Bear Hunting Alaska

[Oregonhunter5]

If it's black you don't need anything to big. Since it's Alaska and there's brown bears around, you'll need something big. .375 h and h

 

[MountainBear]

If it's black you don't need anything to big. Since it's Alaska and there's brown bears around, you'll need something big. .375 h and h

My father in law will have a big bore with him and has been hunting up there for decades. I will have my .45/70 with me as well, but it won't be my primary rifle...

 

[DB is Here]

Get a 50 BMG...LOL, I'll try any excuse to get one.

 

[MountainBear]

If I were looking at taking a factory rifle, I would probably look at one of these two...



But I think I can probably recreate either or with the actions I have available.

 

[mjbskwim]

A couple years ago I started reading and closed cling links about bear hunts in Alaska and calibers.
The biggest reason they want people to bring big caliber rifles is the amount of money they spent on the trip
A guy from Chiraq or NY that doesn't shoot much comes to AK ,spends a fortune for a trophy,they want the shot to count.
The guy brings his deer rifle and hits the bear in the butt and it runs off. At least if he hits it with a 35+ caliber he may get another shot.
One guide said he had customers.... who could shoot.... kill many and all of the larger trophies with 270s. Again he said they could shoot.
So for a black bear,why bother with a huge caliber? Make it sporting.
Then have your buddy carry the big gun for that random browny coming in to get dinner on a dead run

 

[MountainBear]

I won't go magnum unless I take my .300 wby. Other than that it will be a standard length cartridge more than likely. .30-06 length, but it might be a larger caliber just because I can...

 

[mjbskwim]

I won't go magnum unless I take my .300 wby. Other than that it will be a standard length cartridge more than likely. .30-06 length, but it might be a larger caliber just because I can...

Trust me,I think you should make this an excuse to build a new gun

 

[tkdguy]

I won't go magnum unless I take my .300 wby. Other than that it will be a standard length cartridge more than likely. .30-06 length, but it might be a larger caliber just because I can...

Geez: If you have a 300 Wby why bother with this? Unless you just want another gun. i have shot Black with 30 30 and it does the job. But where you are going I'd think the 300 Wby or 338 would cover almost all probabilities. Especially if you have a guide with a gun or relative with a 45/70.

 

[MountainBear]

Because I see this as an excuse to build or buy another rifle! Need is a four letter word tkdguy...



I have more than enough rifles that will do the job. That isn't an issue. But I guess this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for me, so I want a special gun to take with me.

 

[tkdguy]

So be it. Go spend the bucks and build or buy. Me, I'd buy and have someone do a quality bedding or tune up the gun if it did not shoot less than 1.5 minutes of an angle. If you ave a 300 Wby what would be the next step up for you?

 

[MountainBear]

Let me clarify something. I am a gunsmith. I have the tools and the parts laying around to build whatever I'm so inclined to want to take. The only thing I will outsource will be a likely cerakoting. I might buy a barrel blank or a stock, but all the labor will be my labor of love.

So this isn't a matter of going and spending a bunch of money as much as it is having an excuse to spend 60-100 hours in my shop building something to use on what for me wil be a once in a lifetime hunt.

But I understand where you are coming from and if this were going to cost me $800+, I would likely take something I already have.

 

[Oregonhunter5]

Not sure if this is a tree stand hunt, but save your money and buy the right gear. You'll hate life itself up there without the right clothes. My azzhole brother wears Kuiu.

 

[MountainBear]

I don't think treestand. Boat out of Juneau. Wet weather gear a must. Need to get in better physical shape before then too. Have to be able to run faster than my father in law should the need arise...

 

[Oregonhunter5]

If that's the case, maybe build a 30 nosler.

 

[KaniksuKidd]

I lived in Alaska for 26 years and did a fair amount of bush whacking with my buddies. I always carried a Ruger .22LR pistol for bear protection. I figured if I came across a problem bear I'd just shoot my buddy in the leg and run like hell! (Rimshot)

Seriously though, my brother-in-law used to live in Ketchikan and hunted blackies on the ABC Islands (Admiralty, Baranof, Chicagof). He harvested black bears that squared out at over 8 feet. That is a BIG black bear. He also encountered a few large Brown Bears. The .45/70 would work for either species if you loaded it with something like a 425gr. flat nose hard cast lead bullet at about 1600 fps.

I hunted Afognak and Kodiak for the big ones and carried a .338 Win Mag and would carry that in SE Alaska w/o hesitation. I'd rather use my .45/70 though because there likely won't be any long range shots unless you're on a very wide beach. I harvested 3 black bears and a large rock in Prince William Sound with the .338 and all of those shots were well under 100 yards.

OTOH, load your '06 with 220 gr. jacketed soft points or Barnes-X bullets and you would not at all be undergunned.

I was charged by a medium size brown bear one September night in the yard of my house in Soldotna when I was armed with a flashlight. I wouldn't recommend that at all.

 

[Argonaut]

my experiance in SE is that most shooting is pretty close. Your 06 should be fine. It is more important to be accurate and comfortable with what you are shooting than anything else. That being said, I am not recoil sensitive and one of my favorite rifles is my old Weatherby 378. I would not be afraid to use one of my 308's either. Medium bore calibers are great, 35 Whalin is a wonderful caliber but gives no more range than your 06, maby a bit less. Backup in that enviorment should usually be a good 12 gauge pump alternating slugs and 00 buck. If safety is an issue.....it is going to be close. Can't beat a long magazine 870. The last bear I shot was with my 378 at about 200 yards, she was a big black bear, over 6' from the tip of her nose to tail. She rolled over with her feet in the air, just how I like it.

 

[JRuby]

I have a Charles Daily action built into a 9.3x62 mauser with a Leopold V2 2-7x on it. I would take my rifle with the proper loads with no reservations. I cannot imagine needing more rifle. I recommend a good 9.3x62.

 

[campwilde]

My wife just surprised me with a black bear tag for southeast Alaska. What a good wife. Little does she know this is likely going to cost us a bit. I'll need a new rifle to use. Not as though I don't have acceptable rifles for the job, but this is a reasonable excuse for a new one.

The question becomes, do I stick with .30-06 (I think I already have 9 or 10), or do I go with something else like a .35 Whalen or 9.3x72 Mauser...

The hunt will likely be in late May or early June, so there is time if I decide to build rather than buy...

The 338 win mag is a nice shooting round with decent ballistics. One of the largest rounds you can buy in an semi auto hunting rifle.

 

[campwilde]

Shoot a midget bear

 

[Slobray]

.

I hunted Afognak and Kodiak for the big ones and carried a .338 Win Mag and would carry that in SE Alaska w/o hesitation. I'd rather use my .45/70 though because there likely won't be any long range shots unless you're on a very wide beach. I harvested 3 black bears and a large rock in Prince William Sound with the .338 and all of those shots were well under 100 yards.

I would have passed on the rock, anyway, how'd it taste?


Ray