06 May 2010, 22:13
TMTAXIDERMYKamchatka Hunt
Not sure where to start this, but I think I will give a little history first. My first Grizzly hunt was in 1980. Have hunted hard on numerous hunts in Alaska, Canada, and Montana.
Never could pull it all together. Grizzly bears have been my favorite animal for ever,
but they had become my nemesis!
this was to be my last and final attempt to harvest one of these beautiful beast.
I booked the hunt to eastern Russia last spring. After almost 1 year of anticipation, the
volcano in Iceland had shut down all air travel thru northern Europe. I didn't know if my hunt
would happen until an hour before I left. We were the first flight from Chicago to land at the
Frankfurt, Gr. airport after the flight restrictions had been lifted. Those last few days before I
left were agonizing. The entire hunt was paid for and I just about lost it all. (no trip insurance).
We landed in Petroplavosk-Kamchatski Saturday morning after traveling thru 19 time zones.
spent 47 hours in an airplane or airport. Petro is on the Kamchatka Peninsula which is known
as the "Land of Fire and Ice" and is on the Eastern Russia coast. Over 300 volcanos, 70 of
which are still active.
After all that travel we loaded up in track machines for another 7 hour ride over the snow into
the mountains.
we arrived at our new home for the next 8 days.
We also had a tent set up for eating area. We had an interpreter in camp as well as camp cook and
2 guides for me and Jack (my hunting partner). We used snowmobiles with sleds to reach as far
up in the mountains as we could. Each day we would snowmobile 50 to 100 km up to where the
bears had denned up last fall. They were just starting to come out for the spring. I had no idea
that they would den so high up, but all the dens we found were right at or near the peaks of the
surrounding mountains, very difficult to get to. Here we are glassing some of the area.
Here's some nice tracks of a good bear.
Mountains in every direction!
Snowed the first 3 days and had ground blizzard conditions a couple more days!
Here's our water supply,just a few feet from the trapper's cabin we stayed in.
I saw 15 bears during the hunt. Most were not pursued as I wanted bigger. Hunted from 9 am
till dark everyday of the hunt and at noon the last day it looked like I was coming home without one.
At 2 pm I could have shot a 6 ft. bear but turned it down as it just wasn't what I wanted and
I figured that would be it! At 5 pm, last day, we saw a 7 1/2 footer go into some alder thickets.
We took off after it. Walked up a snow bank over looking the alder thicket and spooked my bear
at 40 yds. She ran dead away. I held for the hump on the shoulders and touched off the
Remington 700 .300 win mag with 200 gr. nosler partitions, and she dropped like a rock! Then got up and
turned towards us and as the guide was shouting SHOOT SHOOT SHOOT! I put one thru
the front shoulder and she went down for good. Dead at 60 yds. As we walked up to her she
let out her last breath and a billow of steam rose up like a cloud. she squared 7 1/2 ft and was
a beautiful blonde with chocolate legs. Very old female with front teeth worn almost to the
gums, canine's had several cavities and broke. I was one happy dude!! My 30 year quest was
over and it was a very emotional experience. It was not the 9-10 footer I had dreamed about but
I was very very pleased and I never ever want to go to the last evening of the last day again!!
My partner had gotten his bear on the third day. He shot his bear with .375 (300 gr bullet). His took three shots and was an
8 ft. male. A fabulous trophy.
The russian guides were great!! They wanted us to get our bears as bad as we wanted to!
They worked very hard to make it happen.
They were the drinkn'est bunch I ever been around! vodka straight up!! At lunch out in the
blizzards and in camp in the evenings numerous shots of vodka and what they called
'Russian' coke (home made cognac put up in 2 liter coke bottles). 'American' coke was
what they called regular coke! Everyone in camp had to participate in the toast. First a
toast to the bear! then the weather! then the skills of the hunter! Then everyone had to
stand as they would toast BEAUTIFUL WOMEN!! By then all were laughing with glowing
faces!!
Every night was a party for them. I only knew about 10 russian words and they knew very few
English words but it was suprising how well you can tell stories and give toast after a few
cognac shooters! They wanted to know all about America, what we hunted, did we eat them,
what rifles, bullets, calibers. they loved to show their rifles which were old Soviet rifles from
mostly WWII. They were a very friendly and warm group of people.
Here we are the night I got my bear and it was the last night in camp for us, so there was a
lot of toasting going on that night!!!
2 Americans and a tent full of Ruskies!
On the way home we went to Red Square in Moscow.
I will have stories to tell about this trip for the rest of my life. Everyday was a different adventure. A true arctic adventure.
Maybe some time later I will tell about the Moscow prostitutes, bribing the customs dude in
Moscow to be able to leave, the almost strip search in Frankfurt, the icy ledges, the snowmobile
wrecks (there were several). climbing a glacier, eating fat, going to the outhouse the morning after a bunch of Russians
have eaten raw herring, boiled eggs and a dozen vodka shooters! UGH!!!
