rifle for polar bear

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I'm gonna second the "Where will you be stationed?" question, because there's plenty of folks from Alaska on here who can tell you the likelihood of encountering a polar bear, versus a brownie/grizzly.

I'm in Southwest Alaska right now, so no polar bears, but we do get brown bears. I've bought a resident tag ($25) each year I've been a resident (for hunting purposes you've gotta be here a whole calendar year to be a resident--but different rules for military, I think) but I haven't shot a bear yet.

For a last-ditch bear defense gun, lots of folks go with a 12 gauge pump. And the up side is you can still use it for ducks or other game birds.

My bear gun is a .458 SOCOM AR, but I haven't had a chance to use it, and probably won't at this point, since brown bear season closed on Tuesday. Still, I knew it was a reliable gun, and 6 rounds of .458 loaded with 325 grain bullets made me pretty comfortable about my odds.

Aaron
 
The Marine Mammle Protction Act of 1971 prohibits non Native Alaskans and Native Alaskans that do not reside in the region/game unit, so unless your an Eskimo living near the Polar Bears, you cannot hunt PolarBears, Whales, Seals or Sea Otters. Polar Bears are coastal, and so are Eskimos, for the most part, unlike interior Athabaskan Indians.
Alaskan Eskimos are not limited in the #s they take.

Canada is different, and anyone with $$ can buy a tag, but I belive a recent law prohibits importation of Polar Bear skins, so all that may go down the tubes....

In the 20's my fatherinlaw Koksiinaq would head up the Coville River to the Beufort Sea and hunt Polar Bears with a 25-35 and had to get close, 100 yards or less, and put that bullet in the right spot. Always Temple/Neck shots on Polar Bears, anything else was too risky. He did have trained dgs keeping it from running away or getting at him, but he did get 300$-500$ a skin, well worth the danger for him. Arctic Fox got him 75$ apice untill the Great Depression started.
The 30-06 was agreat 'step up' when he got one.

Nobody shoots a Polar Bear with a small caliber rifle for 'Bragging Rights' :D You cant Brag when you are Dead. They use flat shooting rifles because of the charactristics of the bullets flight on a target of "hard to determine" range.
Ever shoot 'White on white'? its not at all easy.
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It is just further proof that "it isn't what you shoot it with, its where you hit it" and nobodys gonna play with their life it the end result of shooting dosent come up with a dead Polar Bear.

I use a Mosin Nagant, as do my wife and kids and many neighbors.
Ammo is cheap, plentyfull, and effective as well the rifle is exceptioonally reliable in our Arctic climate.

Arctic Brown Bears can get very big. Heres a recent post I made in the hunting section, with my wife doing the shooting; http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=522483
2 shots to the neck and 75-100 yards later and this bad boy was meat on the table.

A 30-06 is a great all around and much respected round up this way, and without commercial hype, Eskimo's 'round here determined that its the biggest you really need, because speed and size dont make up for bad shooting and expensive ammo.

Most any accurate rifle will do, as long as you can place the shot, .223 to 12 gauge....
 
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I carried a Stainless Marlin Guide Gun in 45-70 Govt loaded with Buffalo Bore 350gr Magnums when I was in bear country, I lived in Alaska for 4 years and you will come across big ones. There huge in Kodiak island, huge.
You would be in close range if you get in trouble- under 50 yards so do not put a scope on it. Wild West Guns in Anchorage Ak modified mine with there reliability tune, bear proof ejector, ghost ring sights, Williams fire sight (fiber optic) for the front sight and big lever for mittens/gloves. Add a good leather sling and your good to go.
If you leave your weapon outside then it will work, if you take it outside then inside a few times then it will lock up from the condensation freezing and it will also rust fast because the expansion and contraction of the metal will allow moisture to work its way into the metal. I always wrapped it in a big towel when I came in for good so the gun would slowly warm up and not build up condensation.
Oh and you have to throw a cup of coffee out side and see it freeze in the air just to say you did it! LOL
 
Canada is different, and anyone with $$ can buy a tag, but I belive a recent law prohibits importation of Polar Bear skins, so all that may go down the tubes....
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Canada must have been what I was thinking of. Will definitely want to check into importation laws if I have the opportunity to go for Polar, otherwise I think a big Kodiak will be my quarry of choice.

:)
 
I myself have no desire to hunt an animal thats numbers are as low as the Polar Bear...the Eskimos have the right to do it, its their way of life...but to do it for sport is inhumane and unethical IMO.
 
Caribou...

"Nobody shoots a Polar Bear with a small caliber rifle for 'Bragging Rights' You cant Brag when you are Dead. They use flat shooting rifles because of the charactristics of the bullets flight on a target of "hard to determine" range."


I wasn't implying a "general" statement when I typed that.... I did qualify it with "some" like the smaller calibers for bragging rights for taking game. The attitude does exist. I was a bit taken back with it as I talked it over with my father (born/raised in Kotzebue/Noatak/Nome). His father used to go after bear with a .22 rolling block/single shot... "Shoot 'em in the ear". Now, I'll assume this was black bear that was being talked about. It made me shudder to think of it. He used to hand that rifle (and four shells) to my dad and tell him "I want two ducks". Dad strived to bring him two ducks and three shells.

Personally... I have no problem taking caribou with a smaller caliber, done it many times very affectively. But... the good Lord's blessed me with the ability to have more than one caliber... I want the hardest hitting and best expanding one I can reach for, for something as dangerous as a bear... let alone... Nanook.
 
I myself have no desire to hunt an animal thats numbers are as low as the Polar Bear
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The product of mass media hype I'm afraid. Polar bear numbers *AREN'T* low now. The fear is they will decline due to ice melt, so they've preemptively been declared threatened in the US. But it's just a theory.
 
I truly hope you're right Cosmoline...I don't have any first hand knowledge of the Polar Bear population, but it does seem logical to me that the numbers will drop if the ice keeps melting.
 
I truly hope you're right Cosmoline...I don't have any first hand knowledge of the Polar Bear population, but it does seem logical to me that the numbers will drop if the ice keeps melting.
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I am not saying that it is ethical to issue thousands of permits and extinguish the remaining population, but if that is the case, they are doomed (in part or in whole) by design so why forbid hunting the species? IIRC their numbers have actually began to incline lately.

:)
 
They're bears. Bears are among the most adaptable animals after man. It's the answer to the question--what does a hungry 1,200 lb polar bear eat? Anything it wants to. So they'll shift to more land based hunts if the weather continues to warm, and their population will merge with the barren ground griz who are shifting northward. So something new will emerge, smaller than the old polar bears and with a diet that isn't all meat anymore. Is that extinction or adaptation?

Anyway if the warming theory is all kosher, then the response to the declining ice pack shouldn't be to ban hunting, but to ban personal automobiles.
 
Anyway if the warming theory is all kosher, then the response to the declining ice pack shouldn't be to ban hunting, but to ban personal automobiles.
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Now that's usin' your noggin. ;)
 
The loss of habitat is whats trouble for the Polar Bears, thankfully not hunting. With the loss of ice, more Bears are getting 'beached' summertime and therefore more likely to meet people.
It isnt just the Polar Bears that are effected, its the whole ecosystem. Bearded Seals, Walrus, Whales,RingSeal, Harbor Seals , birds, fish populations and such that depend on the ice and such are all effected.
Some are booming, some are busting. Who knows what will happen and what species will dissapear and what will make its way up here to fill the 'void'.......were having new birds arrive, and Salmon have extended theri range from Kotzebue Sound being their northern extent to Barrow now, as north as it gets. Things are a changeing, so bring a gun for all occasions......

Hey, Ratdog, I see ya on the small calibers taking plenty of game, and for sure an attitude dose exist among some to do the most with as little as possible, but most guys are way beyond such and do it with something "Certain", but the law of 'where you shoot it' really applies as well.
Up this way its kinda "Taboo" to "Brag" when Bears are involved. Elders here would tell ya to not even talk about a Bear before a hunt so he dosent hear ya comming, or afterward , so you dont insult 'em and make 'em mad.......so catching Bears and bragging kinda dosent go together. Most guys will talk about the hunt in kinda 'matter of factly' with no downplaying the part of the Bear. No "My Bear" or 'Stupid Bear" or such , just 'Him' or 'The Bear' is about it.......

I bet it was BlackBears he shot with a .22lr. Guys here like to run them up a tree and pith them with a shot to the Ear, temple or back of the skull when they are tree'd.....gotta be up the Noatak, or Kobuk for trees though :D

I'm in Noorvik, just Upriver from Kobuk lake and Kotzebue......who's your dad, or your family name?? ......Cuz'n? :D
 
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I bet it was BlackBears he shot with a .22lr.
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I wan't there, but I have a good source that told me of natives using a .22LR for ear shots on Kodiak or Polar (don't recall which, but I imagine it was the former) during the construction of the pipeline. That said, they were in loader buckets, so they had decent protection.

:)
 
I hate to break it to you, but Caribou knows his stuff.
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you know i was thinking at first "something doesnt sound right about polarbear hunting"

i didnt know, so i didnt mention it.
 
caribou said:
The loss of habitat is whats trouble for the Polar Bears, thankfully not hunting. With the loss of ice, more Bears are getting 'beached' summertime and therefore more likely to meet people.
It isnt just the Polar Bears that are effected, its the whole ecosystem. Bearded Seals, Walrus, Whales,RingSeal, Harbor Seals , birds, fish populations and such that depend on the ice and such are all effected.
Some are booming, some are busting. Who knows what will happen and what species will dissapear and what will make its way up here to fill the 'void'.......were having new birds arrive, and Salmon have extended theri range from Kotzebue Sound being their northern extent to Barrow now, as north as it gets. Things are a changeing, so bring a gun for all occasions......

Hey, Ratdog, I see ya on the small calibers taking plenty of game, and for sure an attitude dose exist among some to do the most with as little as possible, but most guys are way beyond such and do it with something "Certain", but the law of 'where you shoot it' really applies as well.
Up this way its kinda "Taboo" to "Brag" when Bears are involved. Elders here would tell ya to not even talk about a Bear before a hunt so he dosent hear ya comming, or afterward , so you dont insult 'em and make 'em mad.......so catching Bears and bragging kinda dosent go together. Most guys will talk about the hunt in kinda 'matter of factly' with no downplaying the part of the Bear. No "My Bear" or 'Stupid Bear" or such , just 'Him' or 'The Bear' is about it.......

I bet it was BlackBears he shot with a .22lr. Guys here like to run them up a tree and pith them with a shot to the Ear, temple or back of the skull when they are tree'd.....gotta be up the Noatak, or Kobuk for trees though :D

I'm in Noorvik, just Upriver from Kobuk lake and Kotzebue......who's your dad, or your family name?? ......Cuz'n? :D
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LOL Small world... my Ahna was a Luther from Noatak (Carrie), my Aatatta was Elmer (Takpuk) Greene, originally from Pt. Hope, adopted into the Greene family. My father was Charles Greene, Sr. born across the sound from Kotz. at Sisaulik. He retired from Maniilaq in the early 90's and moved down to live with me for a while, then remarried... died of cancer a couple of years ago. I miss the caribou/moose hunting I did up the Noatak River when I lived up in Kotz.

Which family are you from ("Cuz'n"... could be !!)? Never made it to Noorvik while I was up there, wanted to though... sure was purdy from the pix I saw.

I was wondering what trees you were talkin' 'bout... I've seen the Kotzebue National Forrest. :D

There was a polar bear shot/killed about 250 miles interior, which was odd to have one that far inland... and they've also documented one cross bred polar/brown bear within Alaska. Who knows what they will end up doing with a change in habitat.
 
Everybody's got a story about killing a big bear with a .22 and probably a few of them are even true. Back in the old days, people hunted with whatever they had and surely, some of them got lucky and put down a bear with a .22.

Anyway, the OP is almost certainly going to the Air Force or Army bases in Fairbanks or Anchorage, so he won't be seeing any polar bears. Hunting brown/grizzlies (and several other species) requires a guide unless you're an Alaskan resident, so no hunting them until at least a year after you arrive unless you want to spend the big bucks for a guide.

There is almost no really good hunting on the road system, so even when residency is obtained you're going to have to charter a float plane to get where the good hunting is. It's worth it - split the cost with a couple of buddies and be prepared to stay at least a week beyond the date when you're supposed to be picked up because the weather shuts down small planes regularly. The best bang for the buck (in my opinion) is Mulchatna caribou. It's approximately an hours flight off the road and if you don't see hundreds of big bulls then you must not have left your tent. Mulchatna caribou are much larger than other species and are more or less elk sized. You can also take moose, black or grizzly bears in the same area. Unless you're a terrible shot, you WILL get a trophy bull if you hunt Mulchatna...

On the road system... well, there's some pretty decent black bear hunting and (if you can draw a tag) Dall Sheep. Moose is tough because the antler restrictions make it very hard to find a shootable bull.

Anyway, save your money and do a fly-in, preferably with somebody who's done it before.
 
I'd just use a 12ga with slugs if it's a defensive weapon for bear.

We've got a big polar bear rug about the size of the one Caribou posted. My grandpa got it when he was stationed in Alaska (Air Force colonel), I think it was in the '60s. Landed his ski-equpped plane on an ice floe, started staking the bear, came back across his own tracks and a big set of bear tracks. Turned out he wasn't the one doing the stalking. He took a nice grizzly up there too that was charging him and came to a sliding stop about 10' past where he had been standing (why I would NOT use a single shot!)
 
Mosin Nagant, as stated above. It's plenty powerful enough, and it's designed and battle tested in Arctic temperatures. You really don't have to worry about parts shrinkage and icing up in a Russian gun.
 
He won't be hunting big game in the winter unless he's doing it under a subsistence license and he won't be eligible for that while living in Fairbanks or Anchorage.

MN's are nice rifles, but for sporting use you're better off just picking up a used 30.06. Sporting rifles are lighter and you're going to want a scope for a lot of the game you hunt. By the time you get all the work necessary to mount optics on a military rifle, you've spent quite a bit. And then you get into finding appropriate ammo and all that.
 
Isnt there a shorter time for military guys to become eligable as resident hunters when stationed here?

Ratdog, Frank and Rosie Luther are the wifes auntie n uncle, her moms sister, used to be Rosie Brown. I think my kids are your 3rd cousins or something~~LOL!!~~

I'm aquainted with Chuck and Marie Green are much respected movers and do'ers up this way, political/corperate wise, theve done alot to develop this place with NWArctic Borough and NANA. :D
 
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caribou said:
Isnt there a shorter time for military guys to become eligable as resident hunters when stationed here?

Ratdog, Frank and Rosie Luther are the wifes auntie n uncle, her moms sister, used to be Rosie Brown. I think my kids are your 3rd cousins or something~~LOL!!~~ Im a Hailstone.

I'm aquainted with Chuck and Marie Green are much respected movers and do'ers up this way, political/corperate wise, theve done alot to develop this place with NWArctic Borough and NANA. :D
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LOL Yup... cuz'ns indeed. Chuck and I are cousins. He and I share an aunt (Elsie Adams). Chuck's mother (Catherine) and Elsie were sisters. Elsie/Catherine were my grandfather's cousins. Elsie's still with us... resides in the Senior Center now. Got to see Marie at the informal shareholder's meeting in Seattle a couple of months ago. I'm a NANA'r too. The last time I hunted up there was in '99.
 
I saw a hunter on TV kill a polar bear with one shot from a compound bow. My luck, I would piss him off with a bad shot and he would eat me before I could get off another shot.:eek:
 
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