Swan Hills Grizzlies

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Demonical

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Whitecourt, Alberta
http://www.brassmonkeyproductions.com/grizzly/Part3.html

Too bad that resource development and logging has opened up the Swan Hills bush. I hope these bears can survive. It depends on who you talk to as to how many are left, but the guys who work in our area still routinely see them.

I wrote a letter to an outfitter in B.C. one time years ago talking grizzlies and that guy wrote back to me; he said he had worked in the Swan Hills in the 1960's and '70's and he had never seen bigger grizzlies outside of Alaska.
 
My Dad was explaining to me the importance of shot placement vs caliber as a kid and said he met this woman when he worked out in that area awhile after this had happened:

GRIZLEY2.jpg


Bella Twin:

Sometime around 1950 there began to be many accounts of grizzly bears in the Swan Hills. The Bella Twin incident is the most famous. She brought down a huge one with a puny 22-caliber rifle. It all happened on a spring day in 1953.

I have read several different accounts of this legendary story and even had the good fortune of speaking with her grandson. As tall-tales tend to be, they are all slightly different. Therefore, I will recount just what I believe to be the facts. There is an interesting side note as well, (R.W.H Eben-Ebenau) purchased this bear’s skull from Bella Twin.

With peashooter in hand, it looks fairly clear that she killed this big-boy out of self- defense. After firing a few shots, a bullet caught the bear in the eye, dropping it on the spot. She may very well be 1953’s luckiest person. It was again estimated to weigh about 1000 lbs. and was some kind of a record breaker. Break out the Boone and Crocket book and the skull measure 16 6/16 by 9 11/16 inches.

On more than one occasion, I have run across people slagging the Boone and Crocket records as being somewhat questionable. Even if their bookkeeping is not 100% accurate, no doubt about it, these are still sizable creatures.
Click to expand...
 
The grizzlies that used to cover the plains of the west were referred to as Great Plains Grizzlies. It was thought that those bears had been exterminated. When resource development began opening the Swan Hills, reports of enormous grizzlies caused biologists and researchers to look at these bears.
It is believed that the Swan Hills grizzlies (I suppose depending upon the source) are the last of the Great Plains grizzlies.

Al Oeming was the most famous of the people that studied the Swan Hills grizzlies. Not sure the time frame when he was up in the Hills but he actually captured several of these bears over the years (you can look it up). He used to operate a small private zoo called Polar Park, where he had a couple of those grizzlies.


The biggest grizzly tracks I ever encountered in the Hills were up in the Inverness R. country; they were 8" wide.

I think the biggest bears I have seen were 8'ers.

http://www.se.gov.sk.ca/ecosystem/speciesatrisk/plainsgrizzlybear.htm
 
swan hills grizz

last year end of november a friend of mine ran across a track in the snow he was wearing size 11 sorel snow packs. the track went about an inch wider and one and a half inches longer than his boot. this was just north of fort assinaboine (half hour south of swan hills). I know people in pincher creek alberta who are saying that the grizzly's are out of control down there. what is wrong with our biologists here? the same thing is happening with cougar in british columbia.
 
I think people tend to think of our local animals as always having lived in the areas we now see them. My Avatar is a map of Where Elk lived prior to the west being settled. Grizz apparantly were known to follow the herds of buffalo out in the flatlands and thos bear probably did pretty good for themselves.
 
Swan Hills Grizz

I Guided Moose Hunters in the Swan Hills for 6 years (up until 2000). I saw lots and lots of Grizz, including 6 different Bears on one 10 day Hunt. They are indeed very large. A fair bit larger (on avg.) than the interior Mountain Grizzlies I have Guided & seen in the Yukon & Northern B.C.
 
My dad told me the story of Bella Twinn and her bear in the early 60's but there are still many that want to call B.S. it seems. I've also heard from friends in the Crowsnest Pass that it's getting more difficult to move there without tripping over a grizzly. It makes you wonder what the biologists see. I think they report the numbers low on purpose so they keep getting more money in their budget for research.
 
We're working out of High Prarie right now on the mountain pine beetle project in the northern part of the Swan Hills and the crews have sighted two grizzers from the helicopter in the past week or ten days. I stopped in at the museum at Kinuso yesterday to see the full mount David Griffin Swan hills grizzly there and was amazed at the size of it, most likely would have gone over 1000 lbs in the fall (892lbs). The Bella Twin bear had a fractionally bigger skull size and got to talking with the old fella at the museum about her bear. He remembers the story at the time and was kind enough to tell Rick and I. They figure the hide either burnt with the old hotel it was hanging in Slave lake or that it was purchased and is in Southern alberta hanging in an old church turned hunting lodge in Manyberries or another rumor has it going to Texas. Ive got a couple of pics but dont know how to post them so if someone wants to help out pm me.
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