Grizzlies while moose hunting AK/BC

[Sapper]

While I’m in the beginning stages of looking for a moose hunt, with AK and BC being of interest, what advice do you have for hunting grizzly territories like these? I have zero experience with them. A buddy and I were looking into a AK diy hunt. Can 2 of you sleep peacefully at night?!

 

[realunlucky]

People do it all the time. Be smart and bear aware take the time to follow the precautions. We used a electric fence around camp more to protect it while we were gone than while we slept.

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[tater]

I can't speak to AK, but everywhere in BC i have hunted (including my home area) has grizzlies.

Realunlucky nailed it above around being bear aware. This means absolutely no food or toiletries like toothpaste stored within 100 yards of your sleeping area. Cooking is 100 yards from camp (i am always amazed at Lower 48 guys cooking in their tents in videos).

A curious bear is not a threat. A curious bear that is startled, has cubs with it, or claims your stuff as its stuff is.

I always encourage people new to big bear country to read 'Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance" by Dr. Stephen Herrero. Some of the narratives wil give you nightmares, but it also plainly spells out risks and probabilities.

I have never lost a nights sleep bedded down in bear country (i am more worried about breaking a leg crossing a boulder field than bears).
Have I had dry mouth and a massively puckered bunghole moving through ten foot high alder next to a creek with the wind in my face?
Definitely. Because THAT is when it can go wrong quickly.

 

[Kevin Dill]

Great topic. Please keep in mind that my comments are based on my own knowledge and experiences with grizzlies over a pretty good number of hunts and years. I'm in no way arguing with anyone else's thoughts.

I hunt areas where bears are truly wild and never get to eat human food or spend time around humans. A wild bear that never eats bacon isn't automatically enticed by bacon odor...or Mountain House...or...you get the picture. My two dogs never get bacon to eat and have never tasted it. They could care less about frying bacon, but let one of us peel a banana or apple and they're at our feet in seconds. They've had those many times. A bear could be curious to a foreign smell like human food, but if he is coming toward a camp which is ripe with man odor, urine, woodsmoke, and other smells, that bear will be far less likely to just walk in and grab a napkin. A wild bear's natural tendency is to be wary of smells it can't identify, and they are genetically wired to NOT like the smell of their ancient enemy...man. So agree or disagree, here's what I do:

I keep 100% of my foodstuffs in the tent with me. I cook in my tent and have done so for a long time in areas ripe with big grizzlies. I keep my trash in a garbage bag inside my tent. A bear has to come through...and ignore...a lot of man odor to check out the food smells. Food stored a long ways from camp is basically out there for a bear to find and investigate. If he eats it, I just educated a bear to like my human food. And trust me, there is no reasonable way or place for me to 100% keep my food away from a grizzly where I moose hunt. If I educate a bear to like my food, I've just created a problem and it WILL reoccur. That's why baiting bears works. They never forget a good meal. Neither do my 2 smart dogs.

I bring a urine bottle to my camp and I use it. After every use I walk to the perimeter of camp and basically spray/fling that full bottle of urine into the brush. I do this all around camp, starting initially on the downwind side of camp. I WANT a grizzly to smell my camp and my odors. I want it to smell strong and fresh. I might have my used base layers hanging in the bushes near camp. I do whatever I can to tell a bear that something very foreign, strange and odorous is ahead. Does it work? The only proof I have is many years of hunting moose and caribou this way while never having a bear raid camp, leave a close track or crap nearby. I have witnessed grizzlies smell my camp and run like hell to leave the area. It happened just last September and my partner saw it also.

Electric fences? I bring one mainly for meat cache protection. I'll use it around my camp if I sense a bear is hanging out. My nighttime bear defense is a handgun, as pepper spray won't penetrate a tent but it will damn sure disable ME. I tend to sleep pretty good but I'm also a light sleeper. I've done multiple solo hunts and have never lain awake worrying about bears. Statistically I am much more likely to be injured or die by an aircraft accident versus a bear attack. But then airplanes don't have big claws, teeth and stalk you while you sit glassing the valley...even if it's just in your mind.

 

[Sapper]

Thanks for all the input. Kevin Dill, that’s a diff approach from what you normally hear but makes a lot of sense. I’ve done the same with the urine around camp for Black bears but for truly wild bears, it makes sense with the food! Thanks for sharing!

 

[Big Nasty]

I so agree with Kevin, I've been hiking/hunting in the back country 25 yrs and only had 1 black bear try and get in my tent. A punch to the snout and away he was. Curious more then anything. This might be stirring a big pot here but hanging food seems crazy to me. It raises the scent up and if bear does come in it has nothing to eat or keep him distracted while i either slip away or get my weapon ready. But for my game meat it will for sure be placed a good distance away, the farther the better in my books like a km or 2, I'll gladly pack that distance the day I leave or fly out of the back country. Play safe everyone.

 

[Kevin Dill]

It took a few years for me to learn that I must do everything I possibly can to keep a bear from tasting any of my food. That means no peelings, wasted scraps, washed out bits or trash of any kind. If they get to it and taste it, I may have just doomed my hunt, or that particular bear. Either way it ends up badly for me. I will say that I don't cook any foods which put off strong smells during the cooking, and I do reason that preparing food inside my tent does help contain some of the scent.

I don't burn my trash any more. I collapse everything into a stout plastic bag which I keep sealed. When it's time to leave, that bag of trash goes out with me. Nothing of any taste is left behind for a bear to find and lick. I'm fanatical about that, especially if I'm coming back in a year.

None of what I do will assure that a bear doesn't hit my camp, but I think it minimizes the overall chances. If I was hunting a camp where bears had likely been exposed to human food, I would probably put up the electric fence and some foil streamers. If tall (enough) trees were nearby I'd also probably keep my food in a bear-bag and hoisted well out of reach.

 

[Ratamahatta]

It took a few years for me to learn that I must do everything I possibly can to keep a bear from tasting any of my food. That means no peelings, wasted scraps, washed out bits or trash of any kind. If they get to it and taste it, I may have just doomed my hunt, or that particular bear. Either way it ends up badly for me. I will say that I don't cook any foods which put off strong smells during the cooking, and I do reason that preparing food inside my tent does help contain some of the scent.

I don't burn my trash any more. I collapse everything into a stout plastic bag which I keep sealed. When it's time to leave, that bag of trash goes out with me. Nothing of any taste is left behind for a bear to find and lick. I'm fanatical about that, especially if I'm coming back in a year.

None of what I do will assure that a bear doesn't hit my camp, but I think it minimizes the overall chances. If I was hunting a camp where bears had likely been exposed to human food, I would probably put up the electric fence and some foil streamers. If tall (enough) trees were nearby I'd also probably keep my food in a bear-bag and hoisted well out of reach.

What foods do you bring since you don't cook?

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[Blockcaver]

I’ve only been to the Brooks Range twice hunting moose and caribou. I had a big lone grizzly circle and sniff the tent at night on one trip. On the other a sow and her large two year old cub did the same. Both were after dark, wake you up and scare the heck out of you! No trees near us in either case...food was all dry Mt House, etc.

In BC where I have a whole lot more experience I haven’t had any issues.

 

[Kevin Dill]

What foods do you bring since you don't cook?

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Freeze dried. Boil water...add to pouch...seal it and wait. I don't ever actually heat up food or cook food. It's not all about bears though...mostly about convenience and ease. Lunches are dry foods only. Breakfasts are instant cereals or freeze-dried.

 

[SheepShapeAK]

While I’m in the beginning stages of looking for a moose hunt, with AK and BC being of interest, what advice do you have for hunting grizzly territories like these? I have zero experience with them. A buddy and I were looking into a AK diy hunt. Can 2 of you sleep peacefully at night?!

It depends where you go in Alaska. I never see bears while moose hunting.

 

[MTNRCHR]

The best bear repellent is a tag in the pocket ! lol

 

[KJH]

Great topic. Please keep in mind that my comments are based on my own knowledge and experiences with grizzlies over a pretty good number of hunts and years. I'm in no way arguing with anyone else's thoughts.

I hunt areas where bears are truly wild and never get to eat human food or spend time around humans. A wild bear that never eats bacon isn't automatically enticed by bacon odor...or Mountain House...or...you get the picture. My two dogs never get bacon to eat and have never tasted it. They could care less about frying bacon, but let one of us peel a banana or apple and they're at our feet in seconds. They've had those many times. A bear could be curious to a foreign smell like human food, but if he is coming toward a camp which is ripe with man odor, urine, woodsmoke, and other smells, that bear will be far less likely to just walk in and grab a napkin. A wild bear's natural tendency is to be wary of smells it can't identify, and they are genetically wired to NOT like the smell of their ancient enemy...man. So agree or disagree, here's what I do:

I keep 100% of my foodstuffs in the tent with me. I cook in my tent and have done so for a long time in areas ripe with big grizzlies. I keep my trash in a garbage bag inside my tent. A bear has to come through...and ignore...a lot of man odor to check out the food smells. Food stored a long ways from camp is basically out there for a bear to find and investigate. If he eats it, I just educated a bear to like my human food. And trust me, there is no reasonable way or place for me to 100% keep my food away from a grizzly where I moose hunt. If I educate a bear to like my food, I've just created a problem and it WILL reoccur. That's why baiting bears works. They never forget a good meal. Neither do my 2 smart dogs.

I bring a urine bottle to my camp and I use it. After every use I walk to the perimeter of camp and basically spray/fling that full bottle of urine into the brush. I do this all around camp, starting initially on the downwind side of camp. I WANT a grizzly to smell my camp and my odors. I want it to smell strong and fresh. I might have my used base layers hanging in the bushes near camp. I do whatever I can to tell a bear that something very foreign, strange and odorous is ahead. Does it work? The only proof I have is many years of hunting moose and caribou this way while never having a bear raid camp, leave a close track or crap nearby. I have witnessed grizzlies smell my camp and run like hell to leave the area. It happened just last September and my partner saw it also.

Electric fences? I bring one mainly for meat cache protection. I'll use it around my camp if I sense a bear is hanging out. My nighttime bear defense is a handgun, as pepper spray won't penetrate a tent but it will damn sure disable ME. I tend to sleep pretty good but I'm also a light sleeper. I've done multiple solo hunts and have never lain awake worrying about bears. Statistically I am much more likely to be injured or die by an aircraft accident versus a bear attack. But then airplanes don't have big claws, teeth and stalk you while you sit glassing the valley...even if it's just in your mind.

My experiences are similar to Kevin's with bears never seeing a human or eating human food. I eat and cook in the tent. I use urine to scare bears curiosity off. Meat storage is the only reason I'd ever worry about a griz or brown bothering me. Again, there I use lots of urine around the cache and some of those pine tree air fresheners after we're done hunting. No wild animal wants to be anywhere near those and you can vacuum seal them until you need them. I've never had a bear bother my camp when moose or caribou hunting in AK. Meat storage is the only thing I worry about, and once you have meat hanging the last thing I'm concerned about is my camp and gear.

Kevin is right on... foreign and strange smells will keep grizzlies away. Period.

I've had black bears being curious little @ssholes though... . The only real bear issue is once we were bear hunting and a bear chewed up my partners leather boot under a tarp about 5 feet from our tent. It didn't touch all of our other food (exposed) only a few feet away. A stinky wet boot trying to dry on a stick was more enticing than human food.

Maybe I should worry about bears, but I don't until there is a meat pole. Then I'm smart and take precautions.

 

[Murdy]

Kevin and KJH, what you say makes sense. But, don't you worry about bears educated by encountering other people using the prevailing logic (store food away from camp and such) that are already habituated to human food?

 

[Kevin Dill]

Kevin and KJH, what you say makes sense. But, don't you worry about bears educated by encountering other people using the prevailing logic (store food away from camp and such) that are already habituated to human food?

I don't have that concern where I'm hunting as I'm the only guy (with my partner) who goes in there. It's inaccessible by ground and I know the bears in there are truly wild. They don't get humanized. But I would likely do exactly what I'm doing even if I was in an area hunted previously. I just know how important it is to keep bears off my food. I'm not going to walk 200 yards (in the dark) to get my oatmeal and coffee down out of a tree for breakfast. And since I don't eat dinner until after dark, I'm not going to walk out that far just to dispose of a used Mountain House pouch. If a pesky bear starts hanging around, I'll figure out a way to defeat him and protect my food. I've heard it said "The best way to lose your food to a bear is to store it 200 yards from your camp". I believe that.

 

[Beendare]

The bear thing is a bit overblown. Its the guys that have never been there that say , " A gunshot is like a dinner bell" Ridiculous to those of us that have hunted there.

If you follow the advice above; clean camp, Hang your meat away from camp, etc- you should be fine.

In my 15 or so hunts in Ak....i've only had a couple close encounters....and it was due to them being too close and I didn't know they were there. Jumped one in thick alders at 15'...bedded I think. We did have one come into camp at night rummaging around even though the only food close was canned goods.

I use a bear fence on Kodiak....hey, whatever helps you sleep at night. I didn't even bother setting up the fence on my last AK hunt on the mainland....the bears in that unit are heavily hunted. My opinion is the bears around Yellowstone are more dangerous.

Situational awareness, clean camp...and have a plan if you do bump one [in other words practice with whatever defensive weapon you carry]....and you will be fine.

 

[KJH]

Kevin and KJH, what you say makes sense. But, don't you worry about bears educated by encountering other people using the prevailing logic (store food away from camp and such) that are already habituated to human food?

I don't worry about other people educating these bears. You can't get to where I am interested in hunting without a plane ride or Looooong snowmachine ride in the winter. No one else is hunting on top of you. You might see a couple of airplanes in the distance in two weeks of a hunt. I highly doubt the bears where I'm hunting have ever seen or smelled a human.

I carry a pistol as a deterrent and lethal protection. Bears are scared of what they don't know. Watch a grizzly get down wind of you when you're glassing... My experience is that it has no interest in whatever that smell is and they get out of there quick. I've heard contrary stories and know of people who have experienced different things, but so I'll stick to my usual dealing.

They have smelled blood and dead animals. I don't keep meat in my camp- its a ways off, but close enough to scare off a bear if it showed up to claim my hard earned fare.

I do agree that bears that are used to people... like when you're fishing and they are all over near you... they are not concerned with a human smell anymore. I would act differently hunting there... but I wouldn't likely hunt there.

 

[Matt W.]

The best bear repellent is a tag in the pocket ! lol

Ain't that the truth!!!

 

[hodgeman]

Bears in my area are hunted hard and tend to blow out of the country at the first sight, sound or scent of a human.

One thing I do is remove the meat as far from the gut pile as possible before I let it out of my sight...bears don't seem overly attracted to fresh meat, but a gut pile? It's game on. I've had a griz cross a meat cache and completely ignore it to get at a gut pile. They know that smell and they like it.

 

[micus]

If you put a bull down be prepared to have someone babysit it or get it all back to camp as fast as you can. I work with a guy who lost his bull to a G bear and another his bull elk. It doesn't take them long.

don't leave food in your tent. Rock on.