Leupold BX-4 Rangefinding Binoculars

Black Bear, long winded version (no other version available)

wa_archer

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Joined
Jan 30, 2013
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367
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E. WA
So been a couple weeks now but me and @neffa3 went on a little afternoon bear hunt. The kids all stayed with his wife who was assured we would be back about dark, don't worry they wont be that bad. Off we went in the ol' Tundra to drive up a dirt road. luckily no bikes or hikers passing to give strange looks as we assemble our packs and rifles and head up a trail. Well i'll use trail loosely, not really a trail anyone but a hunter would really notice or some crazy person on a mt bike that had to be lost. not really sure how those tires found the trail. We went up until the canyons started coming up and behold little finger draws with all the fall berries a bear or bear hunter could hope for. We split up hoping if we bumped a bear out of the thick stuff the other would see. I walked the hills and game trails and began to notice the trails i originally thought were deer or elk in actuality were bear trails. First time i had ever seen this. As I climbed higher in the basin the canyon ran out and i found myself having to cross the brushy bottom. What a fun time that was i all together felt like i was being innapropriately fondled by thorns and scratched the shit out of while having everything on me trying to be ripped off. by the time i got through i could see neffa3 on the ridge so I climbed up to check and see what the game plan was. we headed a bit further and split up again, me to cross this time easier brush and him to work the upper end. It was at this point as i dropped down through the snow berry brush that i had two thoughts, well looks like we wont see anything and man i'm making a hell of a lot of racket getting through here. Just then i looked up and strolling across the hill 80 yards away is a lone jet black bear with a nice brown muzzle. It stopped perfectly in line with a huge pine branch over the top of it. My scope was on it but all i could see was black through the branch. I held off and soon it stepped out but at a quick strolling pace and poof it was gone. I re-positioned anticipating it may come back but honestly waiting to here a shot from neffa3 as it headed toward him. seconds passed and the bear comes awalluping back down the canyon. This time my cross hairs are on its nose but I don't like the thought of a running shot on a bear. I give a "hey bear" nothing, it enters a side canyon and doesn't come out. Only one thing it had to go up over the ridge. I hurry through the brush and start scrambling up the other side, peeking into the canyon it went up. I'm 100yds from the top still thinking it will be over the other side when a see something black up toward the top. Bino's up "its the bear", scope on it, its back to feeding and i can't tell ass from head. It finally looks up and i put the cross hairs behind the shoulder and squeeze. The gun goes off and the bear disappears over the ridge and I can hear it run down on the other side of the ridge. Now the fun begins Bear hit well at least i think hit, getting dark and lots of brushy hollows to hide/die in. Neffa3 catches up and i fill him in on the story before we start to track. no blood found for at least 400 yds just following the direction it traveled. Luckily neffa3 finds a spot of blood on a game path and fresh bear tracks. We follow and after it crosses a saddle we can't tell exactly which direction it went. We split up again and as i'm walking above the brush back down the ridge i can hear the bear down in the brush walking, after a few minutes everything goes silent. Did it cross and go up the other side above the brush, did it die, is it just sitting there waiting for me to give in and go in after it. Well after several minutes and lots of indecision we finally make up our minds that were going to have to go in after it. Believe me i wanted to come back in the morning but be what it is one looses some fear or common sense when in the presence of another. We push through the brush toward where we heard the bear and after going further than we think we should decide it must have gone up and out. We are talking discussing this fact when I step down off a log which brings my head under the brush to see the bear walking pass me at, o lets say 10yds. I yell "bear" and raise my rifle all I can see through the scope is green and a little black. lower it back down, raise it back up, decide well its wounded I need more lead or copper i guess in my case into this bear. My first shot goes off and the bear starts moaning, a second shot and quickly things go silent. I can no longer see the bear but know its still there. I stand my ground while @neffa3 moves around to hopefully get a better look. moving around doesn't help much its just too damn thick. He finally gets close enough and can see it laying there and with much trepidation and the end of a rifle barrel touches the lifeless bear. Being dark or close to, we break the bear down and now have several brush bottoms and the ridge to hike out. All and all it was a great afternoon adventure. O and the shots the first was just a little back in the back end of the ribs, the second in the brush was luckily right behind the shoulder, the third sailed high as the bear was below the grade of logs. And that little part about the kids, yeah they were that bad she was a couple glasses of wine in before we got back...... well after dark.
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They give a death cry, which is good sign! Next time aim at the shoulder and try to break his shoulder if you can.
 
Leupold BX-4 Rangefinding Binoculars

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