Allowed to carry my shotgun?

hell, why not do what the Ontario MNR suggests and just carry a long handled axe...for bear protection when walking in the bush in bear country. :rolleyes:

I saw a guy in the gun store this summer asking for bear bangers because as he told the clerk "the bears were getting brave, coming too close... and he was worried about his grandkids"

Honestly if I was that worried about grandkids regarding bears coming around too close, and took the time to go to the gun/outdoor store, I'd just be buying slugs.
 
timsesink said:
Great idea, especially with dealing with a species that actively and regularly hunts humans which black bears and grizzlies don't do. Thanx for the info. Firearms definitely have there place in protection but what I'm mainly dealing with is the average Joe is far better off with spray then a shotgun. When you think of having to get your shotgun off your back, take off the safety, point, aim and shoot most guys would be lucky to do it under 20seconds. Pepper spray 3 seconds. However if you're well trained, practice lots going through those procedures ( and against a charging target not a static one) then it might work a bit better. IMO :)
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20 seconds?! Are you kidding me. Maybe if you were carrying it Toronto-style(in a case and trigger locked). Shoulder slung in the conventional manner(barrel pointed up) may take a few seconds, but try carrying it slung barrel pointed down. The fore end will be by your hand, grab it and bring the gun up to shooting position. The sling (if adjusted properly)should be wrapped around your arm for a very steady hold. Very fast method.
 
I carry mine every night when I walk the dogs. HP-9 14" with a single point sling carried empty chamber safety off. It takes about 1.5-2 seconds by my IPSC timer to get off an aimed 10yd shot.
I gave up on bear spray, which I used to really endorse, when I had to spray a threatening black bear which came in from upwind in a 5-10 MPH wind. All of us got dosed, including the bear. It was really hard to get 3 dogs and myself home, a mile or so, when none of us could see and the dogs just wanted to roll around and paw at their eyes. It's really scary to not be able to see and know there is a totally PO'd bear in the vicinity let me tell you. I would have been royally screwed if I hadn't got the bear full in the face.
Kim
 
"...a 3" shell full of buckshot?..." Buck shot is unreliable and you'll end up with a PO'd wounded bear. You'll never be fast enough if Yogi is within 100 yards either.
"...in a provincial park I'm..." No firearms at all in most of 'em.
 
Anybody who calls a shottie a shotgun probably has no clue as to how to use one, therefore peppers pray if you call a shotgun by its proper name a shotgun would be better
 
Here's my two bits. I am a fish and wildlife biologist with years of experience in forestry and a lifetime of hunting/shooting and your problem is one that I deal with every day. I am usually 10 km away from my truck and a couple km away from my ATV so personal defence is important for me. In my cruisers vest I always carry bear spray and bear bangers but I never feel safe. I work alone in young forests averaging 40,000 stems per hectare so I don't see bears till i trip over them.

Bear bangers don't work at all, i will show up to a cutblock and lean on my horn for 30 seconds to a minute, walk into the forest and the bears are there, they feel safe as long as they are in the treeline. I find if i use a bear banger the bear runs away in the direction i need to travel (scary) and sometimes i see the bear again.

Bear spray is always good to have on your belt but you only get two three-second bursts out of a can. Last month I stumbled across a bear so I grabbed my camera for a pic and there was another fully grown bear within 20 meters of me. I only had enough spray to handle one bear and think of how often we see multiple bears together.

I usually walk around with an iPhone playing music in my pocket to make some noise and I wanted to pump it up a bit so I put big speakers in my back pouch. Big mistake, I have never been more scared of bears when I can't hear them coming! I now have bells on my vest at all times.

Now i carry an 870 express tactical with me at all times. I have an extended mag and I alternate buckshot and slugs in there. At first i used a sling but it kept catching on trees and i was scratching my stock and barrel. Using a sling it would be very slow to prepare for a charging grizzly, especially if i am wearing a helmet for the ATV because i would have to take my helmet off before i could get the sling over my head. I just put on a pistol grip and bought a sac for my back (gunny sac?) and it is GREAT! I can wear my cruisers vest over top of it and draw my short shotgun real quick anytime. also i don't have to worry about scratching my new gun or junk getting in my barrel.

As for Parks, make sure you check the hunting regulations for park specific details. For example, Sugarbowl Grizzly Den Provincial Park near Prince George BC allows people to carry firearms only during certain parts of the year.
 
get a sling for shoulder carry and make sure its unloaded when your walking around with it and load it when needed
 
sunray said:
"...a 3" shell full of buckshot?..." Buck shot is unreliable and you'll end up with a PO'd wounded bear. You'll never be fast enough if Yogi is within 100 yards either.
"...in a provincial park I'm..." No firearms at all in most of 'em.
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You might be surprised how fast some shotguns can shoot. If I'm carrying, the gun is in my hands. Might be a different story if someone keeps it in a backpack.
 
well ive been hit with bearspray and i still managed to grab and hit the guy who sprayed me so i am less than convinced it will do anything but piss a bear off. i however do carry bear spray when hiking with the scouts (im a leader) when it is me and my gf however i have a shotgun.
 
colinkjpark said:
Here's my two bits. I am a fish and wildlife biologist with years of experience in forestry and a lifetime of hunting/shooting and your problem is one that I deal with every day. I am usually 10 km away from my truck and a couple km away from my ATV so personal defence is important for me. In my cruisers vest I always carry bear spray and bear bangers but I never feel safe. I work alone in young forests averaging 40,000 stems per hectare so I don't see bears till i trip over them.

Bear bangers don't work at all, i will show up to a cutblock and lean on my horn for 30 seconds to a minute, walk into the forest and the bears are there, they feel safe as long as they are in the treeline. I find if i use a bear banger the bear runs away in the direction i need to travel (scary) and sometimes i see the bear again.

Bear spray is always good to have on your belt but you only get two three-second bursts out of a can. Last month I stumbled across a bear so I grabbed my camera for a pic and there was another fully grown bear within 20 meters of me. I only had enough spray to handle one bear and think of how often we see multiple bears together.

I usually walk around with an iPhone playing music in my pocket to make some noise and I wanted to pump it up a bit so I put big speakers in my back pouch. Big mistake, I have never been more scared of bears when I can't hear them coming! I now have bells on my vest at all times.

Now i carry an 870 express tactical with me at all times. I have an extended mag and I alternate buckshot and slugs in there. At first i used a sling but it kept catching on trees and i was scratching my stock and barrel. Using a sling it would be very slow to prepare for a charging grizzly, especially if i am wearing a helmet for the ATV because i would have to take my helmet off before i could get the sling over my head. I just put on a pistol grip and bought a sac for my back (gunny sac?) and it is GREAT! I can wear my cruisers vest over top of it and draw my short shotgun real quick anytime. also i don't have to worry about scratching my new gun or junk getting in my barrel.

As for Parks, make sure you check the hunting regulations for park specific details. For example, Sugarbowl Grizzly Den Provincial Park near Prince George BC allows people to carry firearms only during certain parts of the year.
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Its interesting how location determines the effectiveness of various tools. Bear bangers are pretty effective the way they are used around here, providing the bear in question hasn't been cracker shelled to the extent that it is no longer an effective deterrent. Down south I'd be concerned about them starting fires, but I get what you say about the bear feeling safe once its in thick cover. We've found that bangers, screamers, and rubber bullets used in combination move bears along right smartly, where as attempting to scare a bear off with live fire appears to be much less effective, on polar bears anyway. They kind of give you a look like you've insulted them and grudgingly move off stiff legged a few yards, then go back to what ever it was they were doing, and now you've got one less round in your gun, and the bear is pissed. The key to using a banger is not to drop it on the far side of the bear. If the bear is too close, put it up in the air.

Note the cracker shell passing the bear on its length . . .
DSC00320.jpg


Bear spray on the other hand I don't/won't carry. If the bear is so close, and its behavior so dangerous that spray is going to be employed effectively, the bear has to die. I'll go with my ATC gun, as a 325 gr gr bullet fired from a dozen feet is not effected by the ever present wind we have here.
 
It makes me sick people even have to ask if it is legal to carry a firearm to defend themselves. One day things will be better.
 
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