ORIGINAL: Schultzy

Personally I don't think you have anything to worry about. I've been involved with bear hunting for 30+ years, been hunting them for 20 years and not once have I had a bear get too hostile with me. There a curious animal, there vision is terrible. There nose makes up for it though. In most cases there just as afraid of you (if not more) then you are afraid of them. If it bothers you that bad pick up some pepper spray, that works well for these black bear.

ORIGINAL: hatchet jack

I remember reading somewhere that Black Bears kill more people than Grizz,Brown, Polar. Does anyone know if this is true?? Most of the bears I see in Pa run like scared rabbits or just pay you no-mind. I did have one once flip my cutout log feeder that weights about 200lb. He swated it with his paw and it flew about 10ft like a rag Doll.I was trying to take his picture from about 15 yards. Not to smart on my part, but Jack Old #7 played a part in my dission to get so close to a 500lb+ Bear. He was pissed and my shorts had a stain in them after which I ran like a scared rabbit. That was a major I TOLD YOU SO from the Wife[:@]

Hatchet Jack

ORIGINAL: Schultzy

There are allot more black bear attacks on humans then the other species of bear. Reason being there is allot more of them around, that is the only reason why!!

ORIGINAL: MN/Kyle

Exactly

Way back before I was born......it was the late spring of 1963 my father was in the far north woods of Wisconsin, at night (no lights in the camp) he had shot a snapping turtle earlier in the day with a Ruger .22mag Single Six and hadthe turtleoutside to dry out the shell. The guts were in a garbage can right below it (the shell was on the roof of a low garage) and some of the blood was dripping onto the cans.

Well he was making his way up a hill to his cabin (approx 75yds away) with the Ruger slung over his shoulder. As he rounded the corner of the garagehe saw two sets of eyes in the moon light and knew right there and then what it was. Two cubs were licking the blood off of the can and trying to get into it for the turtle end trails.

No sooner did this all register when he heard the unmistakable sound of a bear running at him her claws digging at the gravel as she approached at full speed! He started to back up toward the lake and reached for his only chance, his sixgun on his hip..........it wasn't there, it was slung over his shoulder! As he fumbled to release the leather strap from the hammer to free the pistol the bear was close enough to smell. Instinctively he pulled the pistol pointed it in the direction of the sound and smell, eared back the hammer on the Rugerand pulled the trigger.

BLAM! the muzzle flash showed the eerie sight of a huge sow closing in on him. The bear rolled in font of him only to get to her feet and continue her charge....BLAM!.....BLAM! he fired again and again, the bear rolledbut again got up. By this time he found himself sliding down the steep bank down to the waters edge. His back bumped up against a big tree that was growing in the middle of the bank, as he slid to the water side of the trunk he heard the bear slam into the top side. As the bear started to reach around the tree with her massive razor sharp claws hell bent on the destruction of the person causing her pain, My father reached around the other side of thetree, put the pistol to the bear and BLAM! let another.22mag round intoher.

Knowing he was running out of real estate (and ammo)he knew what he had to do. He dug the handle of the pistol into the ground and pulled himself back up the bank not knowing if the bear was right on his heels or dead. As he got to the top and started to make his way to the cabin to retrieve his 44-40 rifle, a person with a flash light runs up to him to ask what was going on. It was a truck driver who earlier in the dayhad brought in food and supplies for the upcoming camping season for all of the kids who would be arriving at the camp along with the rest of the staff.

Explaining what happened my father asked the driver to get into his truck and aim the lights onto the tree in the middle of the bank. The driver did and upon his return from the cabin (with his rifle) found that the mother had rounded up the cubs and treed them above her. She was at about 15ft up and the cubs slightly higher.

Knowing what he had to do a well placed shot sent the bear tumbling down the tree and down the bank below the lights of the truck into the pitch black darkness of the waters edge. Not wanting any more excitement for the evening and very sure a well placed shot was made it was decided to "investigate" in the morning.

After first light sure enough the bear was right where she fell by the waters edge.After a few calls to the game warden the whole issue was figured out with no charges or citations issued. It was deemed (as it should have been) an act of self defense.

The cubs hung around camp for a few days then wandered of to fend for themselves.

I forgot to add that my father only ended up needing 20 stitches in his left leg and 4 on his right arm. His clothes were ripped and other minor cuts and scrapes but all in all he came through the ordeal fairly unscathed. You can still see the scars to this day on his leg.

The bear was taken by the warden where it was weighed and measured. I can't remember the exact numbers but I know she was over 6ft and weighed in at close to 400lbs which is very big for a Wisconsin sow bear especially in the late spring/early summer.

Years later (mid 70's) he again had to kill a rogue bear that was coming into camp. This bear was very big and very old. He had scared it off on two other occasions with a shot gun but the bear kept returning. This time was different because it was during the camping season and the camp was full of kids. He phoned the warden (same one) to inform him of the situation.The warden told my dad that they would send someone out to dispatch the bear but if came into camp before they could get to it, it was ok to kill the bear.

Well the bear came back later that day at just about dusk, I remember like it was yesterday my father running out toward the bear with a shotgun in one hand and a Ruger .44mag flattop strapped to his hip. Our dog (German Shepherd) was going crazy trying to get at the bear. He (the dog) had treed the bear the day before only to have the bear come down the tree and attack the dog but the Shepherd was too fast for the bear and was able to tree him again. (the dog weighed in at about 135lbs....big shepherd) My oldest brother was holding back the dog at my father's request while we all stood back and watched what unfolded.

There's my father standing about 25yds away from this bear who is growling and popping his jaws at him, circling to his left the bear was posturing for an attack! My father raised the shotgun and fired over the bears head in an effort to scare him offlike he had in the days preceding........nothing, again he shot only this time right in front of the bear causing dirt and rocks to fly up into the bears face again nothing, the bears resolve was unshakable.

The bear had decided to make this afternoon his last stand. He started toward my father, my dad,being a hunter himself and having served in the army as a front line infantryman for three years in Korea was no stranger to danger.Having faced much more difficult and life threatening moments in the war and from his first bear attack, he was as calm as could be. He dropped the shotgun and drew his pistol. This time though his weapon was very much up to the task at hand, and with one shot he dropped the bear where he stood.

I was in awe.......