I have been dreaming of taking a brown bear with a handgun for a number of years now. After one disappointing attempt a couple of years prior, I was fortunate enough to return to Alaska for a second chance at harvesting a big brownie with a handgun in 2011. I booked the hunt with Grizzly Skins of Alaska, owned and operated by well-known outdoor writer Phil Shoemaker, in January, 2010. Their hunting area is located on the Alaskan Peninsula which has a history of producing large bears. Time passed very slowly after booking the hunt, but the time for my departure from North Georgia finally came on September 28, 2011. I had planned on arriving a few days early in order to ensure that I would be sitting on the spotting hill at daybreak when bear season opened on October 1st.

I was reminded that just getting to Alaska can be an adventure in itself. I, along with my carry-on backpack and the duffel bag that I had checked, arrived in King Salmon, Alaska only an hour or so behind schedule. Unfortunately, the Pelican case containing my optics, shooting sticks, guns, and ammunition did not. After checking with airport baggage personnel, it was determined that my gun case had been diverted in Chicago and that it “should” arrive in King Salmon when the first flight arrived from Anchorage the following morning; I had my doubts. I decided to go ahead and fly into base camp for the night and call the King Salmon airport via satellite phone the following morning to ensure that the gun case had arrived before making an unnecessary return trip.

I was greeted on the landing strip by Phil and the remaining members of his family, along with the host of guides and packers that would help conduct the hunts from the various spike camps that were already setup prior to their guest hunter’s arrival. After a delicious home cooked meal at base camp, I retired to the bunkhouse for the night. Even though I was exhausted from traveling, I slept little that night due to the combination of anticipation, excitement, and worrying that my handguns might not arrive on time.

After breakfast the next morning, I phoned the airport in King Salmon and was informed that my gun case had indeed arrived. I couldn’t believe it! Phil and his son spent the morning flying guides, hunters, and packers into their spike camps via their Super Cub aircraft. That afternoon, I was flown back to King Salmon in order to pick up my gun case. After returning to base camp with my guns, I went out to the range to check the zero on both of the handguns that I had brought along for the hunt. I wanted to take a bear with my .500 S&W revolver but since this was the hunt of a lifetime for me, I also brought along my custom XP-100 chambered in .376 Steyr. Even though the gun was capable of longer shots, I placed a 100 yard limit on shots with the .500 S&W revolver. I was comfortable with the .376 Steyr at distances twice that far. I made some slight scope adjustments on both firearms and my guns were ready for hunting.

I was flown to a spike camp about six miles away from base camp and it was located about three miles from the nearest salmon stream. I was concerned about being so far away from the river but Phil assured me that this camp had produced some great bears in the past. I figured that no one knew his hunting area better, so I put 100% confidence in his judgment and anxiously waited on opening day of the 2011 bear season.

Opening morning found the trio of hunter, guide, and packer perched on the spotting hill, glassing for bears. Things started off slowly at first; we first spotted some bears fishing in the river but after a while we began seeing some medium-sized bears roaming the hillsides closer to our position. One bear was only about 800 yards away and it lay down right out on the open tundra and took a 2-hour nap! We also spotted several herds of caribou off in the distance.

At approximately 12:30 p.m., we spotted a big bear that we decided was definitely a bear worth going after. With my guide leading the way, we confined ourselves to the alders as much as possible, moving only when the bear was looking away. When we got to 350 yards of the bear we ran out of cover. We began belly crawling trying to remain out of sight of the bear as he continued to amble our way. When the bear was about 200 yards away the guide asked the packer to remain behind in order to minimize movement. I was put up front and my guide followed along behind as we continued to belly crawl toward the bear. Finally, we came to the edge of a small stream that the bear seemed to be headed to. I had brought along a rolled up sleeping bag pad to use as a field rest from the prone position and I placed it on the ground in front of me. The bear was now only 135 yards away and still heading in our direction. I knew that if he continued on his present course that he would drop out of sight momentarily while he passed through a tiny patch of alders. However, that would allow enough time for me to pop my earplugs in and to allow me to setup for the shot with the .500 S&W. Once he cleared the alders, he would be standing in an opening that I had ranged at 100 yards; inside my comfort zone for the revolver with a steady rest. It was a perfect setup!

After we lost sight of the bear, my guide and I got ready for him to emerge from the alders. Five minutes passed, then ten, then twenty, then thirty; no bear! We finally realized that he had decided to take a nap once he entered the alders. My guide motioned for the packer to join us and he belly crawled up beside me. You can imagine how nerve-wrecking it was to have the bear of a lifetime sleeping in an alder patch, out of sight, only 125 yards away! I prayed that the wind direction would remain constant and that he would continue on his prior course after he woke from his nap.

Finally, two and a half hours later, he stood up in the alders in and continued in our direction. He stopped once he entered the clearing but it would have been a steep “quartering to” shot so I held my fire, waiting for a broadside shot opportunity. As he reached the top of the creek bank across from us, I hoped that he would continue down to the water’s edge which would have given me a 75-yard shot. Unfortunately, just as my guide had anticipated, he chose the path of least resistance and turned to go downstream in order to find a less-steep bank to descend to the water. Before leaving the clearing, he stopped in a quartering away position, 100 yards away. I looked over at my guide who was prepared to back me up with a .375 Ruger rifle if necessary, and I was given the “go ahead” to shoot.

I placed the crosshairs of the 2X Leupold just behind the bear’s right shoulder and squeezed off the shot. The bear growled and pulled his right shoulder close to his body. He whirled around and began biting the area behind his shoulder. I was able to fire two more shots before the bear retreated into a small patch of alder only about 15 yards away. I could see him momentarily, and then he would disappear before I could shoot again. After a few seconds, the alders quit shaking and my guide and I both covered the area with our guns. After a few more minutes with no movement from the alders, the handshakes and congratulations on the successful hunt began.

My guide and I crossed the creek, circled high above the alder patch where the bear was lying, and descended on the area very cautiously. We spotted a patch of brown fur in the grass beneath the alders and tensions were high as we approached the downed beast. After the bear showed no signs of breathing, my guide stuck the barrel of the .375 Ruger in the bear’s eye as I covered with my freshly reloaded revolver. No movement from the bear indicated that the beast was dead and after many years of waiting, I had finally fulfilled my quest for a hand-gunned brown bear!

Part of Phil's comfortable base camp


Heading out to spike camp!


Camping in the shadow of a volcano


Glassing for bears


View from the spotting hill where my bear was first spotted. We eventually caught up with him in the "V" in the creek bottom in the center of the photo.


I shot my bear from this location. He was standing in the small clearing at the top of the bank across the stream. When this photo was taken, my bear is actually lying in the small patch of alder behind the clearing. It is amazing how that stuff can hide critters!


One happy bear hunter








He had a great hide!

I can't thank Phil, Tia, Taj, Rocky, and Josh enough, along with Ben who helped us get our bear skins/skulls tagged and sealed back in King Salmon. I was treated like a King and this truly was the adventure of a lifetime.

Excellent Bear and excellent report!
Looks like you had quite a successful hunt, memories for a lifetime.

Awesome! Congratulations.

Great report. Tia is a fantastic guide. My dad took a nice moose with her a few years ago and her I got charged by a huge brown bear.

NICE bear and good shooting!

Curious about the square and skull size.

Looks big! Guessing upper 9's and must be close to 28", right?

Looks like a beauty and a trophy of a lifetime.

Man, I love hunting big bears.

Very nice! That looks like one big MO FO!!!

quote:

Originally posted by FishN4Eyes:
NICE bear and good shooting!

Curious about the square and skull size.

Looks big! Guessing upper 9's and must be close to 28", right?

Looks like a beauty and a trophy of a lifetime.

Man, I love hunting big bears.

Fish,

We didn't measure him in the field but he was guessed to be "9 1/2' plus". IIRC, the skull was measured by the AK F&G Dept at 27 5/16".

Thanks to all for the congrats!

Alaska has some great guides and guide operations but none better than Grizzly Skins.

Phil & Mike, that spot looks awfully familiar.

2010 on the beaver pond

Sorry, some of the pictures have been moved.

Congratulations on a beautiful bear, that too with a handgun!

Awesome report and congrats on a great trophy!

Well done!! I hope to one day book a hunt with Phil for a brownie myself. Thanks for the report and all of the photos. Post more photos if you have them.

very nice bear. Love the 500 too!

That was fun to read. Congratulations.

Congratulations
Very nice bear!

Way to go!!! Congratulations.

D. Nelson