>From: Doug Lloyd <dlloyd_at_telus.net> >Mark asked honestly: > ><snip> > > I was wondering how many people like to carry a gun on trips in >wilderness > > areas. ><snip> SNIP >On my paddle last year from Bella Bella to Port Hardy (well, didn't make it >all the way :-) ), I seriously considered taking a shot gun, but decided >against it in the end, applying my previous philosophy, consistently. I >also didn't want to kill anyone by accident (as I almost had done to a >hunting partner once, when he came up from behind me without warning: >missed his gonads by two inches and blew a 4" hole in the ground between >his legs). The reason I thought it might be a good idea to have a gun, was >I had heard that certain areas we would be paddling through were rife with >"coastal fiord bears" just waking up from winter slumber - big heads, >skinny bods, and very hungry. The first thing I did when we arrived in Port >Hardy was go to the "Gun & Hunting Store", as I figured those guys would >have the specialist knowledge -- they did. They said the bears keep back in >the bush, away from the beach, munching on skunk cabbage after the ravishes >of winter, so no worries. They said that later in the summer, the bears >were everywhere, but well feed, and mostly just a nuisance. This was >corroborated by the caretaker of a lodge near the Koye River, who stated >that during the regular kayaking season, visitors to the inside passage >sought shelter in the evening, because as many as 10 bears would roam >through their camp at the river side. They were actually not in danger. As >far as polar bears -- that I'd have >to think about - they can hunt for fun, just like humans. > >BC'in Ya >Doug Lloyd My experiences tend to parallel Doug's here. I've paddled in the Bella-Bella/Koye River area, and though I own a shotgun, it did not seem worth the weight and constant maintainence balanced against avoiding camping in obvious grizzly areas. I paddled up the Koye as far as current and water depth permitted during the day, but made sure to be elsewhere at night. I do carry bear spray, but have never had to use it. Doug's also right about Polar bears; my only experience (I hope) with being attacked by a bear happened kayaking in the Arctic. We were attacked in our tent at night, and bear spray would have simply filled the tent and made us into spicy Shake n'Bake. I was carrying the shotgun then; fortunatly the noise of a warning shot drove the bear off so we did not have to kill him, and I escaped with only a few deep scratches, a light bite, and some temporary mental shock. (For those who care about such things, I load my gun with alternating rounds of 00 buckshot and solid magnum slug - the theory being that even though my hands would undoubtly be shaking, one or more of the buckshot pellets might hit and tear enough shoulder flesh to slow bruin down. The solid slug, though it might well bounce off the armoured and sloped front of a bear's skull, might give him too much a headache to want to eat right away.) I would have felt very badly if we had needed to kill the bear (though I would have done so rather than be killed myself). As Doug has pointed out, its their home, so having to kill a bear is not like shooting a thief who breaks into your home - it's like breaking into someone else's home yourself, and shooting them if they try to defend their territory. Philip Torrens N49°16' W123°06' *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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