Wheeling, and Bear Attack!

[RiFF RaFF]

Hey ya'll! Well what started as another routine wheeling weekend at the George Washington National Forest almost turned tragic.

We arrived at Flag Pole Knob Friday afternoon (20 June 2014), and set up camp in a grove of oak trees. The ride up the mountain was routine, and the weekend looked like it would be fun. Little did we know what was in store for us that night.

Right after we called it a night it sounded like raccoon's had climbed the tree we had our garbage bag hanging from, and had ripped it open. Shined my flashlight out of the tent, saw nothing. Decided to clean up the mess in the morning - after it stops raining!

About an hour after we had gone to bed my wife yelled out something about a bear, and suddenly the air mattress explosively decompressed. I quickly got dressed, grabbed my CCW (Sig .380 ACP), and went to investigate.

Found a little black bear (probably a year old) sitting under the tree munching on some pieces of trash. Yelled, and fired a couple of shots over the bear's head. Bear high tailed it out of there. Thankfully - no sign of momma bear!

Went back to check out the damage to the tent - there was a BIG bite mark in the tent (4 inches from where my wife's face was) plus a 4 inch gash in the air mattress.

Slept the rest of the weekend in my 4Runner!

Ended up we saw four bears around our campsite during the weekend. Next time I go up there I'm taking bear spray, and my .45 ACP (with extra mags)!

Here's some pictures for you all.

Flag Pole Knob

Destroyed garbage bag.

What a mess!

Camp Honey Badger

Our day cooler for the trails - bear teeth marks!

Bad bear!

Another bad bear shot!

Bear teeth marks in the back of the tent.

The 4 inch gash in the air mattress - 4 inches from where my wife's face was! NOT GOOD!

Playing at "The Mud Flats".

Crawling down "The Ledges".

Poser shot!

 

[Antman]

Hey ya'll! Well what started as another routine wheeling weekend at the George Washington National Forest almost turned tragic.

We arrived at Flag Pole Knob Friday afternoon (20 June 2014), and set up camp in a grove of oak trees. The ride up the mountain was routine, and the weekend looked like it would be fun. Little did we know what was in store for us that night.

Right after we called it a night it sounded like raccoon's had climbed the tree we had our garbage bag hanging from, and had ripped it open. Shined my flashlight out of the tent, saw nothing. Decided to clean up the mess in the morning - after it stops raining!

About an hour after we had gone to bed my wife yelled out something about a bear, and suddenly the air mattress explosively decompressed. I quickly got dressed, grabbed my CCW (Sig .380 ACP), and went to investigate.

Found a little black bear (probably a year old) sitting under the tree munching on some pieces of trash. Yelled, and fired a couple of shots over the bear's head. Bear high tailed it out of there. Thankfully - no sign of momma bear!

Went back to check out the damage to the tent - there was a BIG bite mark in the tent (4 inches from where my wife's face was) plus a 4 inch gash in the air mattress.

Slept the rest of the weekend in my 4Runner!

Ended up we saw four bears around our campsite during the weekend. Next time I go up there I'm taking bear spray, and my .45 ACP (with extra mags)!

Wow! What an adventure!! Thank God nobody was hurt.

My cousin and I came within 20ft of a Momma Bear and her 3 Cubs at The Cove last October (we were in the 4Runner)- they were eating from the dumpster...

I can't imagine how scary that must have felt with just a tent between you and a bear! Great pics BTW!:thumb:

 

[MT Tatman]

.....a .380 in Bear country??? You gotta admit, that's a "Rookie move" right there!!! Nothing less than a .45, preferably my .44mag !!!
Glad you were unscathed in the experience!! Any bear biting your tent is too big of a bear.......even if it is a lil fella!!
Whew!

 

[airdreams1]

for black bears, .357 Magnum is minimum, and for grizzlies, a .44 Magnum is minimum, with .454 Cassull or .500 S&W recommended if you can handle the large frame. When it comes to Canada’s brown bears, forget it. If you don’t have a big bore rifle, you’re on the menu. Accept it.

 

[MacGyver1979]

im all for overkill with firearms, but isnt it a felony to have a handgun in a national forest even with a CCw?
And personally I carry a 45LC rossi ranch hand in a hip holster, good to stop anything that can die.

 

[RiFF RaFF]

.....a .380 in Bear country??? You gotta admit, that's a "Rookie move" right there!!! Nothing less than a .45, preferably my .44mag !!!
Glad you were unscathed in the experience!! Any bear biting your tent is too big of a bear.......even if it is a lil fella!!
Whew!

There's more to the story. My wife also had her Sig 9 Mil, and the people we were wheeling with also had a .380.

for black bears, .357 Magnum is minimum, and for grizzlies, a .44 Magnum is minimum, with .454 Cassull or .500 S&W recommended if you can handle the large frame. When it comes to Canada’s brown bears, forget it. If you don’t have a big bore rifle, you’re on the menu. Accept it.

We've been wheeling, and camping in that same spot for years, and this was the first time we've even seen a bear.

Next time I'm taking my Range Master ...

im all for overkill with firearms, but isnt it a felony to have a handgun in a national forest even with a CCw?

No. The law has been changed that with a CCW you can carry a hand gun for personal protection. Packing a rifle or shotgun - that's a problem with the feds.

And personally I carry a 45LC rossi ranch hand in a hip holster, good to stop anything that can die.

A side note. When I lived on Kodiak Alaska I never went anywhere without my Ruger Super Blackhawk .44 Mag on one hip, and a Ruger Security Six .357 Mag on the other hip. Kodiak bears are not sissy's like our little east coast black bears.

:gun6:

 

[fo' runnin']

Were you guys IN the tent when the bear bit the tent?!!? Crazy story that you'll never forget, for sure! lol

 

[RiFF RaFF]

Were you guys IN the tent when the bear bit the tent?!!? Crazy story that you'll never forget, for sure! lol

Yup. We had been asleep in the tent less than an hour when the bear got the munchies, and tried to take a bite out of the tent, air mattress, and almost my wife. Definitely one for the books.

:nod:

 

[92-SR5]

.....a .380 in Bear country??? You gotta admit, that's a "Rookie move" right there!!! Nothing less than a .45, preferably my .44mag !!!
Glad you were unscathed in the experience!! Any bear biting your tent is too big of a bear.......even if it is a lil fella!!
Whew!

I don't even bother grabbing my CCW. I just keep a kel-tec KSG by my side. Slugs on one side, buckshot in the other.
In Oregon bears aren't a huge deal, it's the cougars you have to watch for.

 

[KidVermicious]

Utah has black bear and cougar and I've never been worried enough about either to feel the need to pack serious heat. I've run into bear a couple times, and I'm pretty sure I've been checked out by a cougar at least once - lots of noise and good food discipline (bear bags, etc) keeps them at bay. It sounds like the bears are pretty habituated where RiffRaff camped at and that can get sketchy, but around here they keep their distance.

But we're starting to get wolves down from Wyoming and Idaho now, and those f*ckers scare me. Bear and cougar don't play with their food the way a wolf will. They've got me thinking about a .45 on the hip and a 12ga in the truck when I get out and about.

 

[RiFF RaFF]

Utah has black bear and cougar and I've never been worried enough about either to feel the need to pack serious heat. I've run into bear a couple times, and I'm pretty sure I've been checked out by a cougar at least once - lots of noise and good food discipline (bear bags, etc) keeps them at bay. It sounds like the bears are pretty habituated where RiffRaff camped at and that can get sketchy, but around here they keep their distance.

But we're starting to get wolves down from Wyoming and Idaho now, and those f*ckers scare me. Bear and cougar don't play with their food the way a wolf will. They've got me thinking about a .45 on the hip and a 12ga in the truck when I get out and about.

Kid after what happened to us in what we thought was a safe area I will be taking my .45 ACP with me at all times when off roading!

:gun6:

 

[Hyde802]

Wicked story and cool pics! Glad you guys are ok!.

 

[TheeMikeB]

I don't even bother grabbing my CCW. I just keep a kel-tec KSG by my side. Slugs on one side, buckshot in the other.
In Oregon bears aren't a huge deal, it's the cougars you have to watch for.

Shoot... we gotta watch for cougars at all the bars around here. Walnut Creek is Cougar country ya know!

 

[RiFF RaFF]

Follow-up.

So today wife decides 'we' need more range time. Just in case. I'm always down for more range time!

Assorted targets.

Throwing lead down-range at some distant targets.

I was shooting at the distant targets. Only missed one shot out of seven. Not bad for an old guy.

Love my Springfield Range Master! This gun is such a joy to shoot. (Think my wife wants in now that she shot it.)

Those bears better watch it. My wife is an excellent shooter!

:sniper:

 

[RAD4Runner]

My wife is an excellent shooter!
:sniper:

Reason why I don't have a gun in my home - LOL!

Excellent story RiffRaff!
Had a bear encounter in Yosemite, too. Too cheap to get another bear canister, we hung food bags, too. Woke up to sound of bear rummaging through shopping bag on ground without any food it it. Drove it away. When I looked up, one of two food bags on tree was gone.
Back to sleep... then woke up again and saw bear gracefully, effortlessly climbing for second bag - LOL! Then it took off into the darkness with second bag.
In the morning, we wake up to this bear looking for scraps...

Chased it away again - LOL!

Then, I proceeded to follow trail of trash to see if I can recover anything. Found a jar which had contained hummus licked clean, as if someone washed it

Then found my titanium cooking pot, now awarded with a purple heart from bite marks

 

[RiFF RaFF]

Hope this isn't a sign of things to come. Seems like all the wild life is becoming more and more use to human's - not good for either the animals or us.

Time to stock up the Honey Badger with some bear mace along with the other items I pack when wheeling. Sheesh!

:wow:

 

[wallytoo]

Seems like all the wild life is becoming more and more use to human's - not good for either the animals or us.

no doubt.

and too many people seem to feel the need to feed the wildlife, either intentionally or unintentionally. a bear that is used to people soon becomes a dead bear.

the garbage bag appears to have been hung from the bole of the tree, and only a few feet off the ground at that. if that's the case, it wouldn't have been expected to deter a bear or a racoon.

 

[RiFF RaFF]

no doubt.

and too many people seem to feel the need to feed the wildlife, either intentionally or unintentionally. a bear that is used to people soon becomes a dead bear.

the garbage bag appears to have been hung from the bole of the tree, and only a few feet off the ground at that. if that's the case, it wouldn't have been expected to deter a bear or a racoon.

Yeah that was the case. We had camped there numerous times, and just got lazy. Hard lessons learned are the ones that stay with you the best.

Time to upgrade the cooler to a Yeti, and elevate the garbage in a bear bag. Already have a tree picked outside the camping area to hang it high from.

:faint2:

 

[KidVermicious]

Yeti, schmeti. Get a bear fence.

Eagle Enterprises, Inc., Electro Bear Guard the Ultimate Portable Electric Bear Fence Products

 

[JB.]

Utah has black bear and cougar and I've never been worried enough about either to feel the need to pack serious heat. I've run into bear a couple times, and I'm pretty sure I've been checked out by a cougar at least once - lots of noise and good food discipline (bear bags, etc) keeps them at bay. It sounds like the bears are pretty habituated where RiffRaff camped at and that can get sketchy, but around here they keep their distance.

But we're starting to get wolves down from Wyoming and Idaho now, and those f*ckers scare me. Bear and cougar don't play with their food the way a wolf will. They've got me thinking about a .45 on the hip and a 12ga in the truck when I get out and about.

Surprised this story in your neck of the woods never crossed your radar (maybe it did).

That's crazy about the wolves. I need to get educated about that. Wasn't thrilled about the decision to put wolves in Yellowstone.