt since I was little that 9’ mark has always been brought up so it’s what my mind goes to. At what size do you consider a coastal brown to be mature because that’s the biggest thing to me is harvesting a mature animal. The two biggest things is harvesting a mature animal and this might sound dumb but I don’t even want to kill until like the third day because then my hunt is over. I would hate to go out the first hour of the first day and my hunt is over. Dreamed about this hunt for years and it could be over in minutes. I know I can still be out there and enjoy it but the pursuit/hunt is done.

 

[AKDoc]

I guess since I’ve dreamed about this hunt since I was little that 9’ mark has always been brought up so it’s what my mind goes to. At what size do you consider a coastal brown to be mature because that’s the biggest thing to me is harvesting a mature animal. The two biggest things is harvesting a mature animal and this might sound dumb but I don’t even want to kill until like the third day because then my hunt is over. I would hate to go out the first hour of the first day and my hunt is over. Dreamed about this hunt for years and it could be over in minutes. I know I can still be out there and enjoy it but the pursuit/hunt is done.

^^^^this^^^^ (I think you're getting closer to answering your question)

Many excellent points shared by others thus far, and lots of perspectives to consider. We are all hunters here on this forum, but we don't all hunt for the same reasons...and that's totally OK because we are each individuals. Speaking just for myself, hunting is about the adventure...being in the world of the animal I'm hunting. Most important for me, the adventure is what I make of it and the memories are the trophy...free range hunting in Alaska is never a harvest guarantee.

To the OP...you won a raffle, congratulations sincerely. You put in for the raffle and you were attracted to the idea of hunting brown bears in Alaska for reasons. That said, fast forward your thinking to after the hunt is over. What do you hope this hunt will represent in your life experiences as you advance in years?

For example, every time I look at the rugs and mounts on my walls, each one triggers the memories of that particular hunting adventure/experience. So, OP...if you have a brown bear rug hanging on your wall from this hunt, what do you hope your memories to be when you look at it for years to come? Really think about that for a bit...it helps answer your initial question. If it's a really huge bear, but the hunt was a disappointing experience for whatever reasons...will that be ok for you each time you look at it because it's huge? Conversely, if it's not the biggest bear, but you had a wonderful adventure...would that be better? Last of course, if you go home without a bear, but you had a truly great adventure with no regrets because you followed your plan/dream...would that be a lifetime trophy?

Think about and get clarity on what you truly want this hunt to be...communicate that to your guide...and be part of making it happen the best you can...and enjoy every minute. The best to you!

 

[TaperPin]

. . .dreamed about this hunt since I was little. . .

If part of that dream is a 9’ bear then you probably know the answer.

Another thing that isn’t mentioned is how you view animals that are passed up during a hunt. For some it’s easy to pass up a good animal holding out for a great one because they feel the pride of doing all the right things to be in place to have the option of killing the one that’s being passed up. They already earned that trophy even though it’s not hanging on the wall. If you pass up a smaller adult bear would it feel like a total loss or a win like you’ve counted coup on it and let it live?

 

[Theringworm]

My first ever Alaskan hunt was a 10 day moose hunt (the one I mentioned in my pm). I knew the outfitter focused on 60” plus moose and would rarely take one smaller. That was fine by me and the reason I booked with them. Needless to say, my 10 day moose hunt was over within 30 minutes of the first day. Guide called in a bull, he said it was massive, I listened, followed his instructions and tagged out on an absolute stomper moose that measured 76.5”s. Even after seeing it, shooting it, and walking up to it, I had really no idea the size of it. I simply new it had to be big enough for them which was 60”s. It wasn’t until the guide convinced me otherwise with a rough measurement this was indeed a giant. I will admit, I have absolutely no idea what an Alaskan moose hunt really is like, because of the way it went down. That said, I wouldn’t have changed a thing. Luck was in my favor. Some times it’s okay to take the gifts the good Lord puts infront of you. I spent the rest of my time salmon fishing and chasing black bears, so it was still an absolute blast and keeps me coming back. Certain no one would have passed him up simply because it was 30 mins into the hunt. Be realistic.

You can try and prepare for what to expect but that all can get thrown out the window within seconds. Be flexible, be realistic, and most importantly communicate with your guide immediately upon arrival into camp your goals. This will makes for a better hunt imo.

 

[Wprinkle]

Coming from a guy that has never passed up a raghorn (also only shot 1 "nice" bull because of it) if i'm getting a chance to hunt brown bear, I am taking the first decent bear I see. If it happens to be 10' awesome, if it happens to be 8' awesome too. I'm going to say 95% of people wont know a small from a giant and even fewer will have the chance to shoot an Alaskan brown bear. What ever you decide man enjoy the experience and soak it in. When you're 90 you wont give a shit about the size but you will remember the hunt... Good luck man!

 

[wildwilderness]

Peninsula weather is notorious. A bear passed on day one has no guarantee to ever be seen again. Also a raffle tag doesn't always carry the same "weight" as a fully paid for hunt..... just saying some guides/outfitters look at the hunt differently depending on why they "donated" the hunt in the first place.

Pay a great tip, let the guide know you are serious and grateful etc. It's not unheard of to not get a bear depending on weather etc. Brown bear hunting to me isn't that "fun" lots of glassing and sitting in bad weather but killing a good one is definitely an adrenalin rush.

I would shoot what the guide tells you to - whether that is day 1 (everyone will be happy to get a break early) or if they never tell you to pull the trigger.....

 

[BRWNBR]

Square measurement doesn’t reflect maturity. I have shot bears that were 5 years old and squared 10’ and I have shot 8’ bears in their 20’s. They are like people, not everyone big is old…and not everyone small is young. You’ll likely know when you see the bear if you want it or not.

 

[Snowwolfe]

Peninsula weather is notorious. A bear passed on day one has no guarantee to ever be seen again. Also a raffle tag doesn't always carry the same "weight" as a fully paid for hunt..... just saying some guides/outfitters look at the hunt differently depending on why they "donated" the hunt in the first place

I was going to mention the same. It is difficult to predict how sincere and hard working the guide will be if they donated the hunt. Maybe the guide knows there is a huge boar in a certain area and wants to keep you clear of that area. There are plenty of reasons for this, one being they might have repeat clients scheduled who are loyal and tip handsomely.
Don't be overly picky. If the bear is a respectable specimen and has a great hide go for it.